#baz thompson

[thehardgroove]

a blonde Jo Bench and the rest of the greatest gang

[spilladabalia]

Bolt Thrower - Cenotaph

[slowsweetlove]

A Year in pictures/music 2023

In 2022 I had the idea to make an Austin Butler advent calendar.

I loved the process of making it so much that I decided to commit to a whole year of AB pictures with a corresponding song. And while January brought a lot of heartbreak for Austin (and in my personal life) I managed to plan out the first half of the year. I took a little break from working on it because frankly, I needed a lot more new pictures of Austin to show up. I thought that may happen after the Oscars and with the release of 'Masters of the Air', 'The Bikeriders' and 'Dune 2'. Alas all these projects were pushed back. But by the end of July I had all the pictures I needed and found all the lyrics I wanted to go with the pictures.

Finding the corresponding songs wasn't an easy task and something I underestimated. I tried to have no doubles but a few are there. I hope you'll subscribe to the spotify playlists. Maybe you find some new (to you) songs that you really like. And frankly it would mean a lot to me personally to know that some of you from the Austin fandom appreciated the effort it took to create this.

All in all, I am happy to have accomplished this project.

A special shout out to @klizzie93 for reblogging (I think) almost every single one of these. It means the world to me. <3

For the constant likes a special thanks to @blurredcolour, @ab4eva, @kendralavon7, @areacodefan, manicpixiedinonuggies, @kingdomforapony, @caughtinatrapicantwalkoutbecause and many many more.

Every heart these posts got made me happy and made me feel seen. Something that my RL lacks sometimes. So thank you all for getting on this journey with me. I'm truly thankful for this community.

Under the #a year in pictures & #slowsweetlove.2023 all the posts for this year should come up.

All the playlists of 2023.

January

February

March

April

May

June

July

August

September

October

November

December

Fun statistics:

The most featured band are Fleetwood Mac with six mentions

Runners up is a tie between Alanis Morissette, R.E.M. and Elvis Presley with each getting five mentions

'Layla' by Eric Clapton is the song I quoted the most (3x)

there's only one picture where you can't see Austins' head

[dopescissorscashwagon]

Presley Family & Friends

[awardseason]

Golden Globes 2023 — Film WINNERS

Best Motion Picture – Drama Avatar: The Way of Water Elvis The Fabelmans — WINNER Tár Top Gun: Maverick

Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama Cate Blanchett, Tár — WINNER Olivia Colman, Empire of Light Viola Davis, The Woman King Ana de Armas, Blonde Michelle Williams, The Fabelmans

Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama Austin Butler, Elvis — WINNER Brendan Fraser, The Whale Hugh Jackman, The Son Bill Nighy, Living Jeremy Pope, The Inspection

Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy Babylon The Banshees of Inisherin — WINNER Everything Everywhere All at Once Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery Triangle of Sadness

Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy Lesley Manville, Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris Margot Robbie, Babylon Anya Taylor-Joy, The Menu Emma Thompson, Good Luck to You, Leo Grande Michelle Yeoh, Everything Everywhere All at Once — WINNER

Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy Diego Calva, Babylon Daniel Craig, Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery Adam Driver, White Noise Colin Farrell, The Banshees of Inisherin — WINNER Ralph Fiennes, The Menu

Best Motion Picture – Animated   Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio — WINNER Inu-Oh Marcel the Shell With Shoes On Puss in Boots: The Last Wish Turning Red

Best Motion Picture – Non-English Language All Quiet on the Western Front (Germany) Argentina, 1985 (Argentina) — WINNER Close (Belgium) Decision to Leave (South Korea) RRR (India)

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in Any Motion Picture Angela Bassett, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever — WINNER Kerry Condon, The Banshees of Inisherin Jamie Lee Curtis, Everything Everywhere All at Once Dolly De Leon, Triangle of Sadness Carey Mulligan, She Said

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in Any Motion Picture Brendan Gleeson, The Banshees of Inisherin Barry Keoghan, The Banshees of Inisherin Brad Pitt, Babylon Ke Huy Quan, Everything Everywhere All at Once — WINNER Eddie Redmayne, The Good Nurse

Best Director — Motion Picture James Cameron, Avatar: The Way of Water Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, Everything Everywhere All at Once Baz Luhrmann, Elvis Martin McDonagh, The Banshees of Inisherin Steven Spielberg, The Fabelmans — WINNER

Best Screenplay – Motion Picture Todd Field, Tár Daniel Kwan, Daniel Scheinert, Everything Everywhere All at Once Martin McDonagh, The Banshees of Inisherin — WINNER Sarah Polley, Women Talking Steven Spielberg, Tony Kushner, The Fabelmans

Best Original Score – Motion Picture Carter Burwell, The Banshees of Inisherin Alexandre Desplat, Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio Hildur Gudnadóttir, Women Talking Justin Hurwitz, Babylon — WINNER John Williams, The Fabelmans

Best Original Song – Motion Picture “Carolina,” Taylor Swift (Where the Crawdads Sing) “Ciao Papa,” Alexandre Desplat, Guillermo del Toro, Roeban Katz (Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio) “Hold My Hand,” Lady Gaga, BloodPop, Benjamin Rice (Top Gun: Maverick) “Lift Me Up,” Tems, Rihanna, Ryan Coogler, Ludwig Göransson (Black Panther: Wakanda Forever) “Naatu Naatu,” Kala Bhairava, M.M. Keeravani, Kala Bhairava, Rahul Sipligunj (RRR) — WINNER

[doll-elvis]

I don’t care about her living off of Elvis but I kinda wish Priscilla didn’t erase his other girlfriends from his story like Anita Wood, Ann Margret, and Linda Thompson

this is an interesting topic for sure. I’ve wondered if anyone else has noticed that there is kind of a hierarchy in the elvis world regarding girlfriends and friends of elvis. and it can especially be seen by what elvis presley enterprises chooses to promote

like for example, Dixie Locke and Priscilla became good friends later on in life. And I think that has influenced Dixie Locke’s book being sold on the Graceland website and maybe even why she was shown in the Elvis movie. You would definitely never see something like Ann Margret’s book or Joyce Bova’s being promoted. I have noticed that elvis presley enterprises doesn’t want to put any attention on girlfriends whose time with Elvis overlapped with Priscilla’s, like Joyce Bova, Ann Margret and Anita Wood for example.

even at Graceland where Elvis’ tcb ring is displayed I heard that the tour guide doesn’t mention that the diamond on it isn’t the original, and that the original diamond is with Ginger Alden as it was used to make her engagement ring which she still has to this day. regardless of what you think of Ginger, to completely ignore her engagement with Elvis is crazy to me

As for Linda I was honestly really surprised that she had no mention in the Elvis movie at all. I understand the movie was more about Elvis and the colonel’s relationship but to ignore almost 5 years of Elvis’ life with Linda is crazy. But I think it was to show some narrative like Elvis was never able to move on from Priscilla, which I don’t think is true and is unfair to women like Linda, Sheila and Ginger who had significant relationships with him. Idk how much control Priscilla actually has, especially now, and from my understanding she wasn’t involved in the movie but I sometimes think maybe Baz did certain things to appease Priscilla but I can’t say for sure👀

I think all Elvis history is worth knowing, and it’s definitely not fair to just pick and choose

what do y’all think?

[chasingshadowsblog]

Review: Strictly Ballroom - Show Me Your Paso Doble

Title: Strictly Ballroom Directed by: Baz Luhrmann Written by: Baz Luhrmann, Andrew Bovell, Craig Pearse Cast: Paul Mercurio, Tara Morice, Pat Thompson, Billy Hunter, Barry Otto Year: 1992

Sometimes you start watching a movie and you know that you're not going to like it. It's not bad, it's not offensive, it's just not the film you were looking for in that moment...

THIS IS NOT THE CASE WITH STRICTLY BALLROOM

"Did I fail him as a mother?!" Baz Luhrmann opens his film with a series of interviews about an incident that occured at the Southern Districts Watarah Championships, in which main character and ballroom darling Scott Hastings blew his career by including non-regulated steps into his routine with partner Liz Holt. The world-building accomplished in this short segment is nothing short of exquisite. Not only is it very funny but the exaggerated reactions of Scott's friends and family throw the viewer into the deep end of the film's ballroom dancing world in a way that doesn't leave us confused, but completely understanding the level of scandal that Scott has incurred upon himself.

"I don't CARE about winning the Pan Pacific Grand Prix!" But Scott is no longer willing to compromise. He has something inside of him that he needs to put out into the world, even if it means killing his chances of becoming a champion. Enter Fran, a pimply, awkward but enthusiastic beginner who encourages Scott's new steps and defies all the rules of their world by approaching Scott and asking him to be her partner, "Look, a beginner has no right to approach an Open Amateur." "Yeah, well an Open Amateur has no right to dance non-Federation steps, but you did, didn't you?" Fran herself goes through little change throughout the film, having arrived fully formed as a young woman willing to call it as she sees it and who isn't afraid to put herself out there. Her feisty nature brings him back down to earth and while she might not be at the same level as Scott, Fran's passion for dance and desire to try something new is equal to his own.

Underneath Strictly Ballroom's main plot is a sweet and quiet love story between Scott and Fran, inevitable under the circumstances, but viewers would be mistaken to think that this is all the film is. The main story revolves around the maverick Scott and his defiance of the regulations imposed by head of the Australian Dancing Federation, Barry Fife, a plot which culminates in Scott launching himself onto the floor of the Pan Pacific Grand Prix in the costume of a bull-fighter, where he dances the paso doble with Fran - a Latin dance with connections to the military and bullfighters. Their initial practice of a rumba, a dance associated with love and sensuality, is over-taken by the more agressive and competitive paso doble as Scott frees himself more and more from the restrictions of the federation. Indeed, Scott has to re-learn the steps and soul of the paso doble from Fran's native Spanish father and grandmother, who laugh at his initial dance school version of the steps, "Show me your paso doble."

It is always interesting to see such a distinctive director's debut feature; while Strictly Ballroom is full of all the glitz, glamour and glitter that this world operates on, it is much less of a sensory overload than Luhrmann's later works like Moulin Rouge, The Great Gatsby and Elvis. Still, hints of the director to come can be found in the visceral world-building, Fran and Scott's magical dance in front of the Coca-Cola sign, and the glamorous costumes and over-the-top hairstyles of the dancing community. However, it in the quieter moments that the film truly shines; when Scott watches Fran's father dancing in the half-light of their back-yard with only clapping and a guitar for accompaniment or when Scott and Fran dance their beautifully intimate rumba behind the curtains, stripped bare of the costumery and drama of the competition floor. These are the film's most powerful moments, where Scott finally finds the passion, truth and intensity he's been looking for.

Other bits:

the way Scott, Liz, Wayne and Vanessa come out onto the ballroom floor at the beginning of the film like the popular kids that they are (chef's kiss)

"There was no doubt in anyone's mind that Scott and Liz would be the next Pan Pacific Grand Prix Amateur Five Dance Latin American Champions."

"Hi Liz! I thought you should have wo-" Fran gets punched by Liz (while we don't want to see Fran get punched by anyone the comic timing of this moment is inarguably hilarious)

"I want Ken Railings to walk in here right now and say, "Pam Short's broken both her legs and I want to dance with you!" "Pam Short's broken both her legs and I want to dance with you."

Tara Morice is so funny in this film, her timing is brilliant

Fran's excitement and Scott's pleasure and laughter at seeing her so excited when he tells her he wants to dance with her at the competition is such a sweet, beautiful little moment between the two of them (and likely the first time in a long time that Scott has enjoyed or been around someone who enjoys dancing in such an honest care-free way) (IMO)

"It was announced today her partner of ten years Nathan Starkey will be retiring because of commitments to his landscape gardening business."

"The inconceivable sight of Scott dancing with Fran!"

Fran's dad and abuela are wonderful

"Muy bien, Fran. Very good." I love this moment, the two of them dancing together and the surprise on his face

shout-out to cinematographer Steve Mason, MVP

Wayne's heroic leap to unplug the microphone

the soundtrack

I haven't seen his name brought up much when reading about the film but the choreographer is John O'Connell

fun fact: Scott's been dancing since he was six years old

[euphorial-docx]

golden globes nominations have been revealed, so here they are and also here are who i want to win (green) and who i don’t want to win (red):

BEST ACTOR, DRAMA:

austin butler - elvis

brendan fraser - the whale

billy nighy- living

hugh jackman - the son

jeremy pope - the inspection

BEST ACTOR, COMEDY OR MUSICAL:

daniel craig - glass onion

colin farrell - the banshees of inisherin

diego calva - babylon

ralph fiennes - the menu

adam driver - white noise

BEST ACTOR IN LIMITED SERIES:

evan peters - dahmer

taron egerton - black bird

andrew garfield - under the banner of heaven

sebastian stan - pam & tommy

colin firth - the staircase

BEST ACTRESS, DRAMA:

cate blanchette - tár

viola davis - the woman king

michelle williams - the fabelmans

olivia coleman - empire

ana de armas - blonde

BEST ACTRESS, MUSICAL OR COMEDY:

margot robbie - babylon

emma thompson- good luck to you, leo grande

michelle yeoh - everything everywhere all at once

anya taylor-joy - the menu

lesley manville - mrs. harris goes to paris

BEST ACTRESS IN A TELEVISION SERIES, DRAMA:

laura linney - ozark

imedla staunton - the crown

zendaya - euphoria

emma d’arcy - house of the dragon

hillary swank - alaska daily

BEST ACTRESS IN A LIMITED SERIES:

lily james - pam & tommy

amanda seyfried - the dropout

jessica chastain - george & tammy

julia garner - inventing anna

julia roberts - gaslit

BEST ACTRESS IN A TELEVISION SERIES, MUSICAL OR COMEDY:

quinta brunson - abbott elementary

selena gomez - only murders in the building

jean smart - hacks

jenna ortega - wednesday

kaley cuoco- the flight attendant

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR:

brendan gleeson - the banshees of inisherin

ke huy quan- everything everywhere all at once

eddie redmayne - the good nurse

brad pitt - babylon

barry keoghan - the banshees of inisherin

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS:

jamie lee curtis - everything everywhere all at once

angela bassett - black panther: wakanda forever

kerry condon - the banshees of inisherin

carey mulligan - she said

dolly de leon - triangle of sadness

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS, LIMITED SERIES:

jennifer coolidge - the white lotus

aubrey plaza - the white lotus

niecy nash-betts - dahmer

daisy edgar-jones - under the banner of heaven

claire danes - fleishman is in trouble

BEST DIRECTOR, MOTION PICTURE:

steven spielberg - the fabelmans

martin mcdonough - the banshees of inisherin

baz lurhmann - elvis

james cameron - avatar: the way of water

the daniels - everything everywhere all at once

BEST MOTION PICTURE, DRAMA:

the fabelmans

top gun: maverick

elvis

tár

avatar: the way of water

BEST MOTION PICTURE, MUSICAL OR COMEDY:

babylon

the banshees of inisherin

everything everywhere all at once

glass onion: a knives out mystery

triangle of sadness

BEST TELEVISION SERIES, MUSICAL OR COMEDY:

abbott elementary

the bear

hacks

only murders in the building

wednesday

BEST ORIGINAL SONG:

“life me up” - black panther

“hold my hand” - top gun

“naatu naatu” - rrr

“carolina” - where the crawdads sing

“ciao papa” - guillermo del toro’s pinocchio

(bones and all snub, and paddy considine snub as well. rant about the golden globes probably coming soon.)

[bookgeekgrrl]

My media this week (25-31 Dec 2022)

📚 STUFF I READ 📚

🥰👂‍Hogfather (Terry Pratchett, author; Sian Clifford/Bill Nighy/Peter Serafinowicz, narrator) - I thought this was gonna be a reread but it turned out I hadn't actually read it before! It's Pratchett so of course it was very entertaining. Excellent narration as well - really clever way to do the footnotes.

🥰do you get déjà vu? (dreamtiwasanarchitect, liadan14) - pt 3 in the AU where college bro Joe is the newest immortal - it's 7 years on, Joe & Nicky are heading back to college to search for a missing person and find someone they definitely do not expect

😍😍4 Minute Window series (Speranza) - 179K, canon-divergent stucky au - annual reread of one of the best series series/fics in the entire fandom (all but the as-yet unfinished 2022 advent story)

😊Fuckboi Hob vs The Endless Family Dinner (dancinbutterfly) - 41K, human AU - enjoyable fic prompted from that craigslist ad about a fake holiday date to piss off your family

💖💖 +496K of shorter fic so shout out to these I really loved 💖💖

The First Rule of Book Club series (Deisderium) - MCU: stucky, 28K - reread of this fave - post WS, Bucky moves to a small town in NC and joins a book club - I adore the outsider POV/OC in this so MUCH!

Can’t you see I’m ready now (Bittersweet_in_Boston) - MCU: stucky no powers AU, 3K - pretty much just PWP but seriously 🔥🔥🔥

the queen of spades (magneticwave) - James Bond: 00Q, 21K - nice little fic where Q has siblings which confounds & intrigues Bond

Synchronicity (stereobone) - James Bond: 00Q, 7K - "It goes on like that for months, and then Q realizes that James Bond is "hanging out" at his flat." - reread, this one is a fave

undersell, overcommit (silentwalrus) - MCU: stucky, 10K - reread, love this one so much - Bucky could really benefit from massage therapy, so Steve just…becomes a licensed massage therapist. The characterizations/character voices are SO FUCKING GOOD in this.

Not In The Answer But The Question (aimmyarrowshigh) - MCU: shrunkyclunks, 27K - love me some shrunkyclunks goodness like this! man-out-of-time/defrosted cap!steve finds an anchor to his past in a deli in brooklyn (and the cute jewish deli owner) - lots of flashbacks & steve healing

📺 STUFF I WATCHED 📺

Midsomer Murders - s23, e1-3

Enola Holmes 2

A Very British Murder with Lucy Worsley - e1 "The New Taste for Blood"

The Last of Sheila

Hot Ones - Kevin Bacon Needs Six Degrees of Separation From Spicy Wings

Hot Ones - Tessa Thompson Feels Alive While Eating Spicy Wings

Hot Ones - Daniel Kaluuya Listens to His Ego While Eating Spicy Wings

Hot Ones - Lizzo Earns Her Hot Sauce Crown While Eating Spicy Wings

🎧 PODCASTS 🎧

Off Menu - Ep 174: Mel Giedroyc (Christmas Special)

Ologies with Alie Ward - P-22: The Life & Death of an L.A. Cougar with Miguel Ordeñana & Beth Pratt

Vibe Check - 2022 - That’s a Wrap!

Desert Island Discs - Baz Luhrmann, director

Decoder Ring Plus - The Mailbag Episode

Hot and Bothered - Live from Pemberley: Sexuality in the Regency (with Emily Nagoski)

Into It - Are We Into or Not Into 2022?

Come As You Are - Prelude: Pleasure is The Measure

Weather Geeks - Weather in Hollywood

Weather Geeks - Lights… Camera… Climate!

Ologies with Alie Ward - Bonus Episode: Secrets, Advice + Ask-Me-Anything

Hit Parade Plus - Hits of the Year Edition Part 1 & Part 2

🎶 MUSIC 🎶

Classical Calm

Timeless Classics

Feel-Good Classic Rock

RENAISSANCE [Beyoncé]

[thehardgroove]

Barry "Baz" Thompson - Bolt Thrower

[mitchbeck]

AMERICAN HOCKEY LEAGUE SELECTS FIRST AND SECOND ALL-STAR TEAMS

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. … The American Hockey League announced today the 2022-23 AHL First and Second All-Star Teams, as voted by AHL coaches, players, and media in each of the league’s 32 member cities. 2022-23 AHL First All-Star Team Goaltender ― Dustin Wolf, Calgary Wranglers (53 GP, 41-9-2, 2.08 GAA, .932 SV%, 7 SO) Defenseman ― Darren Raddysh, Syracuse Crunch (50 GP, 13-38-51, +19, 1 PPG) Defenseman ― Christian Wolanin, Abbotsford Canucks (49 GP, 6-49-55, +12, 24 PPA) Forward ― Alex Barré-Boulet, Syracuse Crunch (67 GP, 23-59-82, +25, 7 PPG) Forward ― Michael Carcone, Tucson Roadrunners (63 GP, 31-53-84, +5, 14 PPG, 5 GWG) Forward ― Matthew Phillips, Calgary Wranglers (64 GP, 36-39-75, +17, 10 PPG, 15 GWG) 2022-23 AHL Second All-Star Team Goaltender ― Joel Hofer, Springfield Thunderbirds (45 GP, 25-15-5, 2.57 GAA, .918 SV%, 4 SO) Defenseman ― Lucas Carlsson, Charlotte Checkers (60 GP, 19-33-52, +24, 3 PPG, 1 SHG) Defenseman ― Brogan Rafferty, Coachella Valley Firebirds (70 GP, 9-42-51, +31, 2 PPG) Forward ― Trey Fix-Wolansky, Cleveland Monsters (58 GP, 29-41-70, 11 PPG, 2 GWG) Forward ― Max McCormick, Coachella Valley Firebirds (69 GP, 28-39-67, +17, 11 PPG, 2 SHG) Forward ― T.J. Tynan, Ontario Reign (70 GP, 8-71-79, 3 PPG, 35 PPA) Each All-Star Team member will receive a custom-designed crystal award in recognition of his selection to the 2022-23 AHL First and Second All-Star Teams. Recent AHL All-Star Team selections include P.K. Subban (2010), Jonathan Bernier (2010), Kyle Palmieri (2012), Tyler Johnson (2013), Jonathan Marchessault (2013), Justin Schultz (2013), Gustav Nyquist (2013), Jake Allen (2014), Mike Hoffman (2014), Petr Mrazek (2014), Matt Murray (2015, 2016), Jacob Markstrom (2015), Colin Miller (2015), Brandon Montour (2016), Frank Vatrano (2016), Mikko Rantanen (2016), Travis Boyd (2017), Mason Appleton (2018), Carter Verhaeghe (2019), Alex Nedeljkovic (2019), Kaapo Kahkonen (2020), Jake Bean (2020), Josh Norris (2020), Drake Batherson (2020), Jeremy Swayman (2021), Morgan Barron (2021), Taylor Raddysh (2021), Calen Addison (2021), Logan Thompson (2021), Josh Mahura (2021) and Stefan Noesen (2022). The winner of the 2022-23 Fred T. Hunt Memorial Award (sportsmanship, determination, dedication to hockey) will be announced Friday. 2022-23 AHL First All-Star Team

Dustin Wolf, Goaltender (Calgary Wranglers): Winner of the Baz Bastien Award as the AHL’s top goaltender as a rookie in 2021-22, Dustin Wolf has followed up with another remarkable season, leading the AHL in wins (41), goals-against average (2.08), save percentage (.932), shutouts (7), minutes played (3,120), shots faced (1,594) and saves (1,486). Wolf, a 21-year-old native of Gilroy, Calif., also earned co-MVP honors at the 2023 AHL All-Star Challenge in Laval back in February, and picked up a victory in his NHL debut with the Calgary Flames on Apr. 12. He becomes the first AHL goaltender to garner back-to-back First Team All-Star nods since Bob Janecyk in 1981-82 and 1982-83, and the first ever to do so in his first two pro seasons. Darren Raddysh, Defenseman (Syracuse Crunch): Sixth-year pro Darren Raddysh has had a breakout season in 2022-23, shattering his previous career highs with 13 goals, 38 assists and 51 points in just 50 games played with Syracuse. Raddysh is tied for third in scoring among AHL defensemen despite spending most of the second half of the season in the NHL, where he has skated in 16 games with the Tampa Bay Lightning. The Toronto native also represented the Crunch at the 2023 AHL All-Star Classic. Christian Wolanin, Defenseman (Abbotsford Canucks): Christian Wolanin leads all AHL defensemen with 49 assists and 55 points this season while skating in 49 games for Abbotsford in his first campaign in the Canucks organization. Wolanin, who has also played 16 games in the NHL with Vancouver this year, had a 13-game scoring streak from Nov. 10 to Dec. 9, and participated in the 2023 AHL All-Star Classic in Laval, his second career All-Star nod. Originally a fourth-round pick by Ottawa in the 2015 NHL Draft, Wolanin signed a two-year extension with Vancouver on Mar. 23. Alex Barré-Boulet, Forward (Syracuse Crunch): Alex Barré-Boulet earns his second career postseason All-Star berth with a First Team selection as he ranks second in the AHL in assists (59) and points (82) – both career highs – over 67 games with Syracuse. The fifth-year pro is also tied for third in plus/minus among AHL forwards with a plus-25 rating, and he became the Crunch franchise’s all-time leader in goals, assists and points over the course of this season. A native of Montmagny, Que., Barré-Boulet was previously a Second Team All-Star in 2019-20, and was named the league’s outstanding rookie in 2018-19. Michael Carcone, Forward (Tucson Roadrunners): The AHL’s leading scorer heading into the final weekend of the regular season, Michael Carcone has nearly doubled his previous career high with 84 points (31 goals, 53 assists) in 63 games for Tucson in 2022-23. Carcone also leads the league with 263 shots on goal, and ranks second with his 14 power-play tallies. The seventh-year pro from Ajax, Ont., recorded 30 points during a 15-game scoring streak from Dec. 17 to Jan. 31, the longest in the league this season. Matthew Phillips, Forward (Calgary Wranglers): A 2016 draft pick by his hometown Calgary Flames, Matthew Phillips has set career highs across the board for the second year in a row, recording 36 goals (tied for the AHL lead), 39 assists, 75 points and a plus-17 rating in 64 games for the Wranglers. The fifth-year pro has also tied an all-time AHL mark with 15 game-winning tallies, helping Calgary to a league-best 50 victories and the best record ever for a Flames AHL affiliate. The AHL Player of the Month for November also skated in his first AHL All-Star Classic. 2022-23 AHL Second All-Star Team

Joel Hofer, Goaltender (Springfield Thunderbirds): Joel Hofer earns a Second Team AHL All-Star nod on the strength of a 25-15-5 record, a 2.57 goals-against average and a .918 save percentage in 45 appearances for Springfield this season. Hofer is also tied for second in the league with four shutouts, and ranks third in minutes played (2,660) and shots faced (1,283) while helping the Thunderbirds to their second straight trip to the Calder Cup Playoffs. A 22-year-old native of Winnipeg, Man., Hofer has also played six games this season with the St. Louis Blues, who selected him in the fourth round of the 2018 NHL Draft. Lucas Carlsson, Defenseman (Charlotte Checkers): Lucas Carlsson ranks second among AHL defensemen in scoring with 52 points (19 goals, 33 assists) in 60 games heading into the final weekend of the regular season for Charlotte. Carlsson’s goal, assist and point totals all represent career highs for the native of Gavle, Sweden, who is in his fifth season of pro hockey in North America. The 25-year-old blueliner also owns a team-best plus-24 rating, and has chipped in three power-play goals and one shorthanded marker as well. Brogan Rafferty, Defenseman (Coachella Valley Firebirds): A Second Team All-Star as a rookie in 2019-20, Brogan Rafferty secures his second career selection this season as he sits tied for third among AHL defensemen in scoring with 51 points in 70 games for Coachella Valley. The fourth-year pro from West Dundee, Ill., is also tied for second among blueliners with 42 assists, and ranks third among all AHL skaters with a plus/minus rating of plus-31. The Quinnipiac University product joined the Seattle Kraken as a free agent on July 13, 2022. Trey Fix-Wolansky, Forward (Cleveland Monsters): Trey Fix-Wolansky has carried the Cleveland offense all season, pacing the team with 29 goals and 41 assists in 58 games played to tie the franchise single-season record with 70 points. The 23-year-old native of Edmonton, Alta., has scored 11 times and added 19 assists with the man advantage, figuring in on the scoring of nearly half of Cleveland’s 61 power-play goals this season. Fix-Wolansky, a seventh-round pick by Columbus in the 2018 NHL Draft, has also skated in nine NHL games with the Blue Jackets in 2022-23. Max McCormick, Forward (Coachella Valley Firebirds): A ninth-year pro from De Pere, Wis., Max McCormick had already set career scoring highs by the All-Star break, when he represented Coachella Valley at the AHL’s midseason showcase in Laval. He has continued his standout season through the second half and has amassed 28 goals and 39 assists for 67 points along with a plus-17 rating in 69 games for the Firebirds entering the final weekend of the regular season. A 2011 draft pick by Ottawa, McCormick is in his second season with the Seattle Kraken organization. T.J. Tynan, Forward (Ontario Reign): T.J. Tynan earns his third consecutive postseason All-Star Team selection, having recorded 71 assists and 79 points in 70 games for Ontario in 2022-23. The AHL’s MVP in both 2020-21 and 2021-22, Tynan is just the fourth player in league history to record at least 70 assists in back-to-back seasons, and will join Art Stratton (four times) as the only AHL players ever to lead the league in assists on three separate occasions. The AHL Player of the Month for January also participated in his fourth career AHL All-Star Classic this winter. AMERICAN HOCKEY LEAGUE HOME Read the full article

[1apiwe]

The 80th Golden Globe Awards air Tuesday night on NBC.

26. Best film – musical or comedy

Babylon The Banshees of Inisherin – WINNER Everything Everywhere All at Once Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery Triangle of Sadness

25. Best supporting actor

Brendan Gleeson, The Banshees of Inisherin Ke Huy Quan, Everything Everywhere All at Once – WINNER Barry Keoghan, The Banshees of Inisherin Brad Pitt, Babylon Eddie Redmayne, The Good Nurse

24. Best supporting actress

Angela Bassett, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever – WINNER Kerry Condon, The Banshees of Inisherin Jamie Lee Curtis, Everything Everywhere All at Once Dolly De Leon, Triangle of Sadness Carey Mulligan, She Said

23. Best supporting actor in a TV series

John Lithgow, The Old Man Jonathan Pryce, The Crown John Turturro, Severance Tyler James Williams, Abbott Elementary – WINNER Henry Winkler, Barry

1. Best original score

Alexandre Desplat, Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio Hildur Guðnadóttir, Women Talking Justin Hurwitz, Babylon – WINNER John Williams, The Fabelmans Carter Burwell, The Banshees of Inisherin

2. Best original song

Carolina, Taylor Swift (Where the Crawdads Sing) Ciao Papa, Guillermo del Toro & Roeban Katz (Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio) Hold My Hand, Lady Gaga and Bloodpop (Top Gun: Maverick) Lift Me Up, Tems, Ludwig Göransson, Rihanna and Ryan Coogler (Black Panther: Wakanda Forever) Naatu Naatu, Kala Bhairava, M. M. Keeravani, Rahul Sipligunj (RRR) – WINNER

3. Best actor in a TV series – musical or comedy

Donald Glover, Atlanta Bill Hader, Barry Steve Martin, Only Murders in the Building Martin Short, Only Murders in the Building Jeremy Allen White, The Bear – WINNER

4. Best actress in a TV series – musical or comedy

Quinta Brunson, Abbott Elementary – WINNER Kaley Cuoco, The Flight Attendant Selena Gomez, Only Murders in the Building Jenna Ortega, Wednesday Jean Smart, Hacks

5. Best actor – musical or comedy

Diego Calva, Babylon Daniel Craig, Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery Adam Driver, White Noise Colin Farrell, The Banshees of Inisherin – WINNER Ralph Fiennes, The Menu

6. Best actress – musical or comedy

Margot Robbie, Babylon Anya Taylor-Joy, The Menu Emma Thompson, Good Luck to You, Leo Grande Lesley Manville, Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris Michelle Yeoh, Everything Everywhere All at Once – WINNER

7. Best animated film

Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio – WINNER Inu-Oh Marcel the Shell With Shoes On Puss in Boots: The Last Wish Turning Red

8. Best actor – drama

Austin Butler, Elvis – WINNER Brendan Fraser, The Whale Hugh Jackman, The Son Bill Nighy, Living Jeremy Pope, The Inspection

9. Best actress in a TV series – drama

Emma D’Arcy, House of the Dragon Laura Linney, Ozark Imelda Staunton, The Crown Hilary Swank, Alaska Daily Zendaya, Euphoria – WINNER

10. Best supporting actress in a TV series

Elizabeth Debicki, The Crown Hannah Einbinder, Hacks Julia Garner, Ozark – WINNER Janelle James, Abbott Elementary Sheryl Lee Ralph, Abbott Elementary

11. Best actress – drama

Cate Blanchett, Tár – WINNER Olivia Colman, Empire of Light Viola Davis, The Woman King Ana de Armas, Blonde Michelle Williams, The Fabelmans

12. Best non-English language film

RRR (India) All Quiet on the Western Front (Germany) Argentina, 1985 (Argentina) – WINNER Close (Belgium) Decision to Leave (South Korea)

13. Best screenplay

Todd Field, Tár Tony Kushner & Steven Spielberg, The Fabelmans Daniel Kwan, Daniel Scheinert, Everything Everywhere All at Once Martin McDonagh, The Banshees of Inisherin – WINNER Sarah Polley, Women Talking

14. Best director

James Cameron, Avatar: The Way of Water Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, Everything Everywhere All at Once Baz Luhrmann, Elvis Martin McDonagh, The Banshees of Inisherin Steven Spielberg, The Fabelmans – WINNER

15. Best supporting actor in a limited series or TV movie

F Murray Abraham, The White Lotus Domhnall Gleeson, The Patient Paul Walter Hauser, Black Bird – WINNER Richard Jenkins, Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story Seth Rogen, Pam and Tommy

16. Best supporting actress in a limited series or TV movie

Jennifer Coolidge, The White Lotus – WINNER Claire Danes, Fleishman Is in Trouble Daisy Edgar-Jones, Under the Banner of Heaven Niecy Nash-Betts, Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story Aubrey Plaza, The White Lotus

17. Best actress in a limited series or TV movie

Jessica Chastain, George and Tammy Julia Garner, Inventing Anna Lily James, Pam and Tommy Julia Roberts, Gaslit Amanda Seyfried, The Dropout – WINNER

18. Best actor in a limited series or TV movie

Taron Egerton, Black Bird Colin Firth, The Staircase Andrew Garfield, Under the Banner of Heaven Evan Peters, Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story – WINNER Sebastian Stan, Pam and Tommy

19. Best limited series, anthology series or TV movie

Black Bird Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story Pam and Tommy The Dropout The White Lotus: Sicily – WINNER

20. Best actor in a TV series – drama

Jeff Bridges, The Old Man Kevin Costner, Yellowstone – WINNER Diego Luna, Andor Bob Odenkirk, Better Call Saul Adam Scott, Severance

21. Best TV series – musical or comedy

Abbott Elementary – WINNER The Bear Hacks Only Murders in the Building Wednesday

22. Best TV series – drama

Better Call Saul The Crown House of the Dragon – WINNER Ozark Severance

[msniw]

Push Yourself to Stop a Fall!

Musician Leonard Cohen died in his sleep after a fall. This sort of personal information fascinates fans so it's no surprise that list website Ranker.com devotes an entire section to celebrities who died after falls. Those cited range from Cohen's fellow Canadian, wrestler Owen Hart to British Labour Party politicians and Northern Ireland secretaries, Dr Mo Mowlam and Merlyn Rees. There is even an entry for the ironically and pseudonymously named musician, John Balance.

So to help private citizens, particularly those of us who are growing older and so a little frail, physical fitness trainer, Baz Thompson has produced a manual to help us avoid such traumas. Thompson's Amazon biography claims he has helped 'hundreds of people' to achieve their fitness goals, be they professional athletes, business leaders or ordinary members of the public. Certainly, his book, Balance Exercises for Seniors** is superior to others I have read in the same genre, offering very good advice to older people as to how they may  keep upright and supple despite advancing years.  There is a full range of seated exercises for the disabled or those simply less ambulant and a section devoted to 'vestibular' exercises for those with hearing and sight impairment. I also recommend the accompanying line drawings that well illustrate the author's intent. Links to  free downloads for a recipe book and work book are also provided.  Thompson has produced a second book, Stretching Exercises for Seniors. I suggest that any reprints include a glossary of the anatomical terms employed to save readers having to use a dictionary.  ** Balance Exercises for Seniors: Easy to Perform Fall Prevention Workouts to Improve Stability and Posture (Strength Training for Seniors) is available on Kindle ($0.99) or in print format ($24.97, hardcover;  $9.97, paperback).   NATALIE WOOD 13 JANUARY 2022

[somerabbitholes]

Essays

Here’s a (non-exhaustive) list of essays I like/find interesting/are food for thought; I’ve tried to sort them as much as possible. The starred (*) ones are those I especially love

also quick note: some of these links, especially the ones that are from books/anthologies redirect you to libgen or scihub, and if that doesn’t work for you, do message me; I’d be happy to send them across!

Literature + Writing

Godot Comes to Sarajevo - Susan Sontag

The Strangeness of Grief - V. S. Naipaul*

Memories of V. S. Naipaul - Paul Theroux*

A Rainy Day with Ruskin Bond - Mayank Austen Soofi

How Albert Camus Faced History - Adam Gopnik

Listen, Bro - Jo Livingstone

Rachel Cusk Gut-Renovates the Novel - Judith Thurman

Lost in Translation: What the First Line of “The Stranger” Should Be - Ryan Bloom

The Duke in His Domain - Truman Capote*

The Cult of Donna Tartt: Themes and Strategies in The Secret History - Ana Rita Catalão Guedes

Never Do That to a Book - Anne Fadiman*

Affecting Anger: Ideologies of Community Mobilisation in Early Hindi Novel - Rohan Chauhan*

Why I Write - George Orwell*

Rimbaud and Patti Smith: Style as Social Deviance - Carrie Jaurès Noland*

Art + Photography (+ Aesthetics)

Looking at War - Susan Sontag*

Love, sex, art, and death - Nan Goldin, David Wojnarowicz

Lyons, Szarkowski, and the Perception of Photography - Anne Wilkes Tucker

The Feminist Critique of Art History - Thalia Gouma-Peterson, Patricia Mathews

In Plato's Cave - Susan Sontag*

On reproduction of art (Chapter 1, Ways of Seeing) - John Berger*

On nudity and women in art (Chapter 3, Ways of Seeing) - John Berger*

Kalighat Paintings  - Sharmishtha Chaudhuri

Daydreams and Fragments: On How We Retrieve Images From the Past -  Maël Renouard

Arthur Rimbaud: the Aesthetics of Intoxication - Enid Rhodes Peschel

Cities

Tragic Fable of Mumbai Mills - Gyan Prakash

Whose Bandra is it? - Dustin Silgardo*

Timur's Registan: noblest public square in the world? - Srinath Perur

The first Starbucks coffee shop, Seattle - Colin Marshall*

Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus, Mumbai's iconic railway station - Srinath Perur

From London to Mumbai and Back Again: Gentrification and Public Policy in Comparative Perspective -  Andrew Harris

The Limits of "White Town" in Colonial Calcutta - Swati Chattopadhyay

The Metropolis and Mental Life - Georg Simmel

Colonial Policy and the Culture of Immigration: Citing the Social History of Varanasi - Vinod Kumar, Shiv Narayan

A Caribbean Creole Capital: Kingston, Jamaica - Coln G. Clarke (from Colonial Cities by Robert Ross, Gerard J. Telkamp

The Colonial City and the Post-Colonial World - G. A. de Bruijne

The Nowhere City - Amos Elon*

The Vertical Flâneur: Narratorial Tradecraft in the Colonial Metropolis - Paul K. Saint-Amour

Philosophy

The trolley problem problem - James Wilson

A Brief History of Death - Nir Baram

Justice as Fairness: Political not Metaphysical - John Rawls*

Should Marxists be Interested in Exploitation? - John E. Roemer

The Discomfort You’re Feeling is Grief - Scott Berinato*

The Pandemic and the Crisis of Faith - Makarand Paranjape

If God Is Dead, Your Time is Everything - James Wood

Giving Up on God - Ronald Inglehart

The Limits of Consensual Decision - Douglas Rae*

The Science of "Muddling Through" - Charles Lindblom*

History

The Gruesome History of Eating Corpses as Medicine - Maria Dolan

The History of Loneliness - Jill Lepore*

From Tuskegee to Togo: the Problem of Freedom in the Empire of Cotton - Sven Beckert*

Time, Work-Discipline, and Industrial Capitalism - E. P. Thompson*

All By Myself - Martha Bailey*

The Geographical Pivot of History - H. J. Mackinder

The sea/ocean

Rim of Life - Manu Pillai

Exploring the Indian Ocean as a rich archive of history – above and below the water line - Isabel Hofmeyr, Charne Lavery

‘Piracy’, connectivity and seaborne power in the Middle Ages - Nikolas Jaspert (from The Sea in History)*

The Vikings and their age - Nils Blomkvist (from The Sea in History)*

Mercantile Networks, Port Cities, and “Pirate” States - Roxani Eleni Margariti

Phantom Peril in the Arctic - Robert David English, Morgan Grant Gardner*

Assorted ones on India

A departure from history: Kashmiri Pandits, 1990-2001 - Alexander Evans *

Writing Post-Orientalist Histories of the Third World - Gyan Prakash

Empire: How Colonial India Made Modern Britain - Aditya Mukherjee

Feminism and Nationalism in India, 1917-1947 - Aparna Basu

The Epic Riddle of Dating Ramayana, Mahabharata - Sunaina Kumar*

Caste and Politics: Identity Over System - Dipankar Gupta

Our worldview is Delhi based*

Sports (you’ll have to excuse the fact that it’s only cricket but what can i say, i’m indian)

'Massa Day Done:' Cricket as a Catalyst for West Indian Independence: 1950-1962 - John Newman*

Playing for power? rugby, Afrikaner nationalism and masculinity in South Africa, c.1900–70 - Albert Grundlingh

When Cricket Was a Symbol, Not Just a Sport - Baz Dreisinger

Cricket, caste, community, colonialism: the politics of a great game - Ramachandra Guha*

Cricket and Politics in Colonial India - Ramchandra Guha

MS Dhoni: A quiet radical who did it his way*

Music

Brega: Music and Conflict in Urban Brazil - Samuel M. Araújo

Color, Music and Conflict: A Study of Aggression in Trinidad with Reference to the Role of Traditional Music - J. D. Elder

The 1975 - ‘Notes On a Conditional Form’ review - Dan Stubbs*

Life Without Live - Rob Sheffield*

How Britney Spears Changed Pop - Rob Sheffield

Concert for Bangladesh

From “Help!” to “Helping out a Friend”: Imagining South Asia through the Beatles and the Concert for Bangladesh - Samantha Christiansen 

Gender

Clothing Behaviour as Non-verbal Resistance - Diana Crane

The Normalisation of Queer Theory - David M. Halperin

Menstruation and the Holocaust - Jo-Ann Owusu*

Women’s Suffrage the Democratic Peace - Allan Dafoe

Pink and Blue: Coloring Inside the Lines of Gender - Catherine Zuckerman*

Women’s health concerns are dismissed more, studied less - Zoanne Clack

Food

How Food-Obsessed Millennials Shape the Future of Food - Rachel A. Becker (as a non-food obsessed somewhat-millennial, this was interesting)

Colonialism's effect on how and what we eat - Coral Lee

Tracing Europe's influence on India's culinary heritage - Ruth Dsouza Prabhu

Chicken Kiev: the world’s most contested ready-meal*

From Russia with mayo: the story of a Soviet super-salad*

The Politics of Pancakes - Taylor Aucoin*

How Doughnuts Fuelled the American Dream*

Pav from the Nau

A Short History of the Vada Pav - Saira Menezes

Fantasy (mostly just harry potter and lord of the rings)

Purebloods and Mudbloods: Race, Species, and Power (from The Politics of Harry Potter)

Azkaban: Discipline, Punishment, and Human Rights (from The Politics of Harry Potter)*

Good and Evil in J. R. R. Tolkien's Lengendarium - Jyrki Korpua

The Fairy Story: J. R. R. Tolkien and C. S. Lewis - Colin Duriez (from Tree of Tales)*

Tolkien’s Augustinian Understanding of Good and Evil: Why The Lord of the Rings Is Not Manichean - Ralph Wood (from Tree of Tales)*

Travel

The Hidden Cost of Wildlife Tourism

Chronicles of a Writer’s 1950s Road Trip Across France - Kathleen Phelan

On the Early Women Pioneers of Trail Hiking - Gwenyth Loose

On the Mythologies of the Himalaya Mountains - Ed Douglas*

More random assorted ones

The cosmos from the wheelchair (The Economist obituaries)*

In El Salvador - Joan Didion

Scientists are unravelling the mystery of pain - Yudhijit Banerjee

Notes on Nationalism - George Orwell

Politics and the English Language - George Orwell*

What Do the Humanities Do in a Crisis? - Agnes Callard*

The Politics of Joker - Kyle Smith

Sushant Singh Rajput: The outsider - Uday Bhatia*

Credibility and Mystery - John Berger

happy reading :)

[byneddiedingo]

Elvis (Baz Luhrmann, 2022)

Cast: Austin Butler, Tom Hanks, Olivia DeJonge, Helen Thompson, Richard Roxburgh, Kelvin Harrison Jr., David Wenham, Kodi Smit-McPhee. Screenplay: Baz Luhrmann, Sam Bromell, Craig Pearce, Jeremy Doner. Cinematography: Mandy Walker. Production design: Catherine Martin, Karen Murphy. Film editing: Jonathan Redmond, Matt Villa. Music: Elliott Wheeler. 

In 2001, the two movie critics at the San Jose Mercury News both put Baz Luhrmann's Moulin Rouge! on their end-of-the-year lists: One put it on his list of the year's best movies, the other on his list of the worst. Something like that may happen to Luhrmann's Elvis, which similarly divided critics into love it or hate it cohorts. But how can anyone object to the movie as "loud” or “garish,” as some do? This is Elvis Presley, for god's sake, not the most subtle or cerebral of celebrities. And no one expected subtlety from Luhrmann, one of our most operatic directors. Elvis has its roots in Luhrmann's love of opera, and it has to be described as Wagnerian, with Elvis as a kind of Siegfried, a naïf and demigod, and ultimately a tragic figure, undone by his trust in others. The villain of the piece, though he's determined in his voiceover narration not to bear that label, is Col. Tom Parker, played by Tom Hanks in a performance almost smothered in prosthetics. It's this old carny who turns Elvis's life into a perpetual carnival. The real triumph in the film is Austin Butler's: He manages to keep Elvis real despite all the gaudy trappings with which the self-commissioned colonel (not to mention Luhrmann) is determined to adorn him. This is not my idea of a great film, being one in which substance is fitfully allowed to co-exist with the style that threatens to overwhelm it, but it's pretty damn good entertainment.