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sheetmusiclibrarypdf · 2 years

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Pink Floyd - The Great Gig in the Sky (Piano Solo arr.)

Pink Floyd - The Great Gig in the Sky (Piano Solo arr. sheet music)

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PINK FLOYD

The history of Pink Floyd in 25 songs One of the biggest bands in the history of rock, but also a band that despite its enormous fame has a discography that not many people are fully familiar with. Despite the fact that they have slipped several songs into the musical baggage of at least three generations and despite the fact that they are on the list of best-selling artists of all time —in the select and very small list of those who have sold more than 250 million records all over the world, including the Beatles , Michael Jackson , Elvis Presley or Led Zeppelin , for example - the relatively difficult and sometimes even impenetrable nature of most of their albums means that many people are not very clear about the evolution of the band or which albums are most worth listening to. To shed some light on the history of Pink Floyd, we will take a tour of all their official studio albums —including a couple of soundtracks— from the beginning, when they were led by the ill-fated "mad diamond" Syd Barrett until the definitive record closing of the group, 30 years later. The first album of the group, the only one in which the guitarist and singer Syd Barrett served as leader and main composer before the abuse of psychotropics damaged his brain forever. Well, it is undeniable that Barrett was a very talented individual and that the genesis of Pink Floyd's music was basically his doing, although many of us think that in the second stage —with bassist Roger Waters at the helm, seconded by guitarist David Gilmour — it reached much higher levels. In any case, it is difficult to exaggerate the importance of Barrett in the beginnings of Pink Floyd and his brilliance as a synthesizer of all the musical explosion that was taking place around him. In many aspects, Barrett's Floyd could sound similar to other bands of his generation, although their distinctive touch was the oversizing of the psychedelic side, to the point that they emerged as one of the most "acid" groups of the moment. In any case, a great debut album, very different from the Pink Floyd of the 70s but a sad testimony of a talent spoiled by LSD and psychotropic drugs (here is an impressive document: Syd Barrett's first acid trip , filmed by his friends before this first record was released). The album achieved quite a repercussion in the UK and the band began to make waves in Europe, and even attracted some timid attention in the United States. 1) Astronomy Domine: The opening track The piper at the gates of dawn is a fantastic exercise in psychedelia with Barrett's characteristic stamp. is also worth a look We will put the studio version here, although a film where they perform it live in one of her first appearances on television . Logically it is a more direct and less elaborate version than the one on the album, but it serves to illustrate the messianic charisma of Syd Barrett and his visual impact: the first leader of Pink Floyd manages to capture all the attention by revealing that he possessed all the wickers to become an icon. 2) See Emily Play: Song included only in the US version of The piper at the gates of dawn . Like other songs on the album like The Gnome (in a way related to the dark childish odysseys that John Entwistle wrote for The Who ) it shows Barrett's more pop side, as opposed to long space odysseys like Interstellar Overdrive . It's possible—just possible—that with Syd Barrett on Pink Floyd the group would have continued on a similar vein to this issue, though that's something we'll never know. See Emily Play was the last chart hit written by Barrett, who by then was showing signs of losing his mind from excessive psychotropic use. Around this time, just after the American version of the LP was released, the group was forced to turn occasionally to a friend of the band —David Gilmour— because they were beginning their ascent to success and yet Syd Barrett was endangering the professional future of the band: playing completely out of tune at concerts, leaving the stage without warning or appearing motionless and mute on television appearances. Dave Gilmour was not yet in the band when they recorded this song, but he was present at the recording sessions and was astonished to find that Syd Barrett did not recognize him at all, despite the fact that they had been friends and had even traveled together around the world. Spain and France, without money and living all kinds of adventures. Syd was already beginning to float into his own world, from which he would never return. The second disc. Syd Barrett, until then the undisputed leader of Pink Floyd, is no longer in the group. The situation had become so untenable and his mental state had deteriorated so much that his classmates had decided to expel him. He was completely incapable of fulfilling his musical duties and his schizoid behavior was hampering Pink Floyd's leap to professionalism, just as they were trying to make a name for themselves across the Atlantic. So they dumped him the hard way: one night they simply "forgot" to pick up Syd on the way to a concert, taking David Gilmour with them to cover his spot for good. In Barrett's absence, another member will have to take over the helm, and it will be Roger Waters who writes most of the music from now on. The result is obvious: Pink Floyd's sound becomes more solemn and fewer poppies. A saucerful of secrets is a good record, although the band is still on its way to finding its own sound now that its previous leader is definitely gone. The record did well again in the British Isles, and they already had a loyal following at home (also in France, one of the nation's quintessential pinkfloydians ). 3) Let there be more light: The magnificent theme that opens A saucerful of secrets . Despite opening with an energetic uptempo , it soon transforms into a lilting rhythm tinged with the bombastic airs typical of Waters' music, although they are still in their infancy, with David Gilmour and Waters sharing vocals (Gilmour sings the Arabic melody with his characteristic soft voice, and Waters, with a higher tone, is the one who sings the rockiest verse). Fans who feared that without Barrett, there might be no future could breathe a sigh of relief: there was life for Pink Floyd after Syd's ouster. 4) Remember a day: Also, keyboardist Richard Wright contributes his songs to the second album, which he wouldn't do often in the future. Perhaps it is worth noting this quiet Remember a day in which we can still hear Barrett's guitars, outside the band but included in three songs on the album. Between their second and third studio albums, Pink Floyd take advantage of the impact they are enjoying in France and record the soundtrack for an obscure Luxembourgish film, More . It's not one of their best albums by any means, but it helps them experiment with other sounds. For example, recording some of the hardest songs in their entire discography, and in the process they delve into the field of acoustic ballads, which will become one of their specialties several albums later. 5) Ibiza bar: An unusually hard rock song for Pink Floyd, although not as aggressive as The Nile Song , in which David Gilmour, who has us used to a soft and almost weak voice, bellows at ease in what almost It constitutes one more antecedent of heavy metal (yes, I'm still talking about Pink Floyd). In Ibiza Bar they don't go that far, but they also sound unusually guitar players describing an acid trip on the Spanish island: 6) A Spanish piece: Dave Gilmour did not have the messianic charisma of Syd Barrett —although he did have more pull among the female audience— nor did he have the same hyperactivity as a composer, but instead he soon emerged as a more technical and versatile guitarist than Syd. Serve as a curiosity this A Spanish piece in which we can hear him, Spanish guitar at the ready, playing the typical imitation that the Anglo-Saxons usually do of flamenco: sui generis , but at least showing that Gilmour looked beyond the limits of blues-rock, of pop and psychedelia when building their sounds. That versatility will be key in the future sound of the band and although many people who have only listened to Pink Floyd's best-known songs will think that Gilmour is a one-dimensional guitarist, the truth is that that characteristic style that he finished outlining in the early 70s it was the product of refining several quite disparate influences:

The third album arrives and Pink Floyd seem to lose direction with this Ummagumma (the word in the title, invented by one of their roadies , was a term they used to refer to sex). But they come out on top with a double album in which they show not a few symptoms of having been contaminated by the most petulant and insubstantial sixties avant-garde. The first volume contains live performances—long and without the precision or power of later live performances—of some of his well-known themes. Although the worst comes with the second vinyl, the part recorded in the studio that contains the band's new material: an example of misunderstood experimentation made up of pretentious instrumental themes but generally without much substance, boring piano passages, noises, stomach avant-garde… even having interesting moments —which it does, it's not for nothing that we keep talking about Pink Floyd— Ummagumma is generally quite indigestible and uninspired. Surprisingly, the record received good reviews in its day (oh, the 1960s!) and sold quite well in the UK and France, so Ummagumma surpassed the commercial success of his previous works. But the band's airs trumped what should have been their main goal: writing good songs. Over time, even Pink Floyd themselves would end up denying this album. Roger Waters considered it a "disastrous mistake" and Dave Gilmour limited himself to describing it as "a horrible record, which was not even well recorded". Perhaps they are exaggerating, although I am not going to be the one to contradict their own authors. 7) Grantchester meadows: For including one of the more or less conventional themes from Ummagumma , let's listen to this Grantchester Meadows , an acoustic piece —with little birds in the background, which always looks good— written and sung by Roger Waters. Seven and a half minutes that, frankly, end up being tiresome... It seems incredible that later on these same individuals were capable of creating pieces that lasted almost half an hour and kept you on your toes until the end. Because here, the truth, is not the case:

Fourth official album. If Pink Floyd's history had ended with this Atom Heart Mother , I myself would agree with those who still claim that Syd Barrett was the only true talent in the group. The success of the mediocre Ummagumma convinces them that they must continue on the same path, committed to a bombastic and bombastic experimentation but at times vacuous and uncommunicative. Once again, avant-garde airs and claims, with interesting moments but many more uninspired or routine grandiloquence. The good thing that can be said about this record is that they are somehow moving towards their classic sound... but with a serious problem: good songs are missing to develop that sound. There are no memorable themes here, any more than there were in Ummagumma . However, Pink Floyd were on a roll commercially speaking, and the album became their biggest hit to date: for the first time they reached number one in the UK and climbed the charts in various European countries. They even achieve one of their great objectives: to make people talk in the United States, where they obtain their first American gold record. It is obvious that their audience is feeling as bad about psychedelic intoxication as it is about themselves, because the more irregular and bombastic their records are, the more they sell. Its authors would not take long to deny this LP, as they would also do with ummagumma . Roger Waters went so far as to say that he would never play Atom Heart Mother pieces again for a million dollars, regretting that this record had been Pink Floyd's flagship at the turn of the decade. Gilmour also ended up hating Atom Heart Mother and is now surprised at how bad he finds the record. In an interview, he went so far as to say: «I recently listened to this record again, and… by God! It's a piece of shit! Possibly our lowest point artistically speaking ». It is not strange, then, that there were some people at that time who missed the contribution of the absent Syd Barrett and his inspired melodies, even though the Floyds were selling more than ever. Although Barrett was already unfit to be in a professional band and his mental state was in an unstoppable downward spiral towards the abyss, in 1970 he recorded two solo albums—with the help of Waters and especially Gilmour—that sound more inspired than they seem! They were doing Pink Floyd at that very moment! (That yes, in those discs the delicate nature of his psychiatric condition was clearly perceived). 8) Fat old sun: To give you an idea of the scant inspiration of the band's fourth album, this soulless Fat old sun is the most salvageable of Atom Heart Mother , an album that marked a period of success, but also loss creative. Fifth disc. Finally, after two slipped disks and debatable orientation, a reaction occurs. In fact, we can say that the classic stage of Pink Floyd begins here. The band, despite their success, needed a catalyst to move their music forward or now we might remember them as the group that creatively could never overcome the absence of Syd Barrett. The moment of change came when they locked themselves up in Abbey Road studios —one of the most advanced of their time— to record this fifth album: there they stumbled head-on with their own airs. After the first few weeks of recording, in which they spent their minds muffling with all sorts of pretentious experiments, they realized that they hadn't managed to gather enough audible material for a record. They were wasting time and money on the studio in an urge to appear more experimental than anyone else. So they saw themselves reflected in the mirror of their own stupidity and had to change their mentality: experiments by themselves are worthless if they don't help create pieces of music with a sense of their own. In other words, they put their batteries to create good songs, which is or should be the main objective of any band. It doesn't matter if they are long or short, but the songs have to have packaging, some good melodies, something that keeps them alive on their own. And that's what they ended up doing. Meddle . They recorded several conventional songs for the A-side of the album, all of them benefiting from the need for immediacy and with a greater degree of inspiration than anything from the previous two albums, which were more complex but also poorer in melodies to remember. And even though there was a 24-minute-long song on side B of this Meddle , they had finally understood that they had to give their music clear structures that were easier to follow. The result of all this change was the album that rescued Pink Floyd from the quagmire of their own foolishness, taking a giant leap from their work of the previous year. And once again it got good sales. By the way, it was the first Pink Floyd album I heard (I had only heard the song Another brick in the wall ) and I still remember the impact it had on me.

9) Fearless: One of the best examples of Pink Floyd's transformation. A soft, melodic and slow acoustic song, like others they had recorded on previous albums... but now it doesn't sound boring anymore. Also, no free noises and absurd experiments; now they show great imagination when it comes to including unexpected sound effects with great musicality. In Fearless they surprise us with a recording of the chants of the Liverpool FC fans (the famous You'll never walk alone ) that is inserted into the song in a truly impressive way, especially at the end, when they use those same chants to close the theme. : The final stretch of Fearless is perhaps one of the most magical moments in Pink Floyd's work. 10) Seamus: In addition to holding back with the experiments, in Meddle they decide to go back to their roots and record this blues in the style of the Mississippi Delta, but like in Fearless they decide to adorn the song with unexpected garnishes. Because in Seamus , the main character is... a dog! The howls and wails of "Seamus the Dog" make this song either the saddest blues ever recorded...or the most hilarious. Be that as it may, Pink Floyd have learned that a little humor won't hurt them or hurt their image, that they can experiment to surprise the listener but without having to take themselves too seriously or turn each song into an inaudible avant-garde exercise. This is an experiment that never tires of listening. Read the full article

#sheetmusicdownload #sheetmusicscoredownloadpartiturapartitionspartitinoten楽譜망할음악ноты

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sophfandoms53 · 2 years

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SONIC LOOKS SO PRETTY AND EXPRESSIVE

I’m literally in love with how Sonic was animated in this trailer

The way we see his quills moving and reacting to the environment he is in, they feel like they’re actually apart of his body and they aren’t just laying on his head.

His mouth moves again FINALLY. It’s small but his mouth isn’t restricted to being so far on the side of his face and I love that.

The reflections in his eyes looking at Amy’s cage and that he actually looks back at her while he’s being ambushed instead of just standing there. He’s acknowledging all of his surroundings.

THIS GIF RIGHT HERE, ONE OF MY FAVORITE SONIC ANIMATIONS EVER.

The reflection in his eyes AGAIN, his QUILLS FLOWING BEHIND HIS HEAD, THEY FLOW ALONG WITH HIS MOVEMENTS, and the SNARL OF ANGER GROWING ON HIS FACE, it’s just gorgeous looking.

We see him in pain. Sonic clutching his eyes shut so tightly and how he is holding his arm, he is genuinely struggling. But he still remains on his feet and he gets back up to fight, just like he always has.

He doesn’t just clench his fist, if you notice in the second gif, his fist is shaking. There is tension, there is actual frustration Sonic has because of Sage. Sonic is angry. The real anger we’ve seen from him before because he understands the situation he’s in. He’s being allowed to take things seriously again.

He has a job to do and he knows that.

If this type of attitude and characterization from this trailer is how Sonic is in the game, I will be extremely happy.

Sonic truly feels alive again.

#he just feels like Sonic #the way he acts and the way he moves #this IS sonic #the sonic I’ve been missing for years #i really hope this stays consistent with the game #including Roger’s direction because he sounds fantastic #sonic the hedgehog #sonic frontiers

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stylesnews · 4 years

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Like most good stories, Harry Styles’ video for “Treat People With Kindness” starts with Fleabag, specifically with a meeting at Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s hit London theatre run, which became the launchpad for the joyous black and white video, released on New Year’s Day.

Working with a team now synonymous with Styles' videos (choreographer Paul Roberts and stylist Harry Lambert, to name a few), it was directed by brothers Gabe and Ben Turner (part of the production company Fulwell 73), whose work has spanned One Direction videos ("Steal My Girl", “History”) and Styles' solo track “Golden” and who produced the documentaries I Am Bolt (2016) and Hitsville: The Making Of Motown (2019).

Here, Gabe and Ben tell us the story of when Harry met Phoebe and how “Treat People With Kindness” came together.

Gabe, you tweeted that the video was shot at the beginning of last year. How did it come together?

Gabe Turner: Harry and I went to watch Phoebe do her live Fleabag show in London. We met Phoebe and she was the kindest, most delightful person ever. The next day I was watching dance videos randomly and one of them was this Nicholas Brothers video from the 1920s. It was two brothers dancing. I said to Harry, “You and Phoebe, question mark.” And he messaged back saying, “Treat People With Kindness”. Then he called Phoebe and was like, “I've got this song. I want to do a video. What about me and you doing this dance routine?” And she was like, “Great." And then the two of them called Paul Roberts, the choreographer.

Ben Turner: This isn't always how our life is. This isn't the regular process. But once the touchpaper got lit, it just went off. Every now and then something comes along where all the dominoes fall perfectly.

GT: Harry and Phoebe worked with [choreographers] Paul Roberts and Jared Hageman. The four of them rehearsed all the time, remotely, wherever they were. Whatever projects they were doing, the choreographers would go with them and work on their steps. We would get sent video updates for them as they were rehearsing and learning. We were like, “This is amazing.” We had been to the Troxy for the Bugsy Malone Secret Cinema, so we were like, “That would be a great place to do this.”

You make it sound easy.

BT: That momentum that Gabe's describing, that's what made it easy. It was plenty of hard work, but once it started, it just came together.

What was the turnaround like for the video? BT: We just did it fast, in the space of a few months.

GT: There is a process for how music videos get made. Directors pitch for them, they come up with their creative, present it and there’s a process to go through. This one was already happening before any of that process. It was pure art from Harry and Phoebe, going, “We're going to connect and make this amazing thing and it will come out when it comes out.” As a creative to work in that way is totally joyous. You're just facilitating greatness.

What was it like to shoot?

BT: This is also easy, in a way, because the choreography means that [Harry's] going to be here at this point and there at that [point]. You knew exactly where they were going to be in the room. We went back and forward a bit on how to weave the story into the choreography so it wasn't just a dance routine. By the time we got onto set, that was quite well planned. The nice thing is being more prepared, you can try to feed in a bit of latitude to things. I know because we've worked with Harry for a long time that the camera doesn't just love him. The camera wants to marry him and run off with him and probably never come back. So we know to give a little bit of space for that to happen. Obviously to have Phoebe there with him as well is totally bonkers. And, again, the camera loves her. It was exciting for us to talk about how to execute things with someone who we admire so much.

GT: When you go to the Troxy there's a hidden stage at the top. Ben had an idea of coming down from the hidden stage to reveal Harry, then setting a scene up of [Phoebe] at the top. She was brilliantly collaborative in discussing what kind of role she was going to play.

What notes did you talk through with Phoebe about her character? BT: This song's called "Treat People With Kindness”, so it feels like there's a distance to cover in the narrative. You start on the Marsellus Wallace shot, out of Pulp Fiction. We wanted to get a sense that this was a kind of tough guy and there was the opposite of people being treated with kindness around the place. But the conversation went from [Phoebe] being a character that stood up to him to, actually, if you look at it, [she] wipes a tear off of his eye, which is so beautiful.

GT: Ben was just obsessed with casting the back of people's heads for the first shot.

What makes a good back of the head?

BT: I'm talking about how many folds of skin at the top, the optimum shape. Someone [said] that Bruce Willis had a fantastic shaped dome of a head and it really turned me on to the shape of a bald head, because it can be really beautiful.

GT: I find a lot of the music videos that we do, there'll always be a shot from a film that inspires something.

Aside from breaking the fourth wall at the end, the Pulp Fiction shot and the Nicholas Brothers, what other reference points or Easter eggs did you include?

BT: We love the Marx Brothers, Danny Kaye and those physical comedians. I love Ginger Rogers and Fred Astaire. We’re also obsessed by Bugsy Malone. Busby Berkeley... I don't think there was much Busby Berkeley in this. GT: At the end there's a tiny bit, but Busby Berkeley has actually been used as a reference in quite a few music videos. We love that stuff. But we didn't want to go too into that symmetry and the choreography, because it didn't feel as fresh. What have you learned from Harry, after working together for so long?

BT: He's on a really interesting journey and we are lucky to be a bit of that journey with him. It's really rewarding to dip into that and try to facilitate some of that as we go along. There's a lot that he's in touch with that I'm not. I'm quite a lot older than him. I'm not as cool as him.

#harry styles #jan21 #gabe turner #ben turner #tpwkmv #GQ #article

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hldailyupdate · 4 years

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How the joyous ‘Treat People With Kindness’ video came together

Directors Gabe and Ben Turner on how Fleabag became the launchpad for Harry Styles' ‘Treat People With Kindness’ music video

Here, Gabe and Ben tell us the story of when Harry met Phoebe and how “Treat People With Kindness” came together.

Gabe, you tweeted that the video was shot at the beginning of last year. How did it come together?

You make it sound easy.

BT: That momentum that Gabe's describing, that's what made it easy. It was plenty of hard work, but once it started, it just came together.

What was the turnaround like for the video?

BT: We just did it fast, in the space of a few months.

What was it like to shoot?

What notes did you talk through with Phoebe about her character?

BT: This song's called "Treat People With Kindness”, so it feels like there's a distance to cover in the narrative. You start on the Marsellus Wallace shot, out of Pulp Fiction. We wanted to get a sense that this was a kind of tough guy and there was the opposite of people being treated with kindness around the place. But the conversation went from [Phoebe] being a character that stood up to him to, actually, if you look at it, [she] wipes a tear off of his eye, which is so beautiful.

GT: Ben was just obsessed with casting the back of people's heads for the first shot.

What makes a good back of the head?

GT: I find a lot of the music videos that we do, there'll always be a shot from a film that inspires something.

Aside from breaking the fourth wall at the end, the Pulp Fiction shot and the Nicholas Brothers, what other reference points or Easter eggs did you include?

GT: At the end there's a tiny bit, but Busby Berkeley has actually been used as a reference in quite a few music videos. We love that stuff. But we didn't want to go too into that symmetry and the choreography, because it didn't feel as fresh

What have you learned from Harry, after working together for so long?

(12 January 2021)

#harry styles #harry update #article #gq #treat people with kindness #hldaily #january 2021

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that-shamrock-vibe · 3 years

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Movie Review: Cruella

Disclaimer: This is my non-spoiler review for Cruella, posting either the day or the day after the movie is released in the U.K, so if you are yet to see the movie and want to go in with a clear head do not read on until you do.

General Reaction:

Cruella however, I knew from the first trailer I was determined to see in cinemas and the fact it was my first time back in cinemas seeing a movie, I could not think of a better opening play.

It has been a while not only since I have been to the cinema, but also since I watched a new movie. Anything new that has come to me through the lockdowns have been older movies that are new to me. I haven't watched movies on PVOD or Premier Accees because I don't want to pay for them while in my bedroom on a small television and also they don't interest me enough to pay for them.

And that's what this movie is, an origin story. It's a Disney live-action adaptation of a beloved Disney villain's origins, sound familiar? That's what fans originally believed Maleficent to be before it became a redemption story of sorts.

Cruella was the villain of One Hundred and One Dalmatians because she wanted to skin puppies to make a coat, but this movie isn't about that, despite there being some excellent foreshadowing and even reworking as a prequel to the original story, this movie is about how Cruella became Cruella, not necessarily how she became a villain but making the character more three-dimensional and layered.

Here, without going into spoilers, we do see the reasoning behind Cruella being the villain we love her for and it is very much a nature vs nurture style of moral, but it isn't done to the detriment of the villainy Cruella is known for.

What Disney and the creatives behind Cruella have done with this movie is not only take note with everything great and bad with the more recent Disney live-action movies and filter out the bad, but also the potential of movies like Maleficent and even Mulan to a degree which failed to live up to their promises creatively, have seemingly been reworked for this origin story.

Does that mean she's not a villain in this movie? Well while she's not the movie's primary antagonist, Cruella stays true to herself and doesn't compromise why fans love the original character, if anything she amplifies why she's such a great character.

Cruella is such a love letter to the 1970s punk rock era while also managing to not just be style over substance but deliver on story and character as well, that I can't imagine anyone having that much of a problem with it.

It's what I would honestly call an artisan's delight, I'm not creative in a fashion sense, I love fashion and it's a reason I connect with Cruella so much, but I couldn't do what she does. I'd possibly be the Artie of her gang if not Horace and honestly I'm okay with that. But the way fashion, music and visual storytelling is used in this movies rivals the 1996 live-action 101 Dalmatians in that sense when scenes largely focused on the dogs selling the scenes without speaking. A picture paints a thousands words and Cruella's eccentric fashions were scene stealers.

It's funny, it's dramatic, it's well acted and directed. The writing is brilliant with maybe one exception with the Baroness which we will discuss in the spoiler review.

Speaking of spoilers. Way back when this movie was first announced I believe in 2016 I was adamantly against it, I thought it was sacrilege and that it would not be a patch on the original movies.

That being said, since seeing that first trailer and that stunning dress reveal I was hooked and have since watched pretty much every single trailer and TV spot this movie could churn out to the point where I feel I saw the entire movie already...but I was wrong.

From the trailers if you think this movie is going to end at a certain point you'd be wrong. I could kinda tell when the movie was going to end based on how the scene was set up, but even then there's more to the story.

I mentioned how this movie foreshadowed to the original One Hundred and One Dalmatians story as a prequel of sorts but also how it rewrote history so to speak, again the mid credits scene blows my mind as a Dalmatians fan and it cries out for a sequel.

However, to sum up, the original 1961 animated One Hundred and One Dalmatians is to this day my favourite movie of all time. Dalmatians are my favourite dog breed despite the fact I currently own a frenchie pug and Cruella De Vil I believe to be my spiritual mother.

Usually in these reactions I'll give a quick recap of my opinions of the movie or franchise the one in question is a part of, but I feel I've spoken about my love of all things Cruella De Vil and One Hundred and One Dalmatians enough in the past to get the point across.

All that being said, I am trying to compartmentalise my thoughts and be unbiased in my opinions for this movie. But honestly if this movie was bad I'd be coming down the hardest out of any critic on it because of what the property means to me personally.

So yes, I am going to big this movie up because pretty much every single element in this movie is 99% perfect. There is room for improvement, but that's where a sequel comes in to not only capitalise but better itself. And keeping the same creative team and bringing back the same cast, I feel this will be the Disney sequel to break the mould just as Cruella is the Disney movie to break the mould

But I have hyped up the lore and the character enough, what do I think of the movie? Well as much as I praised the creatives behind the movie for such a fabulous movie, director Chris Gillespe is partially to blame for how the movie looks. It’s still a visually orgasmic movie in terms of how it portrays its artistic choices, but in terms of those scenes and shots that could’ve been and should’ve been as visually pleasing as the fashion and art shots, just don’t leave as striking and lasting an impression as those shots and scenes.

Cast:

Honestly upon the announcement, to the point where I made a rant session post about it, Emma Stone as Cruella just didn’t land with me upon said announcement. However, as I said since seeing the first trailer, Emma Stone is young Cruella for me.

Glenn Close for me is Cruella De Vil in live-action. Victoria Smurfit on Once Upon a Time was fabulous but in opinion an elseworlds version of Cruella because she had magic and her story wasn’t really in line with the source material. Now, without spoilers but because it’s an origin you kinda can guess, Emma Stone’s version isn’t really in line with the source material either and up until seeing the movie I was all for viewing this version as an elseworlds story. even after seeing it I am all for viewing it as an elseworlds story from the original source material.

But does that mean it’s bad? No it’s just different. As I said earlier this is definitely a more fleshed out three-dimensional version of the Cruella that the original animated version and Glenn Close’s adaptation delivered, but honestly I’m excited to know where this Cruella goes from after seeing this movie. This is my favourite Emma Stone performance to date.

As for the other Emma, Emma Thompson as the Baroness, well she and Stone’s Cruella not only capitalize on Meryl Streep’s The Devil Wears Prada performance, but also adds that extra layer that make both characters not only believable as people but also villains. There’s no mistaking Thompson’s Baroness is a villain, but she does it in the best way and has never looked more fantastic doing so.

This movie also humanizes Jasper and Horace for me, I’m still unsure as to their relationship, if they’re friends or brothers, but based on the fact Jasper is race-bent in this movie and Hotace is still caucasian I’m going with not. However, without spoilers, based on how they meet Cruella I’m in favour of them not being related and simply lost souls coming together. But yeah they’re both funny, you believe they’re Jasper and Horace there’s no thinking one should be the other, and the chemistry between Jasper and Cruella is so electric that it demands a pay off in a sequel and actually speaks to a problem I know some male fans (including me) may actually have with Cruella as a character.

The other biggest breakout in this movie is John McCrea as Artie, who is not only Disney’s first clearly openly LGBT character but a scene-stealer in every shot that he is in. I said I would probably be Artie or Horace in Cruella’s gang and I stand by that because I think Artie is who I’d want to be (aside from Cruella herself) but Horace is physically who I would be.

Then as for the side characters, the movie does an interesting turn on the Anita/Roger origin story, Mark Strong as the Alonzo substitute is mysterious and brilliant, and the dogs are again scene stealers. Aside from 3 dalmatians (who are still alive at the end) there are two completely original new dogs who are part of Cruella’s gang and whether or not it’s because I’m a dog lover and own a dog or just because of the dog’s direction, they just pull focus every scene and make the characters more sympathetic because of how they interact with them.

Is this a knockout movie? Unfortunately no, I feel mistakes are made that leave holes for trolls to swoop in, however, I don’t think they should/ Honestly uou cannot make the “live-action” The Lion King a billion dollar flick and then complain about this movie, this is original, brilliant and 95% well executed. Yes I’ve dropped from 99 and we will discuss the issues in the spoiler review.

Recommendation:

But honestly this movie is worth the watch, it deserves the watch. As for seeing it in cinemas vs. Disney+, I could say it’s worth the £20/$30, but to get a true feel of some of the bigger and better artistic scenes it demands a big screen viewing. Also support local cinemas and all that jazz.

So that’s my non-spoiler review for Cruella, what did you guys think? Post your comments and stay tuned for my spoiler review hopefully coming soon, meanwhile you can check out other Movie Reviews and posts.

#cruella #disney #cruella de vil #101 dalmatians #one hundred and one dalmatians #baroness von hellman #jasper and horace #emma stone #emma thompson #glenn close

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365days365movies · 4 years

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January 19, 2021: Léon: The Professional (Epilogue)

Hey, look! An elephant in the room! We should address that, huh?

So, recently, actress and Léon star herself Natalie Portman was interviewed about acting in this movie, and she said that the movie itself was fine to act in. It was the response to that work from...y’know what, perverts - let’s not dance around that - that she wasn’t the biggest fan of. It changed the roles she was willing to accept, and her acting style in general. Which makes absolute sense for her to do.

But now, you may understand why this film is...awkward. Because let me clarify something: this is a good movie! But, especially with relatively recent revelations from Hollywood in the last few years, you know that some people enjoyed this movie in a WHOLLY UNACCEPTABLE fashion. Which is...well, again:

Because of that, this film was gotten a lot of negative attention, then and now. And, let’s also be fair here: I’m not a fan of the fact that Luc Besson put Natalie Portman in this...uncomfortable position in the first place. It’s a little squicky to be putting a 12 year-old in that context, is what I’m saying. Roger Ebert agrees, in the closing statement of his review on the movie:

But always at the back of my mind was the troubled thought that there was something wrong about placing a 12-year-old character in the middle of this action. In a more serious movie, or even in a human comedy like Cassavetes' "Gloria," the child might not have been out of place. But in what is essentially an exercise - a slick urban thriller - it seems to exploit the youth of the girl without really dealing with it.

.Yeah, I agree with that. But OK, if we take that uncomfortable aspect away from the movie (and it is possible to do so), then what did I think? Well, let’s get into that, shall we?

Recap

Cast and Acting

Strap in, this one’s gonna be long. Three parts, and a coda at the end.

OK, first I gotta talk about Léon, or rather Jean Reno as Léon. Here's the thing about these heroic bloodshed protagonists; they’re always these cold, reserved badasses with armored hearts that have been closed off by a personal tragedy, from when they were more innocent. But with Léon, we never see that tragedy; we have no idea what makes this man who or what he is. And yet, he still has dimension as a character, hidden depths within an unknown past, and also a surprising innocence injected into him. He genuinely enjoys going to see old movies, he’s teaching himself how to read, we only really see him drink milk, he cares deeply for his plant. And, before Mathilda, he’s lonely, and you actually feel for him? THis is, by the way, despite the fact that the first sequence of the film is him MURDERING A BUNCH OF PEOPLE. And despite that, I really did feel for him in the end there. And while the directing and writing take a part of this, GODDAMN does Reno do an amazing job! He perfectly portrays the nuances of this character, but puts on an incredibly badass demeanor when he needs to. Reno deserves more credit as an actor in the USA, because he’s astonishingly great in his movie, seriously.

And then...then there’s Natalie Portman. See, back in the wild, wild west of the ‘90s, child actors were ALL OVER THE GODDAMN PLACE. And the vast majority of them weren’t very good, let’s be honest. But in her turn as Mathilda, awkward preteen crush and all, Portman KNOCKS it out of the goddamn park with this portrayal. And by the way...THIS IS HER FIRST ACTING ROLE. Yeah. Holy shit. She’s brilliant, and I’m a little mad that she didn’t get an award nod AT ALL for this role. She’s fantastic, seriously, it’s insane. And yeah, her character and the dynamic with Léon definitely makes me uncomfortable...but maybe it’s because Mathilda is surprisingly believable, acting with a surprise innocence of her own. Seriously...amazing job to Nathalie Portman.

If Reno was understatedly nuanced and complex, and Portman was talented and emotional, Gary Oldman was BATSHIT INSANE. And holy shit, is he a wonderfully engaging and terrifying villain. This is Oldman dialed up to...eh, 8? You get him dialed up to 10, and I’m pretty sure you get Dracula. But he’s a HELL of a lot of fun here, honestly, if also extremely creepy and frightening. He steals every scene that he’s in, with his speeches, mannerisms, and affectations. He upstages, well...EEEEVERRRYYYYYOOOOOOONNNNNE!!!

And is everybody else in here good? Yeah, they are, but they’re completely drowned out by these three. The acting in this film is wonderful all around. 10/10. I mean that, 10/10.

Plot and Writing

If I had a single word about the writing, it’d be...French. There are some lines, ESPECIALLY Mathilda’s lines about love, that definitely sound more French than American. After all, this is a French film, and the writer is Luc Besson himself! And other than that...the writing’s fine. Plot’s fine, too, straightforward and all that. I really don’t have much to say about the plot, if I’m honest. And if I had one negative thing to say...yeah, the childhood crush thing is still super uncomfortable, honestly. Still, put in context, it’s a little bit better. And I should mention that, while it’s SUPER CONTROVERSIAL here in the good old US of A, this wasn’t nearly as big of a deal in France. And I should also mention...it’s mildly autobiographical. Yeaaaaaaaah, that blonde girl in the very beginning of the movie is actually Besson’s WIFE. You know...the 17-year-old, who’d known Besson since she was 12 and he was 29, and they started dating when she was 15, and the had a child a year later, before this movie was made. Y-yeah. Yeah. Yeah.

7/10 here, nothing bad, nothing great. Basically average heroic bloodshed plotline, with some...other elements.

Directing and Action

Fun fact: Luc Besson’s reception in his home country is mixed, especially early in his career. This is because his directing style is focused far more on spectacle and bombast than it is on emotion. Definitely more American in style than French. And this movie definitely has some of that, although it’s definitely not as crazy as some of the other movies on this list. But some of the shots here are weird, some of them here are crazy cool, and most of them are just great. But this movie still focuses more on emotion and character buildup and revelations, than it does on action. Which is great, but this is Action January, so how was the action? This takes off of the gun-fu genre, with essentially all of it focused around gunplay. And the interesting thing is, while these aren’t the most bombastic action scenes, its the emotion around them that keep you on the edge of your seat and invested. So, weirdly, this might be the movie that’s integrated the action scenes with the movie’s overall emotional tone the most seamlessly. Well...of the English language movies, anyway. Overall, 8/10 here!

Production and Art Design

START SPREADING THE NEEEEEEEEEEWS, because it’s New York, New York! Most of this film was filmed on location, and it shows! As someone who grew up going to NYC on a regular basis, it definitely feels authentic to ‘90s New York. Which, of course, it is. Costume design, for Mathilda especially, is good, although one or two of her outfits feels a little over-complicated at times. Still, no complaints, really. I love Léon’s tiny glasses, and Stansfield’s suit (plain as it may be). Really, this movie is simply an authentic feeling New York, and there isn’t too much else to say about that. 8/10 again.

youtube

Music and Editing

Music’s definitely good, including this song by Sting that we hear at the end. Editing is mostly OK, although there are some weird cuts here and there. And...I’m not sure I have much to say about this category. Oof. Sorry, honestly, this is probably a sign of good editing, since it wasn’t obvious. And as for the music, I remember it...but it was mostly overshadowed by the events of the film itself. So...7/10?

80%! And I’m satisfied with that, honestly!

This movie is built to make you a little uncomfortable while watching it. But, I still believe that it’s a movie to be watched. Good action, prominent emotional development, great acting. This one’s good, and give it a watch!

Luc Besson, Luc Besson. You gave me a French English-language heroic bloodshed action movie about an older man saving a girl a generation or so younger than him, that also produced a well-known meme on the internet. More, please!

January 20, 2021: Taken (2008)

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shlabam · 4 years

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TOP TEN COMICS BOOK VILLAINS WE PROBABLY WON’T SEE IN THE MOVIES

Superhero media is the hottest thing going right now. It was true ten years ago when the MCU was in its adolescence, and it’s even truer now. Even with film production on lockdown, Marvel and DC are still planning on literally dozens of their characters entering their respective cinematic universes. However, for the fans of the source material, things can be contentious. For every memorable Tony Stark quip, there’s Superman destroying an entire city because he’s, frankly, kind of dumb now. A major point of contention is how the various popular villains are utilized. Making an intimidating and potent villain in a comic book is very different than in a film. In comics, you have months to establish motive, powers, and backstory before the villain even makes their first move. In films, that all has to be compressed and spilled out in the scarce few minutes when Captain America and Bucky aren’t making bambi eyes at each other. To be concise, some villains adapt perfectly, and some, no matter how good they are in the comics, just don’t. And to be clear, this list is of popular villains who have the possibility of appearing in a big-budget film, so no, you won’t be seeing Ten Eyed Man or Big Wheel in there. Their powers are, respectively, having ten eyes, and being very good in business. (That’s a lie, he’s just a huge wheel who chases Spider-Man.)

10: Mr. Mxyzptlk:

Cool, let’s get this one out of the way. Despite being one of Superman’s oldest, longest-lasting, and most popular enemies from all the way back in the Golden Age, there’s no way in hell he will be in a movie. For the uninformed. Mr. Mxyzptlk is a 5th dimensional wizard-genie who appears every ninety days to torment Superman with his reality-altering antics, and can only be sent back to his home dimension if Superman tricks him into saying his own name backwards. Yes, it would be very dazzling, as Mr. Mxyzptlk’s powers in a movie would basically look like if Christopher Nolan directed Who Framed Roger Rabbit, but he’s a little too silly to fit in with the current “everything is gloomy and also a bummer” tone of the Superman films. This silly tone has lent itself perfectly to the Supergirl series, where he’s made a handful of appearances. Besides, if we get Mxyzptlk in a Superman movie before Brainiac, I’ll lose my entire freaking mind.

9: Hobgoblin:

There have been eight Spider-Man movies so far, and of those eight, four of them have, in some capacity, featured the Green Goblin. And that makes sense, right? The Green Goblin is easily Spider-Man’s most memorable and reoccurring nemesis, with Doctor Octopus and Venom close behind, and Peter Parker’s link with Norman and Harry Osbourn makes their tragic story perfect for film adaptation. On the other hand, we have the Hobgoblin, who is essentially Green Goblin with all the gimmicks, none of the Parker-adjacent backstory, and an orange and blue color scheme, likely tying him to the Denver Broncos [citation needed]. Still, in those four cinematic attempts at tackling the Goblin, none of them have quite gotten him right, and I can’t imagine this character, who is, even in canon, an intentional Green Goblin rip-off, would fare any better.

8: Starro:

Brave and the Bold #28 from 1960 featured the first story with the Justice League, and this story put them up against a very unique new villain: Starro the Conqueror, a giant telepathic starfish who can release tiny versions of himself. If these tiny starfish latch onto your head, you’re under his control and obey his commands. The Justice League have battled him fairly regularly over the last fifty years, and he’s a distinct and powerful enemy that the fans generally appreciate, leading to him being referenced occasionally in Smallville, Arrow, and Flash. Why won’t he ever be in a movie? Because if you’re a Hollywood producer, you stopped paying attention at “giant telepathic starfish”. Sorry. Maybe Shuma-Gorath will pop up in the next Doctor Strange movie, and he’ll set off a Twilight-esque wave of starfish monster movies! Then again, almost absolutely not.

7: Puppet Master:

Speaking of mind control, what’s scarier than that? For my money, nothing. Having your body and will taken away from you by an unseen force is a terror greater than death. How could you possibly make a villain based around such a chilling concept and have him not be scary? Well, maybe if it’s an old bald man in an apron playing with dolls. The Puppet Master is an ongoing threat for the Fantastic Four who is just that: he makes models of his foes out of radioactive clay, and makes them punch themselves and dance around and kiss each other, because he’s, y’know, a weird old man. Why is he such a consistent threat who hasn’t fallen into obscurity like other dumb gimmick-based villains? His stepdaughter, Alicia Masters, is the Thing’s longtime girlfriend. As long as she keeps appearing in movies (including being played by… Kerry Washington? That can’t be right), there’s always a chance he’ll pop up, but I don’t think any movie studio is that stupid, despite the quality of every Fantastic Four movie blatantly defying that prediction.

6: Bizarro:

Superman has always suffered in the villains department. When you’re essentially a god, what can they throw at you? As it turns out, Lex Luthor, almost always. But why not another Superman? Bizarro is essentially that, an imperfect clone of Superman who speaks in opposite speak - “Bizarro am good! Me not punch you until you live!” - and features the same abilities as the Man of Steel. Sounds great, right? Putting a hero against a villain with their same powers has worked for nearly every Marvel movie (shots fired). So why won’t we see him grace our silver screens any time soon? Because they’ve never really figured him out. Is he funny? Is he lethal? Does Kryptonite work on him? If he does everything the opposite of Superman, why does he wear clothes? Isn’t being naked the opposite of being clothed? Bizarro is a major Superman side-character and has made appearances in Smallville and Supergirl, but the idea of him being the Big Bad going toe-to-toe with Henry Cavill doesn’t sound like it would generate a lot of views.

5: Impossible Man:

You remember what I said about Mr. Mxyzptlk? Remember? So take that bit, but everywhere I say Superman, have it say Fantastic Four instead… yeah, that should do it.

4: The Wrecking Crew:

Thor has a unique quirk of having a very cinematic rogues gallery. Sure, most of the movies have pitted him against Loki, but if they were to run him up against the Enchantress, or the Absorbing Man, or Ulik the Troll, or Kurse, or even the Stone Men from Saturn, that’s not a bad movie! However, in one of the attempts to give Thor more of a mortal nemesis, they put him up against the Wrecker, who has an… enchanted… indestructible… crowbar. Yeah. Incredibly, the Wrecker and his Wrecking Crew have become very present characters throughout the Marvel Universe, essentially serving as “jobbers”, being rolled out to get beaten up by the new top hero or villain, but that may not work in a movie, where villains have to be seen as having some level of potency before being struck down. That means we’d need at least a short scene where it seems like Thor might lose to a guy whose power is “crowbar”, and that’s about as likely as an Edward Norton cameo in the next Avengers. Ho boy, they did NOT part on good terms!

3: Clayface:

When the movie-going public goes to see a Batman movie, they generally want something a bit more grounded than your typical superhero fare. After all, Batman has no powers, and therefore the most supernatural thing that should happen in these movies is a gas that makes you smile, or a different gas that makes you think your dead parents are back and disappointed in you. Might wanna put a mouth covering on that mask, Bruce! The one and only they’ve made a movie where Batman fights people with real, off-the-wall super powers (Batman and Robin), it did not go great. And those guys pale in comparison to Clayface, who is, yes, made of clay. In the comics and cartoons, Clayface looks awesome, turning his limbs into weapons and being very challenging to incapacitate, but in a live-action, realistic Batman adventure, we wouldn’t want to see the Dark Knight fight a poop-colored version of the T-1000, especially if it’s got the same chemical composition of a little dreidel that I made.

2: Red Hood:

A relative newcomer to the Batman universe, Red Hood is the revived body of Jason Todd, the second Robin, who was brutally killed by the Joker in one of the most controversial storylines DC Comics ever produced. Literally, fans called a 900 number to tell the writers to kill him off. A 900 number. That’s how much they hated the little turd. Anyway, Jason Todd, whom Batman and the rest of the world believed was dead, was revived by Ra’s al Ghul and became a ruthless villain. Since then, he’s gravitated more to the side of the hero, though one a bit more willing to spill blood than his mentors. Why won’t we see him in the darker, edgier Batman films? Because… that’s Bucky. It’s the same thing that happened in Captain America: The Winter Soldier. Teen sidekick killed in controversial manner, revived by super villain to be a thorn in said hero’s side, later changes his mind and becomes a good guy again, though with enough PTSD to fill a PTSD super store. The two storylines even occurred in the comics in the same year, 2005, to much fanfare and across-the-board declarations of one company ripping off the other, reminding the world of the great Aquaman-Namor debates of the 1940s. Considering that DC’s films have criminally underperformed compared to Marvel’s, the last thing they want to do is be accused of lazy plagiarism, so Jason Todd will likely remain a permanent fixture in the afterlife, hanging out with Batman’s parents and, at the rate that people are coming back from the dead, literally no one else. (Plus, if they can’t even get Robin right, how are they gonna do this?)

1: Mister Sinister:

Yes, he was teased at the end of X-Men Apocalypse, but ignoring that the film underperformed both critically and commercially, Mister Sinister is never going to be in a movie. It would make sense for him to appear, though, right? He’s one of the most present and potent X-Men villains, he’s played crucial roles in many memorable storylines, he’s got a sick cape, but… something a lot of comic book fans tend to overlook is his murky backstory, powers, and motivations. He was a biologist in Victorian London who did genetic experiments on homeless people in the hopes of finding clues about the oncoming threat of mutants. In this time, he unearthed the long-dormant En Sabah Nur, whom you plebeians may know as Apocalypse, and Apocalypse gifted him with great abilities. What abilities you ask? HA HA, good question! At various times, Sinister has displayed: telepathy, telekinesis, energy projection, shape-shifting, regeneration, and teleportation, but these powers will mysteriously disappear whenever they want him to get sliced up real good by Wolverine. Additionally, it has never been made very clear what Sinister wants. Does he seek perfect mastery of the human genome? Does he live to torment Cyclops? Is he a blind follower of Apocalypse? Is he just running through all the different kinds of goatee? Of course, in adaptation, the writers would pick and choose the aspects they’d want to use, but I doubt they’d want to untangle the Christmas lights mess that is Mister Sinister, especially when they’ve got a perfectly good villain whose power is just “magnets”.

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cake-writes · 5 years

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Point

Pairing: Stucky x Reader

Warnings: Fluff, Polyamory

Word Count: 3k

Requested by @thorman-barnes: What about Stucky having a crush on one of the newest Avengers (reader)?

I figured I should probably format it properly since it’s longer than my usual drabbles. Enjoy!

The first thing Bucky noticed about you was your smile, which lit up your face in such a way that the breath caught in his throat. Despite the stark, fluorescent lighting in the hallway, you were gorgeous, and the laugh that followed was even more so as you shoved Sam in the shoulder with a certain playful familiarity.

You were friends, it looked like.

That was when Sam spotted him standing there like an idiot, and he introduced you with a grin – prefixed your name with ‘Captain,’ which made you snort. It wasn’t very ladylike, but Bucky didn’t care. He thought it was cute. It suited you.

“Come on, Sam, it’s ‘Major,’ now. Haven’t these good ol’ boys taught you a little respect?” you teased, nodding over to Bucky who was apparently one of the 'good ol' boys' you were talking about. Sam made a show of rolling his eyes and despite your casual demeanour with him, you addressed Bucky a bit more kindly, “Sergeant Barnes, right?”

“Oh, uh, yeah,” he stammered.

Smooth.

It caught him off guard, someone using his title from the Army. All anyone called him these days was the Winter Soldier, but not you. No, instead you directed that beautiful smile right at him and held out your hand. “It’s nice to finally meet you, Sergeant.”

“Bucky,” he corrected, finally regaining his bearings a little as he shook your hand. Your handshake was surprisingly firm, much firmer than he would have expected from a woman. Then again, women these days were far more empowered than he was used to, not that that was a bad thing. It was just a new dynamic for him to adjust to along with everything else.

“Well then, Bucky,” you said, eyes twinkling with mischief, “You wanna help me teach our boy here some manners?”

Oh, he liked you already.

The first thing Steve noticed about you was your ass.

He didn’t mean to, honest, he didn't – just happened to round the corner into the plane hangar at the exact same time you bent over to pick up the file you’d dropped. He certainly wasn’t the type to really look at, let alone ogle a woman until he felt some kind of romantic way about her, but Christ, did you have a fantastic ass. The dark blue catsuit on your body almost seemed tailored to fit, enhancing every single one of your curves.

Any other day he would have helped you collect the strewn papers, well-mannered as he usually was, but he couldn’t help but stare. You must have just gotten back from a mission if the torn fabric on your thigh was any indication; not to mention he could smell the gunpowder residue on your clothing, coupled with the slightest hint of your sweat and inwardly he cursed his enhanced senses for it. You smelled so good.

When you stood back up again, papers in hand, you spun around on your heel and made to leave the hangar. The little gold oak leaf on your collar glinted in the muted sunlight: a Major, then, but he didn’t know what branch. Air Force, maybe. You were wearing blue. What drew his attention away from the fact that you technically outranked him was your hair – glossy, just like your lips, he found, when they curled into a smirk.

You’d caught him staring.

His face was beet red before he even had a chance to introduce himself. Not that he really needed to, because he was in uniform and you were already holding your hand out for a handshake. He didn’t fail to hear the amusement in your voice when you offered him your name.

“Steve,” he responded, swallowing thickly when he realized exactly how small your hand was in his, how nice it felt. “Steve Rogers.”

“I’ve heard good things about you, Captain.” The way your eyes trailed down his body for the briefest of seconds before they snapped back up to his made him nervous, but not so much as when you added, “Very good things.”

At that, his throat went bone dry.

To say that the mission was awkward would have been an understatement.

It was unplanned, a hostage situation: rescue a group of rookie SHIELD agents who had royally fucked up. The only people on hand were the three of you, unless you counted Bruce, who was in the middle of a time-sensitive experiment in the lab and he really didn’t want a week’s worth of meticulous work to go down the drain.

In your opinion, the mission should have taken priority, but you told him that you’d manage somehow. If nothing else, Bruce Banner could pull off some serious puppy dog eyes. You didn't realize until after you got in the elevator that you'd screwed yourself.

You found Steve and Bucky in the gym. That was where they usually were, either there or in the kitchen because their metabolisms were ridiculous and they were in a perpetual state of eating. You’d been working with them for about half a year now, and you still didn’t understand how they managed to get anything else done.

“We’ve got a mission,” you said abruptly, throwing a couple of gym towels at them.

Steve caught his at the last minute with an easy, “Thanks, doll,” a pet name that never failed to make your cheeks flush. You were sure he did it on purpose, because there was always a distinct twinkle in his eyes that let you know he’d noticed your reaction to it.

Just like now.

Bucky’s caught him right in the face, however, because he’d been in the middle of a deadlift and his hands were occupied. He dropped the barbell with an annoyed grunt and pulled the towel off of his head, giving you a look – the look, the one that conveyed exactly how much he appreciated your bullshit. Hint: he didn’t, but the playful smile on his lips made your heart warm.

That was how you ended up on the Quinjet with them. You’d been on missions with them before, of course, but never just the three of you. There was always at least one other person there, or just one of them. Never like this.

It was awkward as hell because you’d been attracted to Steve and Bucky since you met them, and as obvious as you tried to be about it, they just wouldn’t take the hint despite how much they flirted right back.

Steve was subtle. He snuck glances at you every now and then, called you ‘doll’ and ‘sweetheart’ so casually, slipped sweet little notes into your duffel bag right before a (planned) mission. Sometimes, you found them and they lifted your spirits. Other times, you found them at the worst possible moment, like a couple weeks ago when Tony yanked it out of your hands and read it out loud to everyone on the jet, the two of them included.

You didn’t talk to Tony for a week after that. Or Steve. It was embarrassing as hell, passing notes back and forth like the two of you were in high school when you were supposed to be a professional. You still had yet to live it down.

Of course, his notes never contained anything of real substance. He liked to compliment you – your hair, a new blouse, the bracelet you’d bought yourself for your birthday. You blushed anyway. He also liked to remind you to be careful, or to try out one of the new fighting techniques he’d taught you.

Steve was sweet.

Bucky was just as stupidly obvious as you were. He was handsy with you; liked to touch you, feel you, know you were there, especially after a difficult mission or when either of you had a particularly gruelling day and you absolutely loved it.

Bucky was by no means good at giving massages, but he liked to try, and to his credit he usually managed to work the soreness out of your neck and shoulders. When you returned the favour, he always played into your hands like putty. Made you feel a little proud, actually – proud and turned on, which was a nightmare of a combination in such a relaxed atmosphere.

You were always so relaxed with him.

You often found him in the middle of the night in the living room, kept awake by what you assumed were the horrors of his past and just as often, you stayed with him until the early hours of the morning. More than once, he’d fallen asleep with his head in your lap while you threaded your fingers through his hair.

Bucky put on a tough front, but you knew deep down that he was just as sweet as Steve.

Needless to say, the whole situation was incredibly frustrating.

You were playing a dangerous game, though, and you knew it. They were best friends. Nothing would come between them, not even you as much as you desperately wanted to. That was one reason you never made a move. Another was because they’d been raised in a different time, when it was the man’s job to make the first move. As dumb as it sounded, you didn’t want to emasculate them.

So you made your intentions obvious as hell, but still no dice.

It was a quick flight. You briefed them on the way, running point on the operation because you were the one who’d received the phone call. You'd led plenty of missions in the past, of course, but not here and not with them. Awkward. Nerve-wracking. Uncomfortable. That's what it was.

Even so, it went without a hitch. The four agents you rescued were beyond grateful, but somehow, the flight back was even worse.

One in particular wanted to take you out to dinner as a thank you. You politely declined at least three times, but he just wouldn’t take ‘no’ for an answer until you made a clear point of taking the plane off autopilot to get away from him. Not only were you way out of his league (not to toot your own horn), but it was late, you were tired, and you already had someone else in your heart.

Two someones.

The Quinjet was tense and quiet until you finally arrived back to the compound. The agents were too busy licking their wounds, so to speak; Steve and Bucky were having a hushed discussion at the back of the plane; and you, well, you were in a mood.

It pissed you off that he hadn’t taken your ‘no’ the first time. How disrespectful. You were an officer in the United States Air Force, for fuck’s sake, and you deserved to be treated with respect. He was just some low-level agent, and it was entirely his fault that you had to sacrifice your Friday night.

Dick.

You worked yourself up so much by the time you got back that you missed the sidelong glance the two boys gave you before they helped the group of agents off the plane and to the medical ward.

You’d be the last to disembark. Because you took point on the mission, it was your responsibility to ensure that everything was just as you’d found it: full tank of fuel, first aid kit replenished, floors clean and tidy. You’d seen Steve run through the checklist plenty of times. Bucky, too. Now it was your turn.

Grumbling to yourself, you dropped some gauze and bandage wrappers into the trash bag in your hands. The agents had been in pretty bad shape, even him, so much that you were going to have to mop the floors after because they’d bled all over the place. Fantastic.

After a quick tidy, you slung the first aid kit – duffel, really – over your shoulder and went to the cabinet in the hangar where the extra supplies were kept. You had to bend over and dig for some of the things you needed, specific sizes of gauze and certain lengths of bandages but you finally found them; and, when you shut the cabinet doors, you nearly jumped out of your own skin.

“Jesus Christ,” you swore, throwing a packet of gauze at Bucky. “Don’t do that!”

This time, he caught it easily. “What’s got your panties in a knot?”

“Nothing,” you told him, but the angry way you shoved the supplies back into the kit made it pretty obvious that you were lying.

“Sure doesn’t seem like nothing,” Bucky commented dryly.

You frowned at him before you held out your hand, palm facing up. “Give me that.”

His brows rose in amusement. “I’ll give it to you if you tell me.”

What a child.

You rolled your eyes and went to snatch it away yourself, but he held it over your head, taunting you with it. Now, you weren’t exactly tall, but Bucky sure was. He was tall and strong and when you jumped for it, he just held it up even higher.

“God damn it, Bucky,” you cursed. “Give it here.”

“Ask nicely,” he teased, lowering it so that it was within your reach once more.

You groaned. “I’m so not in the mood for this.”

But then you went for it again anyway – except this time, you didn’t realize that he’d brought it much closer to himself until you landed. You wound up having to catch yourself with one hand on his shoulder, otherwise you probably would have smacked heads or something equally as stupid.

“You’re so predictable,” he said, then, and you weren’t sure whether to huff indignantly or ask what he meant.

Inside, though, your heart was pounding, not because of the jumping but because of your close proximity. Something was different. This wasn’t like that relaxing atmosphere on the sofa, either in the middle of the night or with his thumbs massaging deep circles into your shoulders. There was tension, and a hell of a lot of it.

You could feel his body heat through his tac jacket – he always ran hot, and so did Steve – and you felt your cheeks start to burn. You were way too close.

When you went to step away, however, his free arm slid around your waist and he pulled you closer, flush against him. Your breath hitched when you looked up into his eyes: such a beautiful pale blue, normally, but darker than usual.

“What are you doing?” you asked quietly, fingers curling instinctively in the material of his jacket.

“Kissin’ you.”

You didn’t have time to respond before his lips were hot on yours, and you absolutely melted against him. Your other hand came up to grasp at his jacket in a desperate attempt to pull him even closer as his talented mouth worked yours, sending a rush of heat through you straight to your core.

When your hair was gently brushed to the side, it didn’t register at first; only when another pair of lips pressed a kiss to your neck did you suddenly break away, eyes jumping between the two of them in alarm.

“What’s happening right now?” you asked, like an idiot.

“We saw someone flirting with our girl,” Steve told you, one of his large hands slowly sliding down your spine to the small of your back, and you couldn’t help but lean into his touch. “Didn’t like it a whole lot, did we, Buck?”

“Not one bit.” Bucky released you, then, and gave you a gentle push toward Steve. “Come on, sweetheart. Don’t be shy.”

You stared at Bucky for a moment, flabbergasted, before you finally turned to Steve. The problem was that you did feel shy all of a sudden. You weren’t sure why. Maybe because it was a lot to take in all at once, after you’d convinced yourself that everything had all been an exercise in futility.

Then Steve smiled at you -- sweet and genuine, just like always -- and pulled your hand into his, giving you enough confidence to bury your fingers in his hair and bring him down for a kiss. It was passionate, full of months of pent-up frustration just like the one you’d shared with Bucky. Your body was on fire, burning with need and desire and everything you’d always wanted from the two of them.

When Steve pulled away, you looked up at him in a daze.

“Guess you didn’t read my note,” he said softly.

Your voice was breathy when you spoke again, “What note?”

“I asked you to hang around so we could talk. It’s probably still in your bag.”

Bucky snorted. “Why would she check her bag before she got back to her room?”

That was the same question you were about to ask, but when Steve shot him a pointed look, it all clicked into place.

“Steven Grant Rogers,” you said incredulously, taking a purposeful step away so that your back was pressed up against Bucky’s chest instead – the very same Bucky who slid his arms around you protectively, chuckling a little into your hair.

Steve’s face immediately flushed at your tone.

“I-- I didn’t mean--” he stammered. “I meant for privacy!”

You laughed at that, taking Bucky’s metal hand into one of yours and holding your free one out to Steve. It felt like a weight had been lifted off your chest; either that, or you were floating on air. Possibly both. “Well, I guess we’ll need some privacy, then, won’t we?”

The only other time you’d seen Steve’s face so beet red was when the first time you met him, and it was just as endearing then as it was now.

He was sweet. Bucky was, too.

They were yours.

Both of them.

(If you like my work, please consider donating to my Patreon or my Ko-Fi!)

#stucky x reader #stucky x you #stucky x y/n #stucky imagine #stucky saturdays #steve rogers x reader #steve rogers x you #steve rogers x y/n #steve rogers imagine #steve rogers #bucky barnes x reader #bucky barnes x you #bucky barnes x y/n #bucky barnes imagine #bucky barnes #request #completed request #point

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gibelwho · 4 years

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Top 5: Directorial Debuts

This Top 5 reviews Directorial Debuts, considering the film that was the opening gambit in a director’s career. The requirements for this list are straightforward - the films considered must be full length and had a theatrical run, so short films (although oftentimes a way into the business for directors) were not counted and neither were made for TV movies. Additionally, this list is considering films that were directed by a single person, so first films with co-director’s were not considered (although some fantastic films fall into this category, such as On the Town or Monty Python and the Holy Grail). The final consideration, although not a firm requirement, was that this first film was an opening artistic achievement that became a launching point for a notable and long career to follow.

Gibelwho Productions Presents Directorial Debuts:

5. Spike Jonze / Being John Malkovich

4. Rob Reiner / This is Spinal Tap

3. Pete Doctor / Monsters, Inc.

2. Alex Garland / Ex Machina

Rob Marshall / Chicago

Spike Jonze / Being John Malkovich (1999): This film was not only the theatrical directorial debut for music video savant Spike Jonze, but was also the first feature penned by the now acclaimed screenwriter Charlie Kaufman. Their appreciation for bizarre storylines and unique artistic sensibilities combined to make a mark on the cinematic landscape of Hollywood and opened the doors for both to careers that continue to tell non-traditional stories. Jonze had to contend with a confounding script, but managed to keep the audiences engaged with the twists and turns, and also tuned into the emotional journeys of his main players, including a representation of real-life actor John Malkovich himself. The film is filled with memorable visual sequences, including an office floor with cramped ceilings, John Malkovich’s point of view shot when ordering bath towels, and the incredible mind-bending sequence when John Malkovich enters the portal into his own mind, encountering a world filled with multiple John Malkovichs.

Rob Reiner / This is Spinal Tap (1984): Not only is Rob Reiner’s first feature a hilarious mixture of conceits with a generous helping of improvisation from comedic actors, but it also launched an entirely new genre - the mockumentary. To keep the documentary feel, Reiner produced a mix of shooting styles, including hand-held cinema-verite style, titles to introduce band members, creating black and white faux television “archival” footage, traditional documentary interview footage, and also capturing onstage theatrics. While most of the humor is in the actor’s improvised lines, the camera is not just silently observing, but also gets into the jokes and elevates the gags with visual commentary. With this film, Reiner transitioned from an actor to an established director and continued into a fabulous career that dipped into a multitude of different genres, producing several films now considered modern classics.

Pete Doctor / Monsters, Inc. (2001): While Toy Story was the original revolutionary release from the new animation studio Pixar (also with a first time director), Monsters, Inc. earns its place on this list because of the genius of Pete Doctor. The film was the fourth feature from Pixar, and the first to be helmed by a director other than John Lasseter. Pixar’s legacy (and now future, as he has assumed the role of Chief Creative Officer at Pixar following Lasseter’s exit for inappropriate behavior), was in safe hands with Doctor, who has consistently produced the Pixar films with the most unique conceits and beloved characters. This all started with his story development and leadership on Monsters, Inc., a film that achieved technical advancement with the realistic rendering of monster Sulley’s fur, but also one of the most breathtaking action sequences Pixar has ever envisioned, involving the hunt for little Boo’s bedroom door amongst a cavalcade of children’s doors, all swirling around madly in the warehouse storage space. Doctor’s first effort at Pixar produced a delightful tale, proving that Pixar could still herald the magic when the reigns were handed to other directors, and setting him up for more delightful classics to be directed.

Alex Garland / Ex Machina (2014): Alex Garland transitioned from a successful screenwriting career to directing with this astonishing piece of art - intellectual, challenging, visually stunning, and with a twisting plot that ensures the audience is on the edge of their seat throughout the film’s runtime. The screenplay was especially tight, as to be expected from a writer of Garland’s quality, but his work behind the camera was also incredibly solid, playing with the various textures of the setting’s remote mansion’s stone, wood, metal, and glass and also with the robot Ava’s combination of machine metal and human flesh. Garland expertly uncoils a new element in each conversation, scene, and session, slowly expanding the audience's understanding of the world and motivations of each character, until an explosive ending that revels in a woman taking control of her own destiny.

Rob Marshall / Chicago (2002): What are the odds that a directorial debut revitalizes the musical genre for a modern audience - and then goes on to win the Academy Award? Rob Marshall’s background as a dancer and choreographer masterly transferred to the filmmaking space - expertly conceiving the musical numbers (and entire film!), using all the tools at a filmmaker's disposal that a live theatrical experience cannot - camera composition such as close ups, crafting pacing through editing cuts, and matching sound to image. In the best tradition of Bob Fosse, newly minted director Rob Marshall set his mark upon the filmmaking landscape and brought back musicals as a viable avenue for the industry - a popular success at both the box office and amongst critical circles. Plus the film is so damn fun, with inspired performances by Renee Zellweger and Catherine Zeta-Jones as the two murderers on death’s row that just want to make it in show business. Each number tops the next and (with the small exception of Richerd Gere’s tepid singing and dancing skills) are executed with such spirit and razzle dazzle. And all that jazz!

Honorable Mentions:

Orson Welles / Citizen Kane (1941): For the movie that is consistently hailed as the greatest cinematic film ever to be made, it is quite amazing that it was created by a first time director who also cast himself as the lead role. After Orson Welles notorious stunt with the radio broadcast of The War of the Worlds (which caused mayhem as many in the public believed the play was in fact news outlets reporting actual happenings), Hollywood courted this untried director, giving him immense freedom inside the usually structured studio system. The result was a film that experimented with cinematography, editing, writing and narrative structure - all which have since been hailed as innovative leaps forward in the conception and construction of filmmaking. While the film at the time was a box office flop, Welles left his indelible mark on the industry after the promotion of his efforts by the celebrated French film critic and auteur theory supporter Andre Bazan in Cahiers du Cinema. The film can be a bit rough to the tastes of modern audiences, including the exaggerated performance style, but its technical achievements are not to be missed.

Frank Darabont / The Shawshank Redemption (1994): Another film that did middling during its initial box office run, but has since achieved the status of cult and critical favorite, came from the creative spirit of Frank Darabont, who adapted a Stephen King novella and, by sticking to his resolution to lead the film, was eventually given the chance to direct the feature. With a tight screenplay, phenomenal performances by Tim Robbins and Morgan Freeman, and cinematography by the masterful Roger Deakins - it flourished in the rental market and endured to become one of the highest rated films across many critical lists.

Andrew Niccol / Gattaca (1997): Another writer / new director’s debut contains provocative ideas and powerful imagery paired with striking production design. It is incredible what Andrew Niccol accomplished on a smaller budget, all in service of the story’s dystopian future that feels as though it could be only a few generations away from our own time, where genetics determine a human’s entire future and those who were conceived naturally are condemned to live as a lower caste. The human’s desire to improve their lot in life and explore the universe comes in direct conflict with how science can be used to create fissures in society, enabling human expansion to space, but also limiting a single human’s rights and liberties. Grand ideas and grand design are the drapery for a compelling human story.

Upcoming

Lin-Manuel Miranda / tick, tick...Boom! (TBD): Based on the first stage musical by Jonathan Larson, this will be Lin-Manuel Miranda’s first foray into the directorial seat. Since the debut of the smash hit Hamilton, his career has been expanding by leaps and bounds, but he has taken a studied, measured approach to stepping into the director’s role. Miranda cited one reason for signing on to the Mary Poppins Returns movie as a chance to study under the masterful Rob Marshall, receiving a front row seat to a masterclass from one of the best filmmakers to capture musical theater in the cinematic format. Miranda himself was part of a theatrical production of tick, tick...Boom! earlier in his career, so he is very familiar with the material (although the screenplay will need to significantly expand the set of characters from a modest three to include the many roles that have been cast). Unfortunately, at the time of writing, due to the pandemic, filming has shut down; but once they have resumed and the film has a chance to see the light of day on Netflix, I will be eagerly awaiting one of my most beloved musicals to come to life through Miranda’s nascent directorial vision.

#spike jonze #being john malkovich #rob reiner #this is spinal tap #pete doctor #monsters inc.#alex garland #ex machina #rob marshall #chicago

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nestofstraightlines · 5 years

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The Dæmon-Cages

I went to a preview screening of episode six of His Dark Materials,’ The Daemon Cages’, followed by a Q&A with the senior creative last night.

I’m not even going to give broad expectation spoilers for the episode above the cut (I’ll include a bit right at the end under the cut just giving a broad overview of whether I liked it or not).

As for the Q&A, it was very interesting.

The team were asked several questions (by a very positive audience) about themes and research; things like ‘how did you decide which of the many themes to focus on? Did you go back to the inspirational material of the books such as Milton and Blake?’ and I would characterise the answers as a slightly defensive ‘we just went back to the book’.

Call it confirmation bias, but for me that tallies with what I’ve perceived of the writing/creating flaws of the series.

Because what does that mean?

I’ve been going back to the book for 22 years now and unpacking more depths and more angles. It really did feel like there was a rejection from Thorne and series Exec Producer Jane Trantor that adaptation would involve unpacking something and repacking it into your own storytelling form.

Their tone was much more enthusiastic when it came to discussing detail: they talked about wanting to know exactly what every moment of Lyra’s day at Jordan would be, what she would do for breakfast etc. And that’s got merits; it can suggest nice images (I’m guessing this is where the idea of Roger bringing Lyra breakfast every morning comes from).

But for me, in general, it’s an approach that fits badly with Pullman as a source material. Pullman writes intuitively, discovering the story as he writes is.

At one point in Northern Lights he uses the metaphor for reading the Alethiometer that it is like climbing down a ladder in the dark, and trusting that, though you can’t see the next step, it is there. I believe that he was describing his writing process there too.

He writes indirectly, using negative space to let the reader infer a fact or an idea. For example, with daemons. We are told a little and shown a lot. Pullman is showing himself the story too.

I don’t believe Pullman knew when he was writing Northern Lights what Lyra would do for her breakfast every morning. But if the story had wanted to contain a scene set during her breakfast, he would have known.

And okay, different writing processes, whatever. But actually it is fundamental to the text and I think where the problems have crept in.

Genre storytelling can be broken up into two rough camps: character-led and ideas-led. The senior creatives of this programme, almost inevitably coming from a British TV background, fall into the wrong one - character-led.

Now both camps contain both things: if I call a story idea/s-led it’s not saying its characters aren’t important and good or vice versa. It’s about which is the ultimate point o fthe story.

For instance, Harry Potter is, for me, character-led. Its fantasy trappings are rather unpacked or picturesque dressing used to heighten basically mundane human interpersonal drama. Yeah, it’s good versus evil, acceptance versus discrimination, but those topics aren’t explored, they’re not a priority, they’re a situation to throw the characters into.

Where Thorne has worked in genre shows before, the same can be said. There is a specific situation, even a mission statement, but these are not shows constructed around telling an idea as story, but rather focusing on interpersonal drama. The premises are settings, real or imagined, which are already neatly packaged for the audience. They’re not about inventing fantasy, they are about using it to tell small-scale human dramas. Events serve nothing larger than character and relationship drama.

In Pullman’s His Dark Materials, character and relationship drama are a but not the greatest priority of the series, they are in service to broader ideas and themes.

That’s the other camp of genre fiction, where the fantasy is not a static setting used to heighten charater stuff, but an active agent used to tell a particular story.

Calling this camp ideas-led sounds like its an inherently grand sort of a category, and His Dark Materials is of course an example that is grand and important and epic and so on. But for a show to be ideas-focused, it doesn’t have to be a Big Important Theme with Big Important Execution.

Some ideas are ‘what is it to be human?’, some ideas are simply ‘whodunnit?’ or ‘what if a monster got into your house?’

Anyway.

Pullman’s HDM is ideas-led. He creates a world (and later worlds) of things we need to pay attention to. This is not Harry Potter – school, castle, wizards, you pretty much got it – this is unconstructed fantasy. And it’s not constructed for picturesque ends either. Pullman isn’t inventing this stuff because it’s independently cool or pleasing or whatever, or at least not only that. He is creating it to express a set of ideas through the medium of a story.

So story and world are perfectly bound together. And he understands the difference between convincing a reader and making your world CinemaSins-proof. It’s a story, not a world.

The series is over-invested in the details; over-invested in the tools, and misses what they are used to build in the book/s. Sometimes it even breaks what they are meant to build.

I think the failure of daemons is the biggest casualty of this.

At the screening the creatives talked about the challenge there, the unprecedented challenge of making a show in which every human character is accompanied by a unique CGI creation. They mentioned the impossible budget challenge this presented as well as the challenges in visual storytelling and presentation. I.e. even if one can afford to put a whole crowds of daemons in every wide shot it looks impossibly cluttered and like Doctor Doolittle.

And yes, of course, but it baffles – and frankly annoys – me that the imagination seemed to stop there. Or rather, the understanding of storytelling stopped there.

They talked about having spitballed pragmatic adjustments to daemons, such as making them be semi-invisible, flicking in and out of visibility. But in the end they ‘wanted to stay true to the book/s’. Again, I think we’re looking at a profound lack of understanding of what ‘true to the book’ even means.

Creatives more suited to the material would have found creativity borne of limitation. They would have had a deep and confident enough understanding of the idea they were dealing with to find the solutions from within their own storytelling field, to create daemons for screen in a way which worked.

It feels like this teams’ reaction to the challenge has been ‘to do our best and tell people they don’t understaaand it’s haaard when they complain we haven’t got it right’.

I’m sorry if that sounds harsh. But they took on this challenge and there’s a little hubris in that. I’m not sure what made them feel they were the people for the job here, but they’ve failed to convince me of that fact.

People have been telling fantastical and profound stories on screen for a long time before CGI became so photorealistic. And I think CGI has both a limiting effect on the imagination, and it encourages directors and writers with a limited sense of visual storytelling to imagine that they are equipped to deal with stories that they perhaps aren’t, because they can unthinkingly assign fantasy ideas to the ‘literalist CGI’ box.

I just get the feeling that none of the head creatives, as a mix of character-focused storytellers and details-people, really get what daemons are in a storytelling sense.

They mentioned that when they had conversations with Pullman, he advised them not to focus on daemons, that he novel included them only when they were important. And that’s true, and I can’t put words in Pullman’s mouth, but it’s my belief the TV series team misunderstood what he was getting at, and I’m basing that on stuff Pullman has said elsewhere (such as in his essays and speeches collected in Daemon voices) as well as my own reading of the book/s.

Daemons don’t appear important but the story is carefully constructed, without ever seeming to be on the surface, to explore the idea of the daemon.

It’s a practical issue too. You employ people to write and direct this stuff who are used to stories made up of human characters interacting in rooms, and they’re going to lack experience in showing stuff which is vital to this story, which includes the relationship between the human heroine and her shape-shifting animal-shaped companion, a giant talking polar bear, a city in the Aurora Boreales, fights with demons during a hot-air balloon fight and so on.

A lot of the stuff that matter in HDM isn’t just mundane drama in fantastical settings. The most vital emotional scenes include a girl interaction with a giant talking solar bear; the threat tot he bond between a person and their shape-shifting soul-manifestation etc

The human/daemon relationship is like a lot of things at different times and in different ways: human/animal, siblings, friends, parent/child etc. But it’s not a mundane human relationship clothed in light fantasy disguise. It's an idea and thus needs careful building for screen just as it did on the page.

Russell Dodgson, the head of VFX on behalf of Framestore for the series, talked about how fans always focus on daemons while there are so many more ideas in the book. ‘People love talking animals, I guess.’ He joked.

And OK, he was being off-the-cuff and deliberately glib, and in any case he’s not the writer and thereby not responsible for getting the overall imagining of daemons for this series right. But he’s so off the mark here in a way which helpfully sums up the misses of this team.

Daemons are not talking animals in the book and that is what the series has rendered them as through this lack of understanding that they amount to more than an emptily whimsical note.

EXPECTATION SPOILERS FOR THE DAEMON-CAGES:

... Having said all that; a really great episode! Best episode of the series yet.

It benefits from coming from a part of the book which is perfect for an episode of TV: it is very dramatic and climactic, while also being something of a great self-contained story in form. Lyra goes into a situation with very clear parameters of tension, fears, goals and a ticking clock. The production plays on all of those very strongly.

The weakest element of the episode is predictable given what the weakness element of the adaptation has been all along: daemons of course. As with last week my feeling is that while the show is so far from doing justice to certain ideas and moments it might as well be on a different continent, it finds enough strengths in other areas to stop the bottom dropping out of the episode.

The production design is absolutely incredible. It’s the boldest imaginative leap from the book so far. The staging of some of the events plays out differently due to a differently imagined Bolvangar and I adore the new approach. Again, I’ll have more to say when the episode has aired. I can’t wait to get into the detail of this!

#His Dark Materials #The Daemon-Cages #crit

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introvertguide · 5 years

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The Work of Robert Altman

I would like to start out by saying that I am not a fan of the work of Robert Altman with the exception of maybe MASH and Popeye. This is absolutely a personal opinion and it does not mean he is a bad director. It very well might be due to me not understanding his work. Maybe it is because I don’t understand something about myself. Most likely it is a mixture of both. Altman was a very prolific director in the realm of both television and film and many people that I respect greatly as film makers and film critics sing his praises. So I figure that the man deserves a closer look and maybe I can find out why I don’t seem to be able to enjoy his movies in general. I might just have poor taste. I want to at least figure out what makes him stand out and that way I can respect him as an innovator of the film medium. I do not have the time to become an Altman expert, but I looked him up on IMDB, Wikipedia, Britannica, and AFI. Then I watched a BTS short about him from the Nashville DVD, read reviews by Roger Ebert about Nashville, MASH, and Gosford Park, and finally watched about a dozen interviews with him and about him on YouTube. I can’t say that I have become a fan, but I learned some things that have convinced me of why he deserves to be held in such high esteem:

He refused to compromise for money: Altman earned his money in TV and felt lucky to have an opportunity to direct with the more open format of film. He was not the type to waste a chance so he filled his movies with satire and political opinions that were very antigovernmental in nature. Often, his films were a scathing indictment of war, politics, and the entertainment industry. In the film Nashville, a van drives around announcing his views against government interference and American politics. I don’t necessarily agree with all of his views, but he held steady on many occasions when he refused to cut out some of his more controversial scenes for reasons of politics or simple run time guidelines. Practically speaking, I don’t like this because I feel that his movies run long. I can respect that he stuck to his vision and that is exactly how he wanted it.

He was an actor’s director: Not a lot of writers seemed to have much nice to say about him because he was known for keeping his scripts open (changing dialogue on the spot and allowing his actors to improvise). This often resulted in rather mundane speaking amongst the actors that Altman would then refuse to cut from the film. This was also a problem for producers since they couldn’t really be sure what they were getting when they were investing in an Altman film. Critics like Roger Ebert loved to see a director that had a vision but still allowed their actors to shine. Actors loved that they were allowed to contribute beyond just reading their lines and the ensemble movies that Altman favored really encouraged the actors to work together and grow. Ebert said that an Altman picture felt like a great bustling party where everybody felt welcome. As a huge introvert, this sounds terrible to me, but I can see how many people would find this to be fantastic and welcoming.

He uses a lot of natural sounds and overlaid dialogue: A lot of directors use dialogue almost like a game of turns: call out and response with lapel mics. One person will wait for their turn or at least the voice of a single person will stand out amongst a crowd. Altman would allow actors to talk over each other or put the microphone between actors in an outdoor setting so every actor would compete with nature sounds making it difficult to catch every word. This makes for a highly realistic situation because movie dialogue doesn’t happen in real life. It just doesn’t work out that everyone is on the same page and will wait to take their social turn in reality. However, I really like movie dialogue because it is very difficult for me to keep up with large conversations in the real world. Again, I respect Altman’s dedication to crafting his movies around reality to strengthen the satire, but I watch movies to escape so that is not what I am looking for.

He loved ensemble casts and used wide shots to include everyone: One thing that I love to see in a movie is intertwining story lines when they are done well. Altman loved to use a familiar cast of actors with as many as two dozen major speaking roles that all interacted together. The stories are an intricate spider web of different tales that blend through the film with wide shots that follow multiple conversations that move across scenes. Altman would make this work by having the camera highly mobile with a constant use of zoom in and out. This can make the movie difficult to follow and the viewer needs to pay close attention. I am OK with this, however the improvising means that a lot of this dialogue is not important and it is hard to know where you should be looking and what you should be paying attention to. I really like movies that tell a complete story. Altman films are very open and share small aspects of the character so they need to be rewatched many times to really have any understanding of what happened. It is here that I must admit that Robert Altman is much more creative and has much more movie intelligence than me. That is fine, but trying to keep up can be a chore for me so I am not always up to the task.

The man loved his music: Maybe the only thing that I completely appreciate in a Robert Altman film, he was incredibly picky about his music and he worked every song into the film like a layer in a cake. A mile-high, thousand-layered cake. I don’t necessarily like every song in his films, but I cannot think of a song in an Altman movie that was not completely appropriate and integrated. For the few times that a song was jarring and seem to stand out, it was meant to be jarring and stand out. In this I can comprehend the genius.

Looking at it now, Robert Altman creations are like the progressive rock or the Jackson Pollack paintings of movies. When you have time and you are in the right mood, they can blow your mind. But if you are not in the right head space, it is an anxiety trip set to a cacophony that lasts way too long and is far to complicated. Maybe it would be more enjoyable for somebody who was baked (like progressive rock or Pollack paintings). Alas, I do not smoke so I will never really know. That’s OK. I will just try and enjoy a Robert Altman experience the best that I can when I see one. I know that there is genius there and I can wonder at all the complicated layers, but I will stick to simpler things when given the choice.

#robert altman #Nashville movie #70s #directing #introvert #introverted #film #movies #cinema #soundtrack #audio #ensemble cast

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gotboredwrote · 5 years

Text

Rings // JRD

Pairing: John Richard Deacon x Fem!Reader Word Count: 4.9K Style: One-Shot (prompt: “you can keep it.”) Warnings: Fluff (ahhh so much of it toward the end), one sexual implication in joke form Summary: Y/N is the groundskeeper at Ridge Farm and mainly keeps to herself, despite the loud presence the Queen boys present themselves with. When her usual organized demeanor falters lightly, one of the boys is there to help her get back in check. Permanent Author’s Note: To clarify, I write because I get bored. Nothing is meant to be professional in any way, nor is meant to offend, cause anxiety, cause anger, cause sadness, or promote disagreement among readers in any sort of (semi)permanent way. A/N: I finally had a day off from work, and I really wanted to write, but I had no inspiration whatsoever. So, thanks to the lovely @love-me-a-good-prompt (I don’t know your name otherwise I would give you that credit, too, hon!) and their amazing lists of writing prompts, I found the one I want to use for today! Not sure if you ever read the stories that are written inspired by your prompts, but if you do, I hope you enjoy! Didn’t carefully proofread.

Masterlist

Typically, you were never one to mind if someone needed to rent out your farm house for any reason. The extra money was always helpful, and you typically got to meet some interesting characters. You had gotten a call about a semi-small group needing to rent out the space for an entire month and you lightly buzzed with enthusiasm. The money would be fantastic this time around, and having more than one or two people use the lodge meant that you just might be able to get some help around your house and keeping up with the landscaping. The person who called you told you his name was James Beach, and that he was in the music industry. He would not be joining the people coming to stay with you, but he was able to give you all the information you needed regarding your new tenants. He started with their names, and then proceeded to summarize them with one jarring sentence.

“The four make up an up-and-coming band named Queen, and they want to record an album up there. Is that alright?”

A band, huh? That was a new one. You had gotten everything from vacationers not wanting to spend fortunes on a hotel to honeymooners, to even that one time you had someone hiding from the law. But you never really talked about that – it makes you a little scared for your own safety. But that is beside the point. A band had never stumbled their way to your little farm, and you accepted Mr. Beach’s offer without even thinking about asking him if they would be bringing everything they needed. Typically, you never really had to provide anything for your guests, except the actual house they stayed in. Naturally, all these thoughts cascading through your mind evoked some panic, so you decided to call Mr. Beach back to ask him a bunch of questions that you had not asked originally.

Ring… ring…

“James Beach, how can I help you?”

“Mr. Beach? Hi again, this is uh, Y/N Y/L/N from Ridge Farm.”

“Oh, Ms. Y/N! I didn’t expect to hear from you again. What do I owe the pleasure?”

“Well, actually, I was doing some thinking about the group that will be coming to stay with me.”

“You’re not retracting the offer, are you?”

“Oh gosh, no, sir! I just normally only have to ask a few questions over the phone, but I’ve never actually had a band stay over before. I just had a couple other questions I wanted to run by you before their arrival to make sure I’m as prepared as possible. I know you must be a busy man, what working with rock stars and pop stars, and the like, but would you happen to have a few minutes now for me to ask a few things?”

“Ask away, my dear. My next client isn’t in for almost an hour.”

“Wonderful. Um, so I know the date the band is arriving, and I wrote down that there are four members. Is there anything specific I should know about any of them?”

“Well, Freddie is basically a drama queen that lives for the local gossip and a fancy cocktail. Mimosa in the morning kind of guy. John is shy and reserved, and if you give him cheese on toast and a pack of cigarettes, he should be content. Wouldn’t hurt a fly. Brian is reserved and intellectual, but isn’t afraid to argue right back with someone if they need someone to defend them. Roger is a loud mouth, but harmless nonetheless. Might attempt to make you swoon for him, so just pay attention to him. He wouldn’t hurt you, just watch his antics. He’d also be happy with a carton of cigs. Is that okay for a basic introduction?”

“That’s perfect, Mr. Beach. Um, moving on. I have enough bedrooms and space for them, and I always keep food and drinks on hand, so I’ll make sure to buy John some cheese and bread. But one thing I don’t know is what they need for their music. I assume they’ll be bringing their own instruments and stuff, right?”

“Correct.”

“So, they are aware that this isn’t an actual studio, right? Like, I’m out in the middle of the countryside with minimal amenities. Just the necessities. I only have one space I can think of that they could use a recording studio.”

“Whatever it is you have will work for them, trust me. They’re an eclectic bunch. Be ready for some bickering, love.”

Jim was a very kind soul, and if the boys he managed were anything like him, you felt that you were going to have no trouble with them. You had a few other small things on your mind that you ran by him and got answers that suited your needs. After the phone call, you looked at the notes you had jotted down, ending on the date that the boys were scheduled to arrive. You only had two days to get what they needed, but that was plenty of time. You just had to remember a handful of things; clean up the basement and make up the boy’s rooms, buy some cigarettes for those that wanted them, and pick up some fresh cheese and bread from the market for John.

One thing you had forgotten to ask Jim was what time the boys were slated to arrive, so you made it a point to get up early with your chickens and hens like usual, and stay on the property all day. You had a peaceful breakfast on your porch, watching your chickens interact with one another, calmed by the quiet clucks they made. Most people found them annoying, and always made it a point to scream at you about it in some way despite the fact that you warn all potential guests about them. You, however, took comfort in having another living thing around. Your family all lived in town, and there was no significant other in your life. But you were always happy. None of it mattered. You always got to see your family when you travelled into town, but they respected your choice to remain on the property full-time. The rest of your morning and all of your afternoon was spent mindlessly cleaning or daydreaming at different spots on the farm, not really thinking about the possibility of chaos entering onto the property any minute. You walked inside, ready to prepare yourself a quiet dinner. As soon as you set your pan on your stove-top, the all-familiar sound of tires on dirt in the background over the quiet hum of your radio. Another thing to make you feel less alone when there were no other tenants on the property, a gift from your parents. Making your way through your porch door and down onto the grass, you saw the van parked in a spot it made for itself and you saw four men climb out of the back while the driver turned off the car. You walked half the distance between the houses and the car and paused until they were turned in your direction to greet them.

“Evening, gentlemen! You have impeccable timing – I was just about to cook dinner for myself, but now I’ll make six portions and you can all come join me! You can bring your belongings in my house for now, and after we eat, I will show you all to your respective rooms.”

With that, you walked the other half of the distance and approached them, all of them smiling fondly at you, except for one. He did not look happy at the arrival of your presence, but you attempted to not to pass any judgement until you got to know them. You went to pick up a piece of luggage in order to help them, when a younger looking, long-haired, skinny man approached you.

“I got it, you don’t have to help.”

His voice was a quiet, and slightly higher pitched than you imagined it would be for someone of his height. It was cute.

“I know I don’t have to, but I want to. It’s hot out, and I don’t want you guys breaking out into sweats before you even start playing.” You smiled sweetly at him, not really sure which member you were talking to yet, but he did not fight back. Making you assume it was not Roger or Brian. Freddie or John, though, that was still a toss-up.

Once all five of the men who would be staying on the property were inside, you told them that they could sit and chatter in your living room watching television, come and sit in the kitchen while you cooked and talk, or wander around the farm seeing and feeling the calmness settle around them. All of them, to your surprise, elected to join you in the kitchen. Either these were the most polite and distinguished of rock stars in the world, or they felt awkward just walking around your property. Either way, you were thankful for the company. Your kitchen table had one chair on either of the shorter sides, and benches accompanying the longer sides. Three of the men sat on one of the benches, and the other two took the single chairs. You never felt anxious in front of new tenants, so you just started talking to them.

“If I may, I have a few things I would like to tell you guys before I leave you to make your music,” looking over your shoulder at them while getting dinner started. “Oh, I also hope you all are good with homemade spaghetti and salad for dinner, everything is from scratch, including the pasta.” The one who glared at you the minute he got out of the van continued to stare at you, seemingly disapprovingly, while the other four smiled at you, patiently waiting to hear what it was you had to say. While you waited for the water to start boiling, you turned around to face them, getting your first real look at the men.

“So, normally, one of the first things I like to do is introduce myself and give the story of the little old farm to my new tenants. And I like to go over the boring stuff like the few rules I have and traditions I keep. If you would all be so kind as to oblige me, I would like to begin with that, and then I can leave you all alone to eat your dinner.”

You waited for a response, an auditory one, mainly, but all you got in response was more soft and small smiles and daggers from the one man. You decided that that was your cue to continue.

“Well, you should know that my name is Y/N, and I have lived on this property my whole life. Ridge has been in my family for the past four generations, and it fell onto me to keep the place going. Our family didn’t intend for it to be rented out, but extra money is always useful, and plus, living by myself out here, it’s nice to have some interesting company every once in a while, even if I don’t interact directly with them all that much. Anyway, the other house on the property is where you all will stay. Six bedrooms, so you have choices, three bathrooms, a fully-stocked kitchen, some lounge rooms. Everything you could need. Plus, I made sure that the basement was ready to go, which is where I assume you will be spending most of your time. I won’t be bothering you too much, unless something important comes up and I need to inform you all of something. I typically don’t inform my guests when I’m running errands, because I have enough faith in the people that stay to not want to break into my home. Otherwise, there are separate phone numbers for each house, so feel free to phone me if you have anything you need to ask me. Otherwise, the only other rule I have is don’t trash the place.”

You could hear the stove behind you start to boil, so you turned back around to toss the pasta in, and you began to heat up the sauce, as well. Once you were situated with that, you continued to talk to them over your shoulder.

“Continuing on, a couple small things you should know. I never mind if you want to me come cook your breakfasts, lunches, dinners, or if there is something specific you want to make and you don’t have it, I can run errands for you. I will never impose myself on your meal time or work time, and I will not drop over uninvited unless you specifically give me permission to. For the month you are here, the house is yours, not mine. Um, what else… Oh! If I ever need help with something on the farm, whether it be yard work, something with the chickens, or maybe running a particularly large errand, if no one is busy, I wouldn’t mind some help. It’s perfectly fine if you don’t want to or can’t, though. I completely understand.”

You turned back around to check on the stove, and once everything was stirred, you turned to face the boys one last time.

“I think that’s everything! I didn’t mean to talk your ear off, I just like to get formalities out of the way so you can start on whatever it is you wanted to do while you were here. If there is anything –”

“God, could you just shut your mouth and continue cooking us dinner? I would like you to do the thing that you just told us you would do.”

You stood in a stunned silence. The man’s words searing right through your chest and penetrating your heart to the point where you physically felt pain from the harshness it beat at. And from the looks on all four of the other men’s faces, you could tell that this was something they had worried would happen.

“Jesus, Paul, you really don’t know when it’s your bloody turn to talk, do you?” The blonde, seated at one of the end chairs, sounded intense and exasperated already at the man.

“Paul, she only has about two rules, and one of them is mutual respect from the tenants. You already broke that, and now I feel as though I need to apologize on behalf of all of us.” The taller man with dark curls spoke sternly at the man who you now knew was named Paul, and then turned to address you much more quietly. “I’m sorry for him, love.”

“It’s… it’s okay, guys. I’ll just keep making… dinner. Then I’ll take mine to my room.”

“Please don’t.” The man from earlier with the long hair hurriedly spoke at you. Before his outburst, he had hung his head with a small grimace adorning his face. Hearing the defeat in your voice prompted a change that was clearly unusual for the man, considering his face went a little red at the recognition of his own outburst. “I’ve… liked hearing you talk, and would like to get to know you more.”

“I’ll second that,” spoke the curly haired man. “Plus, we haven’t properly introduced ourselves yet.”

“Allow me to help you with the rest of dinner, darling.” The last person who had not spoken finally spoke up, and it was the man with dark hair to match the curly man’s, but straighter.

The four seated at the table chatted amongst themselves, three of them clearly ignoring the one named Paul, while the fifth helped you with dinner. He appeared like he was holding back on saying something, and you had barely expelled any air when he cut you off.

“I’m so sorry about Paul. He… we’re trying to rid the group of him, but he just won’t leave. It’s almost like he’s a groupie, but worse. And I wish I could tell you what his problem with you is. He just automatically became villainous when we arranged to stay here.”

“It’s not a problem, really. I’ve had worse guests.” Your mind flashing back to that one criminal.

“I sincerely hope you don’t think we’re all like that, darling, because we are far from it. Also, my name is Freddie, by the way. The blondie is Roger, curls is Brian, and our shy friend is John. Maybe you could impress them at dinner by remembering their names.”

You turned your neck to look at Freddie, who was now beaming at you, and you smiled back with a small giggle. You both turned your attentions back to dinner, and finished cooking. You brought plates for everyone at the kitchen table, and proceeded to strike up some conversations between the boys while you ate. You mainly got to know each other, and you asked them a little bit about the album they were recording. They had remembered the part where you said you would not intrude without their specific permission, and without even acknowledging Paul, they told you that you could come to the studio at any point if you ever wanted to hear some live music. You were really thankful that these guys did not seem to be rambunctious, besides in the little brotherly way they seemed to have. You had also made it a point to recite their names when you first sat down, like Freddie told you, and you got them all right. Brian and Roger just looked smug when you got them right, while John tilted and turned his head slightly, trying to hide the flush that washed over his face. Not one of embarrassment, just one of pure shock that someone cared enough about him to remember his name. Once dinner was finished, you told the boys to just throw their dishes in the sink. Paul took it a little bit too literally and you were afraid that one of your plates had been shattered. All six of you then made your way to the guest house where the boys would choose their rooms. Once rooms were decided on, you helped each of them to their rooms, ending with John. He chose the smallest room, as if to make your job easier once he left. You told him he could have had whichever room he wanted, but he was content with the smaller one. You were not one to argue. You reminded him that if there was anything he needed at any time to just give you a call, and you were about to walk out when he stopped you.

“May I tell you something?”

“Of course.”

“I happened to notice you wear rings.”

“Oh yeah,” you fondly looked down at your hands. “Most of them were passed down from my parents, a couple have been gifted to me from tenants over the years.”

“They suit you. I wear a few myself. Just noticed that we have that in common, sorry if that came out as strange. I don’t want you to think I’m strange, because I promise I’m-”

“John, really, it’s okay. I like that pay attention to small details like that. It shows you aren’t superficial.” John just stared back at you, at a loss for words at how well-spoken and sweet you were. “I look forward to getting to know you this month. I hope you sleep well.”

“You too, Y/N.”

About a week had passed by, and many breakfasts and jam sessions later, you decided it was time for you to do the first official surface cleaning of each of the boy’s rooms. They had already been in the studio for over an hour when you made your way over around ten in the morning, and you stood quietly in the doorway listening to them work for a few moments. When they finally settled down, you took the initiative to wave at them, so as not to ruin a recording they were working on. When you were sure it was safe to talk, you spoke up.

“Hi, lads. Just wanted to let you know that I am going to be floating through the house today doing a surface cleaning. I won’t rummage through any of your belongings, but I’ll be dusting and scrubbing the surfaces of the rooms you are staying in. If I happen to be in your room and you need it, or the bathroom you’ve been using, just let me know and I can leave. I’ll see you for lunch in a little while. Remember, sandwich bar today!”

As you were leaving, you heard Paul shout back that he would never let you live to see the next day if you rummaged through his room, so you just shot an okay sign through the doorway on your way out to let him know that you heard him. And you started cleaning. Once you noticed it was time for lunch, you started to make your way back to your kitchen to start the prepping. The boys had made it a habit of eating in your house instead of their kitchen, and only opting to use their kitchen if they wanted snacks or got hungry working through the night. You had told the boys that they could make their way to your kitchen around 1:30pm each day if they wanted lunch. John usually left a little bit earlier than all the others so he could help you out with meal prepping. He felt that it was the least he could do to make up for inconveniencing you, which you tried explaining to him on multiple occasions that he was the farthest thing from an inconvenience. Before heading over to your kitchen, John stopped in his room to freshen up a little bit after a particularly energetic session, and he caught a glimpse of something shiny underneath his dresser. He knelt down to pick it up, and he immediately recognized it as one of the rings you always wore. If he remembered right, you wore it on your thumb. It was just big enough, he noticed, that it fit on his pinky, so he placed it on his hand as a reminder to give it back to you. He glanced at the ring one last time, the strange feeling he got from wearing it slowly subsiding, and finished refreshing himself before making his way over to the kitchen of your home. Normally, no matter the time of day, John and the boys could always expect soft music to be coming from the small radio you had in your kitchen. The only time you turned it off was when you went to sleep. Otherwise, it was on all the time. Having the background noise eased your nerves if they ever flared up for any reason, and it was always nice to have a relaxing atmosphere fill the air of your home. Except that this time, all he heard were small groans of frustration, not accompanied by any music. Clearly, that was not your attempt at singing. He walked into your house with a quiet knock on your door, one that you never heard. Then he made his way into your kitchen and knocked a little louder on the door frame, hoping he would not startle you. Thankfully he did not, and his heart started to beat a little bit quicker when he noticed the look of relief wash over your face when you realized it was him that walked through the door.

“John! You have impeccable timing. You told me you have a degree in electronics, right? Do you think you could help me figure out what is wrong with my radio?”

Oh. You only needed him for his help. What else would it have been? He scolded himself for thinking it could have been anything else. He sat down at the table right next to you on one of the benches, and peered into the inside of the radio.

“Hmm… this is pretty standard wiring, so my guess is something came loose, or one of the wires is fried. Let me take a look.”

You watched John tinker with the radio. You had not sat in on many of their rehearsals, not wanting to interfere or receive an unwarranted and snide comment from Paul. But one thing you immediately noticed was that the way he handled a piece of electronic equipment was completely different than his bass. He was slow and careful with the radio, but he was confident and more fluid with the strings of his bass. It was interesting – how one person could be so different regarding two things. Your mind wandered a little bit, thinking of all the possible scenarios his hands and fingers could work in. You felt your face heat up, so you turned your attention back to the radio, hoping John had not caught you lost in your thoughts. John had been examining the wiring for about three minutes when he finally had his ‘aha’ moment and told you what had happened. Or rather, the radio spoke for itself when it came back on.

“Think I fixed it.”

“Oh, thank you John! Thank you so much!”

You leaned over and kissed him on the cheek, while simultaneously grabbing the sides of his face to pull him close. You felt him grab your wrists lightly in response, and you heard a small hum of satisfaction come from him. If any of the band was there, they would have pointed out how out of character that was for their friend. But you had only known them a week, so you had no real way of knowing that. When you pulled your face away from his, you noticed a new ring on his hand, one you had not noticed before. Yet you recognized it for some reason. Like you owned that ring.

“John, is that my ring?”

“Oh, y-yeah! I found it in my room just now before I came over here. I meant to hand it to you right when I walked in, but you caught me off guard with the radio. Here, let me take it off-”

“Don’t.” You stopped him by placing your hand over his. “You can keep it. It suits you, Deaky.”

You had continued to smile at him sweetly, and he just started to return it when you heard your porch door wing open and a ruckus of men swarmed into your kitchen. You and John turned to look at them, trying to hide the moment you just shared, to no avail.

“Well, what has our little Deaky gotten himself into now?” Freddie’s voice cut through the noise.

“I don’t know about now, but it looks like Y/N is the goal.”

“Roger! Don’t say that!” Brian had secondhand embarrassment for you, and the four men standing in your doorway could see the bright reds adorning your faces.

You would forever be grateful and owe a debt of gratitude to the man who called himself James Beach. By the end of Queen’s stay at your farm, you had earned a decent chunk of change, and a boyfriend to top it off. Ever since John had fixed your radio, you and him seemed to be attached at the hip. He wore the ring you gave him every single day, and eventually got the courage to ask you out on a date. You just had to get you guys there since he was not familiar with the area. You never minded driving him – he always looked so at peace watching the countryside scroll by. It pained you the day the boys left, but John made you a promise. Anytime he passed through the area, or needed a place to stay that was even remotely close to Ridge Farm, he would come see you. And he kept up on that promise. He came to visit more than once a month, and would sometimes stay for up to a week at a time. You had that fear in the back of your mind every time he would leave again that you imagined all people in relationships with people in the media had; was he cheating on me? But every single time he came back, he always brought you letters from the boys detailing their travels, and they all made it a point to write about how much John talked about you. There would be discussions of happy thoughts, whines of missing you, and the occasional under-the-breath mention of a special dream he had. It always reassured you in his faith. That, and how he would treat you and smile at you every time he came over to the farm. The other indicator is that he would always bring you a new ring. Everywhere he went for shows or recording sessions, he made sure to pop in a local shop and buy you new rings. They varied in design – some were simple bands, others elaborately engraved, others with stunning gems. It showed you that he never forgot where your relationship blossomed. That day on the farm when he found your ring. You were not a very material person, but you never turned down a ring from John. Especially not on the day he got down on one knee with a stunning, traditional diamond ring to give you.

End Note: I wanted to use a gif from Ridge Farm, but I couldn’t find one and I wanted one with John’s iconic™ rings in it.

Permanent Taglist: n/a

Specific Story/Character Taglist: @ziggymay

#john deacon #john richard deacon #john deacon x reader #john richard deacon x reader #queen #fanfiction #fanfic #bohemian rhapsody #roger taylor #freddie mercury #brian may #jim beach #jim miami beach #miami beach #paul prenter #ring #john deacon rings #john deacon wearing rings #ridge farm

56 notes · View notes

disabled-queen-hc-blog · 5 years

Note

I read somewhere that living with Epilepsy can be quite isolating. How about John shying away from social events as he’s embarrassed about his condition but his family and the Queen boys make sure he’s included in everything that they do so he doesn’t feel left out

“Lads, I feel a holiday coming on,” he said as he entered the room, hands on his hips.

Brian and Roger looked up from their books while John set down his screwdriver. Roger broke the toaster. Again.

“Holiday?” Roger said, eyes sparkling. Any chance to be anywhere but his flat was a good opportunity, if you asked him.

“Yes!” Freddie clapped, grinning. “A holiday! I found this lovely little place. Robin Hoods Bay. It’s so quaint and has so many things to do without, uh, a lot of money needed,” he finished, flicking his fingers for flourish.

Brian frowned. He was thinking of all the planning he’d inevitably have to do because god forbid Roger and Freddie not be in the moment. And not to mention a fishing town didn’t sound too fun. He opened his mouth to say something but Freddie cut him off.

“There’ll be horses there,” Freddie said, a mischievous glint in his eyes.

Brian set his book down, getting up. “Well, I’m sold. I’ll start packing.”

Freddie cackled, setting his attention to John, who was oddly still and quiet. He said that sometimes if he just didn’t move or say anything, people would forget he was there. Not Freddie.

“And you, my love? Has my presentation sold you yet or shall I keep going?” he said.

John sighed when Freddie in fact, saw him. He slumped in his chair with a shrug. “Dunno. Sounds nice ‘n all but I don’t know if I’m um, in the mood to travel...’n all...”

John was a bad liar and everyone knew it. He grimaced, rubbing the back of his neck, hoping this one time it wasn’t so obvious. When Freddie sat down in the chair next to him, face etched with worry, he once again knew he was caught.

“What’s wrong, Deacy? You afraid of the budget? I assure you this is no five star establishment. We can have fun while not going into debt, you know!” he said, a hand patting John’s knee.

John gave him a small forced smile, shaking his head. While, of course, he was concerned about the money, that wasn’t his reason for wanting to stay. He started to wring his hands, biting on his lip.

None of them could really understand the struggles John went through. Sure, Brian was a nerd, Freddie a refugee and Roger a...car fanatic...? But none of them were freaks. Not like he was.

The fear John could produce in a matter of seconds was astounding. The moment he dropped with a seizure, hell always broke loose. Screams and cries and running and flailing. All because of him. And people never take too kindly to being frightened. Upon waking up, he got scorn, anger, debridement instead of comfort.

Do the boys know anything about waking up to the sound of someone saying you haven demons in you? That you’re a blight to God? No. No, they did not.

So, through the years, John had made a world for himself. A very small range in which he was comfortable venturing in to. A select few places where he knew he’d be safe if he seized.

It was isolating. It was tedious. But it was safe.

And this Robin Hoods Bay was not any of the above.

He trusted the other 3 to take care of him, but they weren’t his baby sitters. One of them would run off somewhere, leaving him alone around people who didn’t understand. And if he felt a seizure coming on, he’d have no idea what to do. Neither would the people around him.

The thought made his heart lurch, hugging himself as he shook his head. No. No. He’d stay home.

Freddie frowned, seeing the mental conflict written all over John’s face. He whispered light enough for neither Roger or Brian to hear. “John, what’s really the matter?” Perceptive as always.

John looked around the room, seeing how both Roger and Brian were fiddling with things, pretending to not listen. He flushed and whispered back to Freddie, “Follow me.”

Once in the stairwell, John crouched down, hugging his knees to his chest. When he spoke, his voice echoed. “I don’t like going to new places,” he said, eyes on the ground.

Freddie, who stood in front of him, stooped down to his level, head tilting. “You don’t?” he asked, his tone soft.

John shook his head in the negative. “No,” he mouthed, his disposition growing miserable. Freddie stayed quiet, knowing an explanation would come once John gathered his thoughts. John spun his ring around his finger until the words came to him, until he got the courage to tell the other why.

“I just- uh- like...Ugh. It’s my seizures, Fred. It’s like I’m on house arrest. I hate going to place because I have no idea what’s going to happen. If I seize, will I wake up to someone’s wallet shoved down my throat? To some catholic spraying holy water on me? To a gawking crowd? What if I bust my head open? And what if,” John’s voice cracked, “I wake up all alone?”

He felt so vulnerable saying all of that out loud. John wrapped his arms around himself tighter, avoiding Freddie’s tender stare. Right now, he just wanted to go home.

“I get so scared ‘cus I don’t know. I can’t trust anyone. And most people can’t trust me. I feel like a freak. S-So, I can’t go to the bay with you guys. I, um, can’t. I can’t,” he said, clearing his throat to keep any tears from shedding.

The untold story of epilepsy was how ostracizing it was. Nobody wanted to hang around someone who could seize at any minute. And as an epileptic, you couldn’t have faith in the strangers around you to have your best interest in mind. So you stay home. And you’re always home. It’s the only place you won’t be judged.

Freddie took in a deep breath, nodding. It took some time for John’s words to process, shattering his heart all the while. All he could say at first was, “Deacy, I’m so sorry,” as he reached out to squeeze his shoulder.

John shrugged him off, saying, “It’s fine. I didn’t expect you to think of this. And there’s nothing you can do about it.”

Freddie’s mouth popped open, nearly screeching, “John! I’m your best friend! There is absolutely something I can do about this. The 3 of us, actually. Whatever you need.”

John felt an uncomfortable rolling in his stomach, his chest going tight. He hated going out the most. But in second place was undivided attention like this. It felt too much. Like he’d choke under Freddie’s loving gaze. He stood up, brushing off his jeans.

“I..need to go home,” he said, before dashing down the stairs.

There was nothing anyone could do without having to act like an aide for him. They could party it up at the bay for all he cared. He was going home. And staying there.

♚

Freddie closed his eyes, inhaling deeply as he stretched out his arms, taking in the smell of the bay. “Everyone thank me for picking out such a nice place,” he said, chuckling, looking back at the others.

“It’s a lovely place, mate. Already saw a few horses,” Brian said, more interested in looking in the direction of the stables than the ocean.

“The prices on the pub we just passed were amazing! I’ll be there tonight if anyone needs me,” Roger said, thinking about all the cute birds that might be there later on.

“Well, I can certainly smell the horses,” John said, an little evil smirk on his face.

“Oh, hush you,” Freddie said, batting a hand at him before turning back to look at the rolling waves. “You all go off and do whatever you’d like. Mama is staying at the beach,” he said, starting to walk down the path that led to the beach, without so much as a goodbye.

Immediately, Roger clung to John’s side, looking at him with big eyes. “Be my buddy first, okay? While Brian goes and tries to fuc- pet the horses, we can go to the fishing shop, yeah? They’ve got souvenirs there, I think,” he said, tugging at John’s arm. John let himself be tugged, trailing after Roger who didn’t let him go.

This was the system they devised. The buddy system. As long as John was always with one of the 3, he felt significantly more comfortable going around the little sea town, unafraid of what could happen during a seizure. The boys by that point were professionals and had John’s undying trust.

John was free to float between the three or even force one of them to accompany him wherever he wanted. It wasn’t babysitting. Just friends hanging out and looking out for each other.

That’s how they sold the pitch to John anyways. It only took him a week to agree to it.

By day two, the system proved itself worthy. While taking a tour through the old church (his idea), John felt a familiar tingle in his head. With Brian right besides him, things went quite smoothly. Brian helped him down to the brick floor and kept everyone away during the seizure. When John woke up, all he saw was a mountain of brown curls and a smiling face. “You did fantastic, Deacy!” he heard.

And perhaps, seizing in a church wasn’t the greatest of looks, but John never felt so safe.

Even in his confused state, he smiled back.

#john #epileptic!john #Anonymous

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luninosity · 5 years

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For @thebestpersonherelovesbucky: here’s the full text of the fake film review I wrote yesterday, for Steadfast...

Steadfast Combines History and Heart Into Triumph

Jillian Poe’s latest directorial effort, Steadfast is at once familiar and unfamiliar: a Regency romance set against the Napoleonic War, full of ballroom scenes and lavish costumes, crackling with politics and passion. It’s (extremely) loosely based on the 1940s novel of the same name, which in turn was based on the historical Will Crawford’s surviving letters and notes, and the romance is real in more than one way—assuming you haven’t been living under a rock, you’ve seen the stories about on-set melodrama: Colby Kent and Jason Mirelli hooking up, being injured, falling in love, and from all reports being blissfully happy.

Leaving the behind-the-scenes drama aside, the question is: is it a good film?

The answer is unequivocally yes.

It’s more than good. It’s a brave film, in the best ways: not only in telling a historical gay love story—and it is very, very gay; Jillian Poe and her cast don’t shy away from sex scenes—but in the raw emotion and power of the storytelling and the relationship. It’s the kind of film that gets remembered as a landmark: what good filmmaking can do. And it’s worth seeing, not only for the attention to period detail or the reminder that gay people (and black people, Indian people, and others; we see an impressively diverse London, especially among Will’s Home Office fellow recruits) have always existed in history, but for the sheer emotional experience. Steadfast is a romance, unashamedly so, and it wants you to fall in love, and you will.

The casting and the script are spot-on, to start.

Jillian Poe has her favorite stable of actors, so some familiar faces won’t be a surprise. Colby Kent, also a producer, and given co-writing credit with Ben Rogers, stars as Will Crawford—Rogers and Jillian Poe have independently confirmed that Colby did on-set rewrites, which means most of what we see is likely his. We’ve discussed Colby and the industry and uncredited script work at length back when that news broke, so here I’ll just say that Colby is a better writer than any of us realized—good at knowing and utilizing the source material, but also paring down, choosing the exact right word for each moment, giving his fellow actors dialogue that sounds effortlessly natural. Odds on a Best Adapted Screenplay award or two? Pretty high, I’d say.

Speaking of Colby Kent, he’s always been quietly excellent on screen, often underrated (that Academy Award loss to Owen Heath should’ve gone the other way, no offense to Owen, who is also generally excellent), and equally capable of adorable clumsiness or aristocratic decadence. You could argue that playing young and wealthy and vulnerable and gay is exactly in his wheelhouse and hardly a stretch, and you might be right—but you would also be wrong.

It’s an award-winning performance. It’s a master class in complex character acting. It’s compelling and dramatic and the core of the film, at least half of it, more on which later.

Will Crawford—in ill health, a natural scientist, the Regency equivalent of a rich kid and only heir to a vast estate—might have come across as weak, or naïve and fragile, or in need of rescue. And Colby Kent’s good at fragile and lovely and desperate. But Will’s also a literal genius, determined to be useful, and willing to do anything—including spycraft and affecting the tide of battle and the fate of nations—to protect the man he loves. Colby Kent never lets us forget that, and the character and the story become richer for it. He’s almost at his best in moments without dialogue—I say almost because Colby, as ever, has flawless timing when delivering lines, both the heartbreaking and the wryly sarcastic. But his eyes and expressions say so much that every close-up could be a page’s worth of emotion-filled speeches, except not, because they’re not necessary. He’ll definitely get the Academy Award nomination; if there’s any justice, he’ll also win. Though, having said that, my personal vote might go to the biggest surprise of the film, just because I was so impressed and delighted. But we’ll get to that in a minute.

The supporting cast is also superb—Leo Whyte, as Jason’s second-in-command, embodies complicated and compassionate loyalty, someone who’d follow his captain into battle and also sympathize with his captain’s difficult love, given his own socially fraught marriage to a poor Irish girl (Kate Fisher, having a marvelous time and some of the funniest lines). John Leigh gives his performance as a conflicted would-be mutineer some delicate nuance—he still admires his captain and ultimately makes a painful personal choice. Jim Whitwell epitomizes workmanlike British gentlemanly acting—though we get a hint of the dirtiness of his profession, and of his sympathy for Stephen and Will, which adds layers to his performance. And young Timothy Hayes is worth watching as Stephen’s favorite optimistic midshipman, with deft comedic timing in the midst of storms and the stalking of a French ship.

The crown jewel of the supporting cast, of course—and the shoo-in for Best Supporting Actor—is Sir Laurence Taylor, notoriously picky about taking on new projects at this point, but here fully committed to his role as Will’s father, the aging Earl of Stonebrook.

It’s easy to say that Sir Laurence is a legend, but sometimes we forget what that means. In this role, we remember. He delivers words that cut right through his on-screen son, and by extension the audience; but his anguish and grief are equally genuine: he’s a man who loved and lost his wife, who doesn’t understand his only son and heir, who clings to the need to protect the family name and estate and future, while faced with the dual truths that his son prefers men to women and in any case might die young—of illness, if not from daring the world in Regency spycraft. The Earl is awful and vicious and cruel to Will—but watching Sir Laurence stand at his son’s bedside, or come to the window and silently watch his son depart for London…those moments will make you hurt for him despite yourself, and it’s a virtuoso piece of acting.

Speaking of brilliant pieces of acting, let’s talk about that biggest (and I don’t mean just the physique, though that can’t be missed) surprise of the film: Jason Mirelli.

First, a confession: I, like quite a few people, felt some skepticism about this casting choice. That’s not to insult action films as such, and Jason Mirelli’s been a consistently reliable action-hero lead. But it’s a very different genre, and Jason’s previous filmography hasn’t, let’s say, exactly indicated much dramatic range. (Having said that, I’ll admit to unironically loving Saint Nick Steel. Is it ridiculous? Yes. Is it hilarious absurd so-bad-it’s-amazing fun? Also yes. Does it have Jason Mirelli in an artistically torn shirt chasing terrorists through a shopping mall while protecting small children and wearing a hat that makes him the reincarnated spirit of Christmas? Hell yes it does. We watch it every year.)

If you, like me, were on the fence but willing to be convinced…

I’ll say it right now: Jason Mirelli should be on that Academy Award ballot alongside Colby Kent.

He’s the other half of the heart of this film, and the second he steps down from that carriage in the opening shot, he’s commanding the narrative. He’s captured the physicality of a wartime ship’s captain, but more than that, he’s captured the layers of character. Every motion of those shoulders, those eyes, that jawline, all means something—as do the moments when he chooses not to move and be still. Take the moment when he looks at Will in the morning-after scene, which is just a look and a few beats on camera, but Jason’s able to convey Stephen’s love, and wistful frustration over their different social classes, and genuine affection, and fear about Will’s illness, and surprised joy at having someone to wake up next to. It’s a hell of a role—romance, war, leadership on a ship’s deck, the shock when Will falls gravely ill, the emotion of the ending, which I won’t spoil here—and Jason’s a revelation. He’ll have his pick of roles after this, and he’ll deserve the Oscar nod, though it’s unlikely he’ll win—the Academy likes to reward previous nominees and is notoriously skeptical of popcorn-flick pedigrees, and Jason might need to prove himself once or twice more. But he shouldn’t have to. This is enough, and it’s fantastic to watch.

Part of that epic transformation should be credited to Jillian Poe’s direction. With Steadfast, Poe demonstrates her skill as a director and her ability to handle multiple genres—she started out, you might remember, with lighter romantic-comedy fare, often also with Colby Kent—and her ability to get quality performances from her actors, every single one, every single time. I also wouldn’t be surprised at her picking up a directorial award or two; it’s an ambitious project, and also a labor of love, which shines through in each frame.

The costuming and sets are as plush and attentive to detail as you would expect from an Oscar-bait period piece that’s a Jillian Poe production—that reputation for perfection’s deserved. The score is, if not anything out of the ordinary for a Regency setting, handled with delicacy and love—the music plays into the mood of each scene unobtrusively and expertly.

Fans of the novel might have some minor critiques involving the looseness of the adaptation, in particular the ending, which—let me offer a minor spoiler warning, no detail, but stop reading if you want to know nothing at all—adds a final sequence that provides a happy ending for Stephen and Will. Is it book-accurate? No. But I called Steadfast a brave film earlier in this review, and this ending is an act of courage: imagining a happy ending for gay men in history, demanding that their love story end well and with joy. (And Colby Kent personally met with the novel’s famously reclusive author, so for all you purists, this change was made with permission.)

Those stories matter. Steadfast as a film matters. Go see it. Fall in love.

#character bleed #i write fic for my fic #meta #headcanon #extras #thebestpersonherelovesbucky #esaael #turtletotem #nocturymiszczu #ahnjunae-blog #who am i forgetting to tag

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takadasaiko · 5 years

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Houseguest Chapter Nine

FFN II AO3

Summary: Tony trusts Cap with a story he doesn't often share and they receive bad news in regards to the stolen alien tech.

Chapter Nine: Consequences of Warnings Ignored

Sneider hadn't lied. The old man had warned him that his ribs were going to feel worse before they felt better. Sometime around three in the morning the painkillers had worn off just enough for the pain to slice through the trippy dreams he had been having and wake him up coughing and sputtering. He rolled to his side, curling in on himself as he did his best to will his body under control. His best wasn't cutting it. He was going to hurl, but he had no idea how to get himself up and out of bed, much less to the bathroom.

"I gotcha, Tones," a familiar voice said, and he squinted to see a trash can being held ready for him. He dove for it, emptying what little he had in his stomach until there was less than nothing left. He sank down, draped against the edge of the bed and focused on breathing for a long moment.

He could hear Rhodey shuffling, taking the trash can to the bathroom and running water in it. Tony couldn't muster the energy to move, just listen, and he heard his friend's footsteps returning. "Just like old times, huh?" he rasped, the joke sounding weak even to him.

"Yeah, I don't remember old times including as many broken bones," Rhodey huffed, moving back into his line of sight. It looked like he'd pilfered a pair of sweatpants and an MIT hoodie that Tony thought he actually remembered stealing from Rhodey years before. Well, he supposed that was fair.

"Cracked ribs, not broken," he corrected as his gaze slid past his friend to a chair not too far from the bed.

"Oh yeah? How's that foot?"

A blanket was slung over the back of the chair that wasn't usually there. "Rude. Did you sleep in a chair? I have guest rooms you know."

"Yeah, six of them. When do you ever have that many people stay over?"

"I like to have options."

Rhodey snorted. "I can't hear you from the guest bedroom."

"You worried about me, Rhodes?" Tony teased, but the other man's expression was more serious.

"Always these days, Tones. How're you feeling?"

Tony gave a dramatic groan. "Like a building exploded with me inside of it about thirty-six hours ago."

"That good, huh?"

"Oh yeah. That and I took pain meds on an empty stomach."

"Could be why you woke up like you did."

"Leaning in that direction, yeah."

Rhodey reached forward, the back of his hand pressed against Tony's forehead like he was checking for a fever and looked satisfied with the results. "You should -"

"I apologize for the interruption," JARVIS' voice cut in, "but I've just received a report that the transfer vehicle and police escort that was taking Ms Mira to a new holding facility was attacked."

"Just now?" Tony demanded. "It's the middle of the night."

"Probably avoiding morning traffic," Rhodey mused.

"How bad, J?"

"The reports are still coming in, but there appears to have been an explosion. Three confirmed fatalities currently, but medical is on its way."

Tony felt his chest tighten, his anxiety levels on the rise and he tried to think through them. He needed more information. More data. He couldn't do anything unless he had all the facts. "Explosion? Where?" He shifted, steeling himself.

Rhodey turned a half panicked look on him. "No no no. You stay down."

He had barely started the struggle to sit when two hands pushed gently against his shoulders, forcing him back against the pillows. "I have to help -"

"You're not in any condition to go help anyone right now."

Brown eyes met a darker set. "I tried to warn him."

Rhodey's determination shifted into an expression Tony couldn't quite place. It wasn't pity. He knew better than that, but where Tony felt the sudden onslaught of guilt at not being able to make Ito see reason and that failure costing likely good cops their lives, Rhodey seemed to join him somewhere on that spectrum of pain. "I know you did, buddy," he answered softly. "Listen, try to get some more sleep. You know I have enough contacts to run something down. As soon as I've got something I'll let you know. Okay?"

He still felt the overwhelming need to act, to make sure that this didn't happen again, but Tony found himself nodding and accepting Rhodey's admittedly reasonable proposal.

"Right. I'm gonna go wake Rogers up and -"

"Why?"

Rhodey snorted. "Because if someone isn't here you're gonna faceplant into the floor when you try to get up the second I'm out the door. C'mon, man. I know you." He reached forward, his touch brief on the side of Tony's face. "Get some rest. I'll call it in as soon as I've got it."

"Promise?"

"Promise." He turned towards the door and paused. "I know you won't believe me, but this wasn't your fault, Tones."

And then he was gone, leaving Tony to loose a trembling, pained breath as he squeezed his eyes shut, his imagination filling in the gaps of JARVIS' limited report.

___________

Colonel Rhodes was convinced that if someone wasn't watching Tony that he would try to slip out of the house as soon as Rhodes was gone. It seemed like a stretch until Steve poked his head into the presumably sleeping man's room to find it empty. A quick search through the bedroom and a call into the adjacent bathroom suite confirmed it.

Panic threatened his sleep deprived mind. Five minutes. He'd been responsible for Stark for five minutes and he'd lost him. Fantastic.

Just as quick as the panic had threatened, Steve pushed it aside. It wasn't useful anyway. Never had been. No, he needed to think this through. It hadn't been long since Rhodes had left, and as slow as he'd been moving a few hours before when they had all turned in for the night, he couldn't have gotten dressed and out the door yet. Maybe the garage? Or….

He stopped. "Jarvis?"

"Yes, Captain?"

"Where's Tony? Is he still in the house?"

"Mr Stark is in the kitchen," the AI answered briskly and Steve was off.

Down the stairs and into the kitchen, there was no immediate sign of the missing Stark. The coffee pot was on and brewing, but the lights were dimmed.

"Rhodey tell you what happened?"

Steve startled just a little at the unexpected voice from the room just beyond the kitchen. He followed it to find Tony curled into a chair, that old robe wrapped around him, and a tablet in hand. He flicked at it and the video feed he was looking at projected out so that Steve could see the mangled mess of vehicles left behind from the explosion.

"Two local cops are dead, one US Marshal," Tony said, his voice raw sounding and there was none of his usual enthusiasm.

"How?"

"Still waiting on more intel, but it happened when they were transferring our woman. If I were to take a guess, I'd bet she found a way to smuggle a piece of the alien tech with her and set it off."

Steve looked him over as subtly as he could. He looked exhausted and in no small amount of pain still. "Maybe you should get some sleep while we wait? It could be a while."

"I can't sleep."

"Just -"

"No."

The snap took Steve off guard and he stiffened. Tony must have seen the reaction because he loosed a long breath. "Sorry. I'm just…. I need to figure this out. There could be more out there. Until we figure out who these people are and if they got any more of it…" He squeezed his eyes and massaged the bridge of his nose. "I can't let anybody else get hurt."

You only fight for yourself. That's what Steve has told Tony when they'd first met. He'd seen footage, he'd read reports. He had thought he knew him, but all he'd seen was the image Tony projected for the world. This man - bruised, beaten, and heartbroken over the lives he couldn't save - somehow seemed so much more real than the mask of bravado that he usually wore. Steve took a careful seat across from him and pursed his lips thoughtfully.

"What?" Tony prompted tiredly.

"You said you created the Iron Man suit to make sure your tech didn't hurt anyone."

"Yeah," he managed, not sounding like he liked where this was going. Steve would have to tread carefully.

"SHIELD's files are… thin on what happened in Afghanistan, but that's where it started, right?"

Tony managed to look even more uncomfortable than before. "What are you asking, Cap?"

"What happened there? What made you choose this?"

Tony looked at him for a long moment and Steve thought the dark haired man might tell him to mind his own business. His reasons were his own, and when Tony uncurled and stood, he was pretty sure that was what he was expected to take away. He didn't move, but watched as the injured man limped slowly back towards the kitchen. "You coming or are you gonna make me shout?"

His invitations left a lot to be desired, but at least Steve was certain that's what it was. He followed, doing his best to keep his movements casual and unhurried. Tony looked uncomfortable enough with the subject as it stood.

The other man moved stiffly to the coffee pot, his voice soft and distant as he spoke. "I was there for a presentation. The Jericho Missile. The convoy escorting us back to base was hit and I was taken. Spent about three months there and built the suit to get out."

"That's about where the SHIELD files end. I just… I guess I'm asking what got you from there to being willing to get blown skyhigh."

Tony snorted. "I could ask you the same thing." He turned to lean back against the cabinets and sip at his steaming coffee. "There was a man I worked with. A… mentor. He was close with my dad. I found out he was selling my weapons to terrorists. This -" he taped the ARC reactor set into his chest - "keeps the shrapnel from my own bomb away from my heart. They were using those weapons on local families to keep them under their thumb. They ripped airmen to pieces with them to get to me. I swore I wouldn't let anyone use one of my designs like that again."

"The early missions that you ran," Steve breathed. "The ones with near to no information on them."

"They were to destroy my stolen tech."

Steve loosed a breath. That had been the missing piece. It made more sense now, and he knew he'd misjudged the other man early on. He knew it now more than ever. "I'm sorry."

That seemed to startle him out of the increasingly brooding mood he had been sinking into as he spoke. "Huh? For what?"

"The things I said before New York."

Tony ducked his head a little. "Yeah, well, you turned out to be more than just some hopped up super soldier so… live and learn, right?"

"Guess so," Steve murmured, the corner of his lips quirking up.

If Tony was going to offer anything further, he didn't get the chance. There was a loud chime that must have been the doorbell and he shot a questioning lol towards the front door. "J, what've we got?"

"I'm sorry, sir, but I'm unable to get a clear visual of the individual for ID recognition."

Steve frowned. That didn't sound good.

"Show me what you dohave," Tony answered irritably.

An image popped up on the tablet he'd left on the kitchen island and Steve leaned in for a closer look. The man on the porch was slender, medium height, and very good at making sure his baseball cap shielded his face from view. Tony pushes a breath out through his nose. "I'll be damned. I think that's Ito."

Now that he said it, the figure did resemble the police captain. "What would he be doing here?"

"Won't know until we talk to him. Jarvis, let him in."

___________

TBC

Notes: For a story that I never actually meant to write, this thing has grown like crazy....

And it's almost done. I just wrapped up the writing for chapter 10 and I think, at most, there may be 12 chapters all together. Watch it somehow turn into 20. That'd be just like my traitor brain to add on another arc to prove me wrong. :P

For those of you that celebrate, I want to wish you a very happy Chunukkah and a Merry Christmas! I hope everyone has a safe and fun holiday, and here's hoping that I can get the next chapter up by New Year! :D

Next Time: Danger follows Ito to Tony's doorstep.

#MCU fanfiction #Tony Stark #Steve Rogers #James Rhodes #Iron Man #Captain America

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iamtheroger · 5 years

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Queen Index Part 1: The Video Directors

I finally got round to starting this pretty big operation. I start off pretty simply with all the video directors of Queen music videos or concert videos. Just to keep this manageable to me I’ll only cover 1973-1995 (with some exceptions along the way). I’ll do this chronologically and then make a masterpost of all the different posts I’ve made.

Mike Mansfield - Director of the first promo videos of Keep Yourself Alive & Liar shot at Brewer Street in London on 9th August 1973.

Bruce Gowers - Was first used as the director of the Bohemian Rhapsody video, shot on 10th November 1975 at Elstree Studios in London.

Faced with a difficult situation, the group improvised, setting aside a budget of £3,500 and hiring director Bruce Gowers for a four-hour (might have been three - yogurtbattle) shoot that took place without storyboarding or much of any rehearsal — and found Gowers rolling tape while the band members kept one eye on the clock, intent on getting out of the shoot in time to make it to the pub before last call (they did - yogurtbattle). (x)

(BTW, I’ve seen Roger say that they left on 2 AM that night to take the bus to their first concert, but the date of the video is widely reported as 10th of November so one of those has to be wrong and right now I’m going for Roger’s memory :P)

He also directed the video for You’re My Best Friend, no exact date. Now there is a bit of confusion over this video, and this is the closest I’ve found, from Ratty’s book, that makes sense:

So it was recorded it a disused barn at Ridge Farm but not in April (as widely reported), but in mid-June (that’s when they rehearsed there). Makes far more sense as the single was released in mid-June as well.

Next up he directed the video for Somebody To Love shot both at Wessex Studios and Hyde Park in London, the former on 4th November 1976 and the latter on 18th September 1976, during the concert. Lastly, on 18th February 1977 he flew out to Miami (not as sometimes reported at Nassau Colisseum in Uniondale) to direct the video of Tie Your Mother Down in the Sportorium. The reason he never worked for Queen again afterwards, as told by him:

Gowers worked with Queen three more times before falling out with late singer Freddie Mercury because he was booked for another job. The pair had a “shouting match” in a London restaurant. “Freddie felt betrayed,” he said, “but didn't understand I was not under contract with them, and as a freelancer took work where I could get it. We never spoke properly after that.”

He did went on to work with (amongst others) Rod Stewart, the Rolling Stones, Genesis, Bee Gees, Elton John, Michael Jackson & Prince.

Derek Burnbridge - The director of We Are The Champions, shot on 6th October 1977 at New Royal Theatre in London. This was the first time the band called on the fan club for cheap extras and the band gave an impromptu short performance afterwards. It is unknown why the band never worked with him again, but he did went on to direct videos for The Police & AC/DC.

Rock Flicks - Now, this sounds more like the name of a company than a person to me, especially as the Queen videos are the only videos found related to it, but anyway ‘Rock Flicks’ was behind the Spread Your Wings/We Will Rock You video shoot, shot in January 1978 at Roger’s new home in Surrey, the one where Freddie was drunk and everyone cold. It is therefore unknown who really directed this videos.

Dennis De Vallance - This guy worked on several Queen videos, which is odd as the band didn’t like any of them. Not like the band which is normally so perfectionistic. Anyway, he first directed the Fat Bottomed Girls video on 28th October 1978 at the Convention Center in Dallas, where Queen were playing. At the same time, the performance footage for Bicycle Race was shot, but the band hated that so much only the footage of the nude cyclists was used in the original cut. This footage is also credited to Dennis as director, and was shot on 17th September at Wimbledon Stadium in London. He later returned to direct the Love Of My Life promo video on the 25th April 1979 in Tokyo. At last, he made a good Queen video when he directed the Crazy Little Thing Called Love one, on the 22nd September 1979 at Trillion Studios in London.

Interesting side note on the Crazy video: it was choreographed by Arlene Phillips, who also choreographed the We Will Rock You musical!

Now the next one is a bit tricky, his name is written as both Jorgen Kliebenst and Jörgen Kliebenstein (it certainly isn’t the first one), but I wonder if this might be the same guy as Hans-Jürgen Kliebenstein, as that is the only person with a similar name I can found on Google who is also working for TV - Anyway, this guy, whatever his name is, directed the Don’t Stop Me Now video shot at Forrest Nationale in Belgium before Queen’s concert there on 26th January 1979.

Keith McMillan - The guy that managed to fall down an orchestra pit at the Rainbow Theatre in London while working on the video for Save Me. Because the director injured himself, the band had to return to the video shoot a week later, on 22nd December 1979 at Alexandra Palace. This guy had worked before Queen with Kate Bush and Paul McCartney (who might have recommended him to them as he was the one behind the Concerts for the People of Kampuchea that Queen performed in the same month, which Keith also directed). He later worked with Blondie and Simple Minds.

Brian Grant - Directed multiple Queen videos, with mixed successes. His first was the video for Play The Game at Trillion Studios in London on 29th May 1980. Two years later he also shot the ill-fated videos for Back Chat and Calling All Girls back-to-back, in an unknown location in July 1982. He worked with various famous acts in the 80s, amongst them Kim Wilde, Peter Gabriel, Spandau Ballet, Whitney Houston and Van Halen.

Daniella Green - Hey, a female director! She directed the video for Another One Bites The Dust, shot on the 9th August 1980 in Dallas at the Reunion Arena. Nothing else I could find about her, sadly.

Mike Hodges - Just after Queen finished work on the Flash Gordon soundtrack, they shot a video for the theme song with Flash Gordon director Mike directing it - I’ll come back to him when discussing Flash Gordon. The video was shot in November 1980 at Anvil Studios and Roger had to take a break from recording his solo album to shoot it. Mike also shot the video for Body Language (yes, that one) in April 1982 in Toronto. Here’s Mike talking about that one:

Your promo video for Queen's song Body Language was apparently the first film banned by MTV. It's certainly the most erotic piece of work you've made. How did you and the band arrive at the concept? While recording the music for FLASH GORDON, I became friendly with all the members of Queen. They were fantastic fun to work with. In fact, shortly afterwards, I shot the movie’s music video. Then Freddie Mercury approached me to do the same with a song he’d written, Body Language. There’s the eroticism you talk about - in the song itself. The concept was Freddie’s and I was only too happy to capture it on film. We completed it in a Toronto studio after a truly exhausting 24-hour (okay, that makes the lack of enthusiasm by the band even more understandable - yogurtbattle) shoot! (x)

David Mallet - Now, there’s a guy that should have his own page, so much has he done with Queen. He came to work with Queen as he had worked with David Bowie previously. His first video was the one for Under Pressure, and he went on to do the videos for Radio Ga Ga, I Want To Break Free, Hammer To Fall, Who Wants To Live Forever, I Want It All, several of Freddie’s solo videos, and some work with Queen since Freddie’s death. Other people he has worked with include Joan Jett, Def Leppard, Frankie Goes To Hollywood, Tina Turner, AC/DC and INXS.

Radio Ga Ga: Shot on the 22nd & 23rd of November 1983 at Shepperton Studios in London.

I Want To Break Free: Shot on 22nd March (the audience part), 23rd March (the drag part), 1st April (the ballet part rehearsal) and 5th April 1984 (the ballet part performance) at Limehouse Studios in London.

Hammer To Fall: Shot on the 25th August 1984 at the Forrest Nationale in Brussels. Footage from the 24th was also used for audience shots, as not enough fans showed up.

Who Wants To Live Forever: Shot on 16th September 1986 at a warehouse in Tobacco Wharf in London (by now demolished). Of course Roger was drunk here.

I Want It All: Shot on 22nd April 1989 at Elstree Studios.

The producer on several of these videos was Jacqui Byford, mentioned in the liner notes of The Miracle.

Tim Pope - Right. This guy had previously done the oh-so-great Man On Fire video, so Queen decided to hire him to shoot the video for It’s A Hard Life. The shoot ended up lasting one week, by far the longest of any Queen video. It was shot in Munich of course, in mid-June 1984 at Arri Film Studios. Now it wasn’t just Pope, the band was getting a bit out of hand with their videos then anyway, which probably had other reasons as well. He also worked with Soft Cell, The Cure, The Cars, Hall & Oates, Talk Talk, David Bowie & Paul McCartney (there’s a bit of an eighties theme going on here).

DoRo, The Torpedo Twins or Rudi Dolezal and Hannes Rossacher - The other prominent Queen directors, from one of their favourite cities Vienna. Responsible for even more Queen videos than David Mallet, especially in Freddie’s dying days:

One Vision: Shot in August 1985 in Munich, where Queen where recording for A Kind Of Magic. Also directed the shot documentary surrounding the video.

Friends Will Be Friends: Shot at JVC Studios in London on 15th May 1986, another Fan Club call.

Breakthru: Shot in June 1989 on the Nene Valley Railway in Cambridgeshire. Starring of course Debbie.

The Invisible Man: A video for Roger’s song shot on Roger’s birthday! Not very surprising then that Freddie had those glasses on for Roger’s birthday party. Apparently there was also a birthday cake wheeled in during recording and large amounts of champagne were drunk! Date of course was 26th July 1989, location Pinewood Studios in London.

Scandal: Again at Pinewood Studios, this one was shot on 27th September 1989.

The Miracle: Shot at Elstree Studios on 23rd November 1989. Freddie was portrayed by Ross McCall, who went on to become a professional actor, playing most famously in Band of Brothers.

Innuendo: This one was actually a collaboration between Rudi Dolezal and Jerry Hibbert (mentioned in the album notes). Jerry is an animator who has also worked on Fireman Sam. The video was made in December 1990.

Headlong: Shot at Metropolis Studios in London on 23rd November 1991 and another unknown date late 1990.

I’m Going Slightly Mad: Shot on 15th February 1991 at Wembley Studios in London.

These Are The Days Of Our Lives: Shot on 30th May 1991 (Freddie’s last video) at Limestone Studios in London. Brian couldn’t attend as he was in the US promoting Innuendo, but he was later edited in, with his parts filmed in June.

The Show Must Go On: The band wasn’t in this as Freddie has become too ill, but an edited montage was release as the video in October 1991.

No-One But You: Filmed at the Bray Studios in London in 1997.

After Freddie’s death Roger and Brian also made appearances at DoRo parties in 1992 (Hannes’ 40th) and 1998 (Rudi’s 40th).

Saul Swimmer - The amongst Queen members not very popular director of We Will Rock You, by now known as Rock Montreal, filmed on the 24th and 25th November 1981. It was renamed to its current name after Queen bought out Saul in 2006, after spending 25 years trying to get of him basically.

Gavin Taylor - The director of Live At Wembley, filmed on 13th July 1986. Also directed Live At The Bowl on 5th June 1982. Sadly not with us anymore.

Zsombolyai János -The director of the Hungarian Rhapsody, filmed on 27th July 1986 in of course Budapest.

That was it for the first part of the Queen index!

#queen index #this is way too long #I hope anyone even bothers reading it #queen

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