#highest grossing video games of all time

[synergysilhouette]

Another 10 Disney hot takes/probably unpopular opinions

Not a fan of Meg and Hercules as a couple. I ADORE them having an innocent male lead and a jaded female love interest, but Meg's situation with Hades makes it feel very toxic. The movie is kinda confusing on whether or not she can refuse Hades; one minute he uses incentive to get her to do what she wants (which is bad enough; her freedom for Hercules' death), and then when she tells him the deal's off, he reminds her that she has no say in the matter. Following this, she rejects his deal and he forces her into being exposed so Hercules will make a deal. She does sacrifice herself for him in the end, but it still feels very iffy for me, particularly since the backbone of her resisting him isn't even "I can't let this guy get killed" but instead "I don't wanna fall in love after getting my heart broken and having sold my soul" (which is EXTREMELY valid, but so is the other point). Had Meg been a normal human and made a deal with Hades to save Hercules or help him earlier on during his training, it'd be so much better.

2. Disney needs needs to stop making sequels just because of financial success and actually work to craft a narrative that requires a sequel or two. It's risky (considering the first film could have negative critical or commercial success, as well as take time and resources away from other films at the studio), but would have a better payoff, imo. I enjoyed "Frozen 2" despite it's flaws, but the fact that it felt independent of the first film did make it feel like we could've used an entirely different cast and made the same story.

3. I need more musicals with a male lead--The last one we had was "Tarzan"--or "Hercules," depending on your criteria. The revival era has had female leads for all their musicals, with a male playing as a co-lead or a deuteragonist. I know the girls are MUCH more valuable at Disney due to the Disney princess line and musicals with a male lead may be harder to market (well, not really; "Aladdin" and "The Lion King" were the highest-grossing animated films at one point, and their remakes grossed over $1 billion).

4. "Moana" needed a bigger (main) roster--Something I love is a nice-sized amount of main characters in a movie. "Moana" only had Moana and Maui for most of the movie, and thus it wasn't as enjoyable for me in that respect. "Moana 2" is introducing new characters, so I hope they can hold my interest.

5. Involve the Anderson-Lopez team in more musicals outside of the "Frozen" franchise--they almost got to do this with "Gigantic," but it fell through. Their music has been great, so I really hope to see them in more musicals for Disney outside of Disney's "Frozen."

6. NEVER return to hybrid animation for a feature film--It's too disorienting for me personally, and while the animation for "Wish" wasn't bad, it definitely didn't have the storybook vibe it was going for except with backgrounds. It would look fine if it was a video game, though.

7. "Gigantic" should've been Disney's anniversary film instead of "Wish"-- I already did a post on this, so I'll just leave it at that.

8. Raya is one of the best Disney leads in a while--Granted, her movie could've been much better and I wish the color of her clothes reflected her culture instead of going for neutral colors, but Raya is the blueprint for a great protagonist. It's been mentioned before how she's a feminist icon without having to really show it in ways others have in films, by being a confident warrior with no discussion of marriage or gender inequality brought up in the film. She's also deliciously sassy and quick on her feet. I may have preferred her OG concept of being stoic, but her swagger makes her one of the more engaging Disney leads, particularly as the adorkable trait started to show up. Speaking of...

9. Ariel and Mulan are the best adorkable leads for a Disney protagonist--While I don't have much issue with Anna and Mirabel and don't really find Rapunzel or Moana that adorkable, Ariel and Mulan were the blueprints for a funny female lead, and they felt less forced than later leads.

10. Aladdin is one of the worst Disney princes--DON'T KILL ME! He used to be my favorite Disney prince, until I watched a "therapists react" video to Disney couples and they brought up the fact that Aladdin had lied to Jasmine several times over the course of the movie. Him being insecure is a great character trait (a common one with Disney leads since the 90s, really), but it's poor writing to make his romance with Jasmine be based on a lie. I'd rather he just kept tight-lipped about his identity when Jasmine caught him the first time rather than covering up with another lie.

[practically-an-x-man]

I won't lie. I got distracted watching a video of a guy who's tent was being torn apart by leaf cutter ants and began researching the logistics of that.

BUT I'M BACK with an ask ONCE AGAIN. And it's bugged themed. For definitely unrelated reasons.

Your characters gain the ability to control one species of bug (specific species, not all of ants or all of wasps), and they have as much time as they need to research what bug they'd like. What qualifies as a bug in this case is subjective. Anything in class insecta is fair game but arachnida is cool too.

First of all, that documentary sounds fascinating and I can totally appreciate going down a research rabbithole like that :D

Second, I love this ask, let's dive right in!!

Rae: Copidosoma floridanum - a type of cosmopolitan wasp. The main reason she'd choose it is for it being cosmopolitan, she can utilize this power regardless of her travels.

Robin: Reticulitermes flavipes - the eastern subterranean termite. She'd pretty much exclusively use this power to keep them away from the operahouse and its wooden sets (same with her parents' house, since it's pretty old)

Madison: Pachydiplax longipennis - the blue dasher dragonfly. Technically any dragonfly would suffice, but blue dashers are common where she lives so she wouldn't have trouble finding them. Either way - semiaquatic, predatory, and edible in a pinch.

Ophelia: Camponotus pennsylvanicus - the black carpenter ant. Am I stealing this from Ant-Man? Maybe. But she'd find a way to use them in her lab, for sure.

Gia: Apis mellifera - the Western honey bee. Having an infinite supply of pollinators is a surefire way to keep her shop, and her clover, as healthy as possible.

Jasper: Melolontha vulgaris - the May beetle. Oil from their larvae is sometimes used as a topical treatment for scratches, abrasions, and rheumatism in traditional medicine - it's not quite Neosporin, but it'll work in a pinch

Kestrel: Eristalis tenax - the common drone fly. Another cosmopolitan species, good for use on their travels, but small and unassuming enough that could be good for some quiet espionage.

Katherine: Anthrenus scrophulariae - the common carpet beetle. They're one of the four common species of beetles that cause damage to textiles and other artifacts in museums, so that's a 25% lower chance that they'll get damaged on her watch

Quinn: Pepsis grossa - a North American tarantula hawk moth. Its sting is said to be incredibly painful and is among the highest ranked on the Schmidt pain index - she'd go with the bullet ant, but she's a lot less likely to find those in the California desert.

Eris: Paraponera clavata - there's the bullet ant. Eris just wants to cause as much pain as possible, when they need to. What kind of bug could double as a weapon to be used in battle? Bullet ant.

Nikoletta: Periplaneta americana - the American cockroach. It's gross, and she honestly hates roaches (and half of this power would just be used keeping them away from her home), but they're so common in big cities like New Orleans that she's always got a few around to control. It's a similar strategy to Cleo and her rats, really.

Jimmy: Drosophilia melanogaster - fruit flies. Look, here's his logic: they were first used in genetics back in 1910, and they were a big deal, and he works with scientists now too... maybe they'd have use for this power of his? (also credit to the one scientific name I did not have to look up beforehand because I had it memorized lol)

Vivienne: Aedes aegypti - the yellow fever mosquito. Disease is... kind of a big deal in her time, there aren't a lot of cures for these horrific ailments, and while Vivienne itself is largely immune by being a siren, she doesn't want Wojchek or his crew stricken ill by some tiny little bug.

Spider: Sigh... I'd been so careful about strictly insects this whole time, but it would be wrong to give him anything but a spider. Hogna carolinensis - the wolf spider, and the largest wolf spider species to be found in America. He just thinks it would be cool to freak people out by having this massive wolf spider crawl out of his mouth or something. He's... an odd one, that for sure.

[ts1989fanatic]

Let’s call the abuse of Taylor Swift what it really is – a hate crime against women

It doesn’t matter what your thoughts are on the artist’s latest relationship, writes Olivia Petter – we should not be talking about women this way in 2023

Of all the women in the public eye, Taylor Swift is one that people love to hate. Maybe it’s because she’s inordinately successful – her Eras tour is likely to be the highest-grossing tour of all time with an estimated $1.4bn in revenue. It could be because she’s incredibly talented – have you listened to the lyrics on her Folklore album? Maybe it’s because she’s exceptionally beautiful – that hair! Those eyes! That smile!

Or... perhaps it’s just that she’s a woman.

As a long-term, die-hard Swifty (this is what us Swift fans call ourselves), I have often wondered what it is about my favourite golden girl with the voice of an angry angel and the brain of an Ivy League English professor that riles people up quite so much.

Anyone who has seen her Miss Americana documentary for Netflix from 2020 will know that the 33-year-old has long been the subject of internet bile, with critics attacking everything from her vocals and the way she dresses, to her weight and the men she’s dated.

In the latest spate of hatred against Swift, it seems to be the latter that is causing the issue. You see, following a breakup with her long-term boyfriend, Joe Alwyn, and a rather surprising (though short-lived) fling with 1975 frontman Matty Healy, Swift has a new man in her life: Travis Kelce. The American football player is considered one of the best athletes in the game, and Swift has already made a handful of notable appearances at some of his big games.

Most recently, Swift was seen attending the Kansas City Chiefs-New York Jets game to watch Kelce play, alongside a close friend, Blake Lively, and Lively’s husband, Ryan Reynolds. Following the game, though, Barstool Sports personalities Dan “Big Cat” Katz and Eric “PFT Commenter” Sollenberger – hosts of the popular Pardon My Take podcast – decided to weigh in on Swift’s presence with a series of sexist comments, calling her “bad for football” and making lewd jokes about “Taylor Swift’s vagina."

Elsewhere in the podcast, Katz admitted that he’d accept Swift’s presence at Chiefs games if she and Kelce were to “release a sex video”, as he described what crude details the video would need to include for him to accept the rumoured relationship.

It’s a hideous series of comments to read in full. Here is one of the most successful women in the world being reduced to nothing but a sex object by two male sports fans. It’s textbook misogyny: what better way to minimise a powerful woman than by talking about her sex life, or making references to her genitals? We’ve seen it before, and I’m sure we’ll see it again – but hasn’t Swift had to deal with enough of this already?

For years, critics fixated on her love life, often neglecting to mention her music at all in long reads about who she was rumoured to be dating at the time. She is a woman that has, for far too long, been defined by the men in her life. At least by those without the common sense to actually listen to her music and show her even a modicum of respect as an artist.

Enough is enough. As the actor Rachel Zegler put it in a tweet, “You will never see people speaking this way about a man. That goes for a lot of different scenarios. We do not pick apart men’s attitudes and relationships the way we do women’s and it’s not always just men who speak this way about us. Women can and do, too. It sucks.”

It’s 2023; this sort of language should not be tolerated, let alone broadcast on a popular podcast. However, when it is, we should recognise it for what it is: hate speech spouted by men who are threatened by successful women, and therefore feel compelled to sexualise them in order to preserve their flimsy, fragile egos. How sad for them.

ts1989fanatic

Nothing but the absolute TRUTH

[maadilin]

march in the hunger games

jennifer lawrence: mother presented best actress at the academy awards! and michelle yeoh gave emma stone's award to her haha. emma stone and jennifer lawrence are adorable besties. also, there's talk in the air jen could be in the next james bond movie?? (she was in red sparrow, after all..) and she reunited with the eternally sexy rock star, cinna, lenny kravitz at the oscars, just like she did at the golden globes haha.

josh hutcherson: newest film, the beekeeper has grossed $152M worldwide, and is the 5th highest grossing film of 2024. also derek danforth, his character, is a sexy mofo. he also talked about losing the role as spider-man to andrew garfield, and he continues to be tiktok's bae. we're not as much in the whistle edit, but we're now obsessing over derek and clapton. and peeta, but that's been around forever xD

liam hemsworth: more talk about him being in the next season of the witcher

elizabeth banks: migration has made almost 300 million.

jeffery wright: nominated for best actor at the academy awards for his amazing performance in american fiction!

mahershala ali: presented academy award for best supporting actor.

sam claflin: i know i'm late, this was in february, but he's set to star in prime video's lazarus, and has continued to state he's '100% open' to playing finnick's dad in a finnick prequel.

jena malone: the trailer for her erotic lesbian film, love lies bleeding, came out. love jena. god.

rachel zegler: her film 'y2k' premiered at sundance film festival on march 9th, and she continues to make me feel lesbian every time she posts a pic. /hj

tom blyth: set to star in queer drama 'plainclothes'

also, the hunger games movie has celebrated it's 12th birthday, and the first 4 movies are currently on netflix (again haha)

more news than last month, yayy!

[techie-waterwitch]

Both- forgot to type that sorry

Send ✏️ for me to describe how I portray my muse

Thanks. Friend. That's much better! Now then let me explain My thought process...

Let's get Started with "Peri."

Guys! These two

[👽]: "Who? M-M-M-ME!?"

Now whenever I need to get into the mindset of "a Peridot" specifically OUR Great and Lovable Peridot quoted by ✨Perid👽t herself. All I need to do is get into the mind🧠of a supercomputer,🖥️A great big computer Nerd with a manic demeanor. Think the teacher's pet with the nearly most nasally voice you can fathom. Peridot has an explosive 💥 short temper,

"HEY!"

She shows some signs of possible Autism.™️ Which is a personal headcanon of mine. Peridot is good at putting things into a logical and linguistic sense. I just think she loves it that way. She's most comfortable when things make sense. It does not stop her from hitting the archaic technology that makes her angry.

Think of the biggest teacher's pet and iPad 📱student. You might've known in school. The terminally online, the "I must crack the latest highest score!" video game player!🎮 She's kinda Animalistic, She's awkward and not too big on social cues. She thrives on doing projects by herself and gushing about her favorite TV. 🏕️❤️‍🌲show for literal hours!

(Just don't talk to her about her failures❌ or you'll get an earful!!!📣)

Peridot is pretty simple for me to tap into both of these two are on autopilot really.

Now. Shall we proceed to the "Bitter Sister" herself?"

~💧~ "No. Don't talk about me!"

I think I can say with confidence that "Lappy" here, is unlike any muse I've had before in all my early years of roleplay.

"It's... Lapis...."

Honest to God! She is chaotic and rather unpredictable! I-I mean for someone who doesn't care about of lot of things and activities... Lapis sure does get the conversation going. I really don't know how to explain it she grabs the reins and I don't know if we're ever going to make it back home! Lapis has a low-energy bar sometimes... Other times she's actually bouncing off the walls!

"Because people won't leave me ALONE!"

Lapis is laid-back, uninterested, gothic, and cold, while also at other times playful, childish, silly, Insane, immature, and gross sometimes. And did I forget to mention she has a mouth on her? (She wants all the Crystal Gems to swear!) She loves the ocean marine life, she suffers from PTSD from the Gem war, and she LOVES nautical puns {And Peri}

"Okay! That's it! I'm done! If you don't shut the hell up! I get to splatter you all over the walls!"

EEE! Okay. I'm finished. I'm finished. That's a good place to stop.

So there it is~ ^^

[doamarierose-honoka]

Inside Out 2 has smashed box office records, overtaking Frozen 2 to be the highest grossing animated film of all time. The character design is firmly at the centre of the film's appeal, especially the new depiction of Anxiety, which has been added because the film's main character (Riley) has reached her teenage years. Though anxiety looks perfect to me (that hair, mouth and stance just sums the uncomfortable emotion up so well), according to a fascinating video the design was almost very different.

See the video below for a clip of the video, shared by IGN on TikTok which shows how Anxiety almost looked, then watch the full video for more on the Inside Out 2 character design process.

According to director Kelsey Mann, it took a long time to reach the final character design – and the above clip shows his own concept drawings that portrays Anxiety as "reptilian" in nature. This approach would have seen Anxiety growing over time to become "almost Godzilla-esque" as Riley got more anxious. "And then," he says, in "my epilogue version, when [Riley] realises how to manage it, it actually shrinks down to the proper size, and is super cute."

See the full video below to learn more about Pixar's approach to animating Inside Out 2, including more detail on character designs.

Concept art is a fascinating way to explore what a film might have been. We've seen first versions of everything from Sonic the Hedgehog (which did not go down well with fans) to scrapped designs from the Mario movie.

But what's it like to be a concept designer? Go inside the art of Ben Hauro, a concept designer to find out more about how he brings video game concepts to life.

[nsfwhiphop]

Important Information for the four sister-wives: @santinihoudini - copyrights owner. @laetitiacasta - Founder. @rihanna - Co-founder. @itsgabrielleu - Co-founder.

Hey sister-wives!

Read this useful information.

Which field is more lucrative, Music or Cinema?

I think it is Cinema, movies make more money than music.

Question:

Between The Beatles and Stan Lee, which of these two entertainment superpowers produced the most wealth with their creativity?

ChatGPT Answer:

Comparing the wealth generated by the creativity of The Beatles and Stan Lee involves looking at their respective contributions to the entertainment industry and their financial impact.

The Beatles:

Music Sales and Royalties: The Beatles are one of the best-selling music artists of all time. Their album sales alone have generated billions of dollars.

Merchandising: The Beatles' brand, including merchandise like clothing, posters, and memorabilia, continues to generate significant revenue.

Concerts and Tours: Although their active touring years were relatively short, their concerts were highly lucrative. The legacy of their live performances continues to generate income through documentaries and re-releases.

Licensing and Rights: The Beatles' music has been licensed extensively for films, commercials, and other media, bringing in substantial revenue.

Cultural Impact: The Beatles' influence on popular culture and music is immense, indirectly contributing to various economic activities related to their brand.

Stan Lee:

Marvel Comics: As the co-creator of numerous iconic superheroes like Spider-Man, the X-Men, Iron Man, and the Hulk, Stan Lee's work laid the foundation for Marvel Comics, a massive entertainment empire.

Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU): The MCU, which began in 2008 with "Iron Man," has become the highest-grossing film franchise in history, generating over $28 billion at the global box office as of 2023. Stan Lee's characters are central to this success.

Merchandising: The Marvel brand, including toys, clothing, and other merchandise, generates billions in sales each year.

Licensing and Rights: Marvel's characters are licensed for use in a wide range of media, from video games to theme park attractions, contributing significantly to revenue.

Cultural Impact: Stan Lee's characters have had a profound impact on popular culture, influencing generations of fans and driving economic activity related to comic books, movies, and related merchandise.

Financial Comparison:

The Beatles have generated billions in revenue through their music, merchandise, and licensing over the decades.

Stan Lee, through the creation of Marvel's superheroes, has been associated with a franchise that has generated tens of billions in revenue, particularly through the MCU.

Conclusion:

While both The Beatles and Stan Lee have created immense wealth and left an indelible mark on popular culture, the financial impact of Stan Lee's creations, especially when considering the revenue from the MCU, arguably surpasses that of The Beatles. The MCU alone, with its extensive box office earnings and associated merchandising, has generated a staggering amount of wealth, making Stan Lee's contributions particularly significant in terms of financial impact.

Approximate Earnings of The Beatles and Stan Lee:

The Beatles:

Music Sales: Over $2 billion from record sales (adjusted for inflation).

Concerts and Tours: Though they stopped touring in 1966, their performances and live shows have generated substantial revenue, estimated at around $300 million.

Merchandising: Estimated to have generated over $1 billion over the years.

Licensing and Rights: Licensing of their music for films, commercials, and other media is estimated to have brought in approximately $500 million.

Total Estimated Earnings: Over $4 billion.

Stan Lee and Marvel:

Marvel Comics: Revenue from comic book sales over the decades is estimated to be in the range of $1.5 billion.

Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU): The MCU has generated over $28 billion at the global box office.

Merchandising: Marvel merchandise sales are estimated to bring in over $5 billion annually, with cumulative sales over the past decades likely exceeding $20 billion.

Licensing and Rights: Licensing for video games, TV shows, and other media is estimated to have generated over $5 billion.

Total Estimated Earnings: Over $50 billion.

Conclusion:

Stan Lee's creations, particularly through the Marvel Cinematic Universe and related merchandise, have generated significantly more wealth than The Beatles, with total earnings estimated to be over $50 billion compared to The Beatles' estimated $4 billion.

[1997thebracket]

Round 4

Note: This is a three-way poll to even our numbers going into the semi-finals! Only the winner will advance to the final four!

Pokémon TV Series: I want to be the very best, like no one ever was. The Pokémon TV series or Pokémon anime is the iconic all-ages animated show based on the immensely popular Pokémon trading card and video game franchise. Premiering in 1997, the series follows the irresponsibly-young adventures of a trainer named Ash Ketchum and his electrifying companion Pikachu as they travel through the many regions in the Pokémon world, capturing and training Pokémon, competing in battles, and aiming to become Pokémon Masters. Along the way, they encounter friends and rivals, foil the plans of the villainous Team Rocket, and of course document and capture lots of funny little guys (Pocket Monsters, as it were.) You gotta catch 'em all!

Princess Mononoke: Cut off a wolf’s head, and it still has the power to bite. Princess Mononoke is a critically acclaimed animated film created by renowned director Hayao Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli, released in 1997. The film tells a complex environmental story, set in a fantastical ancient forest based on late Muromachi period Japan; we join a young warrior, Ashitaka, who becomes embroiled in a conflict between the inhabitants of the forest and a mining town encroaching on their land. At the heart of the story is San, a human girl raised by wolves, and Lady Eboshi, the leader of the mining community. Princess Mononoke is admired by Ghibli and non-Ghibli fans alike for its beautiful hand-drawn animation and its exploration of the themes of nature, industrialization, and the delicate balance between the consistent push of humanity and the weariness of a long-surviving environment. It was the highest-grossing film in Japan for 1997, and also held Japan's box office record for domestic films until Miyazaki’s 2001 release Spirited Away.

End of Evangelion: It all returns to nothing. So says the haunting tune 'Komm, Süsser Tod' by Arianne, which soundtracks the fate of humanity in the End of Evangelion. The film serves as an alternate ending to the original anime series Neon Genesis Evangelion, which bewitched viewers with the then-unconventional match of giant mecha and existential depression all wrapped up in religious iconography. The final episodes of the anime are incredibly cerebral and proved controversial for viewers at the time, which led to director Hideaki Anno further expressing himself in the 1997 film... which took the heady themes and conflicting stylistic choices of the show and put them in a high-octane blender, along with a tall glass of Human Tang. At its core, End of Evangelion asks if individualism is the one great folly of humanity and the source of our suffering, or if it is the very point of it; it shows the loss of barriers between people and subsequent extinction of loneliness as a sort of cosmic horror. Looking back at the scenes, imagery, and music most associated with the anime and its continued influence, much of the franchise's legacy stems from the End of Evangelion.

[dweemeister]

Suzume (2022, Japan)

How dramatic Makoto Shinkai’s rise has been. The Japanese animator and filmmaker, with his background in video game animation, is far away from the narrative and editing incoherence that plagued his early works, such as The Place Promised in Our Early Days (2004) and 5 Centimeters Per Second (2007). At first, neither film made viewers outside Japan take much notice. A decade later, Your Name (2016) commercially rocketed past all Shinkai films before it and, before one knew it, would go on to surpass Spirited Away (2001) as the highest-grossing anime of all time. The body-switching romantic comedy remains Shinkai’s best film, although Suzume comes much closer than I expected.

In my write-up to Your Name after its North American release, I speculated that the film’s success in Japan might be due to its allusions to the 2011 earthquake and tsunami off the coast of northern Honshu, the Tôhoku region – potentially some sort of cinematic catharsis. Though the imagery that Shinkai employed in Your Name would be unmistakable to any Japanese person who witnessed the destruction of that day, he invoked those images seemingly for the sake of aesthetic appeal. So too was this the case for Weathering with You (2019) – a film that drowned Tokyo in constant rain in service of an epochally selfish decision in pursuit of teenage romance. As such, Shinkai’s insistence to this day that Weathering with You is a film about climate change collapses entirely in the film’s finale. Suzume doubles down on Shinkai’s shtick for teen romance and obsession for how light reflects off water, but now he has made a film where the repercussions of the Tôhoku earthquake and tsunami and the subsequent Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster are front and center. This is his most honest film.

17-year-old Suzume Iwato (Nanoka Hara; Akari Miura as a young girl) lives with her aunt (Eri Fukatsu) on Kyūshū, the southernmost of the major Japanese islands. On the way to school one day, she passes by an attractive, long-haired fellow named Sôta Munataka (Hokuto Matsumura) who asks about local ruins. She points the way to an abandoned onsen, and – following her romantic longings rather than common sense – follows him. At the onsen, she finds a door, standing alone without supports. After she removes a totem that transforms into a cat (Ann Yamane) that scurries away, the door leads to a grassy field, with picturesque blues and reds streaking across a starlit sky. Arriving at school later, she later notices that something resembling a gigantic red worm is emanating from the door’s location. She rushes back, noticing Sôta struggling to close the door, and lends a hand to shut and lock the door – but not without the worm (which no one except these two can see) crashing to the ground and causing a sizable earthquake. Sôta explains he is a “closer” – part of a line of individuals who search for these doors and ensures that they remain shut. Failure to do so results in cataclysmic earthquakes. Against her aunt’s wishes, Suzume will follow Sôta northwards, towards Honshu. The cat, Daijin, must revert to a keystone in order to prevent further disaster.

A few decades into his film career, Shinkai’s undisciplined writing of his character’s emotions remains. Complicating everything is the fact that Daijin turns Sôta into something that should be inanimate. In interviews, Shinkai has defended this decision as the only way to have any sort of comic relief amid the film’s themes – a curious statement to make, as half of Suzume’s comedy has little to do with Sôta’s transformation, instead centering on our characters’ habits and flaws. The original plan was for Suzume to fall for another young woman, but producers nixed the idea, believing such a development too controversial for Japanese audiences*. Shinkai’s decision to make Sôta non-human puts Suzume on the brink of slapstick absurdity. Even though it remarkably allows some of the best character animation from a filmmaker not regarded for that (yes, character animation for an otherwise inanimate object), this absurdity can occasionally deprive Suzume of some much-needed pathos. Only in the Suzume’s final third does that pathos become apparent, and it arrives less powerfully than it should because of Shinkai’s decision to transform Sôta.

Combined with Suzume’s tendency to make hormone-influenced decisions during both the quieter and most perilous moments of her journey with Sôta – I am all for female characters having romantic agency, but there are times and places for when expressing or acting upon romantic feelings is appropriate – Shinkai’s teenage romantic writing can feel tactless at worst, tacky at best. Yet, because Shinkai is upfront about Suzume’s desires from the beginning (unlike the does-he-love-her-or-doesn’t-he-love-her waffling in Your Name and Weathering with You), it makes Suzume’s finale less baffling than his previous two works. Concerningly, in Your Name and Weathering with You, a natural disaster is an inconvenience to two teenagers barely realizing their love for each other. Not this time, thankfully, because of Suzume’s forwardness.

Suzume’s success comes from the tradition of live-action Japanese cinema to reflect – whether directly or otherwise – on national tragedy. When the United States ended its postwar occupation of Japan in April 1952, it also halted the censorship of topics such as the occupation itself, World War II, and other topics that the censors might object to. One could read the previous sentence and draw rash conclusions: namely, that American censorship shackled Japanese artistry. Perhaps it did, but plenty of exceptions exist, such as Yasujirô Ozu’s entire post-War filmography (even during the occupation). In Ozu’s post-War films, the families in those works quietly observe or accept the gradual Westernization of their culture, most evident in changes in nuptial and familial norms, and articulated with subtle, but great artistry. Censors have a way in sometimes making art’s politics less didactic – no less powerful, much more palatable. Now without American censors, films like Gojira (or Godzilla; 1954), Twenty-Four Eyes (1954), and The Burmese Harp (1956) wrestled with the morality of WWII, the apocalyptic consequences of nuclear weapons, and Japan’s war crimes inflicted upon its Asian neighbors (over the last few decades, Japanese filmmakers have become increasingly hesitant to engage in the last topic).

On March 11, 2011, a 9.0 or 9.1 earthquake struck off the east coast of Tôhoku. The resulting tsunami killed thousands and displaced hundreds of thousands, as well as triggering a nuclear meltdown at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant. On 3/11 and the days after, images of the ocean swallowing buildings whole, boats now perched atop half-ruined rooftops, and clocks frozen at 3:25 PM made their way around a now-interconnected world. No sense can ever be made of nature’s randomness, and the loss of life in its wake. Suzume is a film that understands this, long before Shinkai truly shows what his film is about (accepting past tragedy and trauma) and what it champions (living life completely). Before we fully learn about Suzume’s loss on 3/11, Shinkai is content to introduce us to partake in some narrative detours. Those detours introduce the audience to side characters living their lives humbly, with little fanfare, and a joie de vivre. Notice the joy of the motorcycle-riding produce seller, content with the verdant beauty of her home and the rural simple living. The laid-back and unfussy Tomoya Serizawa (Ryūnosuke Kamiki; whose character is Sôta’s best friend) takes each day as is as he attempts to earn a teaching credential. Until then (and I suspect even after he becomes a teacher), he enjoys cruising along in his convertible, blasting a Spotify playlist with playful oldies such as Yumi Arai’s “Rūju no Dengon” (a familiar tune to fans of 1989’s Kiki’s Delivery Service), Yuki Saito’s “Sotsugyô”, among others.

These detours contrast with a device (that Shinkai also uses) more characteristic of Japanese cinema, or at least most Japanese cinema that has been exported to the West. That device is mono no aware (“the impermanence of things”) – with practitioners including some of the greatest Japanese filmmakers of all time such as Ozu and Isao Takahata (1988’s Grave of the Fireflies, 2014’s The Tale of the Princess Kaguya). This refers to character behaviors or individual shots that emphasize how life is fleeting and precious. In that contrast of Suzume’s loss and the joyfulness of her companions, there is an implicit understanding that Japanese culture, as our characters know it, is disappearing (one might say “transforming”). It is there in the beautifully-drawn abandoned buildings – the onsens, the schoolhouses – alluding to Japan’s demographic changes, as well as the implication that there are fewer “closers” in Japan than there used to be. For an economy once pegged to lead the future in Asia, Japan’s stagnant financial reality is reflected in the supporting cast, all of whom are hardscrabble folks neither struggling nor prospering. Sometimes that change happens suddenly, as what happened to Suzume on 3/11, leaving behind a towering sea wall and imprints of former homes as nature reclaims these once-devastated places.

The trick, Shinkai says, is to acknowledge the tragedies of the past, for all its effects on the present. At the same time, one must press forward, to live as completely as possible in the days we have afforded to us. As simple as that may be to articulate verbally or cinematically, it is a much different proposition in practice, on both counts. If Suzume presented this message inelegantly, the film would be a maudlin exercise. Touch too lightly on these themes, and the film drowns in its heavily expository dialogue. Shinkai may too fervently focus on the romantic and the comedic in spurts, but Suzume eventually upholds the film’s ultimate thesis, so that Suzume can find true happiness today and in the future while in full acceptance of her past.

With any Makoto Shinkai film post-Your Name, one expects the band RADWIMPS to score the film and provide a wealth of original songs. This time, the lone notable song is the title number, “Suzume”, and it only appears in full during the end credits, rather than the characteristic Shinkai-esque montage. Performed by RADWIMPS and featuring the TikTok singer Toaka on vocals, the sixteen-note motif in “Suzume” (even when Toaka is on vocals and not vocalizing the motif, the motif is played as the harmonic line) is a hypnotically memorable idea that serves as Suzume’s motif for the film’s entirety. Together, RADWIMPS and co-composer Kazuma Jinnouchi (Halo 5: Guardians and “The Ninth Jedi” from Star Wars: Visions; like Shinkai, Jinnouchi got his start in the video game industry) craft a gorgeous score unafraid to mix styles and instrumentations.

The action scoring as heard in “Abandoned Resort” makes full use of Japanese instruments and an ominous choir on top of orchestra – lending the scene that it accompanies an immediate tension that bolsters the sense of danger in closing the door. Similar orchestrations in the other door-closing scenes are likewise as effective as this. In other moments, a wildly jazzy “Cat Chase” sets the pace for a chaotic pursuit early in the film, all while adding to the scene’s hilarity. A simple conversation between piano and strings such as in “Time for Two” introduces secondary romantic motifs for those moments when the action slows down and Suzume has Sôta on her mind. But perhaps the most effective musical moment occurs while our two leads are in Tokyo, and Suzume makes the decision to return home in “Suzume’s Departure”. It might not be the most musically interesting cue, but RADWIMPS and Jinnouchi’s restraint to delay Suzume’s motif until absolutely necessary pays off in emotional dividends that only film music can accomplish. By some distance, this is the most beautifully scored and fascinatingly orchestrated film in Shinkai’s filmography, and a stunning achievement for RADWIMPS and Jinnouchi.

There is no doubting that Makoto Shinkai is one of the most important filmmakers in Japan at this moment. He is the figurehead for a generation of directors for whom anime has always been their foremost cultural influence – with all the strengths and substantial limitations that entails. And like those he succeeds but does not quite emulate (Ozu and his contemporaries, but more closely the likes of Hayao Miyazaki and the late Takahata), Shinkai has made a film grounded upon the aftermath of a national disaster. For the first time, those intentions and allusions are clear. The directness of feeling in Suzume is a refreshing change for him, granting the film an emotive sincerity that none of his previous works can match. Indeed, some of his expository, romantic, and comedic writing threatens to render his work as tasteless. Yet with utter conviction in his writing and filmmaking, Shinkai presents that the goodwill and kindness of others is essential following tragedy. I might take issue with Shinkai’s approach, but I have no arguments there. Following the footsteps of great directors and their films in the years after another national calamity, Suzume, though imperfect, is Shinkai at his most humanistic.

My rating: 7.5/10

^ Based on my personal imdb rating. My interpretation of that ratings system can be found in the “Ratings system” page on my blog (as of July 1, 2020, tumblr is not permitting certain posts with links to appear on tag pages, so I cannot provide the URL). Half-points are always rounded down.

* Broadly, Japanese society is not hostile towards LGBTQ+ persons. However, the nation’s politics – which have long been defined by remarkably low participation rates for an industrialized democracy, especially from younger generations – is conservative on queer rights. The ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) has been in power almost continuously since its founding in 1955, and the party has always been against same-sex marriage.

[gayspectacless]

Jimmy talk to us about your Star Trek nerd stuff..:)c we care

Star Trek is an American science fiction media franchise created by Gene Roddenberry, which began with the eponymous 1960s television series and became a worldwide pop-culture phenomenon. Since its creation, the franchise has expanded into various films, television series, video games, novels, and comic books, and it has become one of the most recognizable and highest-grossing media franchises of all time.

The franchise began with Star Trek: The Original Series, which debuted in the US on September 8, 1966, and aired for three seasons on NBC. It was first broadcast on September 6, 1966, on Canada's CTV network.The series followed the voyages of the crew of the starship USS Enterprise, a space exploration vessel built by the United Federation of Planets in the 23rd century, on a mission "to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations, to boldly go where no man has gone before". In creating Star Trek, Roddenberry was inspired by C. S. Forester's Horatio Hornblower series of novels, Jonathan Swift's 1726 novel Gulliver's Travels, the 1956 film Forbidden Planet, and television westerns such as Wagon Train.

The Star Trek canon includes the Original Series, 11 spin-off television series, and a film franchise; further adaptations also exist in several media. After the conclusion of the Original Series, the adventures of its characters continued in the 22-episode Star Trek: The Animated Series and six feature films. A television revival beginning in the 1980s saw three sequel series and a prequel: The Next Generation, following the crew of a new starship Enterprise a century after the original series; Deep Space Nine and Voyager, set in the same era as the Next Generation; and Enterprise, set before the original series in the early days of human interstellar travel. The adventures of the Next Generation crew continued in four additional feature films. In 2009, the film franchise underwent a reboot, creating an alternate continuity known as the Kelvin timeline; three films have been set in this continuity. The newest Star Trek television revival, beginning in 2017, includes the series Discovery, Picard, Short Treks, Lower Decks, Prodigy, and Strange New Worlds, streaming exclusively on digital platforms.

:))))

[gungetank]

Miles is wearing his tight blue Adidas wrestling singlet, and has to name all 10 of the highest grossing films from 2017. There’s no time limit, but if he gives more than 1 incorrect answer, he’ll be covered in bright pink gunge from the tank above. Four or Thor? Those pesky British accents! https://gungetank.shop/video/03-miles-game-2/

[aliquickly]

"Demon Slayer" (鬼滅の刃, Kimetsu no Yaiba) is a popular Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Koyoharu Gotouge. It follows the story of a young boy named Tanjiro Kamado who becomes a demon slayer after his family is slaughtered by demons, with his younger sister Nezuko being turned into a demon herself. Tanjiro's goal is to find a way to cure his sister and avenge his family.

The manga was serialized in Weekly Shōnen Jump magazine from February 2016 to May 2020, with its chapters collected into 23 tankōbon volumes by Shueisha. It gained immense popularity, becoming one of the best-selling manga series of all time.

"Demon Slayer" was adapted into an anime television series produced by Ufotable, which aired from April to September 2019. The anime received widespread acclaim for its animation quality, character development, and emotional depth. It helped propel the series to even greater heights of popularity.

The success of the anime also led to the production of a feature film titled "Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba the Movie: Mugen Train," which adapted the Mugen Train Arc from the manga. The film broke numerous box office records in Japan and internationally, becoming one of the highest-grossing films of all time in Japan.

The "Demon Slayer" franchise includes not only the manga and anime but also various light novels, video games, and merchandise. It has become a cultural phenomenon both in Japan and worldwide.

[lboogie1906]

Felix Gary Gray (born July 17, 1969) is a film director, film producer, and music video director. He began his career as a director on numerous critically acclaimed and award-winning music videos, including “It Was a Good Day”, “Natural Born Killaz”, “Keep Their Heads Ringin’”, “Waterfalls”, and “Ms. Jackson”.

He made his feature film directorial debut with the comedy Friday. He has since directed the films Set It Off, The Negotiator, The Italian Job, Be Cool, Law Abiding Citizen, and Straight Outta Compton. He directed the eighth installment of the Fast & Furious franchise, The Fate of the Furious, which is the 19th-highest-grossing film of all time.

He was born in New York City and raised primarily in South Los Angeles. He discovered a natural talent for video cameras with his AV class in high school.

He started working as a camera operator on programs such as Screen Scene. He had a bit of a part in the comedy Major League. He got his first chance to direct music videos, starting with a video for the hip-hop group WC and the Maad Circle. He directed The Negotiator while earning him both Best Film and Best Director awards at the Acapulco Film Festival.

He directed The Italian Job. He garnered the Best Director award at the Black American Film Festival for his work on the film, which surpassed the $100 million mark at the domestic box office. His next film was A Man Apart.

He received the Ivan Dixon Award of Achievement from the Black Hollywood Education and Resource Center and was named one of the “50 Best and Brightest African Americans Under 40” by Black Enterprise magazine. He was honored by the African American Film Critics Association with their Special Achievement Award and was recognized by the Artist Empowerment Coalition with the Artist Empowerment Award that same year. He received the Pioneer Director award from the Pan-African Film and Arts Festival.

The Fate of the Furious became the first film directed by an African-American to gross over $1 billion worldwide. He will direct an adaptation of the video game franchise Saints Row, with a screenplay. He will direct the heist film Lift. #africanhistory365 #africanexcellence

[destinyc1020]

Confessions

1. I dnt care to know the ins/outs of TZs relarionship bt i always wonder how much they interact/hang out with other celebs (outside of work obligations) lol Z will alwaya go to a Beyonce party, and i remember that sighting of her at a cookout with John David/Sam Jackson bt im nosy to know the celeb parties her n Tom go to. I guess its nt that often cuz shes said shes introverted/shy (and dsnt seem into partying) bt i wonder if she wuld go to a party lik the one Quinta/Questlove histed

https://www.instagram.com/quintab/p/C8-PAtWyqrT/?hl=en&img_index=5

2. I want a Euphoria s3 🫣 *runs n hides* i wish that Sam culd get his thoughtz together for s3 (and involve Hunter who directed a great ep.in the past) and they can actually film the show bt i will b watching the nxt season if it actually gets filmed. I want to know wat happens to Rue/her family, Cassie is entertaining and i lik Jules. I hope Z gets to actually direct an episode or 2

2. I think it wuld really help Kaia if she started off with either sum more acting lessons or even do some kids/young adult (high school based) shows/movies first. I think being on a kid/young adults projects can help her emote better and thats smthn she can really work on cuz whatever acting teacher she got now isnt helping her. She dsnt tend to really change her face for modeling editorials and mayb she got the same mindset for acting? Even on this video...why is she barely moving her face, gurl its a kids reading show.. emote for them kids! 😭

https://youtube.com/shorts/_vUVLnx7ytM?feature=shared

Haha, you mean you want to see TZ interacting at some celeb parties? 😅 I feel you Anon. Z is pretty shy/introverted, and Tom says he "hates Hollywood" rotfl, sooo I doubt they go to HW parties that often. Plus, Z has been spending more time in London lately than in LA. She legit moved away from LA last year now that I think about it rotfl. LA is just a rest stop for her now days lol. 😅 I doubt she has that many options for celebrity parties in London compared to ones maybe going on in LA. That party that Quinta and Questlove just hosted looks amazing though! LOL. I LOVE game nights! 😁

2. Hey...it's okay if you want to admit that you wouldn't mind seeing a Euphoria S3 lol.���� Lots of people still love the show, so you're not alone there! I personally don't mind if they did 2 or 3 ending episodes to tie up any loose ends so that we can see what happened to the characters, but I personally don't need to see 8 months of filming 8 episodes for a full complete season. It sorta feels like the momentum for the show is dying down a bit. But we all know HBO is going to keep the show on the air as long as Sam writes, because I believe Euphoria is one of HBO's highest-grossing shows right now.

3. (I think you meant for this to be #3? Lol) Anyway....

#NOCOMMENT

I lied. How is her acting bad even just reading children's books?? Lawwwwd! 😩😭😅 Idk whether it's the years of modeling or WHAT, but something just seems so fake. Just read normally! LOL 😅 I think Kaia just needs to work on being NATURAL lol. THAT in itself would improve her acting sooo much.

Anyway.... I'd rather take Tom Hardy's bedtime stories thanks lol... 😅 He's actually pretty good at them!

I could listen to him talk allll day lol 🤣

[yanderu-deredere]

the m in may is for marriage

a/n: did i self insert into this one a bit too much? yes. is it painful? also yes LMAO neway hope you guys can relate and, if not, im so sorry and please skip this one

warning: female neutral reader, misogynistic language towards reader, video game terms but i tried to keep it vague prompt: day three ★ playing a competitive video game together

ryouta watanabe ★ profile

You loved playing video games with your husband, even though he was what people called a 'casual gamer'. He was really good at video games but he didn't play as often because there were other video games he liked better.

The rare times the two of you did play competitive games together, it was a blast, especially on games where the two of you could work together to beat other people.

Other times, though, it wasn't that fun at all.

"What the fuck are you, a woman? Fucking work on your arm, you pussy shit."

You almost slammed your mouse into your monitor, a scowl playing across your lips. Ryouta could see from his seat next to you how angry you were.

The guy on the team voice chat had been absolutely gross the entire game and all you wanted to do was get the game over and done with.

You hadn't even talked on voice chat at all, in fear of confirming the stupid guy's suspicions that you were a woman and 'that was why you sucked at gaming'. It wasn't, of course, but that guy would use any excuse to put a woman down right?

Thankfully, the game was almost over, and it at least lifted your spirits that Ryouta was the highest scoring person on the team by a long shot. He basically carried the entire team to win.

As the timer ticked down and your win was assured, Ryouta gestured you over and pointed to his mic. You were busy listening to that jerk ramble on about how the top scorer was surely a man--

What Ryouta wanted clicked immediately in your head. You giggled but immediately leaned over.

"Great game, team. Have a nice rest of your day."

The explosion the guy had over your voice was definitely worth it.

[darkfictionjude]

I thought you & some of the readers might find this interesting, things that happened in 1994 (according to Wikipedia):

February 12: Edvard Munch's painting The Scream is stolen in Oslo

March 12: A photo by Marmaduke Wetherell, previously touted as "proof" of the Loch Ness Monster, is confirmed to be a hoax

April 5: Kurt Cobain, the lead singer of Nirvana, commits suicide at age 27 at his home in Seattle. His body was found three days later.

April 27: South Africa holds its first fully multiracial elections, marking the final end of the last vestiges of apartheid. Nelson Mandela wins the elections and is sworn in as the first democratically elected president the following month.

May 10: Nelson Mandela is inaugurated as South Africa's first black president.

May 10: A solar eclipse occurs in The United States.

May 18: The Flavr Savr, a genetically modified tomato, is deemed safe for consumption by the FDA, becoming the first commercially grown genetically engineered food to be granted a license for human consumption.

June 12: Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Lyle Goldman are murdered outside the Simpson home in Los Angeles. O. J. Simpson is later acquitted of the killings, but is held liable in a civil suit.

June 15: The Lion King, the highest-grossing hand-drawn animated film of all time, is released by Walt Disney Feature Animation.

June 17: NFL star O. J. Simpson and his friend Al Cowlings flee from police in a white Ford Bronco. The low-speed chase ends at Simpson's Brentwood, Los Angeles mansion, where he surrenders.

June 17: The 1994 FIFA World Cup starts in the United States.

July 12: The Allied occupation of Berlin ends with a casing of the colors ceremony attended by U.S. President Bill Clinton.

August 12: Woodstock '94 begins in Saugerties, New York. It is the 25-year anniversary of Woodstock in 1969.

August 12: All Major League Baseball players go on strike, beginning the longest work stoppage in the sport's history.

September 13: President Bill Clinton signs the Federal Assault Weapons Ban, which bans the manufacture of new firearms with certain features for a period of 10 years.

September 14: The 1994 World Series is officially cancelled due to the ongoing work stoppage. It is the first time a World Series will not be played since 1904.

September 17: Heather Whitestone is crowned the first deaf Miss America; she is crowned Miss America 1995.

September 19: Andrew Wiles proves Fermat's Last Theorem, solving the 357-year-old mathematical theorem first proposed by Pierre de Fermat in 1637. He would publish it in 1995.

October 1: The World Wide Web Consortium is founded by Tim Berners-Lee, becoming the main international standards organization for the World Wide Web.

November 5: George Foreman wins the WBA and IBF World Heavyweight Championships by KO'ing Michael Moorer becoming the oldest heavyweight champion in history.

December 3: Sony releases the PlayStation video game system in Japan.

And that is why it’s such an interesting year to set the story in. So much happens in all areas of the world. I knew some of these but it’s nice to know how much the world began to change here. And yes I will pat myself on the back for picking 1994 as the set year for the story 🥳

Thank you nonnie this was very cool 💜 (rip to Kurt — I should add more nirvana to the game playlist).