#he has an eye for filming and editing and where to line the cuts and how to frame the shots and it's absolutely incredible

[pippin-katz]

One Shots in Red, White & Royal Blue - Part 1: Alex's Room

Modern movies are fucking obsessed with jump cuts. Even scenes where it is completely unnecessary get cut to shreds. There's films I've seen where one, single sentence line got three jump cuts in it.

After watching Red, White, & Royal Blue over ten times now, I’ve noticed so many moments where they could’ve made jump cuts, but didn’t. There were moments where I was expecting it to cut because of how used I am to other movies cutting the shit out of scenes. They did not do that here, and believe me, it makes a difference.

Cuts temporarily remind the viewer that they're watching something scripted, professionally filmed, and edited. It's a subconscious feeling that most people probably don't even notice.

In case you're unfamiliar, a one shot in film is when a sequence happens without any cuts. One of the benefits of using them is the believability they add. Any amount of time could've progressed between cuts, like if they film a scene on two different days. When you see everything happening in real time, it just feels more real.

Red, White, & Royal Blue balanced their editing and camerawork incredibly well, and utilized one shots way more than I see a lot of other films doing nowadays. They use it for a variety of scenes, and it's done very well.

Example No. 1

From this moment, where Henry enters the room:

GIF by taylorz-nicholasg

To Henry pushing Alex onto the couch:

GIF by sheisraging

To when the sequence ends:

GIF by gay-bucky-barnes

is ALL ONE SHOT.

There are no camera cuts during that sequence, and there's a significant amount of movement and activity going on.

They are obviously aggressively making out, and crossing the room at the same time. Tracking this part might be common, but when they get to the couch, and Henry pushes him, I got this gut feeling that a jump cut was about to happen, but it didn't.

Instead, the camera rotates around to that side perspective, and lets Henry come back into frame and onto the couch in real time.

GIF by sheisraging

The camera doesn't change position until Henry moves down, which could've been a cut to Alex's face, but they opted to zoom in on him, keeping the shot connected.

GIF by sheisraging

This is not a small series of events to capture in one shot, and it means that Nicholas and Taylor had to memorize and perform the entire scene's blocking as a whole rather than in parts. If they mess up, they can't just say: "hey try that line again"

A one shot scene like this means that if you mess up at any point during the sequence, you can't use the take. You have to do it again from the beginning. That's the point of a one shot.

I think it's such a testament to Taylor and Nicholas' talent, skill, and dedication that they did such a long shot involving so much intimate, and difficult, choreography.

Breaking it down, they have to kiss for the first part, but it's not just kissing; it's aggressive kissing. Their eyes are closed, and they're grabbing at each other, while crossing the room. Taylor has to walk backwards. They need to have really good spatial awareness in order to move without hitting something or tripping.

Once they hit the couch, Nicholas has to undo the buttons on Taylor's shirt. If you've ever worn a button-down shirt, you know that sometimes you just struggle with those damn buttons; there's a moment in Paris where they joke about them. Nick has to undo them fast, and deliver his lines too. If he's too slow with the buttons, or they get stuck, take ruined.

Nick has to shove Taylor onto the couch. He has to be visibly forceful, but not knock him down so hard he falls off the couch, or land in a way that make it difficult for him to shift into where he's supposed to be. Nick also has to climb around onto the couch fast enough.

Obviously once they're on the couch, the difficulty comes in that they are being intimate, kissing and grabbing each other, and they need to remain in character. Then they have lines, and Nicholas has to get even more intimate by kissing his neck. He undoes another button or two and kisses his chest and down his stomach, all while delivering his lines correctly.

If either of them messes up a line, or breaks character for a second, or loses their balance, or anything, go back to the start, do it all again.

That is so much, and the two of them nailed every part of it. I still admire how they were able to trust each other and become confident in doing all that they do.

This being a one shot created a really incredible scene. It's fluid, and grounded in space and time. It's not the only scene that's drastically improved by the fact that it's a one shot, so I'll probably write more essays breaking down those scenes cause this movie has me in a choke hold.

[tteokdoroki]

— thirst tweets + katsuki bakugou.

hey so your husband bakugou does buzzfeeds thirst tweet interview and uncovers something hilarious from your old fan account. kinda crack? mostly fluff and a little suggestive !! hence MDNI 18+.

like say he’s on some promotional tour abroad, he’s bee invited to some fashion week or something and they decide to invite him on since fans have been hounding for katsuki do it it for years— so he finally agrees to do it.

it’s early morning when they film, the earliest they could get him in to shoot the video before whatever other promos he has to do on his schedule so katsuki is only half awake and dressed as comfortably as can be. his hair sticks to his forehead, grey hoodie pulled over his head and a coffee in one hand even though he hates the taste but he wants some fucking energy for hell his fans want him to endure.

“let’s get this fuckin’ thing over with shall we?” bakugou grunts as the camera starts rolling, taking a long exaggerated sip of his drink as if to mentally prepare. “the name’s katsuki bakugou ‘n i’m reading your thirst tweets. whores— do i get fuckin’ therapy after this?”

the tweets mostly start off tame, a few comments about how cute bakugou is when he laughs, how his admirers would give up their whole lives for him. the typical stuff in which the pro hero only responds with. “lame. where’s the good shit, i wanna see how nasty you lot can be.” he laughs, ruby eyes drifting over more of the screenshots production had lined him up with. “pro heroes don’t deserve to be sexualised but i want you all to know i’d let pro hero dynamight with a mullet tear my shit up.” he reads the next one with a smirk, pulling back his hood to toy with his growing blonde locks. “should i be growin’ my shit back?”

from here, things start to get progressively worse— bakugou putting the phone down from time to time so he can through his head back in deep laughter, mumbling things like ‘this is so fucked up!’ ‘nah, these guys are fuckin’ nasty.’ ‘can somebody get this on a t-shirt?’ and he’s absolutely having the time of his life filming and reading out his fans’ dirty tweets.

“i’d like to thank whatever god let me be alive at the same time as katsuki bakugou,” he repeats the next tweet out loud, spreading his thighs to sit back in his seat. “i’m your god. ya should be thankin’ me.” the next tweet makes his brows furrow. “i would plaster my bussy on the sidewalk for dynamight— what’s a bussy?”

a few more roll by and the video is almost over but katsuki bakugou damn near loses his mind at the grande finale. “‘if i ever get the chance, i’m gonna make sure that katsuki bakugou, pro hero, aged twenty three, gets the most toe curling, life threatening heart stopping head and then I’ll let him sit on my face with that fat ass of his until i can no longer breathe.” bakugou’s face turns bright red, a snort tearing though his throat as he reads the handle ‘bakugouscumdumpster01’ and then the name of the handler too. “holy fuckin’ shit…where did you guys find this? do you know who this is? this is my wife’s account.”

he would recognise your name anywhere, the way you type and text is still the same as it was five years ago before he met you and gave you the bakugou name. the tweets on the rest of your account are funny, lusting after other pro heroes but most are dedicated to your husband katsuki. the blonde knows the editors will have to cut all of this footage out later but he can’t help but scroll through your tweets and replies under his old tweets from earlier on in his hero career— mentions of how proud you are of him, how much you love him.

and five years later nothing has really changed. you still adore him all the same.

“‘m gonna call her, just you wait. this’ll make good fuckin’ television.” katsuki wonders how much of his cursing they’ll have to censor out when it comes down to editing as he taps your number, smiling when your face flashes up during the dial tone until you pick up.

“hi baby, aren’t you shooting right now?”

your voice fills his heart with joy, beating loud in his chest he’s afraid the cameras might pick up the sound. “i am baby, missed ya though.” there’s a smile on that heart, big and proud when you giggle through the phone and tell him you missed him too— asking him what he needs, if he’s okay, caring about him tenderly in your special way. he hates to ruin it— by reading out the most dirty, disgusting thing you’ve ever said. katsuki repeats your tweet word for word, listening to how you go silent the more he talks. “so does this coupon expire…or?”

you whine, and bakugou knows if you were you would be slapping his chest right now even though you both know he can’t feel it through his big tits (you’ve also tweeted this). “kats! t-that was before i met you!” you squeal, voice trembling with embarrassment— sending his heart into overdrive. you’re so sweet you could give him a toothache. “ohmygod, it’s gonna be in the video. i’m gonna scream, i’m gonna—“

“you sure you’ll be able to do that while yer givin’ me life threatenin’ head, baby?” dynamight rasps, angling the phone at the camera. they might have to cut this too, but he doesn’t care, still being able to fluster his wife is his favourite thing. “c’mon sweets, for the camera?”

you’re quiet for a moment, probably still sulking that your old thirsts for your husband are being uncovered for his amusement. “i’ll give you more than just life-threatening head, kats. just wait until you get home.” you purr through the speaker, voice dropping an octave and katsuki can practically see the way you would look up at him, through your lashes, lips between your teeth. god, he could die. “love you honey.”

and with that, you end the call— the tone ringing out through the set, leaving a flustered bakugou in your wake in front of bright lights and rolling cameras. “i think that’s a wrap?” one of the producers says, snapping dynamight from his thirsty, thirsty thoughts.

“uh…yeah, ‘m katsuki bakugou ‘n this has been reading your thirst tweets.” bakugou grunts bashfully, with a soft smirk on his face, only imagining what nasty acts you’re going to do when he’s done with promotions.

[weridpersonhelp]

stardom

[oneshot ? idk wally x reader]

un edited so appolgise for things that are spelt wrong, and gramma.

Could not help myself after I saw the Wally Actor AU! AAAAAH so I’m creating this, because I can. I know I should be focusing on red phone, but this next chapter is going to take a bit dudes. So here is this.

“Are you Y/n? my newest inturne?” Their stood infront of you the person or puppet you would be learning from. Julie, from the show welcome home. You had never though a puppet would let you be their intern, Let alone on the show Your nieces and nephues adored but by some mircal you got the job.

“yesh! It’s a pleasure to meet you  Julie Joyful! I’m very excited to work with you and help you with what ever you need! I look forward to learning from you as well Ma’am!”

“Oh don’t worry about formalities! Just call me Julie, Now I do need you to do me a small favour.” My eyes light up when she says this, I know interns are sometimes treated like dogs, but I didn’t care too much since this would be amazing on my resume.

“Sure thing Julie!” She gives me a small smile and her card.

“I would like a Carmel Frappuccino, with sprinkles and two pumps of vanila please! If you could et it here in at least 30 minutes would be-“ “NO Problem ma’am! I’ll get it right away!” I say rushing out the door, to get back in my car and drive to the nearest Starbucks. Ever since I was a kid I wanted to be to work in film, But I wasn’t smart enough too get in to collage. But I was able to do a tafe course and work my way up from their. I’m still shocked she even hired me.

Getting out of the car and into the Starbucks a sigh, seeing the huge line.

“Oh god…” ----

“I wounder where my new intern is.”

“Intern?” Wally asks Julie a little confused, she had never mentioned any intern to him. Let alone hriing one.

“Yes! I just got her today, I saw her before and asked her to get me my drink but she a little late. I hope she’s alright!” Julie says, sighing Wally was not happy with this at all. Late on the first day and why wasn’t he told about this? They where probably just another human looking down on  them. Thinking they could exploit poor Julie.

“MISS JOYFUL I HAVE YOUR DRINK!” The two puppets turn to see who was yelling, it was none other than her new intern! She was sweaty and holding an ice cold drink in her hands.

“I’m so sorry Miss Joyful! There was a massive line! And they stuffed up the order the first time so i-“ “Awe thank you Y/n! it’s no problem I understand, and please call me Julie!”

“Yes Ms. Julie is their anything else I can help you with?” she asks Wally rises an eyebrow at her a little, noticing her good posture and how she kept her hands together in the front folded nicely on top of each other.

“Could you get me some banana bread from the table? Wally, would you like anything?”

“Just a chocolate muffin cut into 4 slices and a silver knife, I can taste it when it’s wood.” Wally says this was a test honestly, he knew that she wouldn’t be able to keep up this good shared for too long. She’s probably heard from the other crew how much of an ass he is and is only being nice to get on his good side.

“No problem, Sir, I’ll get them for you guys!” Y/n stands about to leave before Julie calls out to her.

“And get yourself something! I don’t want you passing out on me!”

“Oh! Sure thing!” she finally leaves.

“Isn’t she adorable! She has a pretty good resume as well!”

“how so?”

“Well, she has done a cert 3 in childcare! So, she has a blue card! She worked in customer service for 4 years! She loved film though her G.P.A is low she worked very hard to be here! Her dream is to work in the film industry-“

“Acting?” Wally asks taking a sip of his mineral water with a lime in it.

“Nope!”

“Then why is her your intern?”

“Well, she said she wants to learn all aspects, she was very eager in the interview my agent said! And all employees described her as hard working!” Julie explains, Julie’s agent wasn’t a ray of sunshine, she would make Julie do some adds she didn’t like and use to force them to model on the side. That was before Wally straightened her out. Would she be happening to do this do make him angry?

“it took my a while to find a Silver Knife but I did! I brought a little butter thing just incase. I didn’t know if you wanted it buttered sorry!” Y/n says handing both of them what they asked for, She even gave wally a Metal fork. He was honestly a little shocked and weirder out.

“This is good! Thank you would you like to sit and watch with us?” Y/n was taken aback HELL WALLY WAS TAKEN ABACK.

“o-oh umm thank you yes please.” Y/n moves from the middle of them to Julie’s left and takes a seat on the ground, she opens the old bottle of water and takes a sip.

“Awe scared of me sugar?” Wally asks teasingly, Julie chuckles along as Y/n face heats up and eye widen.

“OH NO SIR! I DIDN’T MEAN TOO! I JUST-““ I don’t bite!” this embarrasses Y/n further and makes Julie crack up more.

“I- um. I know I just thought-““oh ignore him Y/n! he just teasing he does it to every one! OH my your redder then a tomato!”

“Or a apple!” the two continue to laugh while Y/n left their, but she doesn’t seem to mind all of that. She instead focus her attention on to the set. Soon enough the two puppet go on and talk about something else. That’s when she notices someone struggling with something.

“And then I heard-“ “Excuse me Ms Julie is it okay if I help that poor fella?”

“Oh yes of course, you can do what ever as long as you’re here when I call for you!” Y/n nods and quickly goes to the guy to help him lift the fake trees.

“Hey, let me help you with that!” Y/n says grabbing two of the trees from his arms, The guy looks confused at first but gladly takes the help.

“Thanks, we need to move these over here.” “No problem!” The two walks to the side and place the trees there. She dusts off her hands off from the and a joyful smile can be seen on her face.

“Which department are you in? by any chance?” The employee asks her,

“Oh, I’m the new intern for Julie Joyful I’m Y/n nice to meet you.” Y/n puts her hand forward to shake.

“Jack, you work with the puppets? Good luck ha-ha! See ya later kid.” He says walking. Y/n shows a face of confusion and tilt of the head as he walks away, but she walks back to her new boss.

[blindmanbaldwin]

Perhaps it was seeing it on a premium large format screen, perhaps it was my mood that day, or perhaps it is because I'm always drawn to the stories of people trapped inside of their contradictions — but I was impressed with "The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes" last year, especially with its cinematography and editing. I thought bits of the film, particularly the climax, had shots/rhythm evocative of the great Terrence Malick only to find the film's editor Mark Yoshikawa is a frequent collaborator of Malick.

Now I could talk at length about those comparisons, or the sense of gaze of the film (Tom Blyth's eyes are fascinating to track when he's in close-up/medium shot), or the relationship the wider series has with the medium of television. But I'd rather talk about the beginning of one scene near the beginning of the third-act as an example of effective pacing building dramatic tension and establishing character.

Start on this wide shot at a low-angle. "The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes" uses low-angle shots frequently, which makes sense in a story about insecurity about power/class gaps. Low or high angles means we see something at an unnatural eye-line — which creates a visual power imbalance.

In the background we have a man just barely peaking over the horizon. This is Coriolanus Snow, our boy from the Capitol who comes from a noble family that lost everything in the war. In the first chunks of the film, we learn that Snow wants to restore his family's former glory. He wants to get that power back. The power gap that we see.

But this isn't the Capitol. This is District 12. This is place he was sent because of his failure. He cheated at the titular Hunger Games to win them for his tribute. So what could he be looking for out here to help him with his desire?

POV shot now. Cutting from that low-angle wide to seeing through Snow's eyes. While it isn't the subject of this post, the POV shot is the most direct expression of gaze. Think about cinema's greatest voyeurist Alfred Hitchcock and all his iconic POV shots ("Vertigo"). Nothing gets inside of a character's head like literally showing what they see.

Snow moves toward something — a something we now know was the (relative) perspective of the first shot.

Or, rather, not a something. But a someone:

Now back on Snow. Only this time he isn't obscured in the background but near the center of the frame. The camera pushing in before to emulate his movement seen now in his movement. Going toward the someone seen in the previous shot. Someone we couldn't really see before — but now are getting closer to finding.

Close enough to see her guitar.

Of course, if we were listening we would already know that this is Lucy Gray Baird. For her voice echoes through the forest and calls to Snow. But we're sticking to the visual — where we see him pushing toward someone. Pushing toward her.

Baird was his tribute in the Hunger Games. Living (but not hailing from) District 12, she had the lowest odds to win the Games. But through her own determination and a little bit of a push from Snow, she succeeded in winning the Games.

More importantly — she succeeded in winning his heart, as he did to her.

Go back to earlier: the beginning of "The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes" establishes Snow's desire as reclaiming his family's lost power. Story is conflict, conflict is character, and character is desire. Think mathematically for a moment: Character is action that is a function of desire. But desire cannot remain static. Pull any book or movie off of a shelf at a library. What a character wants at a start will not be the same thing/only thing they want at the end.

Snow began wanting to reclaim his family's lost power. But through this desire — him cheating the games and getting exiled to District 12, the lowest and poorest district in all the land, runs contrary to this desire. He cannot get more power being among the powerless. Why would he act in such a contradictory manner?

Because once he laid his eyes on Lucy Gray, young Coryo had a new desire in his heart. He didn't want to just reclaim what belonged to him, but he also wanted to protect her.

Like all functional drama, this creates a problem — he wants two things that are mutually exclusive. To protect her requires working against the Capitol which means pushing his family further down the social ladder. But to work on restoring his family means throwing her to the odds, and he can't stand thinking of her brown eyes dying out there.

Speaking of brown eyes...

Now we're on Lucy Gray's face. Focus on her and her playing (notice her eyes looking down and not hyperaware of her surroundings), but with another element in the background. Snow coming on the horizon.

Adapting a work from one medium to another always creates new restraints, but also new modes of expression. Condensing a 450-page novel into a ~2.5 hour film requires conveying the emotional arguments of the work in different ways. As such, "The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes" focuses more on Snow's desires/contradictions than Baird's (even more than the novel) but we still have to some sense of her internal desire to create a compelling character that isn't just an object for Snow's character journey.

Of course, there is the real basic desire of surviving the Games, but that is lackluster and doesn't create real emotional bite. No, her central desire (at least in the film) comes through that one point mentioned earlier — she lived in District 12, but she did not come from District 12. Baird is a wanderer, or at least before the war was part of a wandering culture. Now she is trapped. Her desire is to get back what she lost; she wants to fly as a bird once again.

Look at the above shot. There is no distress on her face. While Snow got exiled for his actions in the prior chunk of the film, Baird got no punishment. She went back to District 12 and could play her music again. Not free to fly high but freer than she was at the start when she got called to fight in the Games.

This natural landscape Baird and Snow find themselves in during this scene is (metaphorical) paradise. It is the closest place to Baird's desire of freedom. The latter bits of the film's third-act use this idea to great dramatic effect.

Baird and Snow's desires both overlap and conflict. Both want to get something that they lost from the war — Snow his status, and Baird her freedom. But their desires operate in opposite direction. Baird wants to go up (free) while Snow is concerned with what's happening down on the ground among the social community. What Snow wants at the start can only be found in having people beneath him, while Baird's is found in having some space to be in.

But recall — Snow also wants to protect her, and this desire comes through a genuine feeling toward her. At the start it may be boyish attraction to her brown eyes and voice, but what his gaze perceived turned into something more. They both want the same thing of undoing loss.

And it's that sameness that pulls Coryo to Lucy Gray. That sameness that pulls him down the social ladder (he has a famous last name, she has no name) and down the society's hierarchy (he is Capitol, she is District) to risk his future for her. That sameness that pulls him to throw his own life and his chance of getting his past back away. That sameness that keeps him walking.

That sameness that makes her bring this strange man into her world. That sameness that makes her trust him with her everything.

Her personal space out here, far from the suffering in District 12 and the tyrannical bloodshed in the Capitol, now has the presence of that strange man she let inside.

Viewing this natural space as her paradise, she had won this peace but found that her ghost still lingers. A ghost that she doesn't really want to let go of — as evident by her attention going to him, and the unconscious act of her voice calling him here. Remember: nothing in conventional narrative is coincidence or happens spontaneously. Every action a character does is an expression of desire.

Why does she sing? Becuase that's her life. She is a performer. She performed on stage in District 12's bars. She performed when got selected for the Games, which is what first caught Coryo's eyes. She performed for the whole nation to survive in the games. And she performs for Coryo — because she wants to perform for him.

And through this her desire reveals its contradiction. She wants to be free and untethered; to fly like a bird. But she has the same feeling for him that he has for her, and this feeling creates an attachment — a tether. The wanderer found a home.

She could tell him to go away. She could tell him to leave. She could tell him to do whatever. Her words don't matter.

Film is a language of image. Sound (music and dialogue) matter, but ultimately is it a moving picture. A film establishes a character through visual actions. Lucy Gray identifies Coryo, and she stops playing so she can talk to him. So she can go to him. He is pulled into her world — but she is pulled toward him.

Think about the sequence of shots, specifically the POV shots. It is basic movement: start far from the object, and move toward the object. As the character whose POV the camera emulates gets closer to the object, the film cuts back to the opposite side to establish the geography of the scene. But it also creates a little bit of tension — these two forces are coming together and one of them doesn't know it, so what will be the reaction when they come together?

A few frames of static. Coryo stands in anticipation. Waiting to see what she will do.

Go back through these ten shots. Notice they all are of the same vantage point. We see Snow approaching from the horizon, and we see Baird playing her guitar on a rock with Snow coming behind her. While the scene progresses by composing more of the frame around the subject as they get closer together, the core angle remains the same: one shot from him walking and one shot of her point in space. We don't change this basic idea.

Until the scene begins with them coming together to have their first conversation since the Games — which also ends the scene as it shows the distance that remains between them.

They are pulled together, except Coryo stands above her. They both want to be together but they both occupy different places in the social hierarchy that they can never escape. The contradictions of their desires expressed in the blocking of one shot.

[jordanrosenburg]

Argylle - A Breath of Fresh Air

**Spoilers Ahead**

I just got back from seeing Argylle with a friend. I knew I had wanted to see it because I like a lot of the actors in it, but I had seen the trailer so many times that I felt like I had already watched it.

That trailer couldn't have prepared me for the unadulterated fun I was about to have. Every other line out of Sam Rockwell's mouth was laugh out loud funny. What kept me drawn in, though, was the editing. The splices between Rockwell and Cavill was seamless. I know with modern technology, they easily could have greenscreened a lot of it, but it still must have taken a while to film all the same fight scenes in the same exact way to make the cuts as seamless as they were.

The score and soundtrack were brilliant. Between the funky tunes used for the fight scenes, and the dramatic notes used during what would be dramatic in a regular spy thriller, had me enjoying every minute. I will be looking up the soundtrack playlist on Spotify and listening repeatedly.

Henry Cavill is no stranger to playing a spy. In between Superman movies, Cavill starred in The Man from U.N.C.L.E. The latter was another movie that didn't mind being silly and wasn't afraid to have its comedic moments. Because Cavill has played so many daring roles over the years, where he's been the hero or the brute or even just the eye candy, he was the perfect fit for Argylle. You can tell he was having a blast, and not taking things too seriously. The audience isn't supposed to take it seriously either. The Argylle books in the movie are a personification of how cheesy those sorts of books and movies can be. The eye-rolling puns, the use of a femme fatale, and crude jokes.

Back in the day, that's how most James Bond movies were. They had their serious moments, but Bond was a cheeky spy who liked to fuck and crack wise with his villains. He was suave and sure of himself and a badass. But there was a transition in the 90's when the Austin Powers movies started rolling out. Now, I'm a huge fan of Austin Powers movies, I'll watch them any time, any place. But those movies, being replicas of the old Bond films but with more humor, outlandish sex, and over the top puns, made it difficult for the new Bond films to be silly. Suddenly, they were getting more and more serious, with more and more over the top action scenes and explosions.

Argylle brought back the silliness and the goofiness, and the ability to laugh at itself. Suspension of disbelief, etc etc. Sometimes you just need to sit back and let yourself enjoy the ride. Throughout the film, as the layers kept being peeled back, I kept thinking, "What is this movie?!" I can usually figure out what's going to happen, but the twists and turns in this film kept throwing me off, and that kept me in my seat and having fun.

There's a scene where Bryce Dallas Howard's character, Elly, thinks she's seen her parents die in cold blood. Rockwell is driving her somewhere in the south of France, and he asks her if she's okay. Howard, astonished, asks, "Am I okay? Am I okay?!", and then she started crying. This made me lean over to my friend and say, "all of us @ Elmo the other day", and we burst into hysterics. (If you're unfamiliar, Elmo's X account posted asking how everyone was, and there was a surge of responses of people using memes to show how not well they all are.)

A little more than halfway through, we find out that Elly's real name is Rachel Kyle. She had gotten into a bad accident on a spy mission and had no memory. The bad guys brainwashed her into thinking she was someone else, and it worked. The Argylle books she wrote as Elly, were really just memories coming back to her. We were made to believe her books were predicting future events, but really, it was the past. Samuel L. Jackson explained that to her. Rockwell then had to calm Howard down and get her to settle into the information. Slowly, Rachel remembers who she is. She hasn't lost all of Elly, but she makes it seem like she has in order to complete the overall mission.

Rockwell thinks that Howard has double crossed her, but in a very Knives Out fashion, she explains that she knew if she shot him in the chest in just the right spot, he wouldn't die. We learn that the two were lovers back in the day. Not only did he feel betrayed, but he was heartbroken. Later on, she double crosses the bad guys, finds her cat, then finds a room with all the weapons she could possibly need to get out. Rockwell finds her there, and they're able to hash things out. She assures him that they're on the same side.

This leads into one of the most incredibly choreographed fight scenes I've ever seen. You can tell the actors were having an incredible time. Smoke pours into the corridor and the two come out shooting. While throwing in body rolls and other dance movements, they take everyone out. This also included Howard lifting Rockwell up, much like how Dua Lipa was lifted up during the beginning of the movie by Henry Cavill, spread eagle. The shots used every time there was a lift like this was not subtle. We get it, it's an innuendo for sitting on someone's face. And it was funny every single time.

Then the next fight scene happened, which gave Howard a moment to shine. They were trapped in a room that was slowly filling with oil, so they couldn't shoot their guns. She remembers she's actually good at ice skating, and puts together makeshift skates. She sticks a knife into a gun, then rushes out like a hockey player. I thought I was going to pass out from laughing so hard. It was the perfect mix of hockey style skating and figure skating. Were these scenes filled with CGI and body doubles? Yes. Did it make them less fun? Absolutely not.

Everything works out in the end because of course it does. Her ending is given to Argylle and Wyatt. Personally, I think Henry Cavill and John Cena should have kissed, they were clearly in love. I thought they would have since Rockwell and Howard kissed. All of the scenes paralleled one another, so why couldn't that one? I digress.

For one last big laugh, at the end of the movie, Howard is back to pretending to be Elly the author, and is doing a book reading of the final Argylle book. She's taking questions from the audience, and she calls on a man. He stands and knowingly smiles. It's Henry Cavill, only he has a curly mullet and a southern accent. What is it with British actors and doing southern accents that brings me so much joy? He says, "I don't have any questions, but I'm sure you have a couple for me", and winks.

There was a post-credits scene. It was supposed to be the actual Argylle book's first film adaptation. The scene takes place in a bar called The King's Man. An Easter egg thrown in by director, Matthew Vaughn, who has also directed the 2021 film by the same name. We couldn't tell if it was serious or not, but I'd love to see a movie based off the fake books. I think mostly because the writer, Jason Fuchs, and Matthew Vaughn, should definitely team up again.

Even though there were parts reminiscent to other spy movies, this is one of the most creative movies I've seen in a while. This is my favorite kind of satire. There are so many movies that are just remakes of remakes of remakes these days. It feels like there are no original ideas left. So, this was a breath of fresh air. It was so funny and so brilliant with a star studded cast. I bet this movie was so fun to work on, you could just feel that energy radiating from the actors. There were some slower parts, but that's to be expected. For the most part, my attention was kept. It was one of those movies where I left thinking, "I can't wait for this to come to streaming so I can watch it again".

I don't think Howard is the strongest actor, and some of the plot between the good spies and the bad spies was a little confusing. I found a lot of that hard to follow, maybe that was supposed to be on purpose. Most spy movies aren't always clear on what the main issue is.

Anyways, if you're looking for an escape from the cold, or an escape in general, this is definitely the movie to see.

[pawnshopbleus]

Put Me in a Movie - Chapter Nine

Miguel O’Hara x Fem!Reader

Summary - You’re a famous actress and he’s one of the greatest directors of all time. What happen when you get cast in his new movie? 

Chapter Eight 

They say that time flies when you’re having fun and that’s true. Months pass by and suddenly it’s the last day of filming. The movie isn’t done yet. It still has to go through the post-production phase of editing and promoting and the premier. Post-production was always your favorite part of being an actress. That meant that there were no more lines that needed to be memorized.

It was your last day of getting to explore the character of Polina, who by now has revealed her spy status to James. He doesn’t care about that though because he is infatuated with her. In the end, love wins.

Everyone was celebrating when Miguel said ‘cut’ for the final time. Hugs and kisses were thrown around liberally. People that you’ve never seen before came up to you to congratulate you on a job well done.

Peter and Jessica were some of the last two people you hugged. Peter’s hug was warm and soft, just like him. Jessica’s was long and filled with many emotions. She cried into your shoulder and thanked you for being like a sister to her during these last few months of filming. She broke the hug and wiped the tears from her cheeks.

Then, out of nowhere, Miguel comes up to you and hugs you. This action was surprising not only to you but also to everyone around you. They all stared but said nothing, too scared to upset Miguel on their last day.

With his arms wrapped around you and his head hovering around by your ear, he leaned in and whispered, “Meet me outside.” He let go of you and walked out of the sound stage.

“He didn’t even hug me and I’m the mother of his child,” Jessica scoffed. She was the first one to break the awkward silence that followed after Miguel's exit.

You laughed awkwardly at her comment but didn’t say anything. Truth be told, you didn’t know what to say. Miguel just hugged you and only you in a room filled to the brim with people in the industry. They could go to the press and start a rumor about you and Miguel if they wanted.

You did what Miguel told you to do. Meet him outside. When you walked outside of the sound stage and into the warm California night, you expected him to be there, but he wasn’t. You checked all three of the entrances of the sound stage and he was nowhere to be seen. You walked a bit further in your kitten heels around the lot and found him leaning against a wall smoking a cigarette.

“Smoking kills,” you say, trying to get his attention. Miguel looks over at you and chuckles. He then offers the cigarette to you. You accept it and take a hit. Then it hits you, your lips have just touched the place where Miguel’s lips once were. You cough. Not because of that cough, but because you’ve never smoked before.

“Still a virgin?”

“What?”

“A smoking virgin. I can tell that that was your first time smoking.” Miguel smirked. A smoking Virgin? Never heard that one before.

You narrow your eyes at him but he doesn't see. The lights are dim around this area. If he wanted to, he could kidnap you and no one would know. He likes the idea of having you all to himself. Miguel offers you the cigarette again, but this time you decline. “Smart decision,” he says.

“Why did you ask me to meet you out here?” Your feet were now killing you. Your kitten heels were a size too small and all you wanted to do was go home, take your shoes off, and lounge on your couch while you watched Bridget Jones’s Diary with Fern.

“Because I wanted to see if you would come.” Miguel puts the cigarette out.

“So I didn’t have to come?” You sigh. You could have been halfway home by now. Not that you didn’t like the fact that Miguel thought about you. You're just tired and couldn’t wait to watch one of your all-time favorite movies.

“I always make girls come.”

Is your brain playing mind games with you or are you hearing him correctly, “What?”

“I said, I’ll see you tomorrow at the wrap party.” Miguel bid you farewell, got in his car, and drove off.

The wrap party was going to be held at your home. It’s been a while since a party was hosted at your home. There would be some cleaning that needs to be done, some decorating, and some making sure that no one goes upstairs. It’s not that you didn’t trust the people you worked with, it’s just that you didn’t want strangers snooping through your personal belongings. Everyone from the cast and crew was invited to the wrap party plus a few extra celebrities and friends that wanted to come. Meaning people that didn’t need to be looking at your stuff were going to be there.

On the drive home, you thought about today. A chapter in your life was closing, but you were excited for the next. Press tours, red carpets, movie premieres, parties, and hopefully some romance.

Chapter Ten

[rottenpumpkin13]

Hey Genesis, where would be the best place to buy a copy of Loveless? I'm interested in reading it, but I have no idea where to pick up a copy...

SOLDIER Vlogging Shenanigans pt. 17

[The camera flickers on to show Cloud awkwardly filming himself. He's walking down a busy Midgar street, pointing the camera at Sephiroth and Genesis walking behind him. Genesis has his eyes glued to his phone]

"Dear Goddess," Genesis huffs, typing madly into the device, "I think my parents are swingers." 

[Cloud snorts and starts laughing madly. Genesis looks up into the camera, all color draining of his face]

"Don't film this!" He snaps.

-

[The camera next cuts to Genesis's perfect influencer-esque camera angle filming himself, Sephiroth and Cloud walking down the street. It's notable to mention Genesis is wearing overpriced sunglasses that cover half his face]

"Okay!" Genesis grins. "This particular question warrants a field trip! Today we're in Loveless avenue in sector eight because—"

[In the background Sephiroth and Cloud are audibly arguing over the correct pronunciation of Laboratory—"Sir, with all do respect, no one on the continent pronounces it la-buh-ruh-tor-ee! It's la-bruh-tor-ee!" followed by “So what you’re saying is that I’m illiterate?” and then a breathless, “What!? No!”]

"—We're going to Greenly & Co, which is the best place to find any and all variations of LOVELESS including collectors' editions." 

[He zooms the camera in on Cloud and Sephiroth]

“Today I’m joined by Sephiroth and Private Strife—”

“I’m babysitting,” Cloud cuts in, urging a numb grunt from Sephiroth and a pout from Genesis.

“Yes, insulting as it is, Angeal thinks it unwise to let Sephiroth and I out of the tower unsupervised—”

“Because the last time that happened you two caused a traffic jam in sector five,” Cloud added coolly. “Something about…You betting Sephiroth he wouldn’t be bold enough to jaywalk? And then he proceeded to launch himself into traffic.”

[Sephiroth’s lips are a thin line. He’s stiff as he walks]

“I didn’t fully understand the implications,” he mutters.

[Genesis scowls and flips the camera completely around on Cloud and Sephiroth. Cloud looks bored and smug. Sephiroth tightens his grip over his crossed arms]

“I’ll have you know, Strife, we were children then. Maturity comes at the behest of age.” 

“That was last month,” Sephiroth mutters quietly.

[Genesis frowns and lowers his arm, turning the camera off]

-

[The video next cuts to a black screen. Shuffling and quiet swearing is heard, then a whir of motion before Cloud’s face pops up on screen. He looks completely horror-stricken, eyes wide as he looks all around the fancy bookstore he’s walking around in]

“So,” he briefly looks into the camera, “I’m fucked!”

[He pans the camera around shakily to show the book aisle he’s pacing down. Sephiroth and Genesis are nowhere in sight. Gaia help us all]

“I lost Sephiroth and Rhapsodos!” He pans the camera back to himself, running a trembling hand over his unruly spikes. “I don’t understand! They were here one minute and then the next they—”

[Somewhere off-camera, there’s a thunderous crash, followed by the sound of broken glass, then two swords unsheathing. Cloud stills momentarily before he hears Genesis’s voice (“It’s pronounced la-bruh-tor-ee, you scum of the planet!”) and then an explosion shakes the camera]

“Oh man, Hewley’s gonna kill me!” Cloud hisses, fumbling to turn the camera off and locate the two SOLDIERs.

[He ends the video]

[jayteacups]

Remedy

Struggling to keep up with your university workload, you fall sick, much to your dismay. Your boyfriend takes care of you, but Levi's spent too much of his life watching a loved-one struggle with illness, and can't help the rising fear within him when looking after you.

Pairing: Levi x fem!Reader

Tags and warnings: SFW, University AU, sickfic (Reader is ill), established relationship, some hurt/comfort. (EDIT: in one line, Reader’s hair texture is implied to be straight or wavy.)

Word count: 2.0k

A/N: I wrote this a few days ago when I first fell ill, and my symptoms have changed a little since then, but I digress. Reader’s got one hell of a sore throat and all round feels kinda bleugh (since then my sore throat has turned into a cough and my energy levels have NOT improved fml). This is your regularly scheduled reminder to get some rest, drink water and eat properly so you don’t end up like me or Reader here lol 

The shifting of the mattress underneath you interrupts your slumber, and a small whine of discontent escapes you. You feel oddly disoriented, a film of exhaustion clinging to your eyes. 

“Sorry,” you hear your boyfriend whisper quietly from behind you, as he readjusts the cover over your shoulder and slips an arm around your waist. “Go back to sleep.” Nimble fingers slip through your hair softly. 

“Mm. Okay,” you rasp, burying your face into the pillow, sighing at the welcome contact of Levi’s chest pressing up against your back. You’d spent the entire day slaving away at the library, desperately trying to force your overworked brain to focus and catch up on uni work, and his touch was sorely missed, and—“wait…” 

He kisses the back of your head. “What?” 

You just about manage to force your eyes open, focusing on the lamp on the bedside table. You’re in your room, judging by the random paraphernalia placed atop it. Levi’s room, to nobody’s surprise, is much less messy. “How’d I get back here? Was at the library.” 

“D’you not remember?” 

“… no…” Eyes drifting shut again of their own accord, you sigh drowsily. 

“You must’ve been really out of it, then.” Levi sighs, holding you a little tighter to his chest.  “You fell asleep at the desk, and Hange phoned me so I could come pick you up, since they needed to stay a little longer. I woke you up and you miraculously didn’t fall back asleep on the drive back, but you were practically a zombie the entire journey.” 

“Oh.” His words are starting to sound a little fuzzy, but you just about understand them. 

“You need to take care of yourself. I’ve never seen you this out of it.” 

“I still need to catch up with work; I’m so behind,” you protest, cut off by a yawn. If you’d been more awake in the moment, hot shame would be running through your veins at just how bad of a student you’d become. You’d always been on top of things, and you’re still not sure how you’d fallen so far behind on lectures, assignments, everything. Struggling to wake up on time, struggling to drag yourself to classes, struggling to care at all; only until you’re hit with the sudden realisation that if you continued, you’d be so far behind it’ll be impossible to even consider catching up to your peers. Hence—the last few days of panicked overworking. But even then, you still can’t work as efficiently as you once could, and it just feels like the more you work, the larger the list of tasks to complete… 

You’re too tired to care about it now, though. That’s a problem for tomorrow. 

“Wake me up early.” Your tongue feels too heavy to formulate the words properly, but you hope he understands. 

Levi clicks his tongue—of course he understands. “Not a chance. You’re going to make yourself sick if you keep at it like this.” 

You’re deeply asleep by the time he finishes the final word. 

———

You wake up to a dry throat and golden light trickling through your curtains. 

Sluggishly, you roll over. The other side of the small mattress where Levi had been is now empty and cold. 

Groaning, you wonder why all your limbs feel heavier than concrete blocks. Even your eyes are struggling to open, more so than last night. Feeling an unpleasant, dull ache in your throat, you swallow to get rid of the dryness in your mouth. 

Shit. Your throat hurts. 

I cannot be ill. Not now. 

Against your body’s wishes, you open your eyes (the sun is definitely way into the sky, judging by the light seeping through the curtain gaps), lift an aching arm and turn the alarm clock to face you, bleary-eyed and blinking slowly at the time displayed. Confirming your suspicions, the clock tells you that it is quite late in the morning… much later than you’d hoped to… wake… 

When you next come to, you want nothing to bury yourself so deeply into the covers that you fuse with the quilt permanently. A warm hand rests gently on your forehead, taking your temperature.

You call out Levi’s name—or at least, you think you did, but for all you know it could’ve come out as an incoherent mumble instead. Throat feeling worse than before, you can’t help but grimace. Levi’s hand moves away from your forehead, coming to cup your face tenderly instead. His thumb brushes over the apple of your cheek. 

“Are you awake?” He ventures. 

You open your eyes again, and squint up at him. He’s perched on the side of the bed, his hair falling over his eyes. 

“I think I’m awake now.” 

He looks down at his lap for a moment. “You look like crap.” 

“Yeah. I don’t feel all too sunny, either.” You grouse, lifting a hand to rub at your face.

“That’s what I thought.” Something clenches in his jaw momentarily, before it smooths out. “Feel like drinking anything?” 

It is only then you finally register the fragrance of a hot drink. “You didn’t,” you say hoarsely, turning your head to the side. A cup of steaming hot tea sits atop the bedside table. Dragging yourself up into a sitting position with a supportive hand on your shoulder from him, you say, “you’re too good to me, baby, thank you.” 

Bashfully avoiding eye contact, Levi squeezes your shoulder before removing his hand. “Your voice sounded a little rough last night, too. At least you don’t have a fever, but… just drink up.” 

Beaming at him, you comply. It tastes bright and sweet, just the way you like it—no, sweeter. He’d put a spoonful of honey in it to soothe your throat. 

As you slowly sip your tea in bed, Levi disappears, likely to continue with household chores around the flat—chores that you should be doing today, since you and your flatmates created a rota. Currently, two are out of town and one’s been staying over at her boyfriend’s place more and more, so the entire accommodation is yours for now. 

Tamping down on the guilt flaring up inside you, you set the empty teacup aside and lumber over to the bathroom, wincing at all the little aches and pains that comes with moving around in this state. 

Freshening up takes far more effort than it should, forcing you to shamefully trudge back into your bedroom once you’re done. Flopping on your bed face-first, you moan. 

“Hey,” Levi says from your doorway. “I emailed your professors. They’ll send you the material, and if you want, I can go to your lectures and take notes too.”

“You’re a godsend,” you groan from the bed. “No need to go to my classes for me, though. The digital handout will be just fine.” 

He sighs. “Okay. Do you want to eat something too? It’s past noon.” 

“No thanks, I’m not feeling hungry.” You sigh, clenching the sheets in trembling fists. The hot searing shame from the last few days has returned. You’re so fucking incompetent. “Please, don’t do my chores. It’s okay. I’ll do ‘em later, yeah?” 

“I don’t mind doing them.” Levi’s footsteps approach the bed before you feel a dip in the mattress. He smells like antiseptic, the scent sharp and invading your nostrils. “Cleaning is therapeutic for me.” 

The guilt comes creeping back in. No wonder he’s also been looking stressed every time you see him—he’s worried beyond grief for you. You don’t know the full details, but you know that his mother has ongoing health issues ever since his childhood, and that there had been a number of close calls and scares. Therefore, it’s not a surprise to you that he’s always been extra anxious about illnesses, mild or severe, or that he takes to intense cleaning sprees whenever somebody in his life falls ill. 

You turn your head and crane your neck - he’s wearing a surgical mask over his lower face. “I’m sorry for making you worry,” the words slip from your mouth before you can think. “I promise it’s not that bad, I’m just a weakling… I’ll feel better soon, I swear.” you chuckle half-heartedly, frustrated beyond belief and trying to make the mood light-hearted to distract both of you, but judging by his furrowed brows, Levi doesn’t find any of this amusing. Neither do you, though. There’s absolutely nothing amusing about being such a shitty, undeserving student and girlfriend who fell ill due to her own fault and forced her boyfriend to put everything on hold to look after her.

He shakes his head instead, eyes darkening with sorrow. “Don’t promise me. Just do it. Just… get better soon.” 

Wincing, you roll over so that you are now flat on your back and looking up at him properly. “It’s probably just fresher’s flu or something similar, nothing I won’t get over…” Your voice wobbles. “I’m sorry all the same, but please, don’t worry.” 

Stormy eyes flutter shut for a moment. His next words sound heartbreakingly strained. “Don’t tell me you’re sorry or that I shouldn’t worry, damn it, you just have to get better, alright?” He swallows, and then moves to get up. Quieter, he adds, “let me know if there’s anything you need from me to help you do that, i-if there is anything I could do at all.” 

Tears prick at your eyes. Damn it all—you weren’t feeling emotional at all ten minutes ago. Yet all the shame at your own shortcomings, the exhaustion from what little you did today, and worry for Levi’s sake come bubbling to the surface. The tears leak, and run across your temple and into the pillowcase. Sniffling, you wipe roughly at your face with one hand, and lurch out with the other to grab at his hand. 

“Just stay, please.” 

He freezes. 

Time ticks by slower than a snail’s pace. 

His hand closes around yours. Moisture gathers at his lash line, but he refuses to let them fall. 

“I’ll stay.” 

You smile weakly, shuffling to make room for him on your tiny bed. Cautiously, Levi sits on the edge, noting your wincing.

“You’re in pain,” he observes. “I can get paracetamol.” 

“Just a little achey all over,” you sigh. “I’ll take a tablet or two in a minute, yeah? Just… be here with me. Please.” 

He tilts his head. “I have an idea.” 

“Oh?” 

“Get on your front. I’ll give you a massage.” 

You comply, but not without taking his hand and squeezing it first. “Like I said,” you say as you shuck off your sleep shirt and get yourself in position, “you’re too good to me. I’m going to be just fine, because you’re here, okay?” 

He shakes his head. “Don’t be like that. It was never about me and I shouldn’t have made it so. You shouldn’t be worrying about me. Just relax and enjoy the massage now.” 

“But I can’t help but worry—oh.” Levi’s hands grip your shoulders, rubbing firmly, but not painfully. “Oh. Yeah, keep going.” Burying your face in the pillow, you let your eyes flutter shut. In another context, there would be something undeniably erotic about this entire situation, but now? You just want to bask in his comfort. 

“Tired?” Levi asks as your sounds of relief and words of encouragement fall sparser and sparser until the room is filled with nothing but silence. 

“Mm hm.” You smile drowsily. “I’m good, though, thank you baby.” 

“Get some sleep, then,” he says, as you readjust your arms that were resting underneath the pillow. “You deserve some rest. It’ll help you later with work. Okay?” 

“Yeah.” You nod, unable to open your eyes all of a sudden. There’s still so much the two of you need to discuss later: his anxieties when it comes to illnesses, your insecurities and struggles when it comes to university life. But, you think, being lulled gently by a wave of sleep, that can be discussed later. 

Right as you dangle on the precipice of sleep, another question escapes unbidden. “Can I get a kiss?” 

You hear something akin to a chuckle above you. “No. Get better first, and then I’ll consider it, love.” 

“It’s a deal,” you mumble, and your consciousness fades to the best sleep you’ve gotten in a long, long time. 

© jayteacups 2022 | do not repost, modify or claim as your own work. 

Masterlist

[fitalich]

There's Always a Tell

Jake Kiszka x Reader (Post-Band Film AU)

[Edited - 11/9/23]

After lurking here and there, I finally caved and incorporated Jake into a short piece I'd started for a college class. No, I have no shame.

I hope you find it titillating.

Feedback is welcomed and greatly appreciated 🖤

Contains: Alcohol, cursing, sexual situations...hand kink?

Lead-in: You've overworked this scene to smithereens, rewriting the score, recuts, to where the original scene has been completely abandoned. All to avoid telling the director that you need to reshoot the practical effects that were half of the film's budget. Musician blames the edit; Editor doesn't think it's salvageable. The Musician [Male, sat left] and Editor [First Person, sat right] are reviewing the sequence on the projector. 

“It's just not cutting enough," you said. 

"Mmm.” He took a generous swig of neat blanco from his hatched rocks glass, audibly forcing the liquor down. The long silver pendants around his neck fell forward, dangling in front of his chest whenever he reached for the coffee table. 

His severely unbuttoned shirt did the same, black linen separating past his sternum and joining just below his ribcage, opening itself to expose skin you hadn’t seen. Jake’s body was akin to his other features–His frame was soulfully edged, strong-knit like a craftsman, but his flesh was gentle, supple, a little romantic. 

"I think we’re just gonna have to reshoot it," you said. "Build this up properly." 

His eyes fluttered shut. All the work he’d done, it wouldn’t be lost entirely, but the time wasted pained him. The entire night had been a battle over the pacing, and why it felt so awkward. He had already written the score, so you were left to the task of cutting the film to tempo by hand. If you even alluded to the issues within the raw footage, he’d shoot you a look, don’t say it. One time you muttered, you can put glitter on a piece of shit, it’s still a piece of shit. His best suggestion of the night, I could use a drink, so could you. 

He finally agreed, nodding his head reluctantly. "I'll talk to Josh, see what we can do." He patted the top of your hand twice, resting it there loosely. "What you've done here is fantastic, I'm sorry if I–I didn't mean to insult you–"

"You didn't," You chuckled. "The blind leading the blind," you said pointing between the two of you.

His head fell back with a soft laugh. "Right you are," he said, emphasizing his words with another pat on your hand, resting it there yet again.

You've never rejected his touch, but you've felt the need to question it. You wouldn’t put it past him, whether his actions were intentionally absent-minded, or he was simply unaware of the effect he had on you. Neither he nor his brother were ones to be very shy of physical affection. After a drink, however, he would languidly dance the line of professionalism and flirtation, making himself impossible to extrapolate. That was when you realized, this was the first time you too had been drinking.

He began to tap his thumb against your skin rhythmically, contemplating, while his eyes rested on the frozen film. You watched the tendons in his strumming hand twinge and flex, his middle finger joining in for what was some pattern playing in his head. 

Then the tapping faltered, slowing to a stop. 

You could feel him watching you now, no longer lost in thought. For once, this felt unadorned, forthright, like he was asking for your permission to continue. You looked to him, searching his face for a tell of some kind, but he was only doing just the same. Like you, he had no intent to speak.

You were taken aback by his pupils, so clearly blown out, even with only the flicker of a projector. His lips fell apart from how shallow and desperate his breathing had become, but he tried to hide it. He sucked on his lower lip, softly dragging it out against his teeth, wetting it with his tongue. You felt his hand begin to stir, gently pressing the entire surface of his fingers into your skin. Neither of you had blinked. 

You began to turn your palm over. He took over naturally, leading your hand to be fully encased underneath his. It was warm, almost hot, and it flooded your body. Slowly, he curled his arm, lowering his head slightly as he brought your hand to his soft mouth. He paused. 

A small breath that had escaped his nose tickled your skin. He became entirely transfixed in your eyes, silently ordering them to stay locked on his, before moving again.

He pressed his lips delicately to the base of your thumb, again along the joint, and once more against your knuckle. You pulled a long breath through your nose. 

He looked pleased with himself, wearing a small smirk as he extended your thumb with the coaxing of a finger. He then wrapped his lips around the sensitive pad, watching your mouth part for him. With a gentle squeeze to your hand, he started to suck lightly. A jolt shot up your arm when you felt the brush of his tongue.

"Fuck," you whispered. A small, sweet sound pressed in his throat. He looked to your forearm, catching the trail of goosebumps he'd left behind. You needed to touch him. 

You brought your other hand up the side of his neck, weaving the tips of your fingers through the hair just behind his ear, lightly tracing your thumb along his jawbone. He gave a final kiss to the pulse point in your wrist, and you closed your fingers around the roots of his soft hair. He blew an impish wisp past his lips, shaking his head as if he were trying to taunt you. You tugged harshly. 

He held his jaw stiff, sucking a sharp breath through his teeth, followed by a dark, full-toned groan vibrating in his chest. As your hand wandered back down his neck, he pulled you in by the lock he had on your arm, wanting your body close to his. Pressing your thumb into the hollow under his ear, you rolled his head to the other side, exposing his neck for you.

"That’s what you wanted," he said…

[henrysglock]

Warning: This blog is not a safe space for those who are anti-Palestine. That includes zionists. Also, I will be posting/reblogging ST5 leaks!

24 • he/him • pfp by @.stranger-comet

James' Master List

My Bullshit Theories:

Local Man Uses The Time Loop To Try And Change His Fate (An outline of the 27-year time loop that exists in Stranger Things Canon, plus an initial dive into the Upside Down's double agent)

Mirror, Mirror (The mirror in the Rainbow Room isn’t a mirror at all. It’s a window)

A Second El Has Hit The (Block) Towers (Instances of back-to-back duplicate El scenes in NINA)

This Silver Cat Has Nine Lives (There are nine distinct Brenners in the 4.01 massacre sequence alone)

Shattered Mirrors and Cracked Walls (An analysis of One’s dematerialization scene, the aftermath, and a determination that we’re being shown at least 4 timelines in the 4.07 massacre)

One Does Not Simply Lose A Gate (The 2nd part of the 4.07 massacre aftermath and proof that a timeline exists where Henry/Edward did nothing wrong)

Bloody Eyes, Changing Cracks, and Reversing Mirrors (The 3rd installment in the Cracks and Mirrors series: A pattern in El’s blood not only indicates 2 timelines, but also a non-Vecna One)

Well, Well...Look Whose Limbs Are Still Intact. (Part 4 of the Cracks and Mirrors series: El's eye blood pattern links to specific jumpsuits, it can be used as an indicator of attack style, and it revealed a second teen El in the 4.07 massacre.)

Where Is All The Blood Coming From? (A comparison between the 4.07 massacre's blood and the carnage resulting from democreature attacks)

Local Man Refuses to Pick A Damn Jumpsuit (Matching up the Dimension-X jumpsuits to 4.07 massacre jumpsuits)

Turn Around...Look At What You See...(At least one version of Brenner saw One killing Two in 1979 rather than El with the gate, and I've got receipts for it)

So Which Is It: Night or Day? (Discrepancies in time-labeling in the released 4.07 script and how they might link to El’s 1983 escape)

The First Shadow: Impossible Timeline (The Timeline of the Newspapers Shown In The First Shadow Cannot Exist)

Why Do You, As The Big Bad, Have No Lines Or Powers? (Vecna’s physical form in the UD has no dialogue and doesn’t use psionic powers: evidence and theories)

Psycho Killer, Qu'est-ce Que C'est? (Neither Henry Nor Vecna Are Psychopaths: An In-Depth Behavioral Analysis)

Our Lord and Savior…Vecna? (Why Vecna/One is God, Based On Analysis Of ST4, The Bible, And Other Supporting Media)

The Very Special Easter of 1959 (The Order of Creel-Related Events As Compared To The Catholic Calendar. Read: More Proof That One Is God)

Fics:

Paper Faces — POTO x ST fusion fic (Complete)

ptolemaea (blessed be the children) — Henry’s fix-it fic (3/?)

Trick of the Light — Henry-Brenner-El centric 4.07 rewrite (1/?)

Edits:

ABBEY (ft. Henry Creel)

NYMPHOLOGY (ft. HNL)

The Colors of ST4 (ft. Le Monde)

Anon Cringe Compilation:

2024 Edition, Part 1

⬇️ More Nonsensical Blabbering Below The Cut ⬇️

Other Social Media:

Mastodon

Twitter

Cohost

Art:

Creel Siblings Outfit Swap

Creelarke Aesthetic Board

TUNNEL VISION (ft. Henry Creel)

Other Edits:

Henry Creel: Brainless Borzoi

Would’ve, Could’ve, Should’ve (ft. Henry Creel)

Left-Brain, Right-Brain (ft. Henry and Edward Creel)

Featured Posts

↳ Featured Timeline and Time Loop Posts

Jekyll and Hyde? No. Vecna and Mindflayer Guy

Closet Guy is not one of the Massacre Guys

The Creel’s Impossible Move-In Date

A Night of Monologues: Scripted vs Filmed 4.07

Plinko Power: A Theory on One’s Time Powers

010's Multiple Testing Rooms

El's Eye Blood

↳ Featured Henry Posts

Jeffty is Five, Henry is 7

Henry's Third Monologue Iteration

Mothergate Origins

Young Henry, Adult Henry, and the Rabbit Scene

Perspective On The Length of Henry's Imprisonment

Henry Didn't Manipulate El Re: Soteria

Henry's Unseen Costumes

NINA And Computers

↳ Featured TFS Posts

The Real Time Frame of TFS

Drugs, NINA, The Mindflayer, and TFS

Henry, Bob's D.A.D., and Understudy Incest

↳ Featured Creel Family Posts

Psychopathy: Learned or Genetic

Room (2015)

↳ Featured Supporting Media Posts

Midnight Mass: My Dead Sister, Alice

Midnight Mass: Rabbits, Mice, and Resurrection

Fringe: Chess and A Brave New World

Fringe: Stranger Things Have Happened

↳ Featured Radiationgate Posts

Eben Byers, Radium, and ST3's Soviet Plot

Vecna's Curse: Radiation Sickness Symptoms

Henry Creel Literally Nuked Hawkins

Nuclear Winter in the Side-Side Upside Down

The Nuclear Annihilation of 1983

↳ Featured Phantomgate Posts

POTO 2004: Film Analysis

LINK TO MY LIBRARY OF POSTS

[be-bi-do-crime]

Hello! If you have read the novel, could you give us some details about Furong and Mofang? :) I am curious about their story since the drama unfortunately doesn't show much about them

sure anon! actually speaking, as the drama’s script was also written by jiu lu fei xiang (aka the author of the novel), she’s doing a fantastic job of expanding further on mo fang and fu rong’s relationship! there are actually more moments and, in a way, feelings between them in the drama compared to the novel. but that’s just my opinion as someone who has seen both!

in the novel, this is what we get (WARNING FOR PLOT SPOILERS):

the selling tickets thing doesn’t happen in the novel. mo fang and fu rong first meet when fu rong gets drunk in that wine shop. mo fang is furious at him for dragging shen li’s reputation down with him and thus goes to pick him up, taking him away. before he can do so, fu rong says he has “eyes like stars, with such soul” and kisses him in front of everyone. mo fang is dumbstruck but the second he recovers, he immediately knocks fu rong out before dragging him home. this scene was edited slightly to attempt to pass censorship and presumably filmed, but ended up being cut— thus resulting in that weird cut to the knockout and a shorter runtime of the final produced episode (which was only 36 mins).

although in the novel it is not explicitly stated how fu rong ends up grabbing mo fang’s pendant, he does do so while drunk (i headcanon that it happens while mo fang drags him back) and he does spend a long while trying to return it to him, just like in the drama. jlfx actually managed to keep 95% accuracy of their scenes and lines said, with the 5% amount of deviation due to censorship.

one of the lines cut was mo fang saying that he's "never hated/never been more annoyed by anyone in his entire life" which i wish they kept but it's okay

when xing zhi ends up clarifying that mo fang was rejected by shen li, fu rong is overjoyed and says something like “this is a good chance for me [to pursue him] then!!”

again, like the drama, fu rong is kicked and escapes to the mortal realm, and when fu rong returns, he clings every day to mo fang’s side. one detail i like that the drama added was that we got to see mo fang regret it and hold out his hand to help him up, but fu rong didn’t know he was trying to help and fled!! 😭

you lan still warns mo fang to stay away from fu rong and says all that stuff about how her brother normally doesn’t pursue men like this, like i am not kidding when i say jlfx is keeping everything she can

this is where plot spoilers begin so look away if you must!

while the demon realm is in crisis, mo fang is “swallowed” by demons upon fighting them, and “dies”. when fu rong finds this out, we learn from you lan that he went crazy, his spiritual power exploded, and because his powers are so pure, he ended up washing out all of the colour of his plants and exploded his courtyard.

he was unconscious for a long time, and when he woke up, he learned of mo fang’s betrayal, which broke his heart even further. he became silent and uncommunicative and did not let anyone fix his courtyard, so it’s still broken to this day.

from then on, fu rong dresses in plainer clothes (as if he's mourning... 😭) and swears to work hard to help guard the xutian abyss's barrier for the rest of time.

from one of he yu (fu rong) and xin yunlai (mo fang)'s interviews, it seems like we will be getting a lot more of their bond in the drama which makes me really excited! xin yunlai says that mo fang eventually ends up finding fu rong quite cute and that he doesn't want such a cute and kind person to be in danger. he yu says that later, when mo fang is revealed as a traitor, fu rong is the first to believe that he's not a bad person, and that he understands mo fang the most.

suffice to say i am NOT READY for the second half of this drama!! i hope this helps you out, anon!

[whinlatter]

Hi, You mentioned you liked the Tent scene in the DH movie which is very rare for Romione fans and book fans… and so I’m curious if there’s other things you like from the films? I would love to know

me fighting for my life in hinny/romione jail after saying i really like the tent scene

Ok just in defence of the tent scene, which I love for so many reasons in a film series I broadly feel ambivalent about... I love that how plays with the idea of the characters just being kids getting a moment to piss about in a tent with the radio on, while the war rages around them (the song is O Children for a reason, and the fact that the train imagery runs throughout the lyrics... chef's kiss). I think it's a thoughtful twist on that line from DH about them being "three teenagers in a tent whose only achievement was not, yet, to be dead", playing with the teenageness of it all. I also really like how it steps out of being a HP film and plays both with a change of pace but also different forms of media - like, if you're converting something from one form to another (in this case, from a book to a film), you can and should think about what you can do in movies that you can't do in books, and music is so important in that. And I actually really love at the end where movie!Harry and Hermione look at each other and something seems to hang in the balance - I think it works as a bit of a wink and a nod to the audience expectations, but I love that they both turn away from it, because to the two characters there’s nothing of that between them, just deep love and ease with another person that they treasure and are grateful for. And then the song ends, and it’s back to the worry, three minutes of forgetting and back to the hours and hours of waiting and worrying. And although I don't really think of the movie characters as the characters, I do think it works as a way to render a dynamic in book!Harry and Hermione’s relationship by DH, which does have this intimacy, tenderness, and these gorgeous little twinge moments of physical affection:

She hesitated, but recognised the dismissal. She picked up the book and then walked back past him into the tent, but as she did so, she brushed the top of his head lightly with her hand. He closed his eyes at her touch, and hated himself for wishing that what she said was true: that Dumbledore had really cared.

Overall, though, I really don't love the films. I absolutely enjoy rewatching them with friends as a nostalgic relic of my childhood, yes I will re-enact the PS/SS chess scene on request, but I don't think as a series they're very strong, either as an adaptation or as a standalone body of work. My favourite film is probably GoF, because I think it just gets the vibe right: it nails the series shift that happens in book four, in that it delivers boarding school caper vibes immaculately, but then also really nails the political/courtroom scenes (the Barty Crouch Jr trial scene holds up as iconic, oh my god!) and the truly terrifying graveyard scene and the tragedy/agony of the aftermath. But in general I don't think the films are hugely well done, and I think giving David Yates films five through eight was a huge mistake (the man just turns the lights down to show that everything is getting dark and miserable, and directs weak, mannered performances from his actors in scenes that are poorly cut and edited. I will die on this hill). If JKR weren't set to make bank that she's going to pump into toxic TERF lobbying in Scottish/UK politics I'd be excited for the HBO series. Since the films were made we've seen how long-form series television can really be a wonderful medium for delivering quality adaptations and is where some of the most exciting new IP has been coming out of for the past few years, so there's such rich creative energy in that space that could deliver a really quality adaptation. But she is... so I am not!

Other things I like from the films that aren't in the books, after a lot of thought lol:

Burning the Burrow scene — it happened in the wrong film (the Burrow probably was attacked during DH, after Ron is revealed to be travelling with Harry at Malfoy Manor), but I think it’s extremely atmospheric, really chilling and beautiful (the reeds! the water! obsessed) Also it’s basically the best/most bearable Hinny moment in the wasteland of film Hinny........ but I digress

The crackling radio scenes from DH 1 (borrowed these heavily for inspo for Beasts, I love them so much)

[genlossneg]

Oh my god I literally cannot convey to you that stumbling on this blog felt like seeing the sunlight again after being trapped underground for months. I thought I was crazy for finding fault with genloss because I have not seen any actual valid criticism anywhere and I thought I was losing my mind for not seeing the glory that is the, ‘next wave of indie horror content’.

Please.

There’s more horror in an average retail store on any given weekend than this entire series has in its three episodes.

Christ I don’t even know where to begin with this thing.

I’m not a film student but I’ve read the other film student anons’ posts and they are so incredibly right. There is so much about the series that felt hastily thrown together and I also loathe the phrase ‘intentionally bad’ when it’s something that’s been hyped up for as long as it has and yet, fell so incredibly flat. I have never been more bored, irritated, and confused watching a piece of media before, and have continued to feel this way as I watch diehard fans of Ranboo tout how great of a series it is?

Hey, Boobers- cmere, let me tell you a secret, genloss ain’t all it’s cracked up to be.

It’s a lukewarm, lackluster production at best, and if I didn’t know going in that this was supposed to be Ranboo’s passion project, it literally feels like a school assignment he had only the bare interest in putting together. God this thing has no soul. It has no spark. And it hurts so much to know that this is what this great incredibly hyped-up project became, because from how they talked about it, it's obvious Ranboo loves this thing, and I wanted to love it too.

But it ain’t good. And someone should’ve told him long before now it needs massive edits, and I get it, getting hard criticism is painful and isn't fun, but if it makes your end product better, your piece of entertainment content more enjoyable for the consumer, then you gotta listen and bare it.

I’m an author and I know they do it because they love me, but whenever my editors are like ‘ayo this shit is whack wtf you talking about’ it does hurt my pride but!!!! But!!!!!!!! I go back and take a harder look at that section and sometimes I stand by what I wrote, but other times I now see what was wrong with it and make the edits. Sometimes entire concepts have to get cut to trim down the story and make it more cohesive and that also sucks, but you just tuck those ideas away for later or another project, and tbh I do not feel like anyone did this with the genloss concept.

This entire story feels like it is stapled together and there is literally no through line!! It is a random bag of ideas mashed together to form what I imagine an AI would generate if you typed in ‘mall, horror, evil cooperation’. Fuck it hurts. It hurts so much to be someone that is so passionate about storytelling and writing to see genloss get the attention it has, and for Ranboo to be praised for their ‘excellent writing skills’.

I do understand this was probably their second real attempt at writing a story for public consumption (first being his character’s arc in the dsmp), and like, nothing anyone writes on their second attempt to tell a story is gonna be great. Mine wasn’t, no writer’s is, and that’s okay I really genuinely get that, my problem is how the production was hyped up, how the budget was apparently blown on so much wasteful crap, and then how no one with experience telling stories took a look at his concept before production began.

It makes me sick to know that box cost 18k. Do you know what I, and many other small creators, could do with that kinda money?

This was a few weeks ago? Maybe last week? But Ranboo said over here on the tumbles that they were thinking about genloss in written form, IE a book, and I think I literally blacked out I got so angry. I am also writing a book (hahahaha hi it is not easy!) and I honestly don’t think it's half bad, but I have still been fighting tooth and nail to get eyes on it and nothing makes me angrier than knowing Ranboo could slap some half-baked shit into a word doc, get whatever kind of fancy printing they wanted, and sell more copies than I likely ever will.

I don’t wish anything ill on the dude, he seems like a nice person and I hope he succeeds, but jesus christ, someone needs to be real with them on their writing and story construction. TBH I think a large part of the problem is how rabid his fanbase is, so any kind of criticism gets buried under threats and just, people blowing smoke up his ass, and that is not helpful to him as a creator!! Dude wants to grow and improve, stop telling them genloss is the best thing since sliced bread!!

Let him get his feelings hurt over this, let them take that and make it their drive, let him know he can do better.

If you keep settling for mediocrity, you never push yourself to do something great.

But that’s just my two cents. Thank you for letting me word vomit in your inbox, I have been going crazy and I will likely be back <3

-the author anon

this blog is collecting anons representing all the creative aspects of gen loss like pokemon. first film student anon. now author anon.

but in all seriousness i'm glad this blog is a breath of fresh air for you <3 you're right! my first couple attempts at writing (mostly fanfiction, some original) i am very glad they do not exist online. part of writing well is being kind of really bad at it for a bit. ive taken a writing class (in college) and the entire foundation of that class was "we will write and then your classmates will give you feedback" and it made a lot of my work so much better. feedback is like. how you get good and i feel like you're right, the fanbase does drown a lot of that out (hence me making a dedicated blog!)

i hadn't heard of the gen loss book concept before this but. i can't imagine it would be super great at the current form of gen loss is in. and writing is so much more than "here's the plot" like. establishing a good setting and sense of place and making us actually connect with the protagonist and. author anon that awakened something in me

Let him get his feelings hurt over this, let them take that and make it their drive, let him know he can do better. If you keep settling for mediocrity, you never push yourself to do something great.

anyways. great thoughts! reposting that quote for those in the back :)

[skippyv20]

“F” for Netflix Photo Editing Dept. Hi Skippy & Friends-Pilgrim here appaulled at the corny job done with this cut and paste. Really, it looks just like her pitiful holiday card from last year…all the same messy PinEvil moves…the edges that I highlighted in pale green are completely pixelated, easily visible to the naked eye once you hit the + (blow-up) button just a couple of times! The stock photo has the same blurred roof and strange squares in each window. The tree branch in the foreground has been removed causing blurring of the trees. The shadows cast on the lawn have been wiped off down to empty white. All of the red circles around each person show heavy black lines or very pixelated edges…JH’s left elbow is wildly done; his left waist has a serious gauge; his back collar is a straight line where this child is supposedly sitting; his right hip is a thick black zig-zag line.

The gigantic toddler has the same kind of outlines but his shoes are really wild and his hair is very blurry in the center. PinEvils’ profile is off and the top of her head is very blurry in only one section. There seems to be strange dangles in the lower right of her mop. What is the head of the Netflix film editing department thinking, allowing this amateur level of cut and paste get into the trailer?  So here she is barefoot (that bunion in an uproar from wearing those high heels?) and she is carrying this gigantic toddler who was 3.1 years old? I checked out photos of Prince George at the same age and even with his much taller parents he is nowhere this proportion in size. So we have to assume borrowed kids again…because we know they did not arrive at the Jubilee with any kids-as reported by aviation personnel.

Final Grade F- and other trailer photos all have glaring mistakes-her teeth are way off for starters. Geez. Over and out for now…

Love this…😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

[theageoftheunderstatement]

Big Issue Exclusive: 7 things we learned from Alex Turner about new Arctic Monkeys album The Car

By Adrian Lobb, 29 Sep 2022

Arctic Monkeys release their hotly-anticipated seventh LP The Car on October 21. Expectations are high. This is an album people have been waiting four years to hear.

Ever since Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino, their lush, mellow, sci-fi concept album that was such a departure from its barnstorming predecessor AM became the band’s sixth consecutive number one album in 2018, fans have been speculating about the follow up. Six number ones in a row. That’s some record. Thankfully, so is The Car.

Arctic Monkeys invited the Big Issue and our star guest, Line of Duty actor Martin Compston, to join them on the road in Budapest for a global exclusive interview to announce that The Car was arriving soon.

We got a close-up view of the band and were able to assess the state of the nation’s finest band. As tickets go on sale for next year’s huge stadium tour, here’s everything we learned – about the new songs on The Car, about who and what inspired Alex Turner’s songwriting this time around, and about where Arctic Monkeys are heading as a band.

1. The Car is Arctic Monkeys’ most cinematic sounding record yet

That’s the verdict of everyone who has heard the album so far (including the Big Issue), according to Turner.

He told us: “It’s a response I’ve had to other things we’ve composed, this idea of something sounding ‘cinematic’ – I never completely subscribe to it – but it’s louder this time. In the early responses from people.

“You get all these ideas people have that there should be some kind of visual reflection for that reason. I don’t necessarily agree – it’s still just a record to me. But if it evokes these kinds of things that make you think…”

When our interview was originally published, many picked up on Turner saying: ‘It’s louder this time’ and assumed it was a reference to the music on the record. Not so. Turner was talking about the voices of people saying the music is cinematic. The melancholy, downbeat, orchestral arrangement on There’d Better Be a Mirrorball – the first track released – is reflected across the whole LP.

2. Alex Turner has been reading about film production and editing

Turner has long been a cinephile and talked in our interview about potentially directing a film one day. He’s also been more involved than ever in the videos for this new LP.

But, he told us, his burgeoning interest in editing, in finding a path through recorded material to produce the final piece of work, filters into the lyrics as well as the music.

“Are there images in my head when I write? Absolutely. And in the past, I’ve been able to point out exactly what they are more easily,” he said.

“But I’m so practised in doing it that for this record, I know what I was watching and listening to or reading but I can’t draw a line quite so easily to what exactly that became in the record.

“Maybe I’ve drawn too much of a direct line to things in the past so I’m more reluctant to do so. But it’s hard to watch or read anything and keep it separate from what you’re creating. For instance, I was reading a book called In the Blink of an Eye by a film editor called Walter Murch.

“He was the editor on Apocalypse Now and a bunch of other cool stuff. It’s a short book about editing. But the ways he puts it across there goes way beyond that. There’s a bunch of interesting ideas that he’s speaking about. And that feels connected to the process and also the feel or lyrics on this new record.”

3. Turner kept coming back to film production as an inspiration

Perhaps it is because he was discussing his art with actor Martin Compston, but Turner mentioned this a lot.

“Butley Priory was more like the shoot and then the other stuff in France was like the edit. The way Walter Murch describes the edit in this book – he talks about meeting some friends of his wife and one of them says: ‘So you’re the guy who cuts out all the bad bits, then?’. Initially he is offended, but after all these years, he came around to thinking: ‘Well, yeah, that is actually what I’m doing’. But the question is what constitutes a bad bit…

“There’s a great bit where he’s talking about the discovery of a path through all this material that you have, and how there’s a million different ways to get through it. That feels more like the way this record was put together, perhaps. More than other records I’ve done in the past.

“I feel like the word producer means a different thing in music to what it does in a film. Some of my favourite records are by David Axelrod. He did a lot of theme music and stuff. He’s a record producer, but the terminology really ought to be perhaps director.

4. One key song didn’t make the final cut of The Car

Turner talked at length about editing the LP, piecing the tracks together, creating the sound. And he also explained how the songs on The Car were created more in the edit than on previous LPs.

“Sometimes a line will end up finding its way into another song. Things move around a lot more freely than they did in the beginning,” he said.

“For this record, there’s a song that didn’t make it which I feel is really important. It was supposed to be there all along. And it’s not in the end. Not to keep going back to the book, but one more time – I’ll fill the Walter Murch quota! – Murch talks about how on Apocalypse Now there’s the splice they would do to put the film together. But for every splice there’s 15 or 20 what he called “shadow splices”, where you make the cut but then undo it the next day. I like his idea that they’re all still sort of there. It has a knock-on effect. We undo it and then there is a new path through it.”

Look out for The Car’s missing song on the next LP, at a future live show, or on an expanded edition of the LP one day soon.

5. Alex Turner has been feeling nostalgic for the early days as the band begins its third decade of playing together

We asked whether it felt like 20 years since they began rehearsing in a garage in Sheffield – and Turner revealed that the lyrics on new track Hello You are directly about his teenage years.

“It probably does feel about 20 years ago. But that’s an interesting one, isn’t it? Because sometimes you feel like you could walk through a door and be right back there. I’m trying to scratch a little bit of that feeling we are describing here on the new record. It feels like a long time ago, but it can be right behind you. Something reminds you and it takes you back.

“There’s a lyric on Hello You that says: ‘I could pass for 17 if I just get a shave and catch some zzzs.’ Maybe that’s barking up that tree a little. Well, a lot. I’m thinking about going to the snooker club with my granddad and it feels like we were just there. But, wait a minute, there’s all this time in between.

6. Turner is aware of the hopes and expectations of fans for the new album – but the band are ploughing their own furrow

“If the idea was to do something that met these expectations, hypothetically, it’s hard for me to even know what that would be,” he says. “You have to follow your instincts in the same way you did in that first place. In that way, it does all feel like it’s connected to us 20 years ago in the garage when it was pure instinct.

“It’s certainly not coming from us trying to be contrary. If anything, I was more contrary then. You have this idea, I suppose, of what that expectation is. But it’s more you follow your instinct. I think that’s always been the case on every record, really.

“It’s about everything having its own space and not all shouting at once. There is room to use all the things from the factory. And there are times I’ve used the wrong tool for the job, probably. But you learn from that. This time, we’ve kept more of an eye on the performance.”

7. Turner can draw a line from his recordings with The Last Shadow Puppets to The Car

“On the [Last Shadow] Puppets all the score, all the orchestra stuff was composed by this guy named Owen Pallett,” he told us. “We will make points on it but that is his part of that project.

“But there are strings on the Monkeys records and those I was involved in the composition of, with the producer James Ford and Bridget Samuels, who’s a string arranger. James and I came up with the melodies. You can write it on the piano and hear the melodies in your head the same way I would hear a vocal melody. Sometimes that’s how you’ll write a keyboard or a guitar line. But there’s definitely a dimension that you get from real strings playing together that can’t be emulated with anything else. Which is magic.

“I think we’ve got closer to a better version of a more dynamic overall sound with this record. The strings on this record come in and out of focus and that was a deliberate move and hopefully everything has its own space. There’s times the band come to the front and then the strings comes to the front.”

…And Arctic Monkeys are still enjoying playing the old stuff

The new songs might be cinematic and orchestral and melancholy, but watching them play from the side of the stage, there was no doubting the love they retain for the early songs, that blistering energy and big noise.

“We’ve been playing View From the Afternoon a bit in these last few shows. And when I’m doing that it feels like it would take more than a shave and a sleep to be 17!” says Turner.

“I keep looking back over my shoulder at [drummer Matt Helders]. ‘You still there, pal?’ Nah, he’s fine. I’m the one who is huffing and puffing. He seems all right. I feel like we’re building it and the sets have those more explosive sections and then he gets to lean back and just be on two and four for a bit while I swan around!

“So everything gets unwound for a minute and then we wind it back up. In those days, I remember the way I used to wear my guitar was really high. Everything was just tight. Trackie top on and everything was zipped up. Now I think, loosen the guitar. Take the guitar off, even. Take a minute. Everybody relax.”

And on the ever-evolving setlist, which now features track two from The Car, I Ain’t Quite Where I Think I Am? Fans buying tickets for next year’s tour will likely see songs from across the full 20 year recording career.

Here’s Alex Turner’s response to Martin Compston suggesting their squad of songs is now like Manchester City’s squad of footballers, with two equally strong, world-class line-ups available.

“It’s quite mysterious, to me, the setlist and what the order of that should be,” he says. “This time has passed and certain things don’t feel the way you expected them to anymore.

“That sounds sad, but it’s not. Certain songs represented certain moments in the past and now feel like something else, so they should be somewhere else.

“I’m still working it out. It’s exciting to perform again but we are still shuffling the deck on the setlist. The old ones – some are better at evolving than others. Some get left behind. You try and reintroduce them but some are more adaptable or fit into where you’re trying to go.

“So it doesn’t feel like Manchester City… but hopefully it will.”

[lemortehomme]

New Story Coming Soon!

I've been quiet for a bit but I haven't been idle! I've been working on my next longfic. You can find a preview of some of the first chapter below the cut!

Also, I have been balls-to-the-wall with this dang story and have absolutely no outside perspective on it 🙃 so if anyone would be interested in beta-ing, hit me up. I'm not looking for line-by-line editing, more so pacing and "why the fuck is this plot thread here when you never pick it back up" kind of beta-ing. It is already a long story (so far, 27 chapters and over 100k with more to come), so I would be happy to offer betaing in return, or illustrate your story, or attempt binding one of your fics into a book (I'm still learning how to do this though lol).

Revenant

Beth wakes up screaming in the back of an ambulance, dying not from a gunshot to the head, but from a suicide attempt. Walkers are nothing but a distant memory she can't forget and no one remembers. Three lonely years later, Beth is almost ready to accept the memories are delusions, until Daryl Dixon crosses her path for the first time.

And he knows her name.

A loose thread dangles from her sleeve. Beth captures it between her fingers, rolling it back and forth until it twists itself into a sharp point. She lets go and the thread curls, but the point remains. There is a muted squeak from the office chair across from her as Dr. Blake shifts in her seat.

Beth looks at her from beneath wheat straw hair, dried to a crisp by the industrial-strength shampoo she must use. Dr. Blake is pretty in the way older women are; the lines on her face are comforting and the crows feet punctuating the corners of her eyes hold a lifetime's worth of experience. Beth knows she is married because of the ring, but there are no photos of her family on her desk. There is, however, a framed photo of a sunset, film-grained and amateur in a way that speaks to it being a shot Dr. Blake or her husband took, rather than a photographer's work. Beth has always wanted to ask where it was taken.

Dr. Blake shifts again and says, "Are you sure you don't have anything else you'd like to share with me today, Beth? Not even your opinion about our kitchen's take on chicken parmesan?"

"No, I've been feelin' alright," Beth says with a little shake of her head, straw hair rustling like dead grass.

Grass baked by the sun crepitated as worn soles broke the stems; the enduring sun brought beads of sweat popping up across her forehead as she watched Rick make his way down the hill. On the other side of the fence waited—

"Can you tell me what you see right now?"

The thread is caught again between her fingers and Beth lowers her eyes to her laceless shoes. "I see you. In your chair. Your desk. I see my shoes. The carpet."

"Good. Will you tell me what it was?"

"My hair. It sounded like grass."

Dr. Blake blinks patiently, waiting, as she always does, for Beth to volunteer more information of her own free will. But the more Beth talks about these delusions—delusions, she must use the right word or she will slip up; they are not memories—the longer she will be here, so she doesn't. It is her second longest stint, three months so far. She's been shuffled between the centers, units, and wards of half the state. Maggie promises there's a place waiting for her at home every time they talk, but Beth knows the bed waiting for her is conditional. She will lose herself again and return to the bland embrace of locked wards.

She doesn't get a say in these decisions. Each one is made for her and will be long after she returns home. One of the decisions made for her happened right after she was locked away the first time and the courts said she was not in a place to make decisions for herself. The problem with being crazy is once people know you're crazy, you can never convince them otherwise 

"Okay. Our time's almost up. I'm really proud of the progress you've made here," Dr. Blake says, turning her clipboard over to reveal the smooth, brown back. "I think you have a solid foundation for success."

And with those words, Beth knows she is getting out soon, because she has not made any progress, she only knows how to lie in the way they want.