cc00-cinema - Tumblr blog

[cc00-cinema]

Minari Lee Isaac Chung (2021) // I Will Mitski (2014)

[cc00-cinema]

I love how mob psycho 100 has absolutely zero time for that your 'i love violence twisted fucking cyclepath' types, your 'i want to destroy everything because i CAN' type villains, and just stawartly refuses to portray them as mysterious or compelling as other shounen action anime does, refusing to present it as anything but dumb and pathetic and quite frankly, extremely childish. like they are called out quite explicitly by its protagonists, by reigen in s1 and then mob in s2 (testament to mob's character growth tbh that he can do this by s2) for never maturing past the logic of middle schooler. like the central philospphy of the show is that to grow as people you have to recognise the worth and value of others & your bonds with them, and for that reason so many of the antagonists come across as stunted children and immature adults. like even the antagonists that quickly heel turn towards joining the main cast (e.g. teru, dimple to some extent) have these most ridiculous god complexes that are defeated partially by being revealed as at core as ridiculous and are thus ridiculed to learn a degree of humility (dimple becomes a little snot gremlin spirit, teru has his hair journehy) before they can grow. often this ridicule is achieved by a character saying 'why the fuck are you fighting a middle schooler. you're a grown adult. this is ridiculous loser behaviour' but sometimes it's way more visible, e.g. the 7th division leader getting their mask pulled off to reveal an aged adult (far older than the kid we expected, from their voice) who then has a literal *tantrum* about how the world shoild be theirs, it's mine it's mine it's mine, where the discrepancy between their age and behaviour is striking. like this egoistic mindset is ultimately a child's mindset - little children are self-centred, still see the world in terms of 'me me me', and while we allow little children this to a degree because they're still learning about the world, in an adult it is truly just pathetic. they are losers! and it's not afraid of saying it!!

what's interesting is that mob psycho actually adds nuance to this perspective outlined in season 1 during the mogami arc where mob gets to experience a version of life where he is isolated, and lonely, and has no one to turn to, and there is sympathy for why middle schoolers might develop a certain misanthrophic outlook where they want to see the whole world burn, to resort to violence and to prioritise selfish desires - but it is still ultimately *wrong*, and mob just has to be reminded of the existence of kindness to believe so. that experience if anything allows mob to develop his compassion for others and confidence in his convinctions (rather than repeating reigen's teachings - good teachings, mind - about not using powers against others as he did in s1) than before, and he tries to grow from that painful experience, eventually reaching a level where the villains by the end of s2 appear less emotionally mature and grounded then the teenage protagonist. they're still pathetic, but it's less a site of ridicule and more a site of pity now, a shift from comedy to drama.

anyway. it's philosophy towards villains and refusal to like, let them be cool because they like hurting people (wtf) or want to destroy the world (wtf) for some unhinged reason and just calls them out for being total losers is SO refreshing in a genre which likes to go 'oooh look at my fucked up creepy antagonist who likes pain'. it's a breath of fresh air.

[cc00-cinema]

[cc00-cinema]

The Subtle Horror of Evangelion

What keeps us all hooked to Eva time and time again? You get through your initial, confused watch of either Evangelion endgame, probably sometime in your adolescence wondering what the hell it is you just watched. The original source material is suffused with unsettling imagery, and sometimes too-close-for-comfort shorts. It’s so much to process that one watch is never enough. The imagery isn’t enough, however, because the mid-to-late-90s series comes with things you’ll pick up the more you focus on certain characters’ struggles or the interesting world-building. They arise little by little with every re-watch, adding onto what interested you in Eva to begin with.

There’s always that little voice asking you “What it is that really draws me here?”

Oh. The horrors.

The tragedy of it all.  

These things never leave you the second you bear witness to them, whether you become aware of them or not. You’re disturbed over it, a tad worried, no doubt, but you’re strangely hooked.

Horror works better on limitation, it’s why found footage capturing pale, ghastly, monstrosities of the deep wood will always stand as exponentially terrifying. While most all of us have taken cracks at Eva’s budget at some point, that’s what really drives these terrors home. Its low budget nature made it work.

Evangelion has commentary which forces a viewer to reflect. Most no one enjoys that. It’s the fear, however, that has its audience come back. Evangelion’s reflection alone isn’t what gives Eva it’s charm decades after its run. It’s the little things, most everyone misses, the anxieties, the terrors, all of it. Most of those things, fly over a lot of fans’ heads.

Buckle up, there’s a lot to go through…. (warning for mentions of abuse, body horror, means of suicide, nudity, blood, and gore)

Keep reading

[cc00-cinema]

Newman’s Nook: What’s in a Name?

I first watched Neon Genesis Evangelion as an 18 year old, new to the anime medium. Bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, I was just enthralled by all the large-scale combat between the angels and the Eva units. With the series dropping on Netflix, I decided to re-watch the series in 2020. Let me tell you, now as a Dad in his thirties, my focus shifted from the action toward the themes of depression and acceptance, instead, as well as to the heavy use of Christian symbolism. This got me to wondering something—what’s the deal with the name of the series? So, I decided to dive further into the meaning behind the name and what I found was interesting.

Neon

Neon is one of the basic elements of the periodic table of elements. However, that’s not the “neon” being described in the title of the series. This iteration of neon is akin to the English language prefix neo. Both the prefix and this “neon” have their roots in the classical Greek word “neos.” Neos generally translates into English as new, fresh, or recent. We see this prefix used in English in words such as neonatal (location of new birth), neoliberalism (modern liberalism), or Neolithic (literal meaning “New Stone Age”).

So, from a literal word root perspective, the first word in the title can basically be inferred to mean “new.”

Keep reading

[cc00-cinema]

Lady Bird (2017) dir. Greta Gerwig

[cc00-cinema]

Takeshi Kaneshiro in Chungking Express (1994) dir. Wong Kar-Wai

[cc00-cinema]

TAXI DRIVER (1976) dir. Martin Scorsese

I saw in your eyes and I saw the way you carried yourself that you’re not a happy person. And I think you need something. And if you want to call it a friend, you can call it a friend.

[cc00-cinema]

[cc00-cinema]

GOODFELLAS (1990) dir. Martin Scorsese

[cc00-cinema]

Good Will Hunting (1998) 

[cc00-cinema]

[cc00-cinema]

WALLACE WELLS. Drunk homosexual.

[cc00-cinema]

STUDIO GHIBLI + FOOD

Spirited Away (2001) When Marnie Was There (2014) Howl’s Moving Castle (2004) Ponyo (2008) Kiki’s Delivery Service (1989) From Up on Poppy Hill (2011)

[ part 1 ] [ part 2 ] [ part 3 ]

[cc00-cinema]

“From where I stand, the sun is shining all over the place.“

Singin’ in the Rain (1952) dir. Stanley Donen & Gene Kelly

[cc00-cinema]

[cc00-cinema]

covered in blood tommy shelby…? sign me up