#with closeup because this format is The Worst on this website | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

hexxalite-hecate · 4 years

Text

I saw CATS 2019!

I’m pretty sure no-one asked for my review, but here it is. I am a positive person and I was predisposed to like this film, but that doesn’t mean I didn’t still have issues. I’m 50/50 at the moment. Lots of stuff didn’t land for me, but other things I LOVED.

I have a lot of feelings ok.

I found the way they started the movie… slightly underwhelming? Idk how to articulate this, it’s weird. I do like the concept of Victoria being tossed away in the sack and the tribe singing the opening number as if they’re questioning her. But I felt like there wasn’t much buildup before slamming STRAIGHT into a full on dance number with a screen full of indistinguishable cat figures, which I think is why a lot of people experienced that “what the fuck is this” feeling in theatres, especially if they weren’t familiar with the show. I think it might have been more effective if they’d slowed up and used the show’s format of having characters creep onstage in ones and twos, some lingering closeups on faces, their lyrics being their introduction, instead of smashing us in the face with a homogenous chorus that’s very difficult to pick individuals from. It doesn’t help that they gave the chorus cats very little diversity in fur colour or distinguishing marks.

The CGI… oh man. I legitimately thought this wouldn’t be one of my gripes, because I can deal with a lot of uncanny valley and I have a forgiving imagination. But I wasn’t prepared for the CGI to actually look UNFINISHED. The cockroaches looked like chunky mesh files with low res textures. Their faces looked pasted on using one of those ‘Make Yourself Into Santa’s Elves!!!’ websites. I have a feeling this is going to date very badly because it already looks like it was made 20 years ago by the same people who worked on the Scorpion King.

The cats themselves were good in closeup – beautiful in fact – but it was the wide shots and background characters that the CGI seemed to struggle the most with. It felt like they just ran out of time and didn’t have the budget or the experience to realistically render over all those complex dance moves. Having said that, Victoria is full on, knock-out beautiful. I think 90% of the CGI budget went on her and it wasn’t wasted.

Something about the music bothered me. I watched a few reviews that broke it down - this one aligns most closely with my opinions - and I think this is a twofold problem. First of all, while many of the actors have good voices, there were moments where they came across as weak or wavery, and I’m not sure why. The quality of sound felt a bit flat and dead, like they’d been stuffed into a cupboard filled with soundproofing equipment. Nearly every note is cut off quickly, making even the largest numbers sound lacklustre and underwhelming – maybe it’s because I had Helen Massey’s spine-tingling rendition in mind, but Victoria’s delivery of “like a flower as the dawn is breaking” during Memory was a huge disappointment. I know they’re singing from poetry, but a lot of the time it sounded as if they were literally just reading off a sheet with very little variation in intonation (The Jellicle Ball is especially guilty of this). It is possible to recite lines of poetry without sounding monotonous.

Secondly, the actual instrumentation isn’t up to scratch in my opinion. It sounds tinny and synthy, like it was recorded in a 16 year old’s bedroom with a drum machine and an 8-track. The opening song was the worst for this, in my opinion. Like the recited lyrics, it sounds like it’s been programmed in. The tempo is samey and feels a little too fast for me. There’s no lingering notes; no emotion in the instrumentation.

The only song I really liked was Mungojerrie and Rumpleteazer’s slinky slow jazz switchup, which everyone else seemed to hate. Go figure. But I actually thought it fit these new Mungo and Rumple characters perfectly. They seemed a bit darker, a bit more dangerous. Their duet was more sultry and subtle, so the lack of reverb and big orchestrals didn’t seem out of place. It also allowed their dialects to shine without them having to shout cockney rhyming slang in each other’s faces. Idk, it worked for me. Skimble’s number was good, but I feel it was less the actual instrumentation and more the staging of the performance and talent of the dancers that made it work. Same goes for Bomba’s Macavity.

Also PHEW. I AM HERE FOR SEXYSHANKS. Glow up! When did tapdancing become sexy? DURING THIS FILM IS THE ANSWER. Also did you notice him putting on his tapshoes backstage during Gus’ song? I liked that.

Something else positive! I LOVED the choreography of the Jellicle Ball (minus the body-popping which I could really have done without). There were so many talented dancers in this production. I really liked how they did all this, like, huffing and purring? It just sounded different and raw, tense and exciting, and for the first time I believed these characters were really into this. You could hear the dancers breathing as they worked. I LOVED that.

Victoria’s dance during the Ball was beautiful. Her new solo number was pretty as well. Francesca Hayward put so much emotion into her whole performance; her face is so expressive. She was the perfect choice. It was a total joy to watch her. Honestly, for me, she and Robbie Fairchild were the stars of the show from a performance arts standpoint.

Speaking of Robbie Fairchild, something I hadn’t expected was the insane chemistry between his Munkustrap and Francesca’s Victoria. Munk comes across as infatuated with Victoria from the second he lays eyes on her. This was an interesting addition. It’s not lampshaded as clearly as Misto’s crush, but particularly in the first half, Munk reads as possessive and almost jealous (“Where have you been!?”) and he’s always finding excuses to touch her and interact with her. There are a LOT of lingering held gazes and face touches, especially in The Naming Of Cats. I kind of dig it?

Someone suggested the alternate title of this movie should be “Victoria’s hot girl summer” and I’m so here for that

I loved Judi as Old Deut. Obviously she can’t sing but as most of the voices are more low-key in this production, it didn’t seem out of place. Ian was equally fabulous as Gus; he acted his little fluffy ass off. I also loved how they portrayed Misto as admiring him and learning from him, one performing cat to another. They way Misto copied his little ‘touch wood’ ritual was adorable. I really liked this addition to the story.

I wasn’t mad at the Mistoria – I kind of shipped them as a tween before I understood Misto’s chemistry with Tugger, and Tugger was completely neutered in this production anyway (I wonder what the reason for that was). Bomba being Macavity’s lackey was a strange departure, but I’m glad they tried some new stuff – if I wanted the stage show, I’d watch the stage show. It felt weird not to see Bomba and Demeter together though. And it would have felt absolutely wrong to have Demeter as a lackey as well.

While I love Idris Elba and I love Macavity’s design (before he lost that hat and coat, that is), about halfway through he stopped working for me. I think, strangely enough, his new lines and material felt too… childish? Which seems like a ridiculous complaint for a movie about singing dancing cats. But CATS has always been a bit sexual, a bit ethereal, and Macavity’s hokey villainy seemed more at home in a Scooby Doo episode. I think it makes the movie feel a bit confused, especially for the general public who aren’t familiar with the musical. Is this movie for kids or adults? If it’s for adults, why does the villain sound like he’s one pokemon from wailing “Team Rocket’s blasting off agaaaaaaain!”? If it’s for kids, why are these cats so horny??

Although it does make me laugh when people pearl-clutch about how horny the 2019 cats are, when the 1998 orgy scene exists on Youtube for all to find.

Despite some misgivings, I actually really liked the movie and I think it will grow on me each time I see it. It will probably never replace the 1998 version for me, but why should it? The existence of one doesn’t nullify the other. There’s room for both of them. Every stage production of CATS has its own quirks and differences, so why shouldn’t this?

I think we can all agree that Jenny’s creepy zip-up skinsuit can be consigned to the mists of time, though.

#cats the musical #cats 2019 #review #opinion post #long post

15 notes · View notes

liaflowerwall · 5 years

Text

The Worst Advices We’ve Heard For Fire Lily | Fire Lily

The Worst Advices We’ve Heard For Fire Lily | Fire Lily – Lilies are extremely elegant plants which have clearly been treasured and loved for a new very long period of time. These kinds of are just a few of the reasons why a lilies bouquet is usually a great addition to any kind of household.

Lilies bloom during summer, and have an amazing scent, which is used to attract bees, butterflies and other pollinators. They may be very popular the globe over, have been voiced of in literature and painted by famous painters. Even today, a lilies bouquet is very properly received because of the flowers’ beauty.

Lilies were first described on a tablet coming from Sumeria about 5000 yrs ago, where they have been described to surround a city. Yet , the Vergine lily, as an example, was handled with much respect by simply the Minoans, who related it with the empress Britomartis. Of much better importance it was to the particular Greeks, because they related it with Hera, typically the queen of gods. Furthermore, their mythology tells that this lily first appeared on Earth after Hera’s breasts milk stained the skies, creating the Milky Method, and a few falls of it fell down to the ground. Those droplets, the legend goes, grew to become the first lilies.

As a matter of fact, the very word “lily” comes “lilium”, its name in Latin, which came from from “leirion”, its name inside Greek. Later on, the Romans also started to be able to share the Greeks’ respect for the flower, and attached it in with their particular own queen of gods. Even one of their own poets, Virgil, who resided between 70 to 19 BC spoke of the flowers in some of his poems.

A lilies bouquet is yet a very effective messenger, because of the particular things lilies symbolize. In order to the Greeks, they meant birth and renewal, primarily because they associated it with the legend associated with Hera. On the additional hand, they represented chastity and innocence for the Christians, who associated the blossoms with virgin Mary. Additionally, the three petals of the lily flower is usually considered to represent the trinity. Whichever meaning speaks to you, body fat denying of which they are a very positive symbol.

When organizing a lilies bouquet, take away leaves around the comes, as having them marine will only end upwards making the water murky and the whole agreement will become unappealing. And then, cut-off about 2 centimeter from the stems, and carry out so in a diagonal line to increase the assimilation area. If possible, support the stems underwater while carrying out the cut to avoid formation of air bubbles within them. As the particular stamens in the flowers develop, make sure to cut them because when dropping, they will end upward staining everything they contact. Finally, replace the water every single few days through adding flower food, in order to be able to make sure that the lilies arrangement are always well fed.

Together with such a history behind these people and such beautiful connotations carried in their solid petals, it is zero surprise that lilies are usually loved a great deal. Many will certainly tell you that these people like the flowers’ shape, or even their amazing scent that will can easily fill an entire room, but will be certainly so much more to be able to them than the way they will appear. A gift — for someone, or regarding yourself- of a lilies bouquet is an excellent reminder associated with love and evidence of focus that will certainly provide a smile even about the saddest face.

The Worst Advices We’ve Heard For Fire Lily | Fire Lily – fire lily | Encouraged to our website, in this time period I’ll provide you with with regards to keyword. And today, this can be a primary graphic:

Beautiful fire Lily flower closeup – fire lily | fire lily

Why not consider image earlier mentioned? can be that wonderful???. if you believe so, I’l l teach you a number of photograph yet again beneath:

So, if you desire to acquire all these awesome pictures about (The Worst Advices We’ve Heard For Fire Lily | Fire Lily), simply click save link to save the pictures to your computer. They are available for obtain, if you want and wish to get it, simply click save symbol on the post, and it will be immediately saved in your notebook computer.} As a final point in order to gain new and latest picture related to (The Worst Advices We’ve Heard For Fire Lily | Fire Lily), please follow us on google plus or save this blog, we try our best to present you daily up grade with fresh and new pictures. We do hope you like keeping right here. For most up-dates and latest news about (The Worst Advices We’ve Heard For Fire Lily | Fire Lily) photos, please kindly follow us on tweets, path, Instagram and google plus, or you mark this page on bookmark area, We attempt to provide you with update periodically with all new and fresh pictures, love your searching, and find the right for you.

Thanks for visiting our website, contentabove (The Worst Advices We’ve Heard For Fire Lily | Fire Lily) published . Nowadays we are delighted to announce that we have found a veryinteresting topicto be reviewed, that is (The Worst Advices We’ve Heard For Fire Lily | Fire Lily) Most people trying to find details about(The Worst Advices We’ve Heard For Fire Lily | Fire Lily) and definitely one of them is you, is not it?

Amazon.com : 4 Premium Bulb – Gloriosa Lily, Glory Lily … – fire lily | fire lily

Fire Lily 4 – fire lily | fire lily

Fire Lilies – fire lily | fire lily

from WordPress https://liaflower.com/the-worst-advices-weve-heard-for-fire-lily-fire-lily/

#lily flower #fire lily avatar #fire lily clothing #fire lily cosplay #fire lily flower #fire lily me

0 notes