#i can’t wait to watch this movie 100 times at the cinema

[gashofleastresistance]

Halle Bailey as Ariel & Jonah Hauer-King as Prince Eric

THE LITTLE MERMAID (2023) dir. Rob Marshall

[marimbles]

Ey I forgot to post this here but! I wrote a lil ladrien fic!

Word count: 3.2k

Summary:

Ladybug sniffed. “I saw through you right away. You look just like a celebrity trying to sneak past the paparazzi.”

Adrien frowned. “Well, I think I blend in better than you do. What are you supposed to be, a film noir detective on holiday?”

Or, Incognito Adrien runs into I'm-Not-Here Ladybug on the bus.

Mr. Perfect Disguise

13:38

adrienagrestbrand

HALLELUJAH! My shoot was canceled!

lahiffesbeats

oh sweet!

wait the one with Lila?

adrienagrestbrand

Yes!!!

Apparently she caught the flu

lahiffesbeats

uhh why are you so excited that lila’s sick. that’s not cool man

adrienagrestbrand

Oh um I’m not excited that she’s sick! I’m just glad to have some extra time.

One of my mom’s movies is playing at this indie cinema downtown. Want to go see it with me?

lahiffesbeats

aw man, i cant :( im watching chris

adrienagrestbrand

Maybe you could bring him?

lahiffesbeats

nah, he can’t sit still during a movie lol

maybe alya is free?

adrienagrestbrand

Uh, you don’t think that would be a bit awkward?

lahiffesbeats

why

adrienagrestbrand

I mean, Alya is great, but we never hang out with just the two of us.

lahiffesbeats

ok so ask marinette

adrienagrestbrand

I don’t think Marinette would want to go with me 😅 Last time we went to the movies together, Gorizilla showed up and it was kind of a disaster.

I think I’ll just go on my own. I’m not sure the movie would be that interesting to any of you anyway, haha.

lahiffesbeats

well i know for a fact that marinette would be 3000% down to go to literally any movie with u but ok lmao

adrienagrestbrand

What do you mean? How do you know for a fact?

lahiffesbeats

nvm

have fun dude!

adrienagrestbrand

Sorry, but would you mind covering for me? I told Gorilla I was going to study with you.

lahiffesbeats

sure thing bro. i’m honored to protect your scandalous sneaky ways

i’m proud. honestly i might tear up

adrienagrestbrand

Thanks

And shut up

Gorilla will drop me off in a few, OK? Then when the coast is clear I’ll head over to the theater

lahiffesbeats

How are you gonna get there

adrienagrestbrand

I’ll take the bus

lahiffesbeats

the bus?

mr. famous rich boy teenage heartthrob model adrien agreste is gonna take the bus

adrienagrestbrand

Yes

And shut up

lahiffesbeats

bro i hate to ask but have you ever been on a bus

like do you know how it works

adrienagrestbrand

Yes!!!!

No

But how hard can it be? You just get on and pay the driver and ride it, right?

Wait, do they give change back for 100€?

lahiffesbeats

probably not lol

just take my travel pass

adrienagrestbrand

Really? You’d do that?

lahiffesbeats

ofc. i’m very invested in your teenage rebellion

u can give it back tmw

adrienagrestbrand

Thanks, Nino!! You’re the best

lahiffesbeats

yeah, yeah. i know

just have ur bodydude drop u off here and i will help u turn on Incognito Mode. for maximum stealth

i will make you a kit

adrienagrestbrand

A kit?

lahiffesbeats

yee

for Operation Teenage Rebellion

just trust me

see u in a few

adrienagrestbrand

See you

— — —

“Uh, Nino, are you sure about this?”

Adrien frowned down at his outfit. Nino’s “Incognito Mode” had turned out to be a pair of sunglasses, his signature red hat, and an old denim jacket with a mysterious stain on it, which he insisted Adrien wear to hide the fact that his shirt “cost literally a million Euros, dude.” He’d even made Adrien swap out his orange Agreste-brand sneakers for pair of Nino’s old Nike slides, which were the only thing small enough to fit him.

“Have I ever led you wrong?” Nino grinned. “Just trust me.”

Adrien opened his mouth to name a time or two when Nino had, maybe, actually, led him wrong, but before he could say anything, Nino was nudging him out the door.

“Sorry, man, I really gotta get back to Chris. And you gotta get to the bus.” He shoved a plastic sack into Adrien’s hands. “Later! Keep me posted.”

The door clicked shut behind him.

Adrien peered into the bag. It contained a neon yellow sports drink, a pack of American crisps with a cartoon cheetah on them, and a plastic blue card, which he assumed was Nino’s transit pass.

The bus would arrive in just a few minutes. Adrien hurried down the steps of Nino’s building and jogged to the corner to wait.

Soon, the bus rolled to a stop in front of him. He climbed aboard, pulling Nino’s hat lower over his eyes. The woman in front of him drew a ticket from her pocket.

“Oh—shoot.” Adrien reached into the bag and grabbed the blue card. The plastic rustled loudly. Blushing, he tapped the plastic card on the reader with a beep.

There was photo of Nino on the back of the card. Adrien’s hand shot back. He glanced up nervously at the bus driver, who was busy adjusting his mirror. Adrien’s muscles relaxed.

He followed the woman into the aisle. At this time of day, it was a crowded ride—standing room only. He squeezed through to an empty space next to a girl in a sunhat, pulling out his phone.

adrienagrestbrand

Why didn’t you tell me your transit card is also an ID??

lahiffesbeats

eh, they never check

how is operation teenage rebellion going

adrienagrestbrand

Well, I’m on the bus, at least.

lahiffesbeats

:’) proud of you, bud. my little rebel bro. breaking the law and everything

adrienagrestbrand

Wait, using someone else’s travel pass is illegal???

Before Adrien had a chance to fixate on the horror of his father bailing him out of jail (in this outfit), the bus took off with a lurch. He stumbled forward, nearly dropping his phone and treading on the toes of the girl in the hat.

“Sorry,” he said with a wince. So much for staying inconspicuous. He reached out and gripped one of the metal handlebars, tucking his other hand into his pocket. His fingers found his Marinette lucky charm, rolling the beads between his fingers.

“Oh, um, it’s fine!” The girl ducked her head. “It’s not a problem.”

Adrien blinked. There was something familiar about her. And something strange. Maybe it was the dark trenchcoat, which looked too heavy for the mild weather. Or maybe it was her wide-brimmed hat, more suitable for a beach than a crowded city bus.

He glanced down at her black leather gloves. If he didn’t know any better, he’d think she was trying to hide, just like him.

The bus rounded a corner, and despite his hold on the bar, Adrien staggered to the side. His free hand was thrown out wildly to try to keep his balance, and he nearly hit the girl on the nose.

“Sorry! Sorry,” he said quickly, scrambling back into place. His neck burned underneath the collar of his jacket.

“Don’t worry about it,” the girl mumbled.

Adrien shoved his hand back into his pocket and froze. His lucky charm was missing.

He scanned the floor and spotted it next to the girl’s boot.

“Um, excuse me, miss,” he said. “Would you mind handing me that? I dropped it.”

The girl peered down where he was pointing, face still hidden from view. Then she seemed to stiffen, frozen in place as she stared at the charm.

“Um, miss?”

She scooped it up and held it out to him, head bowed. “Here you go.”

“Thank y—” he started to say, but the words got lost on their way out. The girl’s hand was still outstretched, and he stared at the gap between her sleeve and her glove.

It was bright red, with a black spot.

The bus hissed to a stop. People clamored to their feet.

“Ladybug?” he whispered.

Her head snapped up. He caught a glimpse of her wide eyes through a pair of oversized sunglasses. Then she shot to her feet and pushed past him.

“Wait!” he called. He stumbled after her, down the steps and out the door. “Wait, please!”

She didn’t turn around. Just strode quickly down the street, the brim of her hat flopping with each step.

He broke into a jog and to catch up with her. “Ladybug!”

“I’m not—uh—who’s Ladybug?” She let out a breathless laugh. “Or, I mean, of course I’m not Ladybug. Why would you think that?”

“I, uh, saw your suit. Could you stop for a second?”

“No! I have to ca—I have … important business to attend to.”

“Um, before you do that, would you mind giving me back my lucky charm?”

She came to a halt, and he almost ran into her.

“Right,” she said quickly. “Here you go.”

She shoved the charm at him—he had to fumble not to drop it—and kept walking. But Adrien wasn’t willing to lose her that fast.

“What kind of business?” he asked quickly, dropping the charm into his plastic sack.

“Superhero business. Top secret.”

“Well, if it’s superhero stuff, then, um … why isn’t Chat Noir here too?”

“Because! It’s not—he isn’t—” She let out a little huff. “Because he wouldn’t get it. I have to do this alone.”

“I don’t think you ever have to do anything alone,” Adrien said. “Maybe he would get it if you explained.”

Finally, she stopped. Even with the double layer of her mask and her sunglasses, he could feel the weight of her gaze. “Why are you following me, Adrien?”

He blinked. “I … I didn’t realize you’d recognized me.”

“Well, um, that disguise isn’t very good.”

“It’s not?” He glanced down, suddenly feeling very self-conscious of the stained jacket and open-toed shoes. There was even a hole in the toe of his sock—Plagg kept stealing all of his good ones, and he always forgot to ask Nathalie for more.

Ladybug sniffed. “Not for me, anyway. I saw through you right away. You look just like a celebrity trying to sneak past the paparazzi.”

Adrien frowned. “Well, I think I blend in better than you do. What are you supposed to be, a film noir detective on holiday?”

Ladybug stiffened, and Adrien’s stomach dropped. He’d done it again. He’d let a stupid joke fall out of his stupid mouth, and now his lady was upset with him—this time, with Adrien him.

But Ladybug didn’t scoff, or cross her arms, or do any of the things she usually did when she didn’t like his jokes. Instead, she groaned, flattening the sides of her big, floppy hat to her head.

“This is so embarrassing,” she muttered. “I can’t believe this is happening.”

“It’s—it’s not that bad,” Adrien tried, but Ladybug just buried her face in her hands.

“Ugh! This stupid suit!” Her head snapped up. “If you have any better suggestions, Mr. Perfect Disguise, I’m all ears.”

“You could just … detransform?”

She froze again, and before she could say anything, he went on in a rush.

“I mean, if you don’t want to be noticed, couldn’t you just take the bus as, like, yourself? And then just transform when you get to wherever you’re going? That would draw less attention. Unless, by chance, you daylight as a circus clown.”

He laughed awkwardly, mentally kicking himself for cracking another bad joke. But to his surprise, she laughed too.

“Nope,” she said. “That’s Chat Noir’s civilian identity. I’m just a normal girl with a normal life.”

He clung to the echo of her laugh, letting it fill him up with a hesitant sort of confidence he couldn’t resist testing.

“Aw, come on, mila—Ladybug,” he dared to say. “I’m sure there is nothing about you that isn’t special. Spots or no spots.”

“You’re wrong. I’m super normal. The normalest.”

“No way.

“Yes way! I bet—” She seemed to hesitate. “I bet I could sit behind you at school and you wouldn’t even notice me.”

“Lies,” Adrien said. “I would definitely notice.”

“Right. Well … um, wow, would you look at the time!” She let out a nervous laugh, glancing down at an invisible watch on her wrist. “I’d better be off. It was nice to love you, Adrien—I mean, nice to see you. Bug out!”

She spun on her heel, and without his permission, his hand shot out to stop her.

“Um,” he said, “do you—I mean … well, I still don’t get why you’re in disguise. Do you need help with something?”

“No! I mean, thanks, that’s okay, but I really need to … oh.” Her voice trailed off, mouth falling open.

“What is it?”

“I was going somewhere, but I guess now I don’t … need to.”

“What do you mean?”

She held his gaze, biting her lip, and then released a breath, her words spilling out in a rush. “I heard you and Lila were gonna have a photoshoot today, so I was going over there to, like, stake it out and stop her from whatever terrible thing she was planning. But I was worried that if I wasn’t suited up already I’d have to find a place to transform and that could take forever because do you even know how hard it is to find a decent hiding place in one of the biggest cities in Europe?”

“Well—”

“And by the time I hid and transformed and got back, who knows what kind of damage she could’ve done? So I was like, ‘Okay, I’ll just have to suit up beforehand so I’m ready for action at a moment’s notice.’ But there really isn’t much that can cover a whole supersuit, so I stole—borrowed—my mom’s coat and the hat she bought for her trip to Côte d'Azur last year because, I mean, she literally never wears it, and I was gonna put it right back when I was done, and I couldn’t use any of my hats because they don’t have a big enough brim to hide my mask. Because, like, even with sunglasses on you can still see it, so I thought I could just kind of, like, bow my head and it would be fine—”

“Ladybug—”

“—and of course Tik—my friend told me it wasn’t a good idea, but I just couldn’t let anything happen because I’m the only one who knows what Lila’s capable of. So I’m the only one who can stop her.”

At last, Ladybug paused, breathing heavily, looking flushed beneath her mask.

“This is about Lila?” Adrien asked. “What were you afraid she was gonna do?”

She was definitely blushing now, pink spilling out from under all her layers of disguise. “Well—I don’t know! She would think of something! She’s a liar. Or—I mean …” She breathed in, closing her eyes briefly. “She is at high risk for akumatization. Or getting others akumatized.”

Adrien nodded. “I know.”

“You—you do?”

“Yeah.”

“Well, I thought you did, at one point, but then you started doing all these photoshoots with her, and you guys seem pretty … friendly.” She made a face at the word, like it was something slimy and poisonous. “I mean, like, being all cuddly and couple-y and—like, if you’re dating Lila, that’s … that’s fine, I just have to, um, warn you that—”

“We’re not dating,” Adrien cut in. “We’re not even friends.”

“You’re not?”

“No,” he said firmly. “The photoshoots are my father’s idea, and I kind of let Lila do what she wants with them because, well, I made a deal with her.”

Ladybug frowned. “What kind of deal?”

“I told her I would do the shoots with her if she’d leave my friend Marinette alone. Lila got her expelled from school temporarily. She almost got her akumatized. It was terrible.”

“You … you did that?” Ladybug asked, sounding strangely distant. “You did that for Marinette?”

Adrien nodded. “She’s really important to me. I couldn’t let anything else happen to her. I mean, I hate having to hang around Lila and pretend to be her friend, but”—he shrugged—“it’s worth it. To keep Marinette safe.”

Ladybug appeared to be in some kind of daze. She wandered to the edge of the walkway, sinking down onto a bench.

“Is something wrong?” Adrien asked.

She shook her head slowly, taking in a deep breath. “That’s, um, really nice of you, Adrien.” A pause. “You’re a good friend.”

He sat down beside her. “You know Marinette, right?”

“Yeah,” Ladybug said. “Yeah, I know her.”

“Then please don’t tell her about this. I don’t want her to feel guilty or anything. She has enough on her plate already. She does so much, and she cares about people more than anyone I know, and I don’t want this to be one more thing for her to worry about, you know?”

“Right.”

Adrien pulled his lucky charm from the sack. “She’s the one who gave this to me. Maybe it’s silly, but I feel like it brings me good luck. I always carry it with me wherever I go. My Marinette lucky charm.”

“That’s …” She looked down, hiding her face under the brim of her hat. “That’s really sweet.”

“Maybe … maybe this is what made me run into you today. At least, I feel like it’s good luck to see you.” He paused, smile faltering. “But maybe it wasn’t so lucky for you that I, like, chased you down. Sorry about that.”

She raised her head. “No! I’m really glad we ran into each other. Maybe that thing is lucky after all.”

“But you don’t need luck anyway, huh? You’re Ladybug.”

She laughed, and for the first time, she leaned her head back, lifting her face to the sky. “Trust me. I need all the luck I can get.”

For a moment, they just sat there, watching the people passing by. It was strange, to sit side by side like this with Ladybug—exactly like he’d done a thousand times before, but nothing was the same. A bench instead of a rooftop. The street instead of the sky. And Paris, bustling all around them, instead of twinkling from below.

He liked it like this. (He liked it any way, with her.)

“So,” she said, “were you not actually supposed to have a photoshoot today?”

“I was, but it was canceled.”

“Oh? Why?”

“Because Lila has a huge zit.”

Ladybug’s eyes widened, and then she snorted as her face crumpled with laughter.

“I’m serious,” Adrien went on. “It’s enormous. Like, a category 5 disaster event.”

“You’re lying! They’d just cover it with makeup.”

“You can’t cover a geographical landmark with makeup,” Adrien said gravely.

Ladybug doubled over, clutching her sides as she howled. He laughed with her, feeling almost weightless with the thrill of it. He was laughing with his lady, without his mask. He’d made her laugh, and she knew it was him, and when she lifted her head again, the smile on her face (big, bright, beautiful, brilliant) was for him, Adrien Agreste, and no one else.

Finally, Ladybug straightened, nudging her sunglasses up on her nose to wipe at her eye.

“Wanna go out with me?” Adrien blurted.

She froze. “What?”

“I mean—sorry!” Adrien shook his head quickly. “I was on my way to a movie. And since you’re free now, and you’ve already got your disguise, I thought maybe you’d want to … come with me? Or—or not! I don’t mean to presume any—”

“Yes,” she said.

“Wait. Really?”

“Yes, I’d, um …” She brushed a lock of hair behind her ear. “I’d love to go with you.”

Warmth shot through him like a firecracker, and he felt his face split into a grin. “Great. I’ve always wanted to see a movie with Beach Vibes Sherlock Holmes.”

She laughed. “Lead the way, Mr. Perfect Disguise.”

[huntingingoodwill]

sick boy headcanons part ii

masterlist

send requests for my 1.3k sleepover!

my other sick boy hcs :)

- simon, simon, simon… where should i begin!

- he loves buying you flowers! he’ll show up at your front door, whipping a slightly wilted, plastic wrapped bouquet from behind his back with his toothiest grin.

- there are often times he’s hanging out with mark and just stops in the middle of the street and is like “wait. i gotta go buy them flowers, im seeing them tonight.” and drags him into the nearest supermarket

- mark just flipping through random magazines begging him to hurry up while simon chooses the best bouquet. yeah it’s cheap but he wants the best for you! he chooses the freshest looking one every time, bringing them to you on the tube, biting the stems between his teeth as he fumbles for his card

- okay so sometimes money is tight. sometimes simon can’t really afford to blow his extra cash on store bought flowers. that’s fine! but he refuses to let you go without. he will literally drag mark to the fields to pick wildflowers for you, well, whenever he’s not shoplifting them, yelling at rents whenever he whines about it being too much trouble. he definitely steals flowers from your neighbour’s shrubs on the way to your house, showing up with a loose bouquet brimming with wildflowers, a huge smile, and a grumpy mark

- simon does not tolerate anybody treating you badly. he’ll retaliate, totally, and 100% gets an attitude, shoving and threats included, but his favourite method of solving these problems is of course: is to sic begbie on them like your guard dog

- someone spills a drink on you? your boss refuses to give you your promised pay? someone hits on you in a gross, disrespectful way? (knowing him, he probably gets mad at whoever hits on you even if it’s in the most respectful way possible) he’s all up in begbie’s ear whispering “did you see that guy? he’s totally staring at you. like, what’s his problem?” getting begbie to get super mad at them because he thinks they’re disrespecting him when it’s really all simon’s orchestration. this devolves into a fight of course, that simon watches with rapt amusement while holding his arm over your eyes to shield you from all the bloodshed

- simon is a movie stan. a buff.

- he loves bringing you to arthouse and theatres that play his favourite old movies :))

- his favourite era for film is the 60s. paul newman, alain delon, and of course, his celebrity crush: sean connery. they’re just all so suave, so cool, they’re all he wants to be!! you go to one movie with him and the next week he’s dressing like them and talking with that same quick cadence. you make fun of him for it endlessly but you’re lowkey into it

- youll sit next to him in matinees with your head on his shoulder and he can’t help but whisper little facts about the film to you every once in a while

- he probably brings a nerdy little notebook too to write details in

- mark tags along to a lot of the movie dates too i don’t make the rules

- and you and simon always bum off his popcorn which pisses him off but what’s he gonna do!

- besides going to the cinema, you two have movie nights every once in a while, watching whatever film is on tv or whatever he managed to rent that week at home together, legs kicked up on each other’s laps, eating takeaway

- he wouldn’t miss these movie nights for anything!! his friends will ask him out but he just goes “nah. cant. we’re watching goldfinger tonight.” or sometimes he’ll be out at the pub with the whole gang, and jump up suddenly, remembering he’s gotta go because taxi driver’s on at 9 and you’re waiting at home for him with food

- also because he’s a bond fanboy he takes you to every new movie!! though of course he’ll spend a good chunk of time on the bus ride home complaining about how no one can beat good ol’ connery

- also long, late night train and bus rides with him :( he always lets you fall asleep on his shoulder, and death glares at anyone who tries to sit next to you just in case it disturbs you

- he hardly wants to wake you up when you reach your stop, but watches as you rub your bleary eyes when he does. he thinks it’s cute :(

- late night walks with him, too!

- be it just simply from the train station home, or when you two can’t sleep and just need to take a late night walk. it’s just the two of you, and you spend your time just walking, the only sounds in the street being you talking

[aethuviel]

I saw Avatar: TWOW this past wednesday, and these are my spoiler-y thoughts.

I went to see the original Avatar twice when it first came. Once in regular theaters, knowing absolutely nothing about it except “blue aliens on a forest planet”. Then the next time on New Year’s Eve, when we drove 100 km to a different city to see it in 3D, and needless to say, I was absolutely floored by the world and its beauty.

I was just starting worldbuilding in late 2009, and Avatar gave me the biggest inspiration kick I’ve ever had, that lasted for many years.

The story and characters were never the greatest however, and couldn’t really be due to the story the film wanted to tell. It’s fine. (I have to say Grace is my favorite female character ever, but that’s not saying a lot because I haven’t seen many interesting female characters. I just love her attitude, her love for Pandoran nature and her character development.)

So, when is the sequel coming? Waiting. And waiting and waiting and waiting. After the third or fourth delay (I don’t even know), I decided to just give it up and “It comes when it comes”. When the final release date was set, I joked online “Avatar 2 is coming in 2022? I’m so happy it’s finally coming in 2023! It will be 15 years since the first one! I can’t wait to see Avatar 2 in 2025!”, making a joke on the constant delays...

While recent big franchise sequels and reboots have been disappointments and I haven’t been to cinemas since 2018, this was the first time since 2015 I felt this excited to see a film. I actually trust Cameron to stay true to his vision and not sell out to make some cheap crap.

I also trust him not to put spoilers in the trailers, so while I’ve watched trailers like holding a piece of hot coal since HTTYD 2 (still pissy about it nine years later), I gladly watched all the Way of Water trailers, but I really tried to avoid seeing revealing information online (like who all the kids are).

All in all: I don’t think it’s as massive an experience as Avatar 1, but there’s a good reason for that.

The reason being, of course, that Avatar in 2009 was a shock to audiences. We weren’t expecting to be immersed in such a beautiful world, like something seen in a dream (and it actually was, by Cameron, many years ago...). Cue “The Avatar Blues”.

This time however, we knew we were supposed to be blown away by a beautiful alien planet, so the shock couldn’t possibly be as great.

I also can’t agree with the cast’s statements that “the stakes are higher”, I actually think the stakes of Hometree going down (and possibly the Tree of Souls) was a higher one than a man-on-man revenge plot and a family being threatened. It’s a different story and premise, so it is what it is.

This film is really all about family, and I loved that because it’s actually really rare in cinema, and something that’s rare in fiction full stop, is families having more than 1 kid, so I really loved seeing a family with four kids here (no, not counting Spider).

One disappointment is the soundtrack. James Horner’s parts from the first movies were not adapted, they were put in completely as is. Akula chasing Lo’ak? Music from Thanator chasing Jake. Kids riding Ilu for the first time? Music from when Jake rode Ikran for the first time. Tulkun killed? Music from Hometree’s destruction. If you’ve seen the first film many times and perhaps taken a liking to listening to the soundtrack, these stand out like a sore thumb.

And the rest, composed by Simon Franglen, just couldn’t hold a candle to James Horner. There were some good bits, and of course Neytiri’s song added some nice atmosphere and worldbuilding, but unfortunately, not a memorable soundtrack.

There were otherwise only two things that stood out to me, that I didn’t like. While the Omatikaya were not overly inspired by Native Americans or any other human culture, the Metkayina were definitely overly inspired by Maori and other Polynesians. The tattoos, even the brief haka display. It was too obvious. It’s as obvious as if Neytiri’s father would have worn a feather hat, as the chief.

The other thing, was the marine biologist explaining the intelligence of the tulkun. This is an alien planet, and I absolutely love the idea of having sapient species that are not humanoid, or building human-like societies. That said, this film, and its predecessor, definitely wants you to think about Earth all the time. What he says about the tulkun is almost word for word from Blackfish, where animal rights activists lie for 90 minutes straight about killer whales.

In Blackfish, they insinuate on no grounds whatsoever, that killer whales are more intelligent and feel more intense emotions than humans, because of a “part of the brain humans don’t have”. Yes, they do have that... it has to do with echolocation, of course we don’t have that. It has nothing to do with emotion or intelligence. They are extremely intelligent and emotional, but there’s absolutely no reason to think they, or any other whales, have more of it than we have. (For the record, killer whales are so compassionate to other creatures that they will kill a baby humpback or grey whale slowly in front of its mother, only to eat its tongue, a delicacy, and leave its trashed corpse to its mother, who is left hanging in shock.)

Since this was included in the film, and it so obviously wants to make us think of Earth whales, I had to roll my eyes and cringe for a bit.

I’ve seen nitpicking about other things, basically because they failed to understand something about the film.

“Why are they speaking English?” (Jake makes it very clear in an early scene that they are speaking Na’vi, it’s just translated to us. No way most audiences would want to sit through a 3 hour film in an alien language, not to mention how difficult it would be on the actors.)

“Neytiri would NEVER want to kill an INNOCENT person, that’s not her!” on her threatening Spider. What? That was perfectly in line with her character, and her best scene in the film. Her son had just been murdered, and the entire rest of her family was at gunpoint. The film made it very clear Neytiri never liked or trusted Spider. If you can’t understand her actions in that scene, I don’t know what to say. And he’s not a child, it’s not like she threatened a toddler, he’s almost a man.

Towards the end of the film, I was wondering why Neteyam didn’t have more of a story. Lo’ak has a lot going on, Kiri is clearly being set up for something huge, Tuk is just a child still... but Neteyam was just there to be a big brother. “Maybe”, I though, “he’ll have more of a story in the next film”. ...aaaand he was dead 15 minutes later. And I understood, that’s what he as a character existed for. Jake’s family couldn’t get out of this story without a loss, for story-telling purposes, I understand that.

But it also meant it was hard to feel something when Neteyam died. It was more being sad for Jake and Neytiri, than sad because he died.

And it was a really beautiful scene towards the end, when Jake and Neytiri joined with the tree to see him again.

All in all, I would give the film a 9-9.5 out of 10. Same as the original Avatar, which may just have a bit of an edge over this one, but they’re both absolutely great.

[maybege]

Hi, again!

Decided to answer this way for once, cause I’m pretty sure I’d go over the character limit in the comments 🙈

Firstly, I’m doing good! Writing is slowly progressing, and I just saw the Barbie movie which I’ve been waiting for for months!!! (Btw 10/10 would definitely recommend, and I will be watching that movie again)

Also, a London trip? That’s amazing! Yeah, I went there last year in September! I honestly didn’t eat much cause I had such a packed schedule with events, but the one place that I can definitely recommend is called „Mildreds“ which iirc is a 100% plant based restaurant (I think they have a couple locations in London, and they should be easy to find on Google). I went to the one in Soho and the food was great!! Also, idk how you feel about sightseeing, but I’m really glad that I took a sightseeing bus tour! I really liked it cause sightseeing isnt really my thing but the tour allowed me to see interesting stuff without feeling bored 😊

And about Taylor swift.. I still can’t believe that we’re actually gonna be at the same concert, that’s so awesome! I’m so excited and also already trying to figure out what to wear cause a year feels like eternity but also really really short? 😂

Hello hello!

Oh the Barbie movie! I’m so excited to see that one but first I’m going to see Oppenheimer today (resisted the temptation of the Barbenheimer double feature for the sole reason that I don’t have enough time to watch both back to back 😭). But I already know that I’m going to love both - what a time to be alive (cinema wise)!

And thank you for the tip! I found them on google and it looks incredible so I’ll def try them out. And I’m leaning towards the hop on hop off bus as well. There’s so much to see - especially in London! - so sightseeing is definitely on our to do list (right after food 😂)

That concert is going to sneak up on me so fast, I just know it! I’ve got a dress picked up but I don’t know if it’s the best to wear for a concert (and also I’d have to be brave enough to wear it). I’m also really curious when Eventim will open the fansale because I know so many people who have too many tickets and even more people who want tickets 💀

[ccthewriter]

CC's New Watch Ranking 2022: #5 - Last Year at Marienbad

1961, dir. Alain Resnais

Every year on Letterboxd, I make a list of the 100 best films I’ve seen for the first time. It’s a fun way to compare movies separated in time, genre, and country of origin, and helps me keep track of what I’m watching! This is a series of posts about my Top 10.

I’ve fallen behind on these posts! Some very exciting Real Writing Projects and Life Circumstances have kept me from posting.  But damned if I won’t finish. I will return here, to this familiar conceptual space, where I will walk through hallways of my memory and peer into rooms that contain wonderful hallucinations. A narrator will intone my actions; I will remember, and reflect, on all that has happened. I will try to find a meaning to these dreams I walked through, and tell you of them. But you will insist that I misremember. You will visit the dream, and try to find it reflected in these words. It will be a vast garden we walk through, parallel, apart, together. 

The puzzling and paradoxical are the nature of true cinema. What film embodies it better than this? 

Last Year at Marienbad is a dreamlike circulation around a baroque French hotel. Its central character keeps meeting a stranger who tells her that they met last year, at Marienbad. Their encounters keep you wondering - did they? What happened there? Was that a dream? Is this a dream? Is this a distortion of some horrible truth? 

There is no satisfying answer to be found, and I am so grateful for it. As I continue to learn about cinema I find myself drawn to the films that give more questions than answers. I like that they provoke debate about their meanings. I like that there is so much more to discover on rewatch. I like that it reflects the uncertainty I feel in my everyday life. There are certain spaces on finds online where clear answers are demanded, where every film has to deliver some moral argument. Where a character’s journey must be predictable and move on rails. Something like this, where you can spend an hour analyzing an actor’s fluttering eyelid, is so much more interesting to me. I can’t think of another film that fills me with such curiosity. There seems to be something hiding within every frame, waiting to be discovered. 

Beyond its surreal, ambiguous narrative, I also want to highlight the motion of the camera. I have never seen a movie move like this. The camera never seems to stay still, it constantly rotates, as if the entire hotel were on a treadmill. It has a hypnotizing effect. It makes the hotel seem infinite, and its recurring narration and scenes feel like points on a fourth dimensional objects. Each move ahead in opposite directions, but the geometry bends to make them meet again. It’s like you’re inside a polished silver ball, being rolled down a hall of mirrors. 

Simple language defies this movie! If you watch it you’ll understand, you need some purple prose in order to reflect this film. I look forward to doing long studies of it over the course of my life. I want to know everything about its making and conceptualization. There is still so much to understand.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Thank you for reading! If you made it this far why don’t you give me a follow on Letterboxd, where I post reviews and keep obsessive track of all the movies I watch. Feel free to drop a line if you checked this movie out and want to share your thoughts!

[anthonysstupiddailyblog]

Anthony’s Stupid Daily Blog (291): Sun 1st January 2022

Spent the day exercising, reading The Red Scream and watching zombie movies. I was determined to kick the new year off by doing 1000 stomach crunches and weight lifts. I finished surprisingly early after by doing 250 every hour rather than the 100 per hour I originally set out to do. I made a promise to myself when I left the Edinburgh Fringe festival last year that by the time the 2023 festival came around I would be in decent shape and I intend to do so. I’ve been chubby for too long and I much prefer the way I look when I’m nice and skinny so this extra 2 stones of fat has got to go by the summer.

I could have chosen any film for my first viewing of 2023 but for some reason I stuck on Braindead the most blood soaked movie ever made. After the first few minutes I was quite put off by how cheap the film looks but as the film goes on you realize that realize that it’s not trying to hook an audience through beautiful cinematography but rather the exact opposite. This movie features the most blood splatter and grousing deaths possible in the history of the cinema. It’s as if director Peter Jackson asked everyone in the country for suggestions on how to kill zombies and he used all of them that were sent in. By the way yea that’s Peter Jackson who went in to make the Lord of the Rings movies, widely regarded as some of the best and highly stylized films ever made. To go from this splatter fest that looks like it was filmed on a home movie camera to a black Buster fantasy film is quite remarkable. My favourite scene in the film is when a priest sees a hoard of zombies approaching his church and starts Kung Fu fighting them and quips “I KICK ARSE FOR THE LORD!”. I also watched the final film in the Evil Dead franchise: Army of Darkness. The original Evil Dead movie might be the most terrified I’ve been watching a movie. I think that director Sam Raimi realized it would have been silly to try and make sequels that were scarier than the original and so he decided to take them in a completely different, comedic / fantasy direction. The gamble really paid off because now fans of the three genres have a reason to watch all of the movies and fans of all three will happily watch every instalment. I think this must be the thinking of Todd Phillips who is making his Joker sequel a musical since he’s presumably come to the conclusion that he can’t make another psychological character study film that will be as effective as the original Joker.

Dad and I went to see Jenny at the home but she wasn’t as fluid as she was last time and didn’t really know we were there. She had an accident while we were sat with her so Dad asked one of the nurses if she could come in and change Jenny. While we waited outside Dad said to me “Can you imagine having to clean up shit for a living?” and I said “No, especially not my own” which got a chuckle from him.

Not the most effective way to spend he first day of a new year but at least I didn’t spend the whole fucking day on YouTube right?

[sunghun]

enhypen when you keep glancing at them

(because they’re so pretty)

requested; yes!

warnings; some cursing, mention of food.

note; i had so much fun writing this bc i would also 100% stare at them lmao. not proofread so sorry for any mistakes!

his cheeks are gonna be sooooo red

like you two were at your place

like you two were at your place

just sitting on the couch and chilling

when suddenly you just started staring at him??

he probably wouldn’t say anything for like . several minutes

until he just can’t take it anymore

“why are you staring at me? do i have something on my face??”

“no, you’re just really pretty.”

“wha- i- heh- pffft.”

literally just. malfunctions.

cuz like ??

the prettiest person in the entire world just called him pretty . omg

also will think about it for dayyyyssss after

probably feels more confident too 🥺

no but the next time he catches you looking at his face he’ll just be like

“😏 am i that pretty?”

“yeah but you also have bbq sauce on your chin.”

“wait what-“

제이 | jay;

HE WILL GET SO COCKY OMG

like you two were out on a cute little date

and while you were walking through the park you decided to stop and sit on one of the benches that was in front of the pond for a little bit

and while you were sitting there all cuddled up next to him

you were suddenly struck with just how good looking your boyfriend is

and obviously jay noticed you glancing at him

“you know i’m not the view, right?”

“i disagree. you’re the prettiest view i’ve ever seen.”

congrats y/n u just made his ego like 10x bigger

“well in that case i don’t blame you.”

and you just look at him like 😐

*scooching away* “thanks for ruining the moment babe.”

he would backtrack so fast pls 😭

“wait no come back sweetheart you’ll get cold-“

제이크 | jake;

please we all know how flirty he :’)

you guys were at the cinema and tbh, you didn’t even know what the movie was about

bc you were too busy staring at your beautiful boyfriend

ofc jake noticed because you weren’t exactly being subtle lol

but he didn’t say anything until you the movie was over and you two were walking home

“so did you watch any of the movie or was i too distracting?”

you just wrap yourself around his arm and bury your face in his shoulder

“stooooppp it’s not my fault i have such a pretty boyfriend”

“hey you’re even prettier and you don’t see me ignoring movies just to look at you.”

“really? because our movie night last week says otherwise.”

and he’ll just shrug with a cute lil smile and be like

“it was either watch a boring movie or stare at my pretty baby. not exactly a hard choice to be honest.”

his mission in life is to fluster you and it shows <3

성훈 | sunghoon;

he would TRY to act all cocky and shit but he would blush SO much

like you’re not fooling anyone buddy

so y’all were out grocery shopping together

being all cute and domestic

and while he was trying to decide between frosted flakes or cheerios

he could Feel you staring at him

“are you gonna stare at me all night?”

and you’re just . so unbothered at being caught

“stop being pretty and i’ll stop staring.”

he tries so hard to think of some kind of sarcastic comeback but for once his mind just goes blank??

tries to sputter his way through a response but eventually gives up

and just throws both boxes of cereal into the cart and walks away 😭

congrats you just succeeded in making park sunghoon blush like crazy 🥳🥳

선우 | sunoo;

will get SO SOFT FOR YOUUU

you guys were on a date at this cute cat themed cafe

and of course sunoo Had to get some pictures

so you offered to take some for him

and as you were holding the phone and sunoo smiled for the camera

it just kind of hit you that like . he’s so fucking cute? and pretty?? what the hell???

but after like two minutes have passed and you still haven’t taken the picture sunoo’s cheeks are starting to hurt

and he’s like “earth to y/n? hello?? please get with the program??”

“sorry baby :( you’re just so beautiful i couldn’t help it :((“

literally will look at you like ❤️o❤️

“y/nnnnnn 🥺 you’re so sweet 🥺🥺”

will think it about it for the rest of the day and giggle every time :’)

i just made myself sad

cuz when we weeping and sobbing we sopping

정원 | jungwon;

does not know how to react like he’ll literally just be 🧍‍♂️

you guys were just hanging out and having a chill time

and while you guys were playing some video games you just . kept losing??

yeah turns out it was bc you kept glancing at him and not paying attention to the game

“babe you’re supposed to be paying attention to the game”

“i’m sorry :( you just look so handsome right now :((“

an he just kinda froze for a full minute there before he actually processed what you said

and then he started blushing and whining

“ahhh y/nnnn. stawwwwwppp you’re embarrassing meeeeeee”

jokes on him tho bc that just makes him look even cuter :’]

secretly tho…..

he loves it so much like pls never stop complimenting him

니키 | niki;

i’m going be honest with u guys

he’s gonna make fun of you

like you guys were at the convenience store to get some snacks

and while he was looking at the drinks he could see you staring at him from the corner of his eye

“take a picture babe, it’ll last longer.”

“not my fault you’re so pretty.”

and he just fucking . snorts

“lol you’re so whipped for me.”

will Not let it go

the entire walk home he’ll just be like

“careful y/n, we don’t need you running into anything because you can’t stop looking at your pretty boyfriend~”

“hey y/n did you see that? oh wait you were probably too busy staring at me my bad”

and you’re just like what have i done </3

don’t worry tho

he only teases you out of love 💕

[heckinconfusedparade]

What would the Wachowski fam be like going to the cinema?

Etc: the talker, the quiet one, the one just snacking, the one that keeps almost falling asleep, the over excited one etc, etc, etc (just some random examples…based off some unfortunate experiences! I personally would fit into the over analysing film student category!! ^-^’ )

+ Plus what food, drinks and snacks do you think each of them would have? And what sorts film do you think they would go and see together?

Wachowski Fam Goes To The Movies

Sonic talks a bit at the beginning, but shuts up as the movie takes him to another world. Of course he still makes some small comments to the poor soul sitting next to him. He prefers to munch on popcorn. It’s his favourite movie snack. He prefers to wait until the movie is being streamed online, but if it’s a film he’s really looking forward to, he will go to theatres. He likes racing films- movies with a ton of speed! He can’t sit still at all so he brings a fidget and bounces his legs. He sometimes even gets up for a quick lap around the theatre. Nobody ever notices, because he’s just that quick.

Tails makes quiet comments to himself from now to then. He and Sonic are not allowed to sit together to avoid movie conversation. He loves going to theatres to see people interested in the same things! It’s usually sci-fi or childrens movie for this kit. He LOVES M&Ms. He DOESNT love how the bag seems to explode every time he opens it, and his chocolates go flying. It’s sad. He also 100% showed up to the showing of the newest My Hero Academia movie. It’s canonically his favourite anime.

Knuckles is always asking questions. Who is that guy? What is going on? He had to be warned to shut the fuck up or be kicked out. He did get kicked out once because he tried to fight the guard on it. Knuckles likes family movies, and movies with a bunch of honour and fighting. If there’s an anime with fighting.. he will watch it. He also likes popcorn, but will eat anything given to him.

Maddie is very pleasant to watch a movie with. She saves all her comments for the end, and will love to analyze the little details she noticed with Tails and Sonic. She will watch almost any movie. She isn’t picky. She just wants to spend time with her loved ones. She usually goes to the movies with her girlfriends though. The boys aren’t interested in lovey dovey chick flicks. She loves to eat sweets on her trips!

Tom and Sonic will always go together. They’re a package deal. They love the same genres. Catch them on Sonic Saturday going to the movies together. If they aren’t together, then everything is wrong. Tom is the guy making Sonic shut up. Every time he opens his mouth, he shoves popcorn inside. This ended up accidentally training Sonic to speak for a treat. Sonic is 100% aware. Tom isn’t. Tom gets the biggest bag of popcorn he can. For him and his speedy mouthed son.

[lila-rae]

Yea I’m sure Jesse and the other actors expected pictures to eventually leak. That being said, phones were confiscated of a sort for the play. My friend went last week; they had to put them in those special pouches that I’m fully blanking on the name of lol but they lock you out of your phone for the duration of the play, intermission and everything. So someone went with the express purpose of getting footage. That was wrong of them bc there is a social contract you make to not record but people are making it into a larger deal than it is. Especially when it comes to then people just reacting to something in the zeitgeist

Yondr? Yeah I’ve used them before with Dave Chappelle, Aziz Ansari, Amy Shummer, and the Freestyle Love Supreme show.

As for the implication of is it wrong that the person did it. I want to say yes. However it begs the question are we saying it’s wrong because of the nudity specifically, and would we say the same if the actor in question wasn’t a “name”, or is it just wrong to record any show/movie whatever when you’re asked not to.

Cause every show I’ve ever been to, save kids shows like Disney’s dance party, has strictly prohibited photography or recording. And yet no one really seems to get up in arms about the Slime Tutorials all over YouTube (iykyk). Also piracy sites have never been bigger, how fast did NWH get uploaded on like 123 Movies (?). I generally don’t begrudge people for watching bootlegs of anything because to do so is to admonish from a position of extreme privilege.

The Arts, Broadway specifically, are so unattainable to most Americans. I’ve seen way more Broadway shows (some multiple times like Hamilton which was always in high demand) than probably 99% off Americans. Is that right that I can access these amazing works of art that are being gatekept by Producers. I think we saw with the excitement when they released the Proshot of Hamilton that people want to see what’s on stage. They want to see OBCs and people who can afford it will still go see it live. But there’s this gilded bubble surrounding Broadway, so no one really wants to share with the masses. So eh I don’t really think anything of people who film shows and share online. It could mean a kid from Iowa, Missouri, Utah wherever finally gets a small taste and glimpse of the glorious spectacle that is a Broadway production.

Same goes for movies. It costs so much for average families to go to the movies. I spent over $100 at the movies last week for 3 people. So if people can’t afford that or don’t have access to get to the movies but still want to see the latest Marvel flick so they can still feel informed of current cinema, again, I’m not going to begrudge people that and I don’t think most people do.

So I think this has more to do with the nudity of a well known actor than it really has to do with the act itself of piracy. Which speaks volumes to how we view nudity as a society as something taboo, and also celebrity cause again I fully believe if this was just random Trent who shares a loft with 4 other guys while waiting for his big break, this would have been a non issue.

Social contract or not, we need to look at the intentions behind that contract and for me a lot of it is making sure art stays unattainable to the masses to create a more luxury view of it.

[kyotakumrau]

2020.12.21 The World You Live In at Zepp Tokyo, 2nd event report

Fujieda again started with greetings, introduced himself and Takabayashi and then asked for applause for the band members.

And we got quite a surprise!

Kaoru and Toshiya came on stage!

Thus making Tokyo the only place where band members changed for each slot/session. As much as I'd love to see Kyo again I was happy as my friend only went to Tokyo and she's Toshiya's fan😊

F: please introduce yourself.

Kaoru: you already did lol. I'm Kaoru.

T: I'm Toshiya.

F: the last video you just watched was different from other sessions. The trailer for the concert film screenings that will start from February. It's something only you know right now. As you can imagine from the title it will be something similar to this, with the band members coming for the talk after.

K talked a bit about the situation as well.

T: it's still difficult to hold concerts, but this is something we can do. So I hope you will look forward to it.

Next F started the 'merch items introduction corner', he passed the items to the members.

K: I was watching the 1st slot and we talked about them in Osaka, too. (he talked more about the items and what members said)

F: yes, everything can fit in the pouch so it's a very useful item. You can buy all merch items and put then in the pouch and take home like that. Let's look at Toshiya's big pick key chains (he pronunced that very carefully😂)

They talked about members signs and company logos when suddenly K requested to have to lights in the venue set brighter so he could see everyone.

After that F announced they wil start with questions from the fans, passed the part of papers to others, but K gave his to F saying it's better if he chooses.

T: ok, I have a good one! 'It was Die's birthday yesterday, did you send him a birthday message? And are there any memorable presents you've received in the past?'

T: I got a bicycle. I was really happy at first, but then it was stolen from the parking area.

F: when was it?

T (I didn't catch it but from the context it must have been quite early on in their career)

F: during the tour?

T: yeah, we were always giving each other something for our birthdays, every year, but as years passed it got more difficult to choose something good and we then just stopped.

F: how about you, K?

K: I got a Mickey Mouse, about this size (he showed us with his hand, about 1m tall).

F: 'how do you deal with feeling tired?'

K: I go for a massage.

F: only during the tour?

K: anytime.

F: when the most? When writing songs?

K (laughing): but we're always writing songs

T: for me it's sauna.

F: do you often go when just staying at home?

T: for example after the gym

Ta: 'what did you eat most often during the stay at home period?'

K: ...what did I eat, what about you, Tooru?

Ta: sausages.

The whole venue kinda rotfled 🤣🤣🤣

F: that's cute😆

Ta: it's something I can usually only eat at home.

K: ...something I was really into...(still thinking)....(thinking)

F: for me it was Jiro-ken ramen.

T: at home?! So you weren't really staying at home?

F: I gained some weight after the overseas tour. I started to diet then, and one day a week, a cheat day, I could eat whatever I wanted. My cheat choice was Jiro, either at the restaurants or to take away.

K: ...what was it for me...

F: maybe nabe you talked about before? (in Osaka)

K wasn't impressed 😆

T: canned mackerel for me.

F: for when you drink etc? No, just like that?

They all laughed here a bit.

Suddenly K jumped in with a new topic.

K: in Osaka you talked about the theme behind Kyo's outfit, you said it was pink but he pointed his green hair as the main point.

F: that was difficult.

K: tbh I also thought the main idea was pink (he also talked about Kyo's use of Kansai dialect)

T: 'what were you able to do after becoming an adult?'

F: there's a lot of food people start eating when they grow up.

T: food topic again? 😆

F: for example for me it was raisins.

T: as I get older I can drink more. When we just debuted I couldn't drink at all.

F: drinking wine?

T: おっさんだから・'cause I'm an old guy.

K started talking about the food he couldn't handle when he was small but the next question kinda made me forget it 😅

' 'wet cat food is actually quite good, have you ever tried?'

F: I have a cat and sometimes when I give my cat wet food some will get on my fingers. I'd just lick it. You know some of it, the mackerel or tuna, it looks so good.

T: please send me a video when you eat cat food next time.

😂

(but to be fair most of canned cat food in Japan is 100% fish🤷‍♀️)

K: 'when you can tour again what local specialities do you want to eat?'

F: motsunabe in Fukuoka

T: miso type?

F: of course (if not Shinya would kill him)

K: what did you eat in Sendai?

F: bento

K: in Nagoya?

F: nothing special

T: we had normal bento, but it was miso katsu (Nagoya's style cutlet)

F: but if it's not in a restaurant it's not the same. Anything you want to eat, T?

T: Beki soba from Niigata.

F: have you tried it before?

T: when we went there on a tour, I really like soba.

They talked but more about food, tare katsu, okonomiyaki from Hiro and Jiro again.

T: is Jiro really that good?

F: 😍

K: I've tried it before, but it's (just) okay.

F: it's all about how the noodles taste (type of flour etc)

(more food talk, choosing between salt and tare options)

K: 'what's your favorite onigiri (rice ball)?'

F: how about you, K?

K: I don't eat onigiri.

T: Me also, but if I have to choose it's sujiko/salted salmon roe.

K (about not eating onigiri much): right, you only eat soba.

T then told us the story how much he loved salmon roe even as a child. When he was quite small he went shopping to the local supermarket with his grandmother. When he saw salmon roe in the shop he just started eating it directly from the shelf/container. Of course when his grandmother and supermarket staff found out it got very noisy, but because he was so young it was forgiven.

(back to onigiri topic)

Ta: salmon for me.

F: oh that is nice, I love the most tamago-kake-gohan rice ball (TKG is a very simple, traditional Japanese breakfast dish - just rice with a raw egg eaten with soy sauce, sometimes other toppings), the Newdays chain is selling them

K: the chain operates only in this area, no?

F explained that there are Newdays in other places too, fe Sendai. He also really got into explaining all pros incl the tasty gooey filling inside of the rice ball.

K (imitating F) oh that's nice 😂

F: 'it got so cold recently, what's your favourite season?'

T: spring or fall, I don't hate winter but I definitely don't like summer.

K: fall. (he said as this year wasn't too cold he could go out a bit during breaks)

F: so 2~3 weeks ago was your fav time.

K: here in Tokyo at least.

F: 'as we're staying home much more now do you have a recommended tv series or a channel?' (not just a movie)

K: Cobra kai.

F: ah, you tweeted about it.

K: it will be on Netflix next month, the 3rd season.

K talked about The Karate Kid (Japanese title 'Best Kid').

F: I don't know it.

Ta: me too.

K (shocked): you're serious???

T: I know, of course.

F: 'Best Kid'? 'Best Fit?'

T: just stop it🙃

F: how about your recommendation, T?

T: The BOYS on Prime.

K: I haven't seen it, but it seems interesting.

T: it is! I also like BOSCH. I'm just watching like after work and so on.

After that K talked about how cinema with the capacity reduced by half was nice because you could put your bag on the seat next to you etc, but recently came back to the full house (Demon Slayer did that...)

F: 'how do you feel being in front of people first time in a while?'

T: I'm sorry it has to be done this way

F: don't say that😆

(missed K's reply)

T: it's tiring to be in front of people.

F: but we do it in an interesting way.

T: yeah.

T: 'what's your favourite game? Even including older ones like famicon?'

K: games?

T: Spelunker on Amicon😆

T/K in agreement: where you die so quickly

K: PS5 is so popular, I didn't win.

F: it seems Kyo won once but the information he submitted had a mistake.

K: I applied for Sony's lottery and Big Camera's.

F: you don't want PS5, T?

T: recently I don't play.

K: what about the... what was it Tsushima?

They all reacted with 'ah'

F: what kind of game is it?

K: don't ask me😅 but it looks interesting.

T: it seems to be very popular abroad.

F: 'what's your favourite way to eat ozoni?'

(A new year soup with rice cakes)

Ta: the soy sauce based soup, with grilled mochi.

F: but what ingredients do you add?

K: isn't that way too detailed??

Ta (tries): spring onion etc

K listed grilled mochi, spinach, carrot etc. Then he told us about his family tradition to properly make rice cakes for New year, pounding was so loud even if you wanted to watch tv, you couldn't. But then they had enough for a month.

T: soy sauce style.

F: with miso or?

T: I said soy sauce.

F: what ingredients?

T: rice cakes, spinach, and what is that... (he started to make circles with his hand) ...?

F: naruto?

T (yeah that/nods)

F: in my family we do soy sauce, rice cakes, carrot, fish cakes etc.

K (ignoring F comment that they should finish now, in a teasing way): what about osechi, which dishes do you like?

F: konbu maki or kurikinton.

K: how about you, T?

T: that egg dish that is kinda like this (he gestured the shape again)?

Ta: tatemaki?

F: datemaki!

T: I think it's datemaki.

K: I like that beef roll with carrot and green beans inside (its 牛肉の八幡巻き)

F (making very dreamy face): Aaaaaaah that😍 green beans are so good.

F: ok, thank you all.

K: what about Tooru (Ta)?

F: it's time, sorry.

Last comments.

Toshiya: thank you all for gathering here despite the COVID situation. It's difficult to do concerts now so we tried doing film screenings. In difficult times like this it's not only about the band members, there's our staff and also the venues. I'd love to play concerts again, please wait for us.

Kaoru: it is a difficult situation to share my personal opinion... if we can't do the concerts in a way everyone can enjoy... enjoy, it will affect our relationship of mutual trust. I think this (COVID) situation will continue for some time still, so I think it's better to go with the film screening events. But we will keep checking the situation. Please stay healthy and I hope all of you will come to watch it.

[nnmarudkar]

The Struggle of 83

*Image courtesy belongs to the owner. Copyright Infringement not intended.

*I haven't watched the movie so this is not the movie review.

*My observations on how the movie was presented.

83 is another ordinary movie that was released on 24 December 2021. People shockingly call it a disaster at box office. Because we expected a lot to happen over the milestone in India’s cricket history does not mean it has failed. I feel a 100 CR. box office is not the merit.

Making a movie on a historical event is not an easy sweep. It was ambitious of Kabir Khan to take up such a tough subject. It was exceptional of him to take actors from all over the country to seem more real. Rather a Punjabi trying to speak in a Tamil accent. A project where every cricketer was training their actor. Bringing them all together could be arduous. They have all invested their time to train an actor to play in their style. Imagine the pressure the actors lived under to look like someone and hit the chords with the audience. Such a movie, if expected to easily make in the 100 Cr club is I think a fair desire.

Of course they wanted a lot to happen over this world cup drama. But in my opinion it got pitched a little less. Kabir Khan’s iconic venture did not come across as appealing as Dhoni did. I have my observations why 83 could not do justice to the historic 1983 victory. It had all the potential to re-celebrate the win but it did not reach us. Let us start with the most general factors that affected the movie.

Covid - Which businesses and markets have escaped the virus? You name it and it’s covid-19. The waves continue to devastate. Cinema is always approached by choice and treated as a luxury. And luxury can be avoided if you wish too. The ones who deliberately kept away from theaters were for all the good reasons.

Vaccination - Because theaters are vulnerable medium to get the infection the fully vaccinated certificate is compulsory in the theaters and malls. And even if the number is highly appreciable of vaccinated individuals in India there is a big chunk of the country which is still pending with 2nd dose. They by default can’t even go close to the theaters. So the bravehearts who really wanted to watch were mandatorily protected under the unpredictable virus guidelines.

Money mindedness - After the lockdown drama a bigger part of society is struggling to meet it’s both ends. A middle class family which has dealt the lockdown with or without pay cuts has suddenly witnessed uncertainty. The fact that this world can be locked inside with minimum resources is still being absorbed. Yet most of us lived peacefully with wholesome meals. This Pandemic made us realize some expenditures can wait. Movies will keep coming.

OTT habit - Pandemic reintroduced us to the OTT platform. Even the digitally illiterate bunch of people started enjoying the web series and subscribing more. Very soon the industry identified it as an easy way to reach their audience when the doors of the cinemas are closed. Why not lay the red carpet digitally instead of waiting and delaying the release? Hence we are all waiting for 83’s grand premiere on OTT. It will one day. But I think looking at the glory of the movie’s subject, if it was made for all, the movie should have been released for all taking in consideration the current behaviour of the viewing audience. OTT! It could have been a bigger deal.

People have come this far to understand that an unnecessary cost of movie tickets and popcorn can be replaced with sitting at home and enjoying entertainment at their own pace. Life is always bigger than any leisure.

Perhaps, the other movies that were released like ‘Pushpa’ and ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ around the same time have seen a huge success keeping all the above factors in mind. The reasons that the critics and the analyst chalk out that it is a documentary or some typical classes and masses formula, sound completely pseudo. Cricket is for all. You do not see a class and mass in any sport. It’s a matter of following. And Cricket has a huge fan following. The first world cup that India won under Kapil Dev’s captaincy may not have that bigger fan following like one under MS Dhoni’s captaincy but India knows about it. If we still rule out the possibility that people are not very much aware of the 1983 days, are they not even aware of who Kapil Dev, Sunil Gavaskar, Sidhu, etc are to watch a movie made on this victorious team? Certainly something went wrong in such an advanced age, technologically backed, strong social media presence, reels and stories on all platforms, whatsapp to make even a picture viral, twitter with trending hashtags etc. Why could the movie based in 1983 not make its mark in 2021? Now let us talk like the critic?

How was the movie portrayed to a common man?

I had a very strong intuition that this will not see the success like ‘M.S. Dhoni: The Untold Story’.

Who Played Whom? - You had to tap on the curiosity of the audience about who is playing Sidhu and who is Kirmani. It was not just a Sports Docu-drama. It was a movie that included a lot of cricketers and support staff. It was a team of 20+ actors and we don’t know who played whom. What does a common man look for when a movie is made on true events or some eminent personalities? Who is playing those roles? Let’s face it that all the actors were not popular faces. The director definitely had to choose a smart way. He could probably piggy bank on the cricketer’s fame.

If Jiiva was not a big name for all in India, Srikanth was. If Dinker Sharma was not well known we definitely knew Kirti Azad. They just did not publicise big names like Sunil Gavaskar and Ravi Shastri who are widely regarded. Even today I had to wikipedia the names. A name like Neena Gupta who is also in the movie lost nowhere. They just did not flaunt that starcast to the world to see. They did make an instagram page and posted a lot of pictures but did not pictorially bombard you with relevance like it happens nowadays. Why couldn’t a simple picture with the real and reel gavaskar in that stance go up? They should have introduced you way earlier to all the players through Social media. A lot of youtube channels have put up those videos. They expected just a pic of handsome Nishat Dahiya whom most of us don’t know could tell the world he is Roger Binny. No! Social Media is not so bothered. It has a strong scrolling behaviour. If you still scroll down that insta page you will see Happy Birthday posts in numbers. No praiseworthy content.

Trailer - The very first impression of any piece of work. While watching the trailer closely I saw less of the 83 journey and more of Kapil Dev in 83 world cup. Nothing wrong. Kapil Dev as captain deserved that honour. But to be really honest it wasn’t Kapil Dev you were seeing, it was Ranveer Singh who was given all the spotlight. Did we require Deepika in the trailer? Once may be! We required more moments from the matches to excite us. We required names next to the glimpses of each actor playing a player's role in the movie which the trailer literally just ran through. Remember who plays whom? The trailer, if noticed, is crafted beautifully. But you fail to understand who is speaking to Kapil Dev. When the names actually appear it is namesake as you hardly identify the actor and it becomes difficult to connect the dots at the very end of the entire trailer. But we identified Deepika Padukone playing Ranveer Singh’s wife in the movie. It was her familiarity that stood out. This is why exactly they could just avoid her presence to make others evident in the trailer.

I understand a 3 minute A/V cannot give you a lot of scope. But we have seen movies having 2-3 trailers to hit your brain. This movie needed that strategy. A theme or mood for each trailer. It shouted a teaser for each character. If the team has released it I haven’t come across any.

Ranveer Singh - You know when people identify you with the real personality in the movies that are biographies or biopics? When both share some of the similar traits. No individual is similar. But there is a certain trait that is very close to the real. Why did we accept Sushant Singh Rajput as Mahendra Singh Dhoni? Because they both share a characteristic of being cool, calm and shy boys. Having said that, Sushant remained to be Sushant while being Dhoni on the outside when filming and promoting the movie. He acted well to maintain that image of Dhoni off camera. Ranveer Singh forgot to maintain that identity of a shy gentleman, Kapil Dev. Ranveer Singh overpowered the man himself who had a stronger identity than him as the movie was about him and his boys. While promoting the movie Ranveer jumped, danced and continued with all his silly acts that he always does. And Ranveer Singh being Ranveer will continue doing that. He has his own energy which he cannot handle himself. He was expected to be Kapil Dev and he couldn’t stick to it off the field. It isn’t just physically that an actor needs to match but also behavior and mannerisms.

Promotions - The only time you get to market and sell. How do you promote the film which is based on somebody? Definitely you cannot ask for their time to accompany you everywhere you appear. So what do you do? Send Ranveer and Deepika at Bhurj Kalifa and show their romance from Dubai? How irrelevant! Even if the UAE was giving you that honour I think a Deepveer moment was not important. What were you really promoting? A movie on 83’s world Cup win, Ranveer-Deepika romance or see how I made a multi-starrer and exhibited none? It is actually questionable. Why couldn’t the team promote the rest of the familiar actors. You had a minimum of 11 actors to promote. You had Saqib Saleem who is a well known name along with Hardy Sandhu, Amy Virk, Sahil Khattar. Hardy Sandhu just gave a hit number of his own ‘Bijlee’ before the release. They have their own fan following if not the one like Ranveer and Deepika. Why weren't they used to promote? Didn’t Khan want all the players to get equal exposure for their effort in the world cup matches? Adinath Kothare, I know him because he is a big name in the Marathi Industry. Even he wasn’t seen on Marathi TV channels. There was a father-son duo from Maharashtra where the son played his own father’s part, Sandeep and Chirag Patil but people hardly spoke about it. Jatin Sarna, made it big with Sacred Games. Where is he? Pankaj Tripathi got accolades from everywhere when the trailer released for his work. But even this actor was kept away from the engagements.

The team did not go the traditional way. Neither did they target digitally. I do not remember watching 83 on television the way it should have been. The PR and marketing was so stereotypical is what you get to see when you analyze the 83 promotions. I think this movie needed special treatment with a better promotion plan. You had actors from various states. Had they reached at least those states they would have succeeded a bit more. I assume there was a day dedicated where both reel and real stars shot with various media houses. It’s all over the internet with the same setup when I tried to search for interviews. However how many of us actually go to youtube and search for such content nowadays? We love our feeds. We pour our hearts on even Taimur going to school if it comes up or some random girl doing a hook step. That should have been taken into consideration. Small snippets of what streamed as a 30 min or 60 min episode would have potential to influence. People like to watch 2-3 minute videos. Whatsapp is equally powerful as Instagram. And you have to take that benefit. Its shareable content that the creators look for. That Balvinder Sandhu and Kapil dev conversation is so much watched from the press conference.

Every team should research before promotions. It is not always innovation that creates history. Sometimes you go with the herd. A promotion is the last chance to sell even a withered leaf.

They could strategically create series of posts and stories and throw them to the world. Trivia, BTS, bloopers can never fail you. Trainig sessions from the production stage, for example, post release is still a win win to keep the movie fresh and running. Reviews and appreciation from the industry and cricketers will never be a medal. Bollywood should understand this soon.

When Kapil Sharma invited the 83 heroes on his show around 2 years ago, the episode was a bigger hit than the movie. Just the real heroes and their stories kept us intrigued. It was a lack of engagement that this movie could not impress us to come to the theaters and enjoy.

It just came out as another ordinary movie. I will call it a theatrical disaster. OTT is still a ray of hope and they should come back and release with a bang.

At the end all I saw was Allu Arjun won over Ranveer Singh by all means! And he is also on OTT.

[monster-bcrn]

SPOOKY’S 100 FOLLOWER SHOUTOUT!

Okay for real this is the fastest growing blog I’ve ever had hehehe. Never expected Grundy to get this popular this quickly!

Freaking love this zombaby and I’m so glad y’all love him too! As promised, gonna shout out some fantabulous bloggos that helped get Grundy to where he is today. XD

@akasupergirl/ @azombieme (I FREAKING ADORE GRUNDY AND KARA AND LIV. I swear Grundy’s loyal to Kara like he was to Shayera and Jade and Liv is totally his baby sister and is gonna protect her from.....everything. :P

Even pigeons, because they’re legion.)

@thecatgoddessbast (A blast from the past! Glad to see you again after I rampaged and caused chaos as a certain deranged pincushion of a mushroom way back in the time before present. XD

Now I get to do that as a zombie. :D Win/win!)

@starcityvigilante (OLLIE. FFFFFF-okay for real I’m HYPED to plot wacky ideas with you. Grundy has a MASSIVE grudge against Green Arrow and I’m like......*push these two together* you both get along right now.)

@folcire (We literally just started talking and I’m loving your Ivy already! Can’t wait to see how Grundy grows to see her the more he talks to her because they’re both sassy plant people that way. XD)

@themartlans (FFFFFF-J’ONN. Everyone’s favorite green uncle :D I freaking adore him and I HATE how the most he ever interacted with Grundy was him being tossed into the bay. >_<

They really need to talk more, and MAN! That Injustice verse of yours is SICK. Definitely hyped for making Grundy into an insurgent and a good zombie instead of Supes’ lapdog.

( Look at this face....LOOK AT IT.)

@blackwingsbluedings (One of the best Dick Grayson’s out there and definitely loving seeing Grundy be less smash and more “......hug?” They both need hugs I swear.)

@marvelousdamsels (We haven’t talked much but I adore your muses and I just hope Grundy doesn’t come off as too weird or clingy.......wait.......that’s......literally Grundy.....

:D)

@theirfirstexperiment (GRUNDY ON A RAMPAGE YOOOOOO! Better run fast. XD)

@amazonexile/ @gothamprens/ @captainstevertrevor ( Freaking love your muses and I love seeing Diana and Bruce actually WANT to help Grundy. It’s too easy just beating on Grundy and I love seeing them actually bother to try to get to the gentler side of the Hulk’s crazy cousin. XD)

@justiceebound / @nighttfight ( *slams fist on the table* YOU ARE AWESOME! Your Shayera is awesome, your Bruce is a national treasure and I can’t wait to throw Grundy at Supes and Diana, because these guys need a big reconciliation thing after all the chaos from literal years of slugging it out.

And I LOVE it. >:D)

@ofamazonia 

@theamazondiana   (Both of you are AWESOME Wonder Women and MAN I love plotting ideas. I’m tired of seeing Diana being turned into too much of a warrior while negating her role as a peace-maker and y’all NAIL her kindness and wisdom and need to give everyone a chance. Freaking LOVE IT!)

@raininginkyxto (LOL I always love imagining Grundy in Marvel and now poor Weasel is kind of stuck with him. XD Man, if the Hulks meet Grundy then that poor bar is going to really get smashed.....)

@notatomo (GIANT. Man I loved that movie as a kid and I LOVE the subsequent giant robot and tiny kid works inspired from it (example being the CRIMINALLY under-appreciated Sentinel series by UDON.) Can’t wait to see what happens when Grundy talks more to someone bigger than him. XD)

@liminalstctic (GRUNDY HEARTS TINY GIRL. XD Yeah he’s trying his hardest to help her. ;A;)

@dolceclavier

@gobsnacc

@adrenalinesaint

@ninelivesruined

@yellowskinnedwackyman  (CREEPER! I’ll forever ADORE these two butts because they’re team Tree Lobsters.)

@collidingxworlds/ @thecursedhellblazer (I. Love. Your. Constantine. I swear I have so much fun writing Grundy trying to get drunk (and failing) and learning to cuss up a storm while still being a mad lad ready to throw down with mega-zombies to protect his tiny friend.

DC, make this friendship canon or so help me Grodd...)

@chaosmultiverse (I love your Klarion so much! He’s so much fun! XD And Teekl for the epic win!)

@raichoose (Herbert West and Solomon Grundy? THAT aIN’T GOOD! D:>)

@gctjinxd (Freaking LOVE your Jinx! LOL how she manipulates Freeze and how Grundy isn’t even REMOTELY phased by her powers. Like he is TOUGH. Even bad luck won’t stop him.)

@killcrcroc (BIG BAD KILLER CROC! I love your Waylon and I adore how he has a collection of watches and that awesome suit. XD Croc definitely deserves more love since he’s much smarter than he looks, and tough enough to even get Grundy to back down in a serious fight.)

@babydxhl (Baby Doll is criminally underappreciated and I love how she’s the opposite to Grundy. She looks child-like but is very crafty, mature and knows how to get what she wants, while Grundy is physically strong and big enough to bully his way into anything he wants, but is very simple and child-like and would rather watch the birds. XD)

@theednygma (An awesome Ed Nygma and I love how Grundy is so unsure of everything yet still goes along for the ride as a support. XD)

@sleightlyoffhand (BUNNY MAN! Okay the idea of Josiah monching on carrots in Grundy’s pocket makes me smile so much. XD)

@thanagrian (BIRD-NOSE! Honestly every time I think of Grundy and Shayera I get the feels big time. These two definitely deserved more than just two episides to give them a unique friendship.

(I love that STAR Labs mission so much in Injustice. XD)

@the-arkham-librarian ( I love Eliza so much! She’s crafty, stubborn, sweet and kind and just cares about everyone so much when few don’t. Grundy grew so attached to her I swear she’s like his little sister at this point. XD And he’s totes the best uncle along with Eddie.)

@fatherdamned ( I LOVE YOUR RIDDLER OMG! He’s so snarky but man he is SO DAMN FUN to write with! Grundy is there for his green friend, no matter what!)

@fartemis-crockpot

( I freaking LOVE Artemis and Grundy, especially in the Injustice Society stuff. Yeah Grundy’s been a butt before but he genuinely likes and cares about her and the rest of the team and I’m like....

Look at these bunch of a-holes. Yeah they’re a family and even if they’re bad.....they’ve got each other. And that’s what counts. C:)

@powerhours/ @lastofmars (Green dad? Green dad. I love your J’onn so much and I’m like *throws Grundy at green dad* Here give this disaster some love. XD)

@gothamdad (YET ANOTHER AWESOME BATMAN. :D)

@redsleuthed (TIM! I love Tim and I swear these two should talk more because Grundy doesn’t WANT to fight and I think just letting someone hear him out would help him immensely.

Plus that stuff with Freeze? Poetic cinema.)

@themusespace

@12thlevel​ (On this blog we stan socially awkward green boi with angery grandpa genius mastermind. XD)

@pluckyingenue

@seekthedarknesswithin (SHADE! I love Shade in Justice League where he constantly throws Shade at everyone so you can imagine how excited I was to see Shade on Tumblr! We haven’t done much but man.....even Grundy was excited to see an old friend from the Injustice Society/ Injustice Gang.)

@youstolemycoat (Okay, hands down, Nick Necro is so much fun to plot with. His Robin verse is so fun too and poor Grundy tries to help but a certain birdy won’t let him. XD)

@ufotm (Tiny alien baby. :3)

@thetrigonborn

@kitfreeman

@partcfyouruniverse/ @diamondcladclown ( An awesome mun and my goodness her Harley is EPIC! I love the metas about Harley too and you just GET HER. And that????? Is the sign of an excellent writer and mun.)

@bigbadkillercroc ( I love your Croc and the brotherly bond he has with Grundy! It’s so refreshing to see these two bonding instead of Grundy tearing off Waylon’s face like he did in the Solomon Grundy mini-series. :C)

@blizzardmuses (I LOVE YOUR MUSES OMG. Your Batgirl?????? I ADORE HER. I love Freeze as a member of the Birds of Prey and I love tossing Grundy at your muses because the guy needs love and an excuse to smash.....and I really love both lol.)

@starfirechan (You’re Starfire is so freaking CUTE! I love how she and Grundy get along so well since they’re kind of two misfits that aren’t very well-versed in city life. XD)

@gotham-crusader/ @maximummuses (One of the best Batman and Damian Wayne RPers out there! I have a lot of fun with our threads and even if they fizzle out there is so much heart to them that they’re some of my absolute favorites no matter what muse I put on. C:)

@teufortsquidman (PRAWN! Okay, a giant mega-zombie and an Eldritch abomination? Yeah they’re gonna be good pals lol. XD)

@tragedybcrn (Hands down one of the BEST Batman RPers I’ve talked to and plotted with. I love how Bruce helps Freeze and even Grundy try to be better than just crooks. Grundy though has had so many bad experiences that he can’t trust anyone anymore unless there is some SERIOUS help. But he’ll learn to at least try to trust Batman.....because Batman was genuinely nice to him.)

@krygothite ( I freaking LOVE your Bane! We haven’t written much but FFFFF0yeah he’s epic. XD And Grundy is kind of nervous about bringing Bane to Slaughter Swamp because Bane is tough but not kaiju-sized gators and snakes tough....

Or....maybe he is.....let’s test him. >:D)

@batvvmn

@redwinefangs (VAmpire Batman? Vampire Batman. We have an epic trifecta of vampire Bats, Freezy-wolf and zombaby Grundy and I LOVE it. These three are so much fun to plit ideas around. XD)

@bclaur

@stcrshnes

@titanicscionofthestars ( I freaking LOVE Sara! All across my blogs I love her and the way you write her! And I swear her reaction to Grundy being impaled????? MY HEART. ;A;)

@jcinthedance  (JERVIS! Okat for real I love the image of Hatter and Grundy just enjoying a tea party at the asylum and being weird dorks. XD)

@adventurepunks (I absolutelky LOVE your Zatanna! She’s so fun and I’d love to plot more with her! :D)

@shesquiinnsane

@laughter-in-white (YOU????? Are??? Like the BEST Joker. Hands down. Your Croptop J is so much fun to plot with and he’s funny and being dramatic for Bats. And Grundy is like ‘yeah he’s crazy but he’s my crazy.’)

@yourfavoritesidekick

@smartvulpix (* glomps on you for being epic*)

@thehouseofivo (Your Freeze and Julian are AWESOME! Love throwing my guys at them both lol)

@lil-miss-romano

@sweet-tea-solly

@slauhter

@occultsleuth

@wiisectrpillar

@wonderlandcarpenter

@gunborn

[hangekitty]

Birthday Special Headcanons

Birthday headcanons for @velvetheichou as it’s her birthday today!! So some of these may seem a little specific, but I did write it as an x reader for everyone else to enjoy!

Summary: it’s your birthday, your BF is Miche and you live with Levi and Erwin.

Genre: mostly fluff, mentions of smut

Warnings: swearing, alcohol, a couple NSFW headcanons, 18+

Universe: modern universe

A/N: this is only a short little thing for my IRL friend, I wrote this whilst getting ready for work so is it rushed? Yes I’m sorry, was this fun? Absolutely. Happy Birthday Amie 🌸🌙👑

Setting the scene: you live with Miche (your BF), Levi and Erwin (who are a couple) in a shared house. It’s your birthday and you have some surprises ahead of you...

- let’s start off with the main G, your doting BF waking you up with breakfast in bed. He would lay out a large spread filled with all your favourite things.

- Let’s face it, birthday sex would be a thing, but not till later because Levi and Erwin are waiting downstairs for you.

- Doesn’t stop Miche from being a little filthy with you (if you wanted it 👀)

- if the two of you did do the nasty, he would most certainly eat you out, 100% like it’s basically canon than he is great at head; you can’t convince me otherwise.

- Okay but like Miche would want to give you your birthday presents privately, guarantee he has bought you a dress or clothes that you’ve been wanting (and unable to afford). Miche would usually treat you to clothes any time of the year, but he’d make sure to get something extra special for your birthday.

- Miche has also bought you some pamper stuff (particularly Lush because Nanaba works there and gets discounts; means more products amirite)

- So after you shower and do your makeup, you put on your birthday gift (let’s say a dress), you go downstairs and Miche, Levi and Erwin are waiting for you, ready with party poppers. Levi and Erwin pop theirs, but Miche is way too in awe that he misses his queue

- Also can we appreciate the image of Levi popping a party popper, like he isn’t enthusiastic (he feels it, but he doesn’t show it)

- Levi would get you something that is specific to you, if you have a certain interest (or hyperfixation if we’re being honest) he would get you merch. Autographed picture from Lady Gaga? Band t-shirt? He’s got you that.

- Erwin, probably needed help the most from Levi and Miche to know what to get you. He would originally buy you something generic like a book, or a box set from a TV show you’ve never seen. So after talking the others, Erwin would go out his way to buy concert tickets. Let’s say,,,Download? Miche would get his own ticket ofc

- So basicaly the boys arrange a birthday party for you, during the day you get up to whatever you want; shopping trip? Miche will treat you to whatever you want. Trip to the cinema? You pick the movie, and as much as you insist on paying for your own ticket and/or food Miche will pay. This mans goal is to give you the best day.

- In the late afternoon, you go to your favourite restaurant, ordering whatever you like. Depending on how expensive the day is, you will probably pay towards the bill (mainly out of guilt, you wouldn’t want to make Miche broke)

- It’s romantic, candlelit and seated by the window; you watch the sunset as you eat the best damn thing in your life.

- At the party; so all of your friends are invited, even friends of Erwin and Levi; let’s just say it’s crowded to say the least.

- The playlist fucking slaps, not only is a mixture of your playlist and everyone’s requests, you have the special addition of anime music to which Erwin is like huh?? And Levi is like 🙄 but it’s your party and you can totally play Judgement from the DMCB soundtrack if you want to

- Miche brings out a cake with candles (as many candles as your age) for you to blow out, all of the party guests sing to you and cheer as you blow out the candles.

- Hange probably already started drinking, so you can hear them louder than anyone else.

- The cake is delicious of course, but the fact that there are so many paper plates around, it puts Levi on edge and he will most definitely be doing the tidying up.

- Alcohol, lots of it

- Of course as soon as a bit of Alcohol reaches Miche’s lips he is outside smoking a cig

- Nile is out there with him, but he’s a bit of a chain smoker anyway

- The look on Levi’s face when Erwin tries a cig, he definitely struggles and coughs every time

- “No, Erwin you cannot request Piano Man by Billy Joel”

- “No, Erwin, Country Roads it off limits too - at least until we get more pissed then MAYBE”

- Levi doesn’t get drunk, he is the baby sitter after all, but will probs have a glass of wine to last him the night

- Erwin doesn’t get too drunk either, but he is definitely the one with the champagne

- Miche gets tipsy but not,,,terrible lmao

- Hange however, whew goes fucking feral. If they aren’t dancing and doing slut drops, they are hornee and will attempt to drunkenly seduce Moblit who is FAR TOO DRUNK for any of that.

- There will definitely be some party games like the ring of fire, drunk charades and an ATTEMPT at musical chairs, but at this point, most guests are too far gone for that; again, putting Levi on edge and making sure no one hurts themselves.

- The night ends with Hange and Moblit staying in the guest bedroom because they drank the most, Levi and Erwin going to bed mostly sober so Levi can perform his nightly routine; I can totally see him having a whole pamper sesh before he gets into bed.

- You go to bed, the room slightly spinning and you can feel your whole body in waves; this hangover is going to be too much. Luckily superhero Miche is there with the water and some toast/bread. “Eat this before you sleep, you’ll be grateful in the morning”

- The last few moments of consciousness is spent cuddling into Miche’s chest. “Happy Birthday my sweet”

[losingitinjersey]

Ever have those days where your weight isn’t dropping like it’s supposed to?  Despite all your best efforts of eating less than your calorie limit, eating less than 20g net carbs, continuing to exercise and eating within your fasting window.  So you say eff it all and eat half a pint of (keto friendly) ice cream then find you lose weight in the morning?  Just a 0.1lb loss, but still. Wtf. I *know* the scale isn’t a straight correlation from intake the day before, but it’s annoying that it isn’t!  

Just experiencing a momentary frustration. When I take a step back, I do love that I’m even flirting with onderland right now (even though I desperately want more distance from 200 before my planned diet break on Thanksgiving) and I need to remember that I’ve done a helluva good job keeping up on efforts the last eight months.  Perspective, folks.  How is it so hard to have it sometimes?  

The huge news at my house is that erp JUST started feeding herself!  She’s always held her arms straight out to her sides with her mouth open waiting for me to feed her (despite my constant encouragement for her to feed herself).  We still have a ways to go but as of last night and this morning she’s now picking up foods off her tray and putting them in her mouth!  Success!!  Can’t believe this week brought both standing and self-feeding. AND she’s now 11 months old!  Such a week!  

I want to give a humungous shoutout to @holycraplookatthatturkeyneck, @improvingovertime, @always-the-2nd, @snapthistiger, @kcowgill, @abcd-adventures, and @theunstuffedpepper for tagging me in all the things the last few weeks!  Please accept one of my many selfies above for the SDS tag, and my answers to the other questions are as follows :) 

LAST SONG: Currently listening to “Breakdown” by Jack Johnson.  I almost always have music playing in the house so it’s hard to pinpoint these things! 

LAST MOVIE: “How Do You Know” - Recommended by my bff!  It was a lovely little happy distraction to enjoy.  Even though I minored in Cinema Studies, it’s a rare day when I’ll sit down to watch a movie. I’m much more apt to binge a series than watch a movie. I get super attached to characters so series allow me to get more connected and involved than a movie can provide. 

CURRENTLY WATCHING: Eh, nothing really. I finished The Queen’s Gambit and am looking for my next series. When I have a half hour or hour to kill I’ll watch either Bob’s Burgers, It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia or Rick & Morty, all of which I’m watching for the first time. I was watching “Ratched” but I stopped halfway through, it just wasn’t pulling my attention enough. 

CURRENTLY READING: I recently started listening to audiobooks on my walks and I’m on Stephen King’s “If It Bleeds.”  It’s okay.  I’m excited to get into a longer story once this is done.  

CURRENTLY CRAVING: Nothing. I am very much at peace at the moment.  Weekend mornings are my absolute favorites. I get time with my girl, plus time alone with my coffee and thoughts. I love that Kevin sleeps late and hope he always does :)

------------

You can usually tell a lot about a person by the type of music they listen to! Put your favorite playlist on shuffle and list 20 songs, then tag 10 people. 

As mentioned above, I ALWAYS have music on.  I’ve paid for Pandora since 2006 so I have close to 100 personalized stations for whatever mood I might be in.  While I never shuffle all my stations it was fun to do so for this exercise to see what pops up. I feel like the below list is a good representation of my variety of music tastes :)

Push - Matchbox Twenty

Seventy-Six Trombones - The Music Man

I Knew I Loved You - Savage Garden

The Nutcracker, Op. 71 / Act 2: No. 14 - Tchaikovsky

Ain't That A Kick In The Head - Dean Martin

Sing, Sing, Sing - Benny Goodman

Beyond The Sea - Bobby Darin

Eight Days A Week - The Beatles

Want You Bad - The Offspring

Written At A Rest Stop - Ronnie Day

First Day Of My Life - Bright Eyes

Orinoco Flow - Enya

Riptide - Vance Joy

Date Rape - Sublime

Sweet Blossom - Robin Stine

Oxford Comma - Vampire Weekend

Shake Me Down - Cage The Elephant

I'm Yours / Somewhere Over The Rainbow - Straight No Chaser

The State of Massachusetts - Dropkick Murphys

Stolen Dance - Milky Chance

Tagging @zerocarb, @busylivinnow, @orange-slice-paradise, @lchfjourney, @aquietcupoftea, @lizlosesweight, @beenjen, @angesaurus, @momsgotwine, and @weight-warrior for whichever you choose! Either a SDS, the getting to know you better five questions or the music shuffle (or nothing at all! or all the things!). Whatever makes you happy, that’s the name of the game. 

[365days365movies]

February 16, 2021: Carol (2015) (Part 1)

...Harold...

Yeah, I had to do this one. Partially because I knew about this film previously, as it was kind of a smash hit when it came out in theaters. It was about as big of a deal as Blue is the Warmest Color, which...we might get there. But, yeah, Carol was already on my radar when I decided to dip into LGBT cinema.

But also...you can thank my girlfriend again. There she is (as she’s choosing to represent herself through GIF form) below.

We love The Owl House. Anyway, I wasn’t aware of the meme until we were watching a movie, and she just screamed “HAROLD THEY’RE LESBIANS!” And after doing some research on that statement...that’s goddamn hilarious. And it all started with Carol, so the writing’s basically on the wall there.

Here’s what I know. This movie stars Cate Blanchett...OK, that’s it! Shall we find out more firsthand? SPOILERS AHEAD!!!

Recap

In New York City, a man enters a bar and restaurant, where he sees an old acquaintance, Therese Belivet (Rooney Mara), who is having dinner with another woman, Carol Aird (Cate Blanchett). And, uh, lemme just say, we’re jumping off RIGHT away, and my girlfriend immediately starts screaming “HAROLD” at the screen.

Anyway, Jake invites her to a party with mutual friends, and Carol and Therese end their dinner date early. As Therese looks out of the window of a car on the way to the party, she thinks backwards through time, and takes us with her. FLASHBACK

Therese wakes up one morning around Christmastime, only to see her boyfriend, Richard Semco (Jake Lacy), ready to take her to work on a bicycle though Central Park. They talk about going to Paris on vacation, an idea about which Therese seems nonchalant. Therese works at Frankenberg’s, a department store that doesn’t exist. As is typical of the season in NYC, shoppers and their children flood the place. We went there on Christmas of 2019, and I grew up in the area. Trust me when I say Christmas in NYC is FUCKIN’ NUTS.

Therese works at the toy counter, and that’s when Carol arrives to get a doll for her daughter. Unfortunately, they’re out of the doll she’s looking for, so Therese offers a model train set to her instead, and the two hit it off basically immediately. And when I say hit it off, they HIT IT OFF. Like...the chemistry is IMMEDIATE. Maybe that’s Cate Blanchett’s pure charisma, but I’m just saying...they have the fastest chemistry establishment that I’ve seen yet.

But oh no! Carol’s forgotten her gloves! However, it doesn’t seem like much results from that, as the work day is soon over, and Therese and Richard go to a movie and a beer with friends Phil (Nik Pajic) and Danny McElroy (John Magaro). That night, having returned home, Therese looks at Carol’s gloves. Using information obtained during the department store visit, she mails the gloves to Carol, at her gorgeous mansion.

Carol is combing her daughter’s hair, as her husband Harge Aird (Kyle Chandler) arrives home with the mail. Things seem somewhat amiss, as Carol seems extremely unhappy. She later calls her at the department store to thank her for the gloves, and offers to buy her lunch that afternoon. She agrees, and the two head to a nice restaurant.

Over the course of the meal, it’s revealed that Carol and Harge are going through a divorce (yeah, that tracks), and Therese’s conflicted on how she feels about her relationship with Richard. Carol invites her to come over at some point, and she agrees.

Later on, while in traffic in the car of a friend, Abby Gerhard (Sarah Paulson), she seems to acknowledge potential attraction between her and Therese, although it’s not exactly set in stone. She heads to a party that evening. Meanwhile, she visits her friend Danny, an aspiring writer, who inquires about her hobby of photography, and then...kisses her...even though she’s dating a friend. Fuckin’ OH BOY, DANNY.

Harge takes Carol home, and he’s 100% still in love with her, and she’s just not feeling it. This may be related to the fact that she and Abby were also once a couple. Yeah. Harge is aware of this, and they were DEFINITELY a romantic couple in the past, which means...yeah, Carol’s a straight-up lesbian, it would seem. Harge says it “shouldn’t be like this,” and it’s not clear whether that refers to Carol’s attraction to women, or the divorce in general. It is the 1950′s, after all.

OH WAIT. Forgot to mention that, didn’t I? This film takes place in the 1950s, I think? Hasn’t been made super clear as of yet, but the aesthetic is certainly the 1950s, without much doubt. The next day, Carol goes to pick Therese up, and meets Richard. Richard tells Therese he loves her as they depart. Therese doesn’t return the sentiment. FUCKIN’ OOF.

As the two drive through Lincoln Tunnel together, their dialogue is quieted, and we get some interesting close-up shots of their eyes, lips, faces. And it’s definitely meant to suggest something more physical, something without words. In other words...Harold’s wife is starting to get the idea. Harold’s not quite there yet, though.

Carol and Therese go to Carol’s home in New Jersey, where she meets her and 4-year old Harge’s daughter, Rindy, who Carol obviously loves VERY much. That night, Therese plays the piano, and also shares her passion for photography with Carol. Carol shows interest in her hobby, when Harge suddenly shows up to take Lindy unexpectedly for Christmas with his family, away from her.

The argument that this results in quickly envelops Therese, as Harge confronts Carol about her presence there. The ending result, though, is that Carol is forced to let Rindy leave early with Harge. And yeah, it’s sad for her. Harge, on the other hand, is being an absolute dick. The two have a verbal and PHYSICAL argument outside, which Therese partially overhears.

As an apology for bringing Therese into this marital struggle, Carol gives her a ride to the train station, so she can make her way home that night. On the train, Therese cries. Is this because of Harge, because of Carol, because of a struggle with her own feelings? I’m honestly not sure. And it’s a good question.

Carol seems to believe that it’s because of her, though, as she turned her away somewhat abruptly. However, she quickly tries to make up for it by calling and apologizing. Therese says that she has questions for her, and Carol is more than willing to answer them. The next day, Carol goes down to her divorce attorney’s office, only to discover that Harge is trying to take away ALL of Carol’s custody.

And the reason for it? You guessed it! Carol’s a lesbian! Sooooooo, FUCK HARGE!!! With this otion, Carol won’t be able to see Rindy for several months, which hurts her greatly. Again, fuck Harge, he’s a dick who’s taking away Carol’s joy and time with her daughter solely because Carol isn’t attracted to him. GODDAMN, that absolutely sucks.

Meanwhile, Therese’s struggling with her own feelings, some of which may be for Carol, and actually STRIGHT-UP asks Richard his opinions on the origins of homosexuality. He believes that it can’t just happen like heterosexual love, which...I mean, 1950s, what can I tell ya, it wasn’t great. He point-blank asks her if she’s in love with a girl, and she says no, and leaves him in the street in a huff. And real talk, I feel bad...for Richard. Therese, too, but dude is genuinely in head-over-heels with Therese, and is just NOT getting the hint.

Carol and Abby go to have lunch, where Carol breaks the news. They share tenderness, as they have in the past, and Abby’s pretty clearly out of the closet, as much as one can be in the 1950s. Also, quick aside to note that Sarah Paulson rules...and moving on.

Carol then visits Therese, and gives her new camera equipment as a kind gesture. Carol shares with her the news of the struggle with her husband, and says that she’s going on a trip, to get away for a while. She invites Therese to come with her, quite spontaneously, and Therese equally spontaneously says yes! Fuckin OOOOOOOF to Richard, goddamn.

Also, exactly the halfway point! See you in Part 2!