#dumb foxx stuff

[gothfoxx]

Did y’all do this on purpose?

[kharmii]

This Kind of Shit

(Sung to the tune of Blame it by Jamie Foxx) "....Blame it on the ADHD got me acting silly, blame it on the a-a-a-a-a-aspergers. Blame it on the a-a-a-a-a-a-aspergers...."

DISCLAIMER: People been telling me that just because I'm into a guy hauling out his huge meaty man-drill to frack for oil in his own twin brother's ass, it means I'm not allowed to criticize other shit. *throws hands up* Excuse me! Last time I checked I'm allowed to do whatever tf I want. It's the internet! I find it offensive that dumb-ass monster-fuckers and abo enthusiasts are allowed to criticize me for enjoying something that is seen as morally reprehensible in the context of it happening irl, and yet I'm not allowed to, say, complain that morbidly obese two-dick werewolf cumflation porn is fucking stupid.

I'm inspired to write some things that a lot of people might find extremely offensive, but I'll put it all under a cut. Read or don't read, idc. First of all, it has been.....what? A week? Two weeks? Every day for however long, the same user keeps 'liking' my old dark!fic doujin post from like a year ago. -Not sure if it's a glitch, or if the person is making a point of 'unliking' the post, then 're-liking' it every single day, but it has been showing up on my activity every day for weeks.

The person doing it doesn't even post Subway Bosses, or they haven't been recently. They're into a Genshin Impact ship that reminds me of Emmet/Volo because of the coloring. I wish I was into it because the Trainwreckshipping tag is slow lately, possibly because a bunch of crybully antis took a joke ship that a handful of people are into and made it into a moral issue. Emmet wanting to fistfight God and getting Volo instead is ABUSE yo! Now the timid people are afraid to post about it for fear of being *gasp* bad people!

Side note: Some of the people who hate trainwreckshipping are the same people who woobify Volo for supposedly being indigenous coded, like similar to Ainu people. Wrong-o. The Diamond and Pearl Clan people are indigenous coded. Volo is more like an immortal remnant of a forgotten people who worshipped gods millennia ago that nobody modern has heard of. The song Temple of Ekur reminds me of him, like he could be all, "I come from the bloodline of Gilgamesh who was seeded on earth by space aliens!" (Gilgamesh because he traveled to the underworld to retrieve a friend who perished in war whose corpse he callously threw over the edge of a wall during the heat of battle. It's a parallel to Volo going to the distortion world to communicate with Giratina).

Anyway, I made that particular post a year ago when Blankshipping was still fun but just starting to get overwhelmed with doggie-dick mutilation, bad-outcome pron. I was kind of excited about that particular doujin because I hadn't been exposed to a lot of unpleasant content yet, so it was an exciting variety, like oooooooo.....a bit on the dark side! Now lets go back to healthy, feel-good posting because it wears on the soul to constantly wallow in misery and negativity. A year later, and blankshipping is still doggie-dicks and mutilation pron. -Stuff like this:

Side note: Dog-fuckers need to play twincest a lot smoother. I like 'fuck my own brother' smut as much as the next degenerate, but I'm not going to write one guy getting sentimental and romantic about the scent of his own brother's ass, especially since it would smell the same as his own ass because identical twins are genetic copies of the same person. That's why I write poly or fluff with a slight touch of incest. If Emmet was to have a/b/o coded undescended testicles and womb rerouted into his bunghole, it would have to be by choice, the way transgender people mutilate their own genitals irl. Dogs are idiots irl though. A male dog will go crazy over the scent of his own sister's heat and pound incest puppies into her in a hot minute.

-Aaaaaaand that is the crux of all this gross crap in fandom. The worst of it is transgender mutilated genital coded from people who glorify transitioning, even though it's outright hubris for a person to take the perfect body god gave them and butcher it so they end up with a wound that constantly smells of death and feces as their body desperately tries to heal something it sees biologically as an aberration...a wound that needs to heal but for some reason, the trans individual chooses to keep it festering. There's a Twitter showing the grotesque consequences of real people who have mutilated themselves and suffer the consequences in the worst way possible. People need to read this to know what is going on with this horrific trend being pushed in the gay community.

I feel bad for them. They've been tricked into doing something to themselves that is a horror beyond comprehension. Many of them will walk around smelling like rotting corpses who shit themselves before death (not to mention they take hormones they have no business taking that give them symptoms of schizophrenia and bipolar). The people doing these surgeries and/or condoning this culture should be punished severely for these science experiments on humans. History will not look kindly on this. What ever happened to 'trans' people just being cross-dressing perverts with normal genitalia? Why was that so wrong?

Anyway, I think a lot of the creepy gross content in fandom lately is probably trans coded, but in the way that doesn't make it look good.

[seriousfic]

A wild Jamie Foxx appears

Fool that I be, I did think a Spider-Man 3 2.0 (or whatever) revolving around Peter being on the run, having to clear his name, dealing with bounty hunters, et al--you know, actual classic Spider-Man stuff--could’ve been interesting. At the very least, it could’ve introduced some goddamn stakes to the MCU Spider-Man for once instead of him being Tony Stark’s trust fund baby. 

But instead, I’m kinda getting the sense that they’re going to blip over all that “wanted for murder” stuff the same way they did Aunt May finding out the Secret and skip alllllllll the way to Disney Channel stuff about Peter Parker being a teenage celebrity. Which, okay, makes a certain amount of sense as the Avengers/Stark support crew would vouch for him, but, you know, why even bring up Spider-Man being framed as a terrorist if... ugh. Not important. Anyway, I see three ways this could go.

1. Something got garbled in transmission and Jamie Foxx is playing a different Spider-character, like I don’t know, Morlun. A little weird that he’s playing a different character in the same franchise, but probably inevitable with how many of these things they’re making and that there are only so many star actors to go around.

2. He’s playing Electro, but an MCU Electro as opposed to ‘Promises You Can’t Keep Are The Best Kind’ Electro, the same way J.K. Simmons plays Jameson in every universe. It kinda makes you wonder why they’d bother--does anyone have any goodwill towards ASM2 or gap-toothed, talks-to-himself-in-a-spider-voice Max Dillon? It’s like if Robert Pattinson faced off against Arnold Schwarzenegger as Mr. Freeze again. Why not bring back Dafoe or Molina, who everyone liked? Or even Sandman? But I guess it wouldn’t be MCU Spider-Man if it weren’t for bad idea pants.

Anyway, this seems like a quick and lazy way to get to a Sinister Six, which is something Sony has had a hard-on for for a while, but I don’t think really jibes with the ‘Spider-Man: Manhunt’ scenario. Is the idea that these supervillains are actually created by someone to go after Spider-Man? And not even Norman Osborn or some other Big Bad, but some SHIELD type like Agent Coulson who thinks Spider-Man is legitimately evil? Whatever. Like I said, I think a Manhunt scenario would lend itself better to, like, Silver Sable, Spider-Slayers, maybe Kraven, the odd bounty hunter, those kinda guys. Not the Sinister Six. But whatever. WHATEVER.

3. He’s playing Electro as in Andrew Garfield Electro as in this is just Into The Spider-Verse but live-action. Which seems very dull and unimaginative. If we have to do this stupid cross-dimensional alternate universe stuff, fine, let that be Miles’s dumb thing. It at least jibes with ‘his’ Peter being dead so he can have his dumb origin story that no one can agree on while still having the real Spider-Man in their Spider-Man movie. 

Iron Man Jr. doing the same thing just feels like the MCU is out of ideas and yet again needs to resort to ripping off Miles Morales as if Peter Parker hasn’t been in a million comics of his own. And obviously, Peter becomes a Slider seems pretty much certain to give the Manhunt short shrift, making Far From Home entirely pointless. But I guess Tom Holland Spider-Man has so little characterization of his own that, bereft of Iron Man bullshit to lean on, he not only has to bring in Garfield and Maguire to sponge off of, but rip off the concept itself from ITSV. Ugho.

[gothfoxx]

I used to rant to my (ex)boss’s dog when I walked her, like full on conversation but mostly one sided. One day a truck was parked by where I walked her but it was tinted so it looked empty so I just talked to her like normal, a little later the truck started and a guy waved to me and the dog. He must have heard me talking to her for a good 10 mins!

My point being, other animal/Pokémon owners get it and don’t judge.

Ingo and Emmet probably think Mono is at least a little insane when they see her talking with a pokemon for the first time. Imagine helping this weird homeless person who showed up out of nowhere catch a pokemon so she can have a job and she starts just TALKING with it.

To be fair, it'd probably be like when pet owners talk to their pets like a person. I certainly do that to my kitty cat

Then again, it'd probably look a bit nuts that she wasn't at all concerned about being poisoned until it was too late

[whostolemytrousers]

White House Down

Dir. Roland Emmerich; Wri. James Vanderbilt

The poster for this movie is Channing Tatum looking buff in a tank top holding a massive gun with explosions in the background. The theory is that you can tell the contents of a movie by it’s poster. Here, you can, and I really loved every second.

This movie is so dumb that even the main character laughs at how stupid some things are. Channing literally laughs in Jamie Foxx’s face when the President is saved by a pocket watch - yes, that’s a pocket watch - from a bullet. 

In the first bit of the film, there is ‘subtle’ mention that; one, Channing’s daughter (who looks like a young Marion Cotillard) does flag waving -- sorry, flag twirling; and two, that nifty pocket watch is given to the President. You are left on the edge of your seat wondering if those two facts will come up again in the rest of the film. Don’t worry, they turn out to be significant plot points. I wouldn't expect anything less from a movie with the line, “he’s still the Secretary of Defence” followed by, “well, he wasn’t doing a very good job.”

That line references the plot of the movie. Yes indeed, there is a plot, not that it matters with all the tanks and helicopters and bang boom explosions going on. Again, you just need to look at the poster and the title to figure out the many fine intricacies of this delicately plotted narrative. I won’t explain the plot here.

The first time I watched this movie, I really didn't like it. From what I thought the film would be and the opening section, I was really irritated and put off by how unbelievable and silly it got later on in the film. In the first 20 minutes or so, they do a competent enough job of setting up Channing’s character and the arc he will go on with his daughter. (That said, the best way they can set up his character as a solid, American guy is by getting him to talk to a squirrel - yes, really - and actually get women to ask them to go to second base with them.) I went into it this time thinking - if this isn't stupid enough to satisfy my need for cheesy explosions, I will be very disappointed. 

One of the reasons I started writing this blog was to further work out why I loved films so much. It’s from stuff like White House Down that I realised that there is a special place in heaven, or is that hell, for movies that are so fun and dumb that they can distract you from pretty much anything going on in your life. I really, really liked it. But it’s not for everyone, not even for me if I was in a different mood.

[trashayfanfiction]

1. Comfort zone: melancholy. angst. Tears. Suffering physically and emotionally.

2. Trope I want to try my hand at: Angsty highschool AU, but AU is hard for me.

3. Trope I wouldn’t touch with a 10ft pole? A/B/O sorry guys. I have squick for it. Give me all of the horrible rape, sex slaves, power dynamic/breeding kink and whatever, but don’t give me a biological hierarchy as to why it happens. (no kink-shaming if you do like it tho, but not my cup of tea)

4. I am nurturing...... 5 ideas? I”m doing RVBB, still the panic attacks fic, and yet another dead dove (but softer; less rape more angst this time)

5.Strengths: Introspection and internal conflict, portraying mixed feelings.

6. Weaknesses: External physical conflict. I can’t make a cohesive plot of physical things happening: I cannot write “adventure to gather all 7 dragon balls, fights along the way, we did the thing, the end”.

7. My favorite prose I wrote& why: ...I think I suck at prose. But ‘When She was Beautiful” An Ash’s Mother story https://archiveofourown.org/works/16004666

She was young. Fresh out of high school, when she met Jim at a country bar. She had a fake ID. In school they had called her a tramp, a harlot. It wasn’t true, even if she had the figure to put a porn star to shame. She was an attractive amount of tall and thin. Her curves were in all the right places. She’d had this figure since she was twelve.

The first time she did it, she was fourteen. He had asked. She protested. He kept asking. He did it anyways. It hurt. It was degrading. She grew used to it. It wasn’t rape. Eventually she liked that it was degrading; and would seek it out. This is what she was meant for, right?  She was a woman. She bled. This is what people like her were made for.

She was beautiful.

------I liked highlighting how the world saw her shaped how she viewed herself and justified (to her and those around her) what was done to her. I am trying to portray this critically and nuanced.

8. My fave dialogue and why: At Current I like this piece from Ch4 of ‘Fling” (Ash/Shorter)--- (Ash has suddenly ran away due to anxiety in the middle of what was suppose to be fun sex) https://archiveofourown.org/works/15768864/chapters/36680811

Shorter knocked on the locked bathroom door.

“Ah…. do you need a smoke?” He called, hesitantly.

“No! I don’t fucking need a smoke!” A quick response.

“Your pills are in the cabinet in there. You know, your anit-anxiety stuff-!”

“-I’m not sick! I don’t want my pills!!” Anger.

Shorter paused. Anything, anything to help. Anything to get his friend talking, “Do you want a sandwich?!”

A muffled scream of frustration, “I don’t need a fucking sandwich, Shorter! Leave me ALONE! I DON’T FEEL GOOD,”

“You’re not gonna like cut yourself and bleed out in my bathroom, are ya?” Humor, maybe? He hoped he was going for humor, but he was genuinely worried. Sometimes Ash flew off the handle…… Some of his other friends had done similar….

An exasperated exhale, “You know, I don’t fucking do that!” echoed through the door.

---- I like it because I think it portrays the disconnect Ash and Shorter have about what’s going on and lack of communication even though words are technically being spoken. Shorter wants to help, Ash isn’t letting him help and denying that there is a problem at all; thus resulting in more problems.

9. Hardest to write: The fic about Eiji’s reaction to Ash’s panic attacks that is still in production hell is my hardest. I don’t have anxiety, but I do try to help people with it. I want it to be an accurate representation, and attempt to be sensitive.

Also, my first Foxx’ rape fic was emotionally exhausting.

10: Easiest to write: ‘Fling’ I guess, I keep adding more to it because Ash/Shorter want to do more dumb things.

11. Writing is a fun hobby, I suck at writing. Writing is hard. I don’t wanna beta read enough to ever publish original content. Also, I like playing in other people’s sandboxes.

12. Episodes that inspire me: Neon Genesis Evangelion.... all that psycho babble.... yes. I’m here for it.

13. Best writing advice i’ve been given was by a friend who is a poet. Roundabout they told me; “You will never write something ‘good’, you will always write something better. Don’t worry about making it perfect.” They write with their emotions, so it vibes with me.

14. Worst writing advice I’ve come across: ‘Write everyday’ is horrible. It doesn’t work for me. It makes writing seem like a chore. I write when I am inspired. I will write a few sentences on a pre-started project when I am uninspired to help move it along, but ‘write everyday’ just tends to churn out a lot of garbage I didn’t learn from.

15. If I could choose a fic to be filmed? ....well, most of my fics are porn arent’ they. I think ‘Feelings of Loneliness” (Blanca+Ash post ending in the Carribean) would make an interesting art-house short-film. https://archiveofourown.org/works/17144981

16. Write one paring for the rest of my life? Well, I think we all know BF as a whole is what I’ll be writing on an off forever. ....Honestly I’m torn between saying I’d write ash/Eiji or Ash/Shorter. I never shipped Ash/Shorter until the anime fandom, but they might have a more interesting dynamic if I was to write them forever..... OOH, I SHOULD WRITE A FIC ABOUT ASH COPING WITH SHORTER DYING. I HAVEN’T SEEN ONE OF THOSE. oof. the angst

17. Do you write start to finish or do you write sentences out of order? .....I definitely write out of order. I write when scenes come to me, and then I fill in the blanks in-between. It’s difficult to understand my drafts, it’s definitely ADHD storytelling.

18. I do not use tools like worksheets/outlines, I do use a thesaurus because I have garbage vocab, and I’ve gotten into the habit of having beta-readers/feedback before I post. I sometimes look at ‘writing tips’ pages.

19. My muse is also ‘man who lives in his basement’. I am/was one of the punk street kids, and I observe the interactions that go on between them.

20. My perfect writing conditions are: home alone in my room, in my bed, cat not bothering me, new ‘fresh’ music playing that I’m vibin with and haven’t heard before but not so good it takes away from my concentration on a story. Usually after a hard day of work, I write about a story that was brewing in my head all day. Hopefully I don’t get distracted by social media: like right now....

[marredbyoverlength]

Year-End Awards 2018

2018 sucked personally, professionally, and politically. But hey, at least the movies sucked too!

Ok, there were plenty of good movies. But the bad vastly outnumbered the good, and the highlights weren’t especially high. Even my favorite filmmakers had weak years: Wes Anderson and the Coen brothers both put out some of their most mediocre films in 2018.

But no year is devoid of value, and damned if I won’t do my best to find it. Let’s dive into the only blog post I still do, the year-end awards.

(Honorable mentions, as always, are listed in no particular order.)

Best Lead Performance: Paul Giamatti & Kathryn Hahn, Private Life.

Giving this to two people is a cheap trick (and one I’ve used before), but this is my blog and I make the rules. Private Life is a powerful, painfully realistic film about a middle-aged couple, played by Hahn and Giamatti, going through IVF to get pregnant. Their relationship is at the core of the film; singling out one for praise would be a disservice to the other.

A film like this could easily be a one-dimensional tragedy about baby angst, but both lead actors go through a broad range of emotions that are at once inarticulable in words but instantly recognizable. The highs and lows of their journey and the stress it puts on them and their relationship come out in every expression, every movement of their bodies. This is the highest praise you can give actors: that they portray something that can’t be portrayed any other way.

Honorable Mentions: Olivia Cooke, Thoroughbreds; Joaquin Phoenix, You Were Never Really Here; Toni Collette, Hereditary; Ryan Gosling, First Man; Viola Davis, Widows; Olivia Colman, The Favourite; Emma Stone, The Favourite; Annette Bening, Film Stars Don’t Die in Liverpool.

Best Supporting Performance: Anton Yelchin, Thoroughbreds.

Enough has been written about this already, but Anton Yelchin could easily have become one of the greatest actors of our time had he not died such a weird and sad death. His performance in Thoroughbreds is the perfect example of why I say that.

Yelchin plays a kind of guy that everyone knows, the wannabe operator who hangs out with, and deals drugs to, kids much younger than him and feels cool for doing so. He slips perfectly into that role, but what makes it better than just a caricature is how he captures the character in the scenes where he’s out of the element he’s chosen for himself: once after two high school girls violently rob him and once at the end after he sees what one of the girls has become. He is shaken and unsure, and letting that façade drop in real time is an impressive feat of acting.

Honorable Mentions: Richard E. Grant, Can You Ever Forgive Me?; Alison Pill, Vice; Oscar Isaac, Annihilation; Jason Isaacs, The Death of Stalin.

The Costner Award for Worst Actor: No Winner

Before going into more detail, I’d like to point out that I didn’t see any Gerard Butler movies this year, so take this with a grain of salt.

There were a lot of god-awful movies this year. But all those movies are awful for reasons distinct from acting. Bruce Willis was boring in Death Wish, sure, but his character was boring. Tye Sheridan was annoying in Ready Player One, but his character was annoying. Travolta was actually pretty good in Gotti, even though the movie was a total disaster.

In fact, I can’t think of any performances this year that made me angry in the same way the Kevin Costner makes me angry. Congratulations to actors, I guess? If you know of a truly heinous performance, let me know.

Nicest Surprise: Aquaman

Aquaman is a superhero movie about a very strong, very stupid dog in the shape of Jason Momoa (just look at his dumb face!). There is also a giant octopus who plays the drums. That’s about all you need to know about Aquaman.

Honorable mentions: Mission: Impossible – Fallout; Game Night.

Most Insulting Moment: “Street Weapon,” Robin Hood.

In Robin Hood (2018), Little John (Jamie Foxx) trains a fledgling Robin (Taron Egerton) in the art of hoodery. At the completion of this training, he says to Robin, “you’re going to need a street weapon.” Then he hands Robin this:

“Patrick, is that a full-sized bow with brass knuckles tied to it?” Yes, yes it is. You know, for the streets.

Honorable Mentions: Queen Saves Live Aid, Bohemian Rhapsody; Tactical Furniture, Death Wish; Pretty much all of Ready Player One.

Winter’s Tale Memorial “What the Hell Am I Watching” Award: No Winner

I almost gave this award to Gotti, a movie so widely panned that the marketing campaign explicitly told potential viewers that critics are scum. But then a friend of mine live-blogged his first viewing of The Book of Henry, the current title-holder, and I was reminded of just how gonzo bananas a movie has to be to get this award.

Sure, Gotti is an incomprehensible failure tornado that somehow had enough money for John Travolta but apparently not enough for, you know, lighting and sound guys, but it’s not bewildering like Winter’s Tale was, or like Book of Henry was. A winner should make me ask not just “what the hell is going on” and “how the hell did this get made,” but also “why the hell would anyone want to make this?”  I didn’t see anything that prompted that last question this year.

Prettiest Movie: Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse

I used to give out an award for technical filmmaking, but in hindsight, I don’t know enough about filmmaking to confidently give that award. But I am an expert on the topic of “things I find visually appealing,” and since film is a visual medium (despite what the Academy would have you believe), I’m bringing the category back in this form.

Anyway, the winner is Spider-Verse, no contest. It’s the most brilliantly animated film I’ve seen in years, and easily the best-animated CGI film ever produced. In a world drowning in endless round-and-shiny Pixar clones, Spider-Verse made something entirely unique, influenced by the styles of comic books through the ages but ultimately producing something all its own. The end sequence, with manifold universes spiraling out of a black hole and bleeding into each other, will no doubt be the most impressive feat of animation for years to come.

Honorable Mentions: Mandy; Annihilation; You Were Never Really Here.

Best Picture: Film Stars Don’t Die in Liverpool.

After seeing this beautiful film, I resigned myself to the fact that it wouldn’t receive any Oscar buzz. I was more right than I realized: not only did it not get any nominations, it didn’t even qualify for consideration. The Academy considered this a Film Stars a 2017 movie, as it was released on a very limited run on December 29, 2017. I didn’t hear the name until I saw a trailer for it in January of this year, and I didn’t get to see it in my city until February. This is the great crime of Oscar season: everybody tries to put their stuff out as late as possible, and real gems like this one get crowded out by Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, a movie that gets worse every time I think about it.

I’m correcting this injustice. Film Stars Don’t Die in Liverpool is the only great movie of 2018. The script is heartbreaking, the acting is profoundly human, and the fluid cinematography masterfully blends past with present, creating a portrait of the last days in the life of Gloria Grahame (Annette Bening) in all her messy detail, seen from her own perspective as well as that of her former lover, the much younger Peter Turner (Jamie Bell). Where those perspective diverge is where the film is at its best, and those moments are easily the most moving of the year.

Honorable Mentions: Annihilation; The Death of Stalin; Private Life.

That’s it, that’s the whole post. Peace out.

[gothfoxx]

My mom was from a difficult family and was always told she wasn’t good enough so when she had us she decided not to tell us we were good or bad..my mom and I are a lot alike

based on a true story

[hoogiehowser]

MEDIA DIARY JANUARY

:::::::::: MOVIES ::::::::::

Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018) I liked this so much I ended up seeing it twice. The animation is on a whole different level from everything else in theaters I just can’t believe it. Nothing has immediately endeared me to a character more that when Miles gets to the place where he’s going to put up graffiti and yells “BROOKLYN!” to get the echo. Absolutely perfect. 

Happy Death Day (2017) The trailer looked good but the trailer for the sequel looked even better. Good time repeating movie. Way better than Blood Punch. I’m excited to see more of this.

Alien: Covenant (2017) Had no clue what to expect going in but I actually dug it. It’s just Alien again like every Alien movie but what they do with David from Prometheus makes it really interesting. There’s also some straight up slasher movie sleaze that definitely appeals to me.

MacGruber (2010) It’s just a bunch of dick jokes while a bad action movie happens. There’s no clever spin to it.

Better Luck Tomorrow (2002) Wanted to watch this due to the Fast & Furious connection. It’s a great movie about overachievers and getting away with shit. I think Justin Lin is a great director and his unique voice benefits every movie he does.

Collateral (2004) I didn’t realize until the credits that this was a Michael Mann movie but it was so obvious in hindsight. The premise is simple, Tom Cruise and Jamie Foxx are great, and everything comes together in a genuinely cool film.

Wilson (2017) Based on a comic I don’t particularly like from Dan Clowes’ grumpy old man phase. The cool thing about the comic is that each page works on its own and has a different art style. The movie can’t do that. But it’s still faithful to the book which means it feels like a series of one page gags strung together until it finishes. Woody and Laura Dern are great though and it is pretty funny at times.

Blumhouse’s Truth or Dare (2018) There was another truth or dare based horror movie a year before that was a Syfy original. The Syfy one is better. The problem with them both is the supernatural contrivances that make people play truth or dare against their will. It’s such a strained premise.

King Arthur: Legend of the Sword (2017) Guy Ritchie made a King Arthur movie and it feels exactly like you’d expect. 

Thoroughbreds (2017) Girl who can’t feel emotions befriends girl who is very politely hiding her extreme emotions. Things get bad when they start to think about murder. Anton Yelchin plays a druggie scumbag loser. It’s such a good movie. 100% my kind of thing.

:::::::::: TV ::::::::::

The Great British Baking Show (Beginnings, Collections 1-4) Got addicted to this one. I love cooking competitions shows and pleasant ones are usually the best. I like seeing competitors that like each other. I like Paul Hollywood and Mary Berry not trying to tear people down. I love Mel and Sue. It’s just a nice show for the nice people.

Toei Spider-Man (Episodes 1-5) I’m not a big toku guy but Spider-Verse got me curious about various Spider-Men. Takuya Yamashiro wasn’t bitten by a radioactive spider, he was injected with blood from the last survivor of Planet Spider and carries out a mission against Professor Monster’s Iron Cross Army to avenge Planet Spider and his own father. Next to nothing present from the classic Lee/Ditko Spider-Man and that’s totally alright. I’m going to try to watch more because the episode where Spider-Man has to donate his blood to hurt child has some serious heart.

The Prisoner (Episodes 7-17) I started watching this a while ago but only now got around to finishing. Mostly super clever plots and the atmosphere is always great. Patrick McGoohan sells it every single time. Some of the later episodes go really off the rails though. There’s an entire wild west episode. Nothing in this stretch tops my favorite episode, The Schizoid Man, where Number Two brainwashes Number Six to act differently and then forces Number Six to pretend to be Number Six while a different man is already pretending to be Number Six. The ending is solid though and carries a really good tv series to a confusing, surreal end.

Cutthroat Kitchen (Season 7, Episodes 1-7) Polar opposite of The Great British Baking Show. It’s the Mario Kart of cooking competition shows. Everyone tries to fuck each other over and Alton laughs at them the entire time. It’s brilliant.

:::::::::: PROFESSIONAL WRESTLING ::::::::::

TJPW Tokyo Joshi Pro ‘19 (January 4) I don’t follow TJPW and don’t know any of their wrestlers besides Meiko Satomura but I watched this because it was on before Wrestle Kingdom. Meiko vs Reika Saiki definitely made the show worth watching and the rest was pretty alright. Lots of fun, new personalities that I like.

NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 13 (January 4) Probably the most I’ve looked forward to a show and it absolutely delivered. For the past few years I’d watch WK and recommended matches but in in July I started following everything NJPW. That added investment made this WK special. Ibushi/Ospreay tore it up and I really hope Ibushi recovers soon. Jay White/Okada shocked me. Naito/Jericho was fucking brutal. And Kenny Omega vs Hiroshi Tanahashi was a match I was so invested in that I thought I was going to cry. If you haven’t checked out New Japan yet this show would make an excellent start. GO ACE!

Impact Homecoming (January 6) Impact has gotten pretty good. I’ve only seen a few of their most recent ppvs but it’s obvious that they have a wealth of talent and they’re willing to tell the kind of dumb stories that I really like. Since Homecoming was in Nashville I went and it was one of the best shows I’ve been to. The energy was insane all night and LAX vs Lucha Bros has to be the best match I’ve seen live. Now that they air on Twitch I’ve been following the weekly show and enjoying it quite a bit.

WWE Royal Rumble (January 27) I always love the rumble but the rumble was weird. Both rumble matches were okay but filled with dumb stuff and way too many recovery spots that were immediately deflated by the person getting eliminated. I like the winners. AJ/Daniel didn’t deliver like I wanted. Sasha and Ronda had a good match. I loved how Finn Balor worked Brock Lesnar’s diverticulitis. Fun show.

NXT UK Takeover Blackpool (January 12) NXT UK doesn’t really grip me aside from the women’s division. I liked this well enough but nothing really changed my mind. Finn Balor made a surprise appearance and he looked like such a star compared to everyone else. Excited to see what WALTER can do here though.

GCW 400 Degreez (January 12) GCW’s brand of hardcore indie nonsense is my absolute favorite. 400 Degreez isn’t the best they’ve done but it was full of disgusting beautiful deathmatch bullshit. Markus Crane vs Nate Webb especially.

NXT Takeover Phoenix (January 26) Takeover always delivers. Johnny Gargano vs Ricochet was definitely the match of the night. I don’t dig the War Raiders schtick but their match was great. Bianca Belair and Shayna Baszler also killed it.

:::::::::: COMICS ::::::::::

One Piece by Eiichiro Oda (Volumes 1-10) I wanted something long to start reading so why not One Piece? Enjoying it so far. I like getting the crew together and Usopp’s story in particular is great. Oda is a master cartoonist. I love every time we get reaction faces.

Spider-Man: Fever by Brendan McCarthy Spider-Man fever got me wanting to revisit Spider-Man: Fever because I remember liking it. I still like it. Doctor Strange accidentally opens a doorway into a spider dimension and Spider-Man gets caught in Doctor Strange’s bathtub and the alternate dimension spiders take him. All this and McCarthy’s art make Fever pretty far out. 

Spider-Man 2099 by Peter David, Kelley Jones, and Rick Leonardi (1-15) Miguel O’Hara wasn’t bitten by a radioactive spider, he had Peter Parker’s DNA put into him by weird future DNA machine and he wages war against the gigantic corporations that control everything. I like Spider-Man 2099. Miguel is so different from the Peter Parker archetype and he’s got claws and fangs. He’s brutal. It’s got a neat post-hero future kind of like Batman Beyond. I stopped reading because the next part is a crossover with Punisher 2099, Ravage 2099, Doom 2099, and X-Men 2099. I’ll hopefully pick it back up because I want to know what happens with the hologram that’s in love with Miguel. 

Spider-Man by Kazumasa Hirai & Ryoichi Ikegami Yu Komori was bitten by a radioactive spider and he definitely wishes he wasn’t. It starts off a lot like our usual Spider-Man but the villains are so much more tragic and Yu deals with some heavy shit. Ikegami’s art evolves from cartoony to serious as the tone of the book changes. He’s a really incredible artist who is consistently pulling neat tricks and trying new things. I really liked this and it may top my favorite Spider-Man comics. It’s just so bleak and unforgiving to poor Yu. By the way, the final plotline is exactly the same as the Sonny Chiba movie Wolf Guy. Turns out the comic that movie was based on was written by the same guy that write Spider-Man. An odd find.

:::::::::: VIDEOGAMES ::::::::::

Axiom Verge Had my eye on this for a long time and finally picked it up on sale on my Switch. It’s okay. There are a lot of clever ideas here that I don’t think work for me. But I do like the decorrupter and the teleport. Some of the movement feels great but some stuff like the grappling hook feels awful. I hate the story. Completely incoherent sci-fi nonsense. But it’s a fun game and I enjoyed my time with it.

Hollow Knight I’ve spent about 30 hours on this game and I feel like I’m close to the end of the story. I absolutely love it. The movement, the combat, and the exploration all feel excellent. I’ve played over ten metroidvanias in the past year (I really like them) and this might be the best. My favorite part about them is how you’re almost never wasting time because there are new secrets to discover all across the map and Hollow Knight does such a good job with that.

[gothfoxx]

The crows are mad and whatever is making them mad has a weird growl-chirp…if this turns Silent Hill-esk please remember me for my salt fics

[1979semifinalist]

Maybe I missed it, but it doesn't seem like Gambit ever explained to Rogue why he went to Apocalypse (then Sinister) other than the apology he gave her while she was in a coma, but she wasn't surprised or angry to see him when she woke. I interpreted his choice as a (albeit dumb) self-sacrifice so Rogue could move on to a normal life with Pulse, while saving the team. But that was such a huge hurt to Rogue piled on top of the Foxx/Mystique debacle. Any chance you try to address that weirdness?

No. There’s no way I can touch that. That’s WAY TOO COMPLEX to distill down for new readers. Our approach is to reference this stuff for old fans as a way to hint at their history (and acknowledge the scope of what they’ve gone through) but to keep things continuity light enough that new (and lapsed) readers can handle it.

[takaraphoenix]

I'm so dumb... Chasing fireflies of course!^^(46)

46. What would your story _______ look like as a tv show or movie? 

*laughs* No problem xD

Okay. *cracks knuckles*

Castlist:

Donny di Angelo: Luke Pasqualino

Sander Rodriguez: Diego Boneta

Thea Chase: Luisa D’Oliveira

Hercules Grace: Hunter Hayes

Sam Raser: Christian Alexander

Trend Austin: Daniel Sharman

Derek Rhys: Freddie Highmore

Esperanza Zhang: Katrina Law

Joe Foxx: Rebecca Brown

Marshall Mikaelson: Chris Warren

Sara Raser: Chanelle Peloso

Phylicia Rosenberg: Emily Bett Rickards

And no, I totally don’t have a full cast list for like them all, shut up. I think I’ll stop now.

Okay. So. As you might notice when clicking on the actors, they’re all way older than teens. Because if I were to adapt my own story, it would - for one - be a TV show and not a movie series. And I’d deliberately age them all up into their mid-twenties. I think we’ve had enough teen drama in recent years. I’d make adjustments - and I do mean me, because I would never pull a Riordan and blindly sign over the rights for my property. I would be a very hands on author.

First season would cover up the first arch of it. Them getting settled, all seemingly happy. But then they receive their prophecy and the quest. I think that maybe we would make a cut for season one roughly where they reach Stonehenge. Maybe with a cliffhanger of Merlin appearing to them.

Season 2 will have a main focus on Sam, because we now have the reveal of his past abuse at the hands of his boyfriend. We now have the developing relationship between Sam and Trend.

It would be a mainly emotion-focused season and end roughly when they reach Berlin and get drunk. Last scene - because yes, seasons have to end on a cliffhanger to me - is Nico waking up to see she is the only one even capable of being awake. All others are just... in the Erotes-inducted coma.

Season 3 will be under the theme of Germany. Nico, Rika and Arielle are our main characters as they try to wake the others up. I think that due to TV show, we’d stretch plots (-> season 1 would feature more battles than the story had at that time), so maybe they would fight their own smaller Big Bad this season. We visit Heldenheim, explore Berlin, the Black Forest and Munich.

Season ends as the others are woken from their coma.

Season 4 is the big action packed one as they all split up and fight. Like. We gotta split the big Berlin plot over a season. Way more intense. Maybe stuff it with some flashbacks too - giving the characters more background than I was able to give them in the story. Perhaps even dive into Phyl’s story more since she didn’t get as much time to shine as the others.

The season ends as they all fly home, a subdued scene because they are mourning the loss of Derek. The very last scene is Derek waking up with the Erotes in hsi dream though.

Final season would be the 5th then where they work relentlessly on bringing Derek back from the dead, then Trend/Sam/Derek getting together, Leroy being arrested and the happy fuzzy feels of them settling into life again and planning the wedding of Sander/Donny. Last episode of the show is then the wedding episode, ending with their honeymoon.

[longforgottenunofficial]

The Hitchhikers in the Mirror

[Info from newly rediscovered documents confirms much of what follows and adds details (in red).  Updated August 29-30, 2013 and May 1, 2014.]

You know the drill.  As the show winds down, you go past a set of mirrors, and in the mirrors you see one of the hitchhiking ghosts sitting beside you.  But it was not always so, says I.  If you rode the HM during its opening week, you would have seen something else in those mirrors. This was the original "Long-Forgotten Haunted Mansion effect," and it remains one of the most intriguing. I rode the HM on Thursday, August 14th, 1969 (I was 14).  There's a lovely story about how I got to ride during opening week, but that's for another time.  There has also been a mighty tempest over when exactly the HM first opened, but that's another post as well. Going past the mirrors, what I remember seeing is clouds of faceless, wispy spirits surrounding and mobbing the doombuggy.  They were undulating and following along with you as you scooted past.  Very cool.  But on my next visit, no more than a few weeks later, the wraiths were gone, and I was startled to see the familiar effect that we have there now.  "Hey, that's different!" was my reaction. Flash forward 35 years, and the Internet has provided a means for HM fans to discover and communicate with each other.  I dipped my toes into Doombuggies.com at my brother's suggestion, and—what a cool site.  Mansionology has been a secret vice ever since.  Well anyway, here was my chance, I figured.  Surely someone else remembers this effect, right?  Wrong.  I dropped an email to "Chef Mayhem" at Doombuggies.com and to Chris Foxx at the now-defunct grimghosts.com.  Here's what I wrote to the Chef on Aug 4, 2002:

And the similar email to Chris six days later:

No luck.  Neither had ever heard of my wraiths.  Well, let's throw the question open, shall we?  I started a thread on the DB.com chatboards and described the effect yet again: "One of the things I remember from my first ride on the HM, opening week 8/69, was that the HHGs did not reappear in the mirrors.  Yeah, they were standing there as always as you entered the crypt, but that was it.  Instead, in the mirrors there were wispy ghosts much like the graveyard wraiths surrounding the buggy as you moved along."  (I still have copies of the relevant sections of that discussion thread.) All of this tedious stuff is necessary to show that I was making these wild claims well before... THE... the... the  BLUE... lu... lu... lu PRINT... int... int... int ...came to my attention.  One of the participants in that chatboard discussion mentioned a HM effects blueprint in his possession with some curious items on it.  He graciously sent me a copy.  Eventually I was able to get a much cleaner copy of the same b-print (thanks to Datameister at Micechat). The HHG-in-mirror effect is produced by a set of 15 rod puppets on an oval track behind two-way mirrors.  The room is oddly shaped, being custom built for the ghosty-go-round.  Here's an old b-print that shows the set-up as it is today:

You can see the oval track and how it fits the room.  But on the effects blueprint I got from the poster at DB.com, there is no track; instead, there are three projectors focused on a wavy screen marked CURVED BACK PROJ. SCR'N :

Whoa.  This b-print is dated 4-8-69.  The original date on the other b-print is illegible, but it was updated on Feb 7, '69, and its last update was 4-7-69, the day before the other b-print was produced.  Thus, our projector system is on a b-print that was the direct successor to one which shows the effect as it is seen today.  Even without this info, it is plain that the ghosty-go-round was always what was planned, since the room itself is obviously shaped around it.  In contrast, the projector system obviously does not fit the room very well.  Look at all the wasted space.  So, what gives?  Why does the effects b-print which is actually closer to opening day have this funky substitute? Another source of info about the HM as it was in the beginning is newspaper reports and reviews of the new ride.  Pre-opening publicity stories that mentioned the HHGs began to appear in the Spring of '69:

"Ghostly hitchhikers trying to jump aboard" sounds like the effect as it is seen today.  There was a press preview of the ride at midnight, August 11, with the 12th slated as the official opening day.  A few reviews of the newly-opened HM appeared in the papers as early as Tuesday the 12th, but most were published Wednesday the 13th.  Among all of these, a handful make passing reference to the HHG-in-mirror effect.  Tony Lawrence in the Hollywood Reporter, Aug 13, gives a rather ambiguous description that could fit either effect:

In a review published a day earlier (the 12th), Sandi Mosley in the Orange County Register describes what sounds like our current effect:

f this was all we had, we could reasonably conclude that whatever that b-print showed, the Gus-Ezra-Phineas roulette we all know and love was there by opening day.  But there is another review that sounds altogether different.  This is from Keith Murray's review in the Pasadena Star-Times, published on the 13th:

What is this "peering into the fog" business?  And why does he apparently see only himself in the doombuggy?  Hmm.  The wraiths I remember did indeed look like a swirling cloud of spirits.  Now the evidence is getting murky again.  How do we reconcile Mosley and Murray?  Assuming they are both providing good faith, reasonably accurate accounts of what they saw, there is only one way to do it that I can see.  Mosley is explicit that she rode the HM at the midnight press preview Aug 11/12.  Her review appears on the 12th.  Murray nowhere claims to have been at that preview, and his review appears on the 13th.  It is possible that he rode sometime during the day of the 12th and wrote his review for publication the next day.  Mosley's and Murray's rides could have been 12 hours apart, or even more.  Was the ghosty-go-round there for the midnight showing and then hastily replaced by our projected wraiths?  That would explain it, but is there any warrant for such a scenario? Of course there is, or I wouldn't be wasting your time (or mine).  Something must account for the alternate set-up behind the mirrors, after all.  What we now know from newly discovered material evidence is that the projected wraiths were simply the backup for the HHG ghosty-go-round.  It probably could have been set up in a matter of hours.  Look, it's not complicated.  Here are the two side-by-side:

Okay, now let's superimpose them:

See?  The wavy screen sits right in front of the HHG track, about where the low curtain stands in this photo:

Edit: In 2014 this 1969 schematic came to light, showing both of the effects superimposed, exactly like above.

And why would they need this backup?  Because if the ghosty-go-round goes down, they will douse the lights on the motionless hitchhikers, and now you've got the guests riding past mirrors looking at themselves and nothing else.  That's intolerably dumb.  You have to put something there.  You need a backup effect if the planned one fails. Did they anticipate such a failure?  You bet they did, that's what the blueprint is all about.  In addition, there is the intriguing comment made by show author X Atencio in Storyboard magazine.  Speaking of the HHGs, X said:  "It was kind of an afterthought, though.  It didn't come until the ride was practically put in there."  Based on this, both Doombuggies.com and Surrell's Haunted Mansion book (at the time of this writing the two most authoritative sources for all things HM), claim that the HHGs were a last-minute addition to the ride. Bull crap.  The problem with X's remark is that what it says is literally impossible.  The show building went up in 1968, and the HHG-in-mirror gag is plainly visible in 1968 blueprints.

The idea itself is much older, going back to Ken Anderson's plans for a DL haunted house in 1957-58.  Guests walk down a hall with mirrors on each side showing ghosts accompanying them.  Traveling ghosts looping around a central barrier that hides their return, coupled with clever use of two-way mirrors—yep, it's all there.

The best explanation for X's flub is that the originally-planned HHG effect—the one that is there today—did not look like it was going to be ready by opening day.  The problem could have been something as simple as an unavoidably delayed shipment of a vital part.  So a temporary effect was worked out and constructed, something to have in the mirrors until whatever demons were ailing the Gus-Ezra-Phineas show were exorcised.  (We now know that this backup effect was built in the middle of April.) But the Imagineers wanted to show the press what the permanent effect was going to look like once it was up and running, so they managed to get the ghosty-go-round jury-rigged and working for the midnight showing, and then they immediately went back to their backup.  They were still using that on Thursday when this geeky teen rode.  I suppose that X's memory of this frantic mess was a little hazy, and that's why he spoke misleadingly to Storyboard. How did the backup effect work?  If I may speculate, it was yet another example of Yale Gracey genius at work.  The projectors were the same as the ones Yale invented for use in the Blue Bayou lagoon (the clouds moving on the "sky") and used again in the HM for the misty clouds moving along the wall in the Limbo loading area and on the scrims in the graveyard.

The wavy, curved screen was 40 feet long and 12 feet wide.  It was back-projected with these moving ghosts.  The curves made them undulate and gave them animation.  They were bright enough to be seen in the mirrors against the dark outside of your doombuggy, but were washed out and therefore invisible against the much brighter interior where you sit.  This delicate balance was achieved by adding new lights, both in front of the buggies (spotlights) and behind them (new fluorescent lighting).  Records show that these were installed at the same time that the backup effect was constructed, as part of the same project.  Thus, the ghosts looked like they were surrounding and mobbing you, but they were not inside the doombuggy with you. There's a photoshop recreation of the effect HERE. Whew.  All that for that.

Due to the nature of tumblr posts, I could not change the text color to red. I bolded the highlighted areas.

Originally posted: Monday, April 26, 2010 Original Link: [x]

[jmowatstuff]

Monthly Media - July 2017

I decided to try and do all the illustrations this month in Cinema 4D. It is a lot harder to get across detailed concepts like existing movies or tv in 3D (for me), so I gave up after Movies. I’M SORRY. Anyway. Lesson learned. Also the movie illustrations are nae bad and learned a lot which is what it is all about so there.

MOVIES

Baby Driver (2017) - ★★★★½

First half of this film was 3.5 stars, second half was 5 stars. Mix it all together in the Jonnometer and you get a 4.5 star movie that left a real good taste in my mouth.

Great performances from Foxx, Hamm and Spacey. Great tunes, obviously. Great gory deaths. This film knew what it was the whole way through and did what it wanted to do real well, rising it above standard action getaway films.

Keanu (2016) - ★★★½

Watched this on a plane, with the F-Word replaced with 'fudge' and MF with 'motherfather'. Even with these setbacks, this film was super enjoyable. Key's performance was great, as well as Forte and Method Man. Also just Method Man. A great first (?) Key & Peele feature, excited for more.

Nobody Speak: Trials of the Free Press (2017) - ★★★½

Watched this on a 17 hour Nepali journey from Kathmandu to Tansen. Even in a state of dehydrated delirium and sweat I enjoyed it a lot. Quite a standard format and style for a documentary, so nothing groundbreaking there. However it did link together multiple stories nicely into a finalised point, as well as gave me respect for good journalists. Go watch this Netflix Original, especially in today's trying times.

Don’t Think Twice (2016) - ★★★½

This is like a coming of age, feel-good comedy but written by a teller of great, authentic stories that are centred around doing comedy. Or rather it is actually that. Either way, really enjoyed. Probably enjoyed more so after having an intermediate knowledge of Saturday Night Live and hearing about what it's like to work there.

Louis CK: Hilarious (2010) - ★★½

This was alright. It was funny but also felt long and also some of the vulgar charm didn't get through to me like '2017' did. Maybe he discussed topics that are now well-trodden and samey, but were fresh back in the day. Or maybe it just wasn't as good. Who's to say. 

Chris D’Elia: Man on Fire (2017) - ★★

Wasn't feeling this teebz. Big fan of his podcast and his online presence (ehhhh s'2017), but his stand up doesn't do it for me. I find him very funny when he doesn't seem like he's trying (podcast et online presence). But hey. Still a talented dude.

Dave Chappelle: The Age of Spin (2017) - ★★★★

"She didn't have her guards up. She was taking lots of shots" 

After a couple of lukewarm stand-up watches, this relit my enjoyment of stand-up. Hilarious, self-aware, unapologetic stuff from someone who's worked his way to that comfortable position. Great mix of dark and dumb and self-deprecating.

The Darjeeling Limited (2007) - ★★★½ (rewatch)

One of the better Wes Anderson movies. Watched it whilst doing work and still was very enjoyable and got to me. Great acting from the 3 lead characters. The river scene is one of Wes Anderson's best scenes I think. Emotional and deep whilst somehow remaining lighthearted and hopeful. Also those suitcases are peng.

THE ILLUSTRATIONS STOP HERE

PODCASTS

Revisionist History w/ Malcolm Gladwell (2016 - present)

Was turned onto this via S01E10 - The Satire Paradox, as I’d heard that it discussed Harry Enfield’s work in the Thatcher years and that was enough for me. Only listened to one other episode so far, S01E01 - The Lady Vanishes, but both episodes were so interesting and well produced that I felt I should recommend it here!

Creative Mornings ATL: Jacob Escobedo (2013)

I’m counting this in podcasts because it was informative listening, as opposed to musical listening. Either way, it was great, and really made me think about my work through the filter of memorability. I found Jacob’s name via a recent New York Times illustration footnote, which Googling led to zero website, only this talk. I was going to leave it until I saw he worked at both Cartoon Network and Adult Swim, and thought that it must be good. It was.

MUSIC

Shanghai - College (album) - ★★½

Been a fan of College (David Grellier) since hearing him on the Drive soundtrack. His Heritage album has got me through many study sessions. However Shanghai seemed to lack the downtempo, throbbing, bassy synth that I go to him for. Which is fine, you do you David, don’t let me stop you. But in the self-contained world of Jonny’s Monthly Media you won’t score high with that nonsense.

Mura Masa - Mura Masa (album) - ★½

Liked Lovesick. Everything else sounded like I’d heard it 100 times in the charts.

~~~~~~

Decent month of MEEEEDIA. Lots of films. I like dat. Definitely polished my Cinema 4D chops thats for sure. Onto tha NEXT. 

[hirenpatelbct-blog]

Studio

Landlord censured for cold, rundown house!

Susan Edmunds

Stories about Landlords these days not living up to the responsibility they were given upon and not communicating enough with their tenants has become a common problem especially in Auckland. Landlords these days like to abuse the power they have today because they have leverage over their tenants. They take advantage of people especially people who have just come out of high school. They presume that their dumb so they ignore their Morales and values and do the system dirty.

A couple of months ago an Auckland tenant was awarded compensation because her landlord refused to fix the problems that were occurring in her home. Because of the problems in her it caused her children to become very sick. Amy Lee Foxx signed a one year fixed term tenancy however after a few months she wanted to stop the contract because her Landlord did not provide  premises that were reasonably clean or in reasonable repair and then did not maintain them.

Fox said there were a number of problems with the house. “Window catches fell off and broke, a window was rusted shut, the shower floor was not stable, the ceiling in the shower was in poor repair, the garage door was faulty, the toilet leaked and the house had an easily accessible spa pool with no cover. It also had a fireplace that did not work”.

Even though she got compensation Fox believes now she has lot that sense of trust and cant rely on any landlord anymore. These problems of lack of trust now are becoming an issue in Auckland and its a huge reason why we want to do this website. We want people to go to the right people in charge and who can be easily trusted.

Reference:

Edmonds, Susan. “Landlord Censured for Cold, Rundown House.” Stuff, www.stuff.co.nz/business/110922927/landlord-censured-for-cold-rundown-house.  

[televisor-reviews]

Top 10 Best Movies Of 2017!

2017, as a whole, was a pretty damn good year for film! Sure, it had a shit ton of crap, but I definitely think there was way more great films than terrible. Even the bad stuff, tended to have something likable about them (hence why there were mostly unfunny comedies on my worst of list). Meanwhile, the good movies, I generally really loved. I don’t think it’ll go down as one of the best years for film, but it’s a better contender than most. And these are what I believe to be the top 10 best! And keep in mind, even with the extra year, I still didn’t see everything: so as great as I’m sure The Big Sick & The Florida Project are, I never got around to them. For a comprehensive list of every movie I did see from 2017 (in order from best to worst), go here: https://letterboxd.com/animatorreviewa/list/every-2017-movie-ive-seen/

#10. Baby Driver In a few decades, Edgar Wright is going to be considered one of the best directors of all time. It’s going to be: Steven Spielberg, Stanley Kubrick, Edgar Wright. Baby Driver, though not as energetic as Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World nor as hilarious as Hot Fuzz, is objectively his best directing project. How Baby’s mind boggling driving goes along perfectly with the music he’s playing looks incredible the entire way through, never relenting & always exciting! And if this was all it had, it’d still be an amazing movie but not “top 10″ worthy. But it has Oscar-worthy performances from Ansel Elgort, Jamie Foxx, & even Kevin Spacey (a terrible person with lots of talent), a gripping narrative, & amazing looking special effects that’ll make Transformers: The Last Knight blush! If anything, the reason why it’s only at #10 is because, at the end of the day, I’d still prefer to watch Shaun Of The Dead... again...

#9. Coco Pixar has been on a serious roll ever since they got through their shitty phase. Inside Out made my 2016 list, Incredibles 2 is probably going to make my 2018 list, & even Cars 3 was way better than it deserved to be! Coco is Pixar showing that not only are they back & going to stay, but could make movies that should suck & yet is still amazing! Every dumb movie cliche is on full force in this: the family that hates music but it’s the main protagonist’s passion & his family just doesn’t understand, but through a wacky & heart-warming adventure through his family’s history, maybe they’ll blah blah blah blah blah... It even rips off The Book Of Life to a good extent! Yeah, this movie isn’t great because of its twists & turns. It’s great because even though you know exactly what’s going to happen from beginning to end & yet it’s still gripping, interesting, & fun with gripping, interesting, & fun characters that you’d want to run around a million cliches with! It was a blast to watch in theaters & definitely worth sitting through Olaf’s Frozen Adventure to see.

#8. Get Out I’m not even going to pretend like I know what it’s like to be black in America. It’s pretty clearly not something I will ever understand as I can actually hide my minority-ness. So, a movie like Get Out, as great as it is, I find generally pretty hard to relate to what happens in them. But I will say that Get Out, as a film, is absolutely thrilling, exciting, & at times scary. I was worried about this character & concerned about what he was going through; when things start not making sense, I’m right there with him! That’s what a good horror movie should do & that kind of horror is in low demand nowadays. Even It, a movie that almost made the list, didn’t engross or engage me as much as Get Out did! The directing of Jordan Peele & the acting of Daniel Kaluuya are on full display & only makes this chilling movie even more so! A great start to a great comedian’s great directing career!

#7. Gerald’s Game Though, as a horror movie, I find Get Out far more engaging & engrossing than Gerald’s Game, I do think it’s far better made with a much better basis, story, & acting. What I really love about Gerald’s Game is how it tells its plot. It’s not new to tell your story out of order (Pulp Fiction, Mulholland Drive, every Christopher Nolan movie), but very few do so as well as this! From the beginning, its unique & universally horrifying concept makes sure you’re paying attention & holds on to it with equally unique & universally horrifying events told in the perfect order to have it make sense throughout but not entirely so until the very end. It starts off on the perfect note & holds it throughout! Fascinating & universal, Gerald’s Game is the perfect engaging drama!

#6. Molly’s Game A biopic that doesn’t tell the whole truth, just how much did happen & to whom is the whole reason why I found myself intrigued with Molly’s Game. The great story told fascinatingly with incredible performances is why I love Molly’s Game. The film itself feels like a particularly great poker game: just when you think Molly’s up, just as quickly, she can fall back down. At the end, you’re just concerned if she’ll end up broke by the end of the night! And just like a great poker game, it’s hard not to get engaged with every little thing that happens in this film & it requires Oscar-worthy performances from everyone, especially Jessica Chastain! Incredibly engaging & engrossing, it’s the perfect movie for critics!

#5. I, Tonya I already praised Molly’s Game for how it tells its mostly true story, but I, Tonya is about a famously inconsistent story from & about inconsistent people. I don’t know why, but I find that everyone in this movie has their own stories & they’re probably all lying very interesting & it makes for a great story. It’s kinda like if you took every good element from every Alice In Wonderland adaptation & put them all into its very own movie. Like if the story itself had a couple of decades to edit itself into the best version it possibly can be. Add in the marketing of it maybe being true: taking all the intrigue of a “based on a true story” of something so outrageous while not feeling like it disrespects its audience enough to think they’d believe it. And it helps that its story is based on one of the most interesting parts of modern American history & it has 2 of the best performances of the year (Margot Robbie & Allison Janney). Put them all together & you get the 5th best movie of 2017!

#4. The Shape Of Water Beauty And The Beast is one of the most timeless & universal stories ever told, hence why there is so many versions of it. Everybody can relate to the idea, feeling, & fear of being neglected, ignored, & hated & for many people at many points in history, that fear was a reality. The original story is so universal, it can be read as being a peasant at the turn of the 18th century just as much as it can be about being gay at the turn of the 21st century & that’s why it has persisted for so long. The Disney animated film of the same name from 1991 was revolutionary for many reasons, but its incredible story is largely why it became the first animated movie to be nominated for Best Picture at the Oscars. So, The Shape Of Water actually winning with this story is not only deserving, but it’s probably my favorite telling of the classic. Guillermo Del Toro had already made a name for himself by directing the critically praised Pan’s Labyrinth, the audience pleaser Pacific Rim, & creating the hit series Trollhunters: Tales Of Arcadia. The Shape Of Water is plausibly his most praised work & possibly his best work. The chemistry between the 2 mute leads is incredible & it becomes even more so after you realize that it’s all without talking! And that fact makes the villain seem even more villainous when every little thing he says is hate filled. And the amazing directing of Del Toro is what brings it all together, making it a worthy Best Picture winner.

#3. The Disaster Artist Another biopic with a possibly untrue story, The Disaster Artist shows that James Franco & Seth Rogan don’t need cheap sex jokes or obvious drug jokes to be funny. In fact, they can make a movie about an already obscure film that only nerds know about & can make a decent hit! Hell, maybe they can also get it nominated for a few Oscars & make it on my Top 10 list! I was ready to call this duo dead after The Interview made only obvious jokes, The Night Before was ungodly uninteresting, & Sausage Party was straight up unfunny. But The Disaster Artist brought a breath of fresh air, a movie for movie nerds & not just the kind that Google what really happened in the Infinity War comics. Ones that keep up with Nostalgia Critic & Cinema Snob because they’re still pretty big guilty pleasures & hope that they’ll eventually review Where The Dead Go To Die. The kind that already knew that The Room exists, love the fact that The Room exists, were immediately excited when Greg Sestero released his book, & were even more so when James Franco said he wanted to make a movie about it! I do my whole shpeal about how true to life the Franco bros. performances are & how great the directing was. But really, the reason I put this above The Shape Of Water & I, Tonya is because I’m a nerd. That’s mostly it! It’s not even my favorite movie about movies, that’s still Ed Wood.

#2. Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2 Stepping back & looking at the empire & universe Marvel has created, it’s impressive & incredible just how huge & lucrative it has become. And it wouldn’t have become so if it didn’t have the films to back it up. When the first Guardians Of The Galaxy came out, it was Marvel trying to send the message that they can make a film out of one of their most obscure properties & not only make it a humongous hit, but also make it so good that it ends up on the 1001 Movies To See Before You Die list! And with its sequel, they pumped up everything that made the original great tenfold, added in some heartwarming moments to make sure you don’t leave the theater dry, & a much more interesting villain! And by god is Ego such a fascinating & engrossing villain, especially compared to the nothing of a character that made up Ronan. The way it covers its themes of family & parenthood is clever & amazingly well done. You’re right there with Peter Quill, wondering when to side with his dad or his best friends; whether or not a few good deeds redeems the torture of a childhood he had thanks to Yondu. And that kind of inner thought process is largely thanks to the incredible writing & directing of James Gunn, who is irreplaceable. Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2 is now my 2nd favorite Marvel movie & 2nd favorite movie of 2017. #RehireJamesGunn

Before we get to #1, here are a few runners up:

Wonder Woman I didn’t realize it until after the fact, but 2017 was a really good year for superhero movies. Spider-Man: Homecoming was an amazing comeback for my favorite hero, Thor: Ragnarok somehow made Thor more likable, even Justice League managed to not piss me off! But, arguably, the most important of these was Wonder Woman which showed that not only can female led superhero movies make money, but also be very good!

Paddington 2 2014′s Paddington surprised both critics & audiences with its genuinity, heart-warming-ness, & immensely likable lead character, gripping everyone. When Paddington 2 came out, it immediately got 100% on RottenTomatoes, & that is a serious rarity. To the point where I first thought it was a fluke, like it got almost entirely middling reviews resulting in a 100% on a movie that generally averaged with 6/10s. Leaving the theater about 2 hours later, I can agree that it not only deserves that 100%, but it’s way better than the first movie! And I love the first movie!

Call Me By Your Name This was actually a really good year for Oscar nominated films. Most years, I don’t even consider most of the nominated movies because they tend to be a little pretentious, long, & boring. Which does have a place, just not the type I tend to watch a million times like the films I do put on my lists. But this year, my list is filled with Oscar winners & I actually wanted to include more like Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, Dunkirk, & All The Money In The World. I think Call Me By Your Name is at least more interesting than most of these if only for the background of being about 2 bisexuals, one being a kid. It can get a little pretentious, long, & boring but definitely worth watching!

The Meyerowitz Stories (New And Selected) Meyerowitz Stories is Adam Sandler’s stab at an artistic movie after nobody saw Ridiculous 6 & Punch Drunk Love continues to garner praise from just about everyone. It’s the beginning of a new kind of Sandler movies as he gets used to his new home on Netflix & realize what kind of movies that kind of audience wants to see. I really hope that he continues to make these kinds of movies in the years to follow!

John Wick Chapter 2 On the side of action movies that aren’t based on comics, the John Wick movies continue to be exciting, action packed, & most importantly, fun! I had fun when I watch these movies, which is something I don’t say about the darker side of modern action movies. I haven’t had this much fun watching an action movie like this since Die Hard!

mother! On the battle of is this movie pretentious garbage or exciting drama; nominated for both an Oscar & a Razzie; do I love or hate mother!... I actually fucking love these kinds of movies! The kind that makes no sense as you’re watching it but every sense after the fact. Movies like Black Swan, Mulholland Drive, & The Cure For Wellness. So I might be biased towards this kind of movie, but I loved it!

Star Wars Episode VIII: The Last Jedi Talk about toxic movie topic, I also really loved The Last Jedi! I actually thought it was a clever film that completely subverted my expectations at every moment. I love that Rae’s parents turned out to be nobodies, it’s such an interesting twist on this build up & arguably the most daring take they could’ve have after the millionth fan theory stated that it’s Luke & Leia. I loved where it left our heroes, at their bleakest moment, paralleling The Empire Strikes Back! I genuinely loved this movie & I’ll admit, I don’t totally get what all the hate is about! But whatever, my list, my runners up, nyeh nyeh.

Bill Nye: Science Guy Here’s my documentary entry... & it was a hard pick between this & Jim And Andy: The Great Beyond but I did inevitably pick this one because Bill Nye is a personal hero of mine. I’m a science dork, I’m subscribed to ASAP Science, I grew up with Bill Nye. I find his journey fascinating, this documentary very well made, & I can’t wait for the next season of Bill Nye Saves The World.

World Of Tomorrow Episode Two: The Burden Of Other People’s Thoughts I really hope Don Hertzfeldt catches on with more movie nerds. Just between this, the first World Of Tomorrow, It’s Such A Beautiful Day, The Meaning Of Life, Rejected, & every other film he’s created, he’s easily one of my favorite directors. Making some of the most thought provoking & intelligent films I’ve ever seen. If I included short films, this would be a serious contender for #1! Please watch this, just the phrase “The Burden Of Other People’s Thoughts” makes this worth watching!

Loving Vincent Fuck! I didn’t even get to include the pretentious animated film of the year? This is the only movie I can think of where literally every frame is a painting & it looks beautiful! Throughout, you can tell the people making this are genuinely passionate about Vincent Van Gogh & that’s what really drives the movie. I also want to take this time to mention My Little Pony: The Movie, which is my “I love this animated movie way more than most people probably should” of the year & I didn’t even have room in the runners up for it!

#1. Logan Last year, I was running around looking for a movie to beat Captain America: Civil War for Best Movie Of 2016. Luckily, I did find it in Arrival but the reason why I so desperately didn’t want Civil War to win out is because it just didn’t feel right. A fun & intelligent film for sure, but mostly surface level in a way the Marvel movies are able to be. For 2017, I saw Logan in theaters & instantly knew it should at least be on my year end top 10. At first it was just #5, but it did eventually climb up as the more I thought about it, the more I loved it. Before long, I was battling whether or not this or Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2 should top the list. And though I do think I’ve seen GOTG2 more times than Logan, at the end of the day, Logan is the objectively & subjectively better made film. The action feels dark but in a real way, like this could genuinely be someone’s reality like Die Hard or John Wick. But this is way more clever, intelligent, & interesting than those movies ever were. This was the last film for Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine & for his efforts, it was rightfully nominated for Best Adapted Screenplay at the Oscars. What a way to go out...