#Scene Breakdown

[vrihedd]

Animation breakdown 🎥

Made in Spine2D.

[mikehasmilk]

Shout out to

4 Savin' da day!!!!

[bekolxeram]

The sheer number of times Eddie is mentioned when Buck comes out to Maddie has been pointed out time and time again. Some take it as a sign that Buck is subconsciously in love with Eddie, some see it as foreshadowing for these two to be romantically involved in the future, while others simply think it's an Easter egg left in by writers as a nod to shippers.

The way I see it, there is a reason why Eddie keeps being brought up in this scene, but it's not what you think.

If you've rewatched this scene as much as I have, you'd remember that Buck actually isn't coming out to Maddie on purpose in this scene. He originally goes there to talk and ask for her advice, because he feels bad about the hot chicks incident when Eddie walked in on him and Tommy at the restaurant.

In fact, he fully intends to keep the identity of his date hidden. He can't even risk Chimney getting wind of it, in case he or Eddie puts two and two together and figures the whole thing out.

Maddie is always there to talk things out with her brother, but she would never turn down a chance to gossip.

He completely dodges Maddie's question and quickly changes the subject. He needs to tell Maddie the full story of his disastrous date, but he can only refer to Tommy as his date, or "this person". The more he does this, the higher the risk of slipping up, Maddie would likely ask more questions about this mysterious person as well, so Buck frames the whole narrative around the only person he can safely refer to: Eddie (and Marisol, but she isn't important in this story).

Maddie picks up on Buck's secrecy, now she really wants to know who this person is and why Buck refuses to reveal their identity. Buck again immediately shuts it down, and brings the topic back to Eddie.

While I'm sure Buck feels bad for lying to his best friend, especially when there's no reason to expect Eddie reacting with anything less than acceptance, when Buck starts actually talking about his behavior and what upsets him the most, it isn't really about Eddie. He's ashamed of himself for lying right in front of Tommy. In fact, he's so upset over Tommy cutting the date short and leaving him on the curb that he accidentally uses a gendered pronoun.

Maddie "I am 9-1-1" Han makes a career out of being a good and thorough listener, so of course she notices the pronoun. From this point on, the subject of the conversation shifts from Eddie to Buck's newly discovered sexuality, and later, Tommy.

Buck knows he goes to Maddie because he feels bad, but he still hasn't fully processed the fact that he's into men too and what it means to him. He's still calling himself an ally, a supporter of queer people, but he's confused as to why it doesn't seem to apply when it comes to himself. Maddie correctly points out that he's no longer just an ally, and the recency of his discovery might have been the cause of his strange and panicked behavior during the date.

This is the prime example of acting turning the same line into different meanings. The first "wow" seems to me like Maddie is finally connecting the dots. She practically raised her brother, it's not unlikely that she has previously witnessed Buck having boy problems. I feel like it's a "wow, everything makes so much sense now" wow. It looks like Buck takes a little offence at it and asks Maddie to clarify what she means by "wow". Maddie tells him it's more like a "wow, this is a nice surprise" wow.

Oh, boy is completely clueless. Maddie is just trying her best to keep up with Buck's increasingly oblivious statements.

Buck suddenly brings up Tommy, probably because he hasn't been able to stop thinking about him since the kiss. Apparently, he's so attracted to Tommy both physically and as a person, it makes him realize his interest in men, something no other has achieved thus far. Maddie recognizes the name her brother has been harping on for the past few weeks.

Poor Maddie must be so confused. First her brother and husband-to-be keep talking about how cool this pilot who saved everyone is, then he becomes Eddie's friend and Buck gets all jealous about it. Most recently, Maddie is horrified by Buck's action on the basketball court, because he only has a history of hurting himself to get someone's attention, not the target of his attention seeking. And now Buck has gone on a date with Tommy? So Maddie decides, one step at a time, let's not get ahead of ourselves. Buck initially tells Maddie about lying to his best friend and how he feels like a fraud, so she tackles (no pun intended) this part first.

If you come into this scene with preconceived notions, the word "feelings" being in proximity to the name Eddie may seem like to you that Maddie is pointing to "Buck's misplaced romantic feelings towards Eddie". But if you put these lines into context, Buck simply isn't sure of how he feels about his bisexuality in general. In fact, the only thing he's certain of in this entire conversation is his attraction to Tommy. Maddie also isn't bringing up Eddie out of the blue because she thinks her brother is secretly in love with his best friend. Again, Buck originally does want advice about lying to Eddie, albeit partly using his name to avoid revealing his date's identity, so Maddie gives it to him now, no need to read too much in between the lines, especially after the "wow" exchange.

Now that the Eddie stuff is out of the way, Maddie can comfortably gossip about Buck's new hot pilot crush. And Buck looks absolutely smitten at the mere mention of Tommy.

Eddie is undoubtedly a very important person in Buck's life, and it must be killing Buck inside for lying about something so important to his best friend. Though in this scene, Buck seems to be mostly using Eddie's name to circumvent the necessity of mentioning Tommy's name and to deflect any probing question about his identity. Once he accidently lets it slip that he was on a date with a guy, he pretty much drops the whole Eddie act entirely.

[xplore-the-unknwn]

This scene...

Noa mourning his dad was so heartbreaking to see. I was expecting him to cry like a human would. But him kneeling and curling up like a ball, The way his eyes shift thinking and taking it all in and silently shedding tears was so impactful. The silence was loud! 💯

Turns out Owen did some research on how Chimpanzees understand the concept of death and how they mourn.

and it made the scene more heartbreaking! I love that they're giving alot of thought into bringing Noa to life. Its just perfect. 👌

[rainbow-sunshine-unicorn]

The entrance scene to Lady Danbury’s ball is one of my most favourite scenes from Season 3 because there’s so many little details, and interesting tidbits that show the dynamics between these characters beautifully.

But I feel like a lot of these small but important details are missed, simply because this scene is a really quick one. So, let me breakdown some of my personal favourite bits from this scene:

Starting with, Anthony entering, proudly with his Viscountess on his arm. His head is held high and there’s even a spring in step. He’s so freaking happy to be walking in with Kate!!

But, besides being Kate’s proud husband, he’s also Francesca’s worrisome big brother and so he turns around check on her and when he sees that she’s feeling apprehensive, he holds her hand and tucks it into the crook of his elbow to remind her that he’s right beside her, to support her

While, Anthony comforts Francesca, Kate keeps the attention off them by dealing with all the polite courtesies and by complimenting Lady Danbury’s skills as a hostess.

Which distracts Lady Danbury from Anthony and Francesca long enough to preen at her Ball and also gives Anthony another convenient reason to keep falling deeper in love with his wife

Benedict and Colin are on their best behaviour because they are in Kate’s direct line of sight and she’s smiling sweetly at them and they absolutely will not be the reason she’s disappointed.

And for once, Violet Bridgerton is simply looking forward to a Ball

[mimokome]

I Hear You… But I Can’t Follow You

Season 2 Episode 8 Time Stamp: 10:15–30:45 — Vi & Cait. Cait & Jinx. Vi & Jinx. Then Vi & Cait again.

Core Emotion: Missed connections. Care spoken in the only way they know how. It’s about speaking from the heart. It’s everyone trying to be understood in the best way they know how — and trying to connect with someone completely different.

I’m not claiming this is canon or fact. This is just how I read it. What I felt. What landed — and what didn’t. Everyone brings their own scars to a scene like this.

Vi & Caitlyn — The Argument That Wasn’t

Caitlyn’s locked in now. She’s no longer unsure. Her tone is steady, her eyes focused. She’s stepping into her role — but she’s colder for it. Maddie’s still hovering close, trying to play the emotional support card — but we know what she’s really doing. She’s stalling. Still working for Ambessa. Caitlyn is done being played.

Vi walks in. Maddie’s eyes flick with immediate disdain. She moves toward Vi — but Caitlyn shuts it down hard. She makes the call: Maddie’s not needed here anymore. She cuts Maddie off, tells her to check on her father. The air shifts. Her tone is clipped — polite, but it bites. That jaw tension and narrowed eyes say everything. That subtle, commanding “go check on your father” is Caitlyn reclaiming the room.

Vi doesn’t even acknowledge Maddie. Just scoffs and shrugs her off with a shoulder raise as she walks past. Doesn’t stop. Doesn’t engage. Just wipes her off like old dust. Maddie leaves — but keeps the door cracked, because of course she does. Always watching.

Now it’s just Vi and Caitlyn.

What follows isn’t some dramatic blow-up. It’s layered. Heavy. Controlled. It’s two people with entirely different value systems arguing over the same person.

Vi defends Jinx with everything she’s got. Says she saved Caitlyn’s life. Risked herself in the middle of the Viktor battle — not for strategy, but for Vi. Caitlyn pushes back — Jinx wasn’t there for her. She was a contingency. Something Vi snuck in without telling anyone.

“You still can’t trust her enough not to shove her in a box.”

That line from Vi stings because it’s true. Not just for Caitlyn — for all of Piltover. She’s not just defending Jinx. She’s condemning an entire system that doesn’t see beyond someone’s damage. This isn’t just about Jinx being a person. This is Vi screaming, “She’s all I have left.”

Caitlyn defends herself like she always does — logic-first, safety-first, duty-first. She says she’s withholding judgment. That she’s “waiting for Vi to recover” before deciding what to do with Jinx.

But that’s the thing. Jinx isn’t a case file. She’s a person. A deeply fractured, hurt person just trying to be seen without conditions.

Vi softens: “Cait… she’s changed.”

And Caitlyn — leader of Piltover now — sighs and says, “We can’t erase our mistakes. None of us.” It’s fair. But also cold.

Vi walks off with one last line:

“Who decides who gets a second chance?” And then? We sit in it. That silence.

Vi walks out of the room, but not like a soldier — like someone walking out of a hospital room after hearing a diagnosis they already knew was coming. Her chest is still high, her jaw still set — but her eyes are gone. No target. No solution. Just the slow acceptance that sometimes love doesn’t fix shit. Not when you’re the only one still holding on.

We follow her down the hall.

No music. Just footsteps.

No answer. Just silence. Just the weight of everything they won’t say to each other.

Caitlyn & Jinx — Depression Doesn’t Always Yell

The tray clatters against another. Untouched food.

She’s just curled up, knees tucked in, eyes lost in some far-off place that isn’t here anymore. There’s food near her. Untouched. Because even survival doesn’t feel worth the effort.

This isn’t rage. It’s what happens after. After you’ve burned every bridge, said everything wrong, and realized the only person still sitting with you… is the voice in your own head.

That’s where Caitlyn finds her.

Not in chains. Not foaming at the mouth. Just quietly bleeding under her own skin.

I’ve been there. Like really there. Not mad, not crying — just straight-up nothing. No emotion, no hunger, no energy. Just… off. Like someone unplugged me. You don’t care about anything. Not the messages piling up. Not the food. You’re not even thinking “what’s the point?” — you’re just not thinking at all. Days blur. You skip work, you stop checking in, people fade off because they don’t get it. You’re not avoiding them — you just don’t have the fucking strength to even be a person. That shot of her curled up? That blank look? That’s not overacting. That’s exactly what it feels like. You don’t blow up. You just shut down. It’s not dramatic. It’s dead quiet. That version of me wasn’t loud. It didn’t cry. It just stopped showing up. And I think that’s what scared me most — how long I stayed there without a single person noticing.

Jinx hasn’t eaten. Hasn’t moved. She’s just sitting there — knees to chest, eyes distant, body still.

This isn’t fury. This isn’t chaos. It’s collapse. She’s numb. Not fighting. Not pleading. Just… hollow.

“If you’re here to kill me,” she says, monotone, “make sure to finish the job.”

It’s not bravado. It’s not sarcasm. It’s surrender. She genuinely doesn’t care anymore. When someone like Jinx stops moving — stops reacting — that’s not peace. That’s the bottom.

Caitlyn speaks about pain, justice, consequences. She’s still trying to talk to Jinx like she’s a threat. Still standing behind Piltover’s wall of order.

Jinx curls tighter. Picks at her fingers. Blood starts to drip. A physical manifestation of everything she doesn’t say. Caitlyn’s words going past her, still not understanding.

“Do what you came here to do,” she mutters.

That’s not defiance. That’s someone asking for it to be over — because hope ran out a long time ago. And that’s the most dangerous place a person can be.

Not when they’re screaming. Not when they’re fighting.

But when they’re quiet. Because that means they’ve stopped looking for a reason to stay. This is the grief that eats you. The kind that settles in your bones. The kind where nothing — not even survival — feels worth fighting for.

Caitlyn finally lets the wall drop a little.

“Hating you… I hated myself. I just don’t have the energy for it anymore.”

It’s not forgiveness. It’s not closure. It’s fatigue. Two people who’ve both been eaten alive by this for too long. It’s the closest she’s come to empathy. Not understanding — but exhaustion. She’s tired of the cycle too. And it’s not just that she’s tired. It’s that she’s finally admitting Jinx lives in her head too — and maybe always will.

Jinx looks up. Not defensive. Not angry. Just… soft. Tired.

“I didn’t know your mom was there,” she says. “It probably wouldn’t have made a difference… but I didn’t know.”

It’s not an apology. It’s an admission. A reflection of just how gone she was — and still is.  Caitlyn walks away. Not triumphant. Not resolved. Just broken too. So what’s left, when even pain doesn’t move you? You go back to the last voice that made you feel like you were still someone

Jinx & Silco — The Voice in Her Head

Left alone, Jinx holds the Arcane gemstone. Her “choice.” She doesn’t smile. Doesn’t react. It’s just another reminder of the pressure she never asked for.

She starts talking to Silco. He’s not there. But the words are. This is her wrestling with the voices inside — her having her own conversation. This is her using the last voice that ever chose her without asking her to change.

“Imprisoning your sister… a greater mercy than killing her.”

“Killing isn’t mercy.”

“A spark of rebellion still burns inside that husk, I see.”

“No. Killing is a cycle. I’m done running in circles.”

Silco — her — says:

“We build our own prisons… bars forged of oaths, codes, commitments. Walls of self-doubt and accepted limitation. We inhabit these cells… and call them ‘us.’”

And this? This is Jinx realizing that the real prison wasn’t a cage or a city or even Piltover. It was expectation. The boxes she’s been shoved into. Powder. Jinx. Monster. Tool. Savior.

She doesn’t flinch. Doesn’t cry. Just stares through the wall like there’s nothing left on the other side of it. No more versions of herself to wait for. No more hoping someone tells her who to be. She’s done. And she’s already halfway gone.

Vi & Jinx — Love Sometimes Means Letting Go

Vi breaks in. Literally. She stole the cell keys from a guard. She unlocks the door. Runs to Jinx. Hugs her.

For a second — a brief, fragile second — it looks like this might be the moment that fixes things.

Then Jinx punches her in the gut, grabs the keys, and locks her in the cell.

“You don’t have to worry about me anymore. You don’t need to feel guilty about being happy. You deserve to be with her.”

She’s not yelling. She’s not angry. She’s just — done.

“There’s no good version of me.”

And the worst part? She believes it. Fully. Deeply. Like there’s no world where she isn’t a burden. Like choosing to disappear is the only act of love she has left to give.

Vi, breathless:

“What are you going to do?”

Jinx, quiet:

“Breaking the cycle.”

And she walks away. She’s not running. She’s not exploding. She’s just letting go — because she thinks that’s the only way Vi will ever be free.

Vi & Caitlyn — The Aftermath

Vi’s pacing. Rage, confusion, grief all boiling over. She’s wrecked. Scrambling for anything to blame because if she doesn’t, the truth might crush her.

Caitlyn shows up. Calm. Present. Just confirmation that she knew this might happen.

“I was a fool to trust her.”

But it’s not anger. It’s fear. It’s the fear that this time, she really did lose her. That maybe Jinx meant it. That maybe this is how it ends.

Caitlyn already knew this would happen — and she even helped. Because even if it was doomed, she knew Vi had to try. Caitlyn didn’t believe this would fix anything. She knew how it’d play out. But she let Vi go anyway — because that’s what care looks like when you can’t fix someone. You let them do the thing they need to do. And you stand there after, holding whatever’s left.

“You’ve grown predictable,” she says.

And weirdly? It’s the kindest thing she could’ve said. It means: I know you. I believed in what you’d do.

They lean into each other. Kiss. Touch. Breathe. For once, they stop arguing and just exist. For once, no words. Just two people who ran out of ways to fix everything — and finally chose to just feel instead.

What This Episode Is Really Saying

This episode isn’t about redemption. Or closure. Or love. It’s about expression. About what it looks like when people speak their truth — filtered through their history, trauma, and damage — and still end up misaligned.

Everyone in this episode is doing their best to be understood. They’re not lying. They’re not hiding. They’re just speaking in the only way they know how.

Caitlyn explains through structure and justice — she talks like a soldier trying to stabilize a world that keeps spinning off the rails. She’s trying to show care and emotion, just filtered through logic and systems.

Vi explains through action — through fists, movement, confrontation. If she’s fighting for you, she thinks that means she’s said enough.

Jinx doesn’t explain. She doesn’t plead. She speaks through stillness, through walking away, through choosing silence because nothing she says has ever changed anything.

None of them know how to put their emotions into words.

They do understand each other — to a point. That’s the hard part. There’s clarity here. It’s just not shared vision.

Caitlyn sees a threat. Vi sees her sister. Jinx sees two people trying to decide who she’s allowed to be — and chooses neither.

No one’s wrong. They’re just standing on different ground. And sometimes? You can understand someone completely — and still disagree with everything they stand for.

This episode isn’t about winning an argument.  It’s about showing up anyway. Saying your piece. Letting the silence hang. And learning that sometimes the closest you’ll get is: “I hear you… but I can’t follow you.”

And that? That’s still real. Still human. Still worth sitting in — even if it doesn’t end with anyone being saved.

Because sometimes the real tragedy isn’t that they couldn’t save each other — it’s that they actually understood, and still couldn’t walk the same path. That’s what stayed with me. Just all the words that couldn’t land clean. And how much they still meant anyway.

My core take-away?

Let’s learn to look deeper in how some people say things and not exactly what they say. You can learn a lot when you stop taking everything at face value. Sometimes the cruelest part of finally understanding someone… is realizing it still didn’t change a damn thing. And walking away doesn’t mean you didn’t care. It just means you cared — and hit the wall where caring couldn’t carry it anymore.

Written by: Jordan Waltz

Yeah, I used GPT to help tighten it up — my grammar sucks. But the framing, the tone, the emotional weight? That’s me, baby  If it hit, thanks :D  I put my whole ass heart into this — I just don’t know how to spell worth sh — ..

Disclaimer: All rights to Arcane, its characters, and related imagery belong to Riot Games and Fortiche. This is a non-commercial analysis intended for educational and commentary purposes.

[speakgermanhier]

Sorn and Tai's Scene Breakdown

Spoilers for ep 9 of My Stubborn ahead.

The following is going to be my very long breakdown of the confrontation scene between Tai and Sorn because I think there is a lot of interesting things going on and it is sort of the culmination of 9 episodes of secrecy between two very close friends. One thing I really like about this show is how, the more times you watch a scene, the more is revealed and the better the performances become and this is a truly pivotal moment for Sorn. I think it is worth a closer look.

Ok, so, here we go. The scene starts at 35:42 with Sorn bringing food for Jun because he assumes Jun is at Tai's house--an assumption Jun hadn't corrected him on.

Tai is sitting while Sorn is standing and this gives Sorn the height advantage. It doesn't last long, since Tai stands up, but Sorn still goes with an aggressive, dominant approach, demanding to know where Jun is. And we know this approach won't work because of the camera angle. While Tai is even with the camera while he talks.

The camera is above Sorn, looking down on him as he postures. He is not the one in control of this confrontation, he just doesn't know it yet.

And, as per usual with Sorn, he is using very rude/casual speech here. Even when referring to Jun, if my listening comprehension is serving me right, he uses มัน [man] which is a very rude way to refer to a person. And Tai uses the same. In fact, it isn't until 36:28, almost a minute into the argument, that Jun is even referred to by name. Which is when Champ finally catches on to some of what's happening.

And Sorn is still all bluster, trying to bulldoze through Tai to get to what he wants but Tai has no obligation to defer to Sorn's demands. As the camera angle has already revealed, Tai, though he speaks softer and appears calmer, is the one controlling this exchange and his position is higher than Sorn's.

Tai calls Sorn out for his behavior and calls him a coward and this is the first break we see in Sorn's dominance and aggression that he uses like a shield around himself. It is also the first straight on shot of Sorn's face since the argument began.

Sorn then gives the same excuse to Tai that he has been telling himself for who knows how long and that he told Thanu. It's a flimsy excuse and he gets punched for it. The punch comes at 37:31, almost 2 minutes into the argument and I think it's significant that he is not getting punched because he had sex with Jun.

Mali's father in episode 8 kicked/pushed Sorn for touching his daughter and the teaser for episode 9 made it seem like Tai would punch Sorn because Sorn had sex with his little brother but that's not actually how the scene plays out.

Tai already knows Sorn has had sex with his little brother from the start of this scene and it isn't until almost 2 minutes in, when Sorn uses Tai himself as his excuse for not admitting his feelings for Jun that Tai punches him.

And this, right here, is one reason I wanted to write about this scene. Because, for 9 episodes now, Tai has been Sorn's excuse for both treating Jun well AND Sorn's excuse for not committing to Jun further. And that's convenient and all until Tai is standing right in front of Sorn, refusing to be his excuse; demanding Sorn to figure his shit out. I mean, to have your walking talking excuse to be noncommittal to just turn around, go up to you and say "Commit or leave, you idiotic coward" is a great storytelling choice!

We have these goods friends, on opposite sides of a fight, with Champ stuck in the middle trying to be the mediator, and Tai is not mad Sorn had sex with Jun, per se. He's mad Sorn played with Jun's emotions and used Tai as his excuse to do it. And while Sorn is established to be a stubborn idiot, he can't easily ignore what Tai is saying when Tai has been his excuse all along and now it is Tai himself taking that excuse away from him.

And now here, a minute after the punch, Sorn finally stops demanding, stops posturing, and shows his true, pathetic self. And, for Sorn, this is about as polite as we've ever heard him. He still refers to himself with rude/casual speech but he actually uses Tai and Jun's names instead of the rude pronouns he had been using up until this point.

And, again, Tai won't let Sorn continue lying to himself, Jun, and those around him. He demands Sorn be honest and the moment we've been waiting for for 9 episodes comes at last. Time stamp 39:10, nearly 4 minutes into the fight.

And this is the other reason I wanted to write about this scene. Because on my first viewing, this struck me as very easy and anticlimactic. Sorn continues.

Translation note, Sorn is back to referring to Jun as มัน [man] and what he actually says here is "I like him so much I don't know what to do." I'm not a translator or anywhere close but I know there is a constant debate when translating, do you go for the literal word for word translation or more of the intent of what is being said? Given that, I think this change in what Sorn said is interesting. I also think "I don't know what to do" is more accurate to Sorn, tbh.

And finally, we get the moment when Sorn actually hears himself what Tai, Champ, and the audience just heard and the dawning realization of what that means. And I really wish I knew how to GIF because Boat's acting here is subtle and great: the startled blink followed by the slight widening of the eyes in realization. Time stamp 39:57, go see some beautiful acting.

To me, Sorn's "fine...I like him" could have been just Sorn placating Tai, not a true admission. Like, the denial is strong in this one, and while Tai broke down a lot of Sorn's barriers during this confrontation, I still don't think Sorn was fully ready to say he actually likes Jun. So, it's like he told himself, "Just say you like him, you know you don't, not like that, but if you say it, Tai will let you see Jun," and so he half-heartedly is like, "Fine...I like him." But, once he said it, even if he thought he didn't mean it, it's been said. The words he's been stopping himself from saying, the feeling he's been stopping himself from acknowledging, it's out there, he's put voice to it and now that feeling, that truth, can no longer be ignored.

So, here, I think this is the true confession. There's so much more emotion in Sorn's voice when he says this, I think I even heard a hitch in his breath before saying it. And honestly, he sounds kind of devastated.

And it's so absolutely fitting that it is Tai that gets Sorn to this point because it was his imaginary version of Tai that would forbid any true relationship Sorn might want with Jun that Sorn used to deny his feelings for so long.

Time stamp 40:03, the fight is over. That's not even 5 minutes but it felt like a much longer scene. And what I first thought of as a little anticlimactic, I now see as a rollercoaster of emotions for Sorn.

So, if you're still here with me after all of that, let's just take this moment to appreciate a well blocked, well acted, and meaningful scene that, at first, seemed a little anticlimactic but, actually, was kind of a genius way for Sorn to begin facing the consequences of his actions.

TLDR: While at first, I kind of thought Sorn admitted his feelings too easily, after analyzing the scene more fully, it is kind of poetic justice that Tai, the embodiment of all of Sorn's excuses in how he treats Jun, is the one to demand Sorn own up to his own feelings.

[countlessmoviethoughts]

//SPOILERS FOR ARCANE SEASON 2

It could be nothing, but I love thinking about how the dark outfit we all love so much on Jayce makes him seem so isolated in the big fight scene in the council room.

Think about it…

The scene starts out with him and Mel getting into a fight over Mel’s perceived deception against Jayce. Not only are they at odds in terms of what they’re discussing, but also visually in their outfits.

(The quality of these photos are so bad I’m sorry, I got these off YouTube 😭)

Mel is wearing her gorgeous white outfit, and Jayce is wearing exclusively dark colors. It’s such a striking contrast both to Mel and to all his other looks in the show up to this point, when I first saw him in it my initial reaction was a deep sense of dread.

But besides that, these outfits are the most textbook contrasts of each other out there, immediately putting them at odds. And then when Viktor shows up?

This is ofc pre “Glorious Evolution” Vik, so he’s in an automaton/doll body of one of his transformed followers. Where the color scheme is, once again, white and gold and contrasting Jayce’s outfit completely.

Him and Mel aren’t on the same side obviously, but it’s interesting to see how the two people that Jayce fights with in this scene are in similar/same color palettes, visually setting them apart from him.

It’s also interesting how after this, white is incorporated back into Jayce’s color pallet, almost signifying that he’s back to being a team player (for lack of a better term).

Which is ALSO interesting because it puts him solidly on Mel’s team as she wears white until her big fight with her mother. But after this is also when Viktor finally transforms into, Yknow,

This, where there’s no hint of any light colors and definitely no white, once again contrasting the white in Jayce’s coat.

The only time we see those light colors come back is in everyone’s hair in the… inner world? Is that the right term for it?

Which is where the two of them eventually reconcile and fix everything!

I can even link this back to S1 real quick (because I was looking for better photos for this) and you can see that white is used as a way to tie them together as partners even then with them both being in white vests with similar accent colors!

Anyways, thank you for coming to my Ted talk, this could be the ramblings of a deprived Arcane fan, or it could be something! I’ll let y’all decide :))

[fuckyeahisawthat]

Please, talk about the Gom Jobbar scene

Oh hell yes.

So this is one of those posts that really should be a short video essay of me talking over the scene but instead it is gonna be a loooooong wall of text and screenshots. Maybe it will assume its final form some day if I'm ever in possession of the free time and patience to make video essays. I also highly recommend watching Denis Villeneuve's own breakdown of this scene from 2021. I'll try not to duplicate things said there.

We have to start with the setup, which begins with this scene:

We see Jessica on her knees, in the rain, waiting for an arriving ship. These are the first shots in the movie where we see Jessica when no one else is watching her, and this woman who stood calm and composed before representatives of the Emperor of the Known Universe is terrified. Which creates an immediate sense of dread over whoever is coming in that ship.

Whomst in the fuck now?

We also get this shot where we're alone with Jessica. It's a little hard to see in a still frame but there's a moment where she, like, steels herself before she wakes Paul up.

Holy fuck tho, I just noticed the similarities between this shot and the one of the Bene Gesserit arriving, with the almost monochromatic color palette and the shafts of white light.

Once Paul wakes up we shift to his POV. He immediately knows something is off ("What's wrong?" is the first thing he says) but gets no information about what's happening.

Then we get this short scene, where Paul is told he is going to meet the Reverend Mother and but not much else about what's going on. The whole "She wants to know about your dreams." "How does she know about my dreams?" [no answer from Jessica] exchange, I think, implies that she knows because Jessica told her about Paul's dreams, which is this little tiny betrayal of confidence that gives Paul the first inclination that his mother may not be someone he can fully trust in this situation. Which is exactly what Dr. Yueh warns him about immediately after.

We also get two new languages used in this scene. Dr. Yueh speaks to Paul in Mandarin, which he understands and presumably Jessica does not. This gives us a piece of information about Paul's curiosity toward other cultures and his facility with languages. And Jessica uses the Atreides battle sign, which Paul also understands. Outside the library, Jessica pauses to give Paul one more silent warning, although she still hasn't told him what's about to happen.

This is just the setup. So before we've even entered the room, we've created this sense of unsettled foreboding dread (the Denis Signature Vibe) without a clear understanding of why things are happening--which is exactly how Paul feels.

I should also add that in the book, this scene takes place during the day, with the Reverend Mother sitting in front of a window. Shifting it to the middle of the night not only makes it way creepier but also tells us that (1) the Reverend Mother is the kind of person who can command Jessica's attention at any time of day or night and (2) this is all somewhat illicit and possibly is happening without Leto's knowledge.

Whomst in the fuuuuuuck?

We get this sort of weird POV shot of Paul crossing the room when it's not actually happening:

which I think is supposed to suggest some subtler form of control than the Voice, which Paul resists.

Before they've even properly entered the room, Mohiam manages to insult both Paul's parents ("defiance in the eyes, like his father" and dismissing Jessica with a curt "leave us"). And the first thing Paul says is to defend his mother's place in the social hierarchy ("You dismiss my mother in her own house?") with all the haughtiness you would expect.

The power dynamic gets rapidly clarified.

Momentary aside to say that I love the composition of this shot. Neither of them are quite on the third--they're just a bit too close to each other to make the shot look balanced. But neither of them are in center frame either--the box is in the center. They're not exactly aligned to the light gray columns between the bookshelves behind them, either, and the bookshelves are just slightly asymmetrical. It all makes things feel just a little claustrophobic and unsettling. Denis Villeneuve frequently uses this technique of creating unbalanced shots and intentionally leaving too much space in awkward parts of the frame to create a sense of unease.

Paul isn't kneeling in the book either--he's standing beside the chair in a setup that I don't think would actually work given the heights of the actors here, or would look awkward as hell. So they've solved a practical blocking problem and done some storytelling with it as well.

This is where we get our first look at the Voice at full power, and it's one of only two scenes where we get some subjective POV of what it feels like to be Voice-controlled (the other one being Feyd-Rautha and Lady Margot's interaction which deserves its own post). I really like that they didn't go for Voice Slow (zombie shuffling across the room) because Voice Fast is much more disturbing. The subjective experience of it seems closest to like, blacking out and waking up in a place or doing a thing and not knowing how you got there. The camera effect is just a really fast dolly and a slick edit, but Timothée really sells it with his split-second moment of confusion and shock before he realizes what happened and gets angry about it.

So now we're here, with the poison needle and the pain box.

"No need to call the guards. Your mother stands behind that door. No one would get past her."

This is a slick fucking piece of editing. Because just as Paul is learning that his mother has not only trapped him in this situation but is ensuring it continues uninterrupted, we cut to Jessica for the first time since she left the room and we see how absolutely terrified she is.

Also from this point, the sound in the film starts crossing the barrier of the door--we hear some of the dialogue between Paul and Mohiam when we're on shots of Jessica, and when the pain sound effect starts up, we hear it continuously on both sides of the door. So even though Jessica is not literally experiencing the pain, it feels like she is vicariously.

It would be really easy to tip the balance of sympathy in this scene one way or the other--toward Paul who's realizing his mother has handed him over to a painful and potentially lethal test, or toward Jessica who is listening to her child scream in pain and not only cannot stop it but is tasked with making sure it continues. But Denis Villeneuve is an absolute master at controlling and directing your POV in a way that allows you to feel sympathy for multiple characters at once and engage with complicated, contradictory emotional landscapes, and this is a little demonstration of what he's going to do on a much larger scale later in the story.

Timothée's pain acting...is excellent, that's all I'll say about that. Love that he's allowed to get all gross and drippy with it.

Now we get to the litany against fear.

Jessica starts it specifically in response to hearing Paul scream on the other side of the door. So, practically, she is using it to control her own fear. But the way the scene is intercut, it plays as if she is almost coaching or guiding Paul into controlling his own reactions. With every line that she says, we cut back to Paul as he is starting to master the situation.

"I must not fear." Paul is not in control here and seems about at his physical limit for keeping his hand in the box.

"Fear is the mind-killer." This is the one where it really seems like he could be reciting the same litany in his head or under his breath.

"Fear is the little death that brings obliteration." We don't really see Paul's face in the accompanying shot, but the pain sound effect really goes into overdrive, like she is pushing him harder.

"I will face my fear and I will permit it to pass over me and through me." Seems like Paul is getting to some kind of Zen place or whatever where he can withstand the pain.

This is when the first flash of vision pops up and the balance of power starts to shift in Paul's favor. We realize it at the same time both he and the Reverend Mother do.

Then we have this great moment where he looks up at her and we don't quite know what is happening but somehow Paul has started to win this interaction. And we go through a whole Face Journey with him that's intercut increasingly rapidly with Jessica's lines, flashes of the visions, and Mohiam's reaction as she starts to realize she's lost control of the situation.

"And when it has gone past--"

"I will turn the inner eye to see its path--"

"--and where the fear has gone, there will be nothing--"

"Only I will remain."

This part is great because like...nothing is happening. He just looks up at her. But we know that whatever battle is going on between them, Paul is winning now.

(Side note: this is a duel, right? This is his first of three duels, and like the duel with Feyd, he wins it on his knees.)

Then as soon as she says, "Enough," the facade cracks again a little.

And then he does the thing!! That is one of my favorite Paul physicalities!! Where he tilts his chin up so he can look down his nose at someone. Which is particularly audacious when you're on your knees.

It looks arrogant but there's also something a bit...childish? about it. It's something that he does specifically when he feels he does not have control of the situation and he's trying to regain it. He does it to the Emperor at the end of Part Two.

Anyway I LOVE the whole section of intercutting between Jessica and Paul because like. They are physically separated by a door but emotionally they feel connected. She put him in this situation, but then it's almost like she is reminding him that she also gave him the training to survive it. Which like, isn't that a microcosm of their whole fucked-up relationship?

"...You inherit too much power."

"What, because I'm a duke's son?"

"Because you are Jessica's son. You have more than one birthright, boy."

Almost all the dialogue from this scene is taken word for word from the book (although sometimes condensed). This is one of the few lines that got changed. In the book, Jessica is the one who reminds Paul that he is a duke's son--not her son. In general the movie dialogue is more faithful to what's in the book than you might expect. But every once in a while there is a line that feels like it's talking back to the original text like this.

There's another little emotional reversal right at the end of the scene, when Jessica comes in and her face just floods with relief at realizing Paul is still alive. But meanwhile you can see that Paul is really processing how betrayed by her he feels.

And then, after all that, they do talk about his dreams.

Denis has said in interviews that this was one of the very first scenes they filmed. Which is. Insane to me. This is an iconic scene from the book that every fan will come to with expectations and it's a really hard acting job! For everyone involved but especially for Timothée, because so much of the scene turns on him having an intense reaction to something that's not real and generally just...doing stuff with his face, and hoping that the sound design and the score and some scenes that haven't been shot yet will sell what's going on. Usually you would want to work up to an intense emotional scene like this, give the cast and crew a little time to get comfortable with each other. Nope! Anyway Denis has also said that he knew after this scene that he had cast correctly and yeah. I would say so.

[littlelord]

griping that blood & cheese was “underwhelming” and not as dramatic or gorey as in the books is an indicator to me that a person has very little empathy or even emotional intelligence because the show’s scene zeroed in on EMOTIONS. it didn’t need to be gorey because did you fucking SEE Helaena’s face??? her eyes?? her trying her best to negotiate with the men despite having little knowledge or practice of typical real-world interaction? her choked “no,” before completely dissociating and pointing at her child whom she knows will die as a result? her slowly pull herself out of her own head to get her only remaining child and escape? her covering jaehaera’s eyes and whispering “please… please,” as she walked through the empty corridors? it didn’t NEED to be bloody because as it stands it was HORRIFIC

[melbatron5000]

More crap about story rules

I dunno if this is helpful, but I read somewhere that Tumblr is just talking to yourself until someone goes, "Oh, I like this," so here goes. It helps me to get this sort of stuff out and be able to reference back to it.

I'm a novelist. I write speculative fiction, primarily urban fantasy with a dollop of mythopoeia (wanting to lean more towards the mythopoeia, but anyway). Neil is definitely a role model of mine, and has been since I was 19. Terry came a little later for me, in my mid-twenties. I'd read Good Omens by then, but believed Neil had a heavier hand in it than Terry did (Ha!). Once I finally picked up some Discworld, I was hooked for life.

I also recently learned I have ADHD, so not only is traditional institutional academia not my thing, I also have trouble sussing out meaning and details from things unless I have specific instructions on where to look. Once I have that in hand, I often go on a tear and find things that I never imagined were there, and frequently surprise not only myself but others. But I absolutely have to have that first step laid out for me in order to make more of my own.

When I first started writing in the 80s (yes, I'm old), I started looking around for the elusive "story structure" I'd heard about vaguely from other writers. I really couldn't find anything written down about what constitutes the steps of a story, the journey a hero must take for a story to be told start to finish. The other writers I'd heard discuss it didn't have concrete ideas for me (lots of hand-waving and "oh, you know"s), so I figured I'd find it in a book somewhere.

I found a little something about structure from Greek philosophy, but that mainly boiled down to stories needing a "beginning, middle, and end," like, duh, and not a lot about what made those three parts up. As a very basic story-telling model, it is incredibly concrete and important, but it's something we've known for thousands of years by now so it doesn't exactly light up the night sky with insight anymore. It's become such common knowledge that it almost doesn't seem like knowledge. I found more from Joseph Campbell, but a lot of what I found written by him was very airy and sort of dream-like, and hard to follow. So I gave up and muddled along the best I could.

About ten years ago now, I decided to try again, and found a whole ton of stuff written about story structure, from Greek philosophy decoded to Shakespear's five-act structure to The Hero's Journey first talked about by Joseph Campbell to modern Hollywood 3-act structure. Around about 2010 there was an explosion of work done on story structure, and damn if it wasn't eye-opening.

My favorite book so far on structure is The Story Grid by Shawn Coyle, because he has broken down all the various types of structure into very concrete, easy-to-comprehend steps that make sense. He talks about exactly where there is wiggle room, exactly where there is not, the general shape of a story in comparison to the general shape of the five stages of grief, what precisely constitutes a scene and what the sequence of scenes has to be to tell a whole, complete story. (In case you're interested, my next favorite book on structure is Save the Cat! Writes a Novel. It fills in a few holes that The Story Grid misses, and together they make a beautifully complete map of how to tell a good story.)

My favorite, in particular, are the Five Commandments of Storytelling. Each scene, each act (however many you want, I like 4), and the story as a whole, all have to follow the Five Commandments. These are elements that have to be present for a scene to work, and for a story to reach its beginning, middle, and end satisfactorily.

Inciting incident. This is something that happens that forces the main character to change course, take action. It has to be either an Act of God, or another character acting on the main character.

Progressive complications. The main character forms a plan to put life back in order and tries it, but is blocked. They have to regroup and form a new plan. Threes in storytelling are always good, but the main character must be blocked until they reach the Turning Point Complication, where they realize that in order to move forward and have a hope of getting where they want, they must make a hard choice. Often the hard choice is that they must do The One Thing They Didn't Want to Do, though the introduction of new information will drive this decision as well. New information can come from another character, or be realized by the main character as a result of the action.

Crisis. They reach the decision point, where they must choose one thing over another. The decision must be between two irreconcilable good things, where they can't have both; or the lesser of two evils, where they can't escape both. The Crisis can also be boiled down to a "what will they do?" question. They're going to have to pick, but they're going to resist before they choose, and that creates tension which keeps the reader invested.

Climax. They make their choice. It's really that simple. They pick.

Resolution. The consequences of their choice are laid out. In a scene, this means the inciting incident of the next scene is introduced because of the character's choice; in an overall story, this leads to the end of the tale where our hero emerges, having learned whatever it was that the author deemed they needed to learn.

For example, Aziraphale is listening to music when a knock comes at the door. (Inciting incident) He forms and enacts a plan -- answer the door, probably hoping to get rid of whoever it is quickly. It's Gabriel. (Complication) He forms and enacts a new plan -- find out what Gabriel is doing here. Gabriel says he doesn't know. (Complication) Gabriel asks to come in. (Complication) Aziraphale forms and enacts a new plan -- tell Gabriel no. Gabriel says oh-kay and turns to the people on the street. (Turning point complication) Now Aziraphale has two bad choices -- bring Gabriel inside, or leave him to wander naked around Whickber street doing God only knows what. (Crisis) He chooses what he thinks is the lesser of two evils -- he tells Gabriel to get in. (Climax) Now Gabriel, possibly Aziraphale's worst enemy, is inside his home, the book shop. (Resolution) And because this is a scene, this Resolution is also the inciting incident of the next scene.

This can go different routes, as when the inciting incident rouses curiosity or creates a promise of something the character wants, instead of inflicting discomfort -- although if a character wants something bad enough, deciding to say no to pursuing it could inflict discomfort, so that counts, too. The inciting incident just means that something happens so that the main character can no longer keep living life as it was. Something has to change, and they have to change it. In the end, it all boils down to something outside the main character knocking them off course, them deciding how to try to get back on course and failing, and what happens as a result. (Beginning, middle, end!)

A good way to create a mystery is to hide the Inciting Incident from the readers/viewers. Or at least, the Inciting Incidents of certain character and scenes. In the above example, we see Aziraphale's Inciting Incident, but we don't see Gabriel's until episode six.

I believe we haven't seen the Inciting Incident of Crowley and Aziraphale's storyline for season 2. It seems like Gabriel showing up is the Inciting Incident for the entire season, but I believe his arrival is a Complication, not the Inciting Incident. As far as what the original Inciting Incident was, well, first and foremost, the Resolution of season 1 would naturally lead into the Inciting Incident of season 2, just as a scene would do for the scene following it. So there's one Clue. As for the answer -- we just have to keep looking where the furniture isn't.

I hope this story breakdown was interesting to someone. I find it completely fascinating, but I am a story nerd, so maybe what I like and find interesting isn't up everyone's alley.

Cheers!

[vrihedd]

Animation breakdown, made in Spine2D.

[cadencewishes]

🧷 ✧ ˚. ᵎᵎ

[bekolxeram]

I'm usually very block happy, but sometimes a couple of hot takes from the opposite side of the fandom manage to slip through. I'm no saint, I admit I do get quite worked up at first, but after some time, I realize they give me new perspectives to scenes I've watched countless times and discover things I didn't pick up before. So this one is for all of you, staunch Tommy haters, thank you for enriching my viewing experience.

In 7x04, when Tommy goes to Buck's loft to talk things out, this line gives some people the ick, because it echoes what Taylor said in 5x05. In that episode, Buck thought his team was off because they blamed him for Chimney leaving. He talked to Taylor about it, she shared her own experience with her boss being sulky around her, and it turned out her boss was just in a lot of physical pain, she ended the conversation with "maybe not everything is about you". While what she said was absolutely right, and she made an effort to make Buck feel appreciated at the end of the episode, but I can also see Buck not feeling supported emotionally at the time the conversation occurred. In a fashion true to her profession, Taylor delivered it in a very blunt, direct and advisory way. Her being right did not cancel out Buck feeling insecure about everyone acting weird around him and him not knowing why.

What Tommy says here though, is in a a completely different context.

Before all of this, Tommy has already reassured Buck that he's not trying to replace him, that his place in Eddie and Christopher's life is irreplaceable.

Look at Buck's smile, he's apparently in a better mood than before. It's like a weight has been lifted off his shoulders.

So going in this next part, Buck is more receptive to what he frankly needs to hear: Eddie isn't hanging out with Tommy because Buck did something wrong, he just enjoys Tommy's company.

We've witnessed Buck's growth over 7 seasons, now he can recognize that getting jealous easily is one of his character flaws, he tends to overthink and make other's action personal when he's feeling insecure in a relationship. He's telling Tommy this probably to signal that he understands he messed up and he understands what he did wrong. He never expected Tommy to validate his feelings.

But Tommy does empathize with his predicament.

Buck doesn't understand what Tommy, the cool, confident (and hot) pilot would be jealous over. And he almost can't believe Tommy gets what he's been feeling.

Tommy tells Buck that he's envious of the ride-or-die familial bonds within the 118 nowadays, as if he didn't also put his career and life in danger just to save Athena and Bobby (probably Hen's career as well), after one phone call from Chimney.

Now it's Buck's turn to reassure Tommy.

Another hot take I've seen from the other side goes like "if Tommy was nicer to Hen and Chimney back in the days, he wouldn't have to be jealous over what the 118 has now". You know what? Judging by Tommy's face here, he probably would agree. This is not the face of a man who is proud of what he did. This is the face of a man who is burdened by guilt and regret, this is a man haunted by his past, this is a man who doesn't think he deserves the praise.

Buck even cites fake mouth static as an example of Tommy's effort in aiding the 118's clandestine rescue mission, and they naturally fall into a flirty dynamic. I have no explanation for that, except, your honor, this is exhibit A against the "no chemistry" allegation.

Buck then spells it all out for Tommy that he also put everything on the line just for the 118, without hesitation. Tommy looks like he still has a hard time accepting it as an act worthy of redemption for his past behavior.

We've all made mistakes, and we all know we can't go back to the past and change what we did, so the best way forward is to change ourselves and be better. Judging by Tommy's "and [Gerrard] didn't make me a better person" line in 7x10, he quite possibly reflected on this a lot. Yet, sometimes you still can't help but doubt yourself over if you've learned enough from your past, if you're a good enough person now. I can't imagine how good it feels hearing Buck say out loud that he actually likes the person Tommy is now.

Apparently Buck likes Tommy so much that he came up with excuses just to hang out with him and get to know him.

Tommy is pleasantly surprised, because he did tell Buck to call him when he wants to go up. In fact, Buck can call him for whatever reason, Tommy accepted the Harbor tour request, there's nothing indicating that he would feel weird just hanging out with Buck. Tommy just doesn't know how much of a overthinker and bi disaster Buck truly is yet, but that's the story for another time.

Buck and Tommy really don't know much, if anything, about each other at this stage, as you can see in 7x05, but they're already validating each other's feelings. We've seen Buck get his feelings ignored, hurt, dismissed and kind of fetishized for 6 seasons, now this is something he's been looking for the whole time, for someone to understand what he's going through. At the same time, this interaction must also be quite freeing for Tommy, who's been haunted by demons from his own past.

[rosegoldorigins]

Lego Monkie Kid Season 5

(Rant incoming... and guess who it is?

Li Jing. Of course it is)

______

Nezha: Dad these three are not-

Li Jing: Control yourself

Control yourself?!?!? Bro what?!?!

He didn’t say “silence” he said control yourself??!?!

As in “You know better than this”, “You are acting out”, “Don’t let you emotions/morals overcome you”

Nezha doesn’t need to “control himself” He doesn’t need to be a perfect neutral being.

He’s always strived to protect, guard and do the right thing. He meditates and spends years doing his duty.

The threat of his father's disappointment was always whether or not he could "control himself”?!?!

Whether he could look good (like in front of the underworld judges) and swallow his own desires in order to fulfil his duty?

His dad is giving I know this feels wrong and harsh but you need to do hard things for the greater good.

"Control yourself” means get it together this needs to happen (chaining Wukong).

I can’t imagine the effect those words would have on Nezha as he grew up.

(Parents don’t care about age they will put their principles and ideals on a three year old.)

Imagine child Nezha acting as children do and his father saying “control yourself”.

The shame of being a normal kid and then being called “undignified” by your father.

How much was Nezha denied in his self expression?

How often did he need to think about his image and how others would perceive him because his dad said it was more important than anything else?

Li Jing put his job above his son.

“Control yourself” I will not have an unruly child.

“Control yourself” Do not ruin my image.

[lavender-twilight23]

X-MEN DOFP SCENE DETAIL THAT I’M GOING CRAZY OVER:

@alien--cookie, I thought of you while writing this post since I know you are interested in/want to go into film like me! 😝

So today I'm talking about the scene between old Charles and young Charles in Days of Future Past. A phenomenal scene, beautiful, stunning, moving, emotional, every positive adjective possible to describe this amazing scene. BUT the cinematography is REALLY cool and it’s making me so goddamn emotional as I’m sitting down to analyze it.

Me, a film student, to every Tumblr user who reads this:

GET IN LOSER WE’RE *ANALYZING A FILM SCENE*

I want to talk about three things:

Camera focus (this one isn’t necessary just me, I saw a YT comment or something point this out a long time ago, I don’t remember)

Shot type

The 180 degree rule (description below courtesy of the StudioBinder website):

"The 180 degree rule is a filmmaking guideline for spatial relations between two characters on screen. The 180 rule sets an imaginary axis, or eye line, between two characters or between a character and an object. By keeping the camera on one side of this imaginary axis, the characters maintain the same left/right relationship to each other, keeping the space of the scene orderly and easy to follow.

When the camera jumps over the invisible axis, this is known as crossing the line or breaking the line, and it can produce a disorienting and distracting effect on a viewer."

In the beginning of the scene, the 180 rule is set up:

We have our two titular characters set up, their location, their spatial relation to each other, all that jazz.

Then we have this shot up from underneath...

...while old Charles is saying, “Sometimes we all need a little help.”

That is a perspective shift for young Charles.

THEN:

THEY BREAK THE 180 RULE AND OLDER CHARLES IS NOW IN FOCUS.

To maybe signify that perspective shift and the new direction the scene is going???

And as they go about the scene and old Charles is giving advice to young Charles, young Charles is being imbued with all this knowledge and wisdom and the shot gets tighter and closer on each of them as we’re getting more up close and personal with them. We’re getting a more intimate look into their lives and their emotions, so the shot choices reflect that:

And there we go. Yet another reason why I love this scene, and by extension Days of Future Past, so much. X-Men has my heart.

Share your thoughts! 😎