dontuba

[leseigneurdufeu]

Why did you hate Titanic?

It's not historically accurate. Not even counting my father's "hey that car only came out two years after the wreck" comments, many characters were not who they had been historically, I don't remember much but I have read at some point an article about Cameron being sued by the descendants of one of the guys because he had been a hero that night and many survivors wrote in their journals that they owed him their lives or something and in the movie he was a coward who killed two people to get out of the boat or something? Can't remember exactly but it's about the gist of it.

*sparkle emoji but i'm on desktop* sexual liberation! *same* this girl is so GREAT for ditching her whole family to go sleep with a guy she's known for two days top.

on that note, the general nudity and sex. I can get why it would be a very strong message to send to the fiancé that she's been drawn naked by her lover but a) they didn't have to show it onscreen, like Kate Winslet naked and all, I get showing the drawing if needed b) the whole "no no he was a real artist we didn't hook up when i came back naked he painted me" -> cue to the scene where he draws her and then they go out and hook up in someone's car (like wtf, gross, unsanitary, not your car, etc) c) kinda devaluates real nude painting (have a friend in art school who did some it's all about professionalism not a kink or foreplay like in the movie!)

the general message of "the poor people are happy, funny and nice VS the rich people are stuffy, snoby people who are unhappy, sexists pigs EXCEPT for this one new rich woman who is funny and nice but also challenges norms at every turn because otherwise she can't be a good person". At least that's how i perceived it.

to get back to my 2), because I feel like I need to expand on that one: the plot could have been good except instead of having a real choice between conformism, marrying a fiancé who is neat and nice but there's no passion and running away with the wandering artist, she has no real choice because the fiancé is the devil in the flesh or almost, he blackmails her family, he beats her up, he's got shady dealings with shady people (the heart of the ocean? can't remember if it's mentionned in the movie but this shit is a FRENCH national treasure stolen during the revolution of 1789-1790's and which was not found ever again so this guy has shady dealings) and he doesn't hesitate to try to kill Jake. So really despite all of Jake's flaws (like idk not being able to provide a future for her, being full of himself -but he's poor so it's ok! yay!- being a cheater and a liar, etc) she doesn't have a choice. And even where she could have had one (like... again, not sleeping with him after knowing him for two days, not using him to make her family rage, etc) the plot just makes her into no better than her.

On the note of the heart of the ocean, it is to french treasure hunters what bigfoot is to cryptozoologist. It's exactly as if Nessie had broken the hull instead of an iceberg and then it was never adressed again. Idk it just makes me vibrate in madness.

i mean yeah the whole plot, the nudity, french jewels reappearing out of thin air, the rich vs poor manichean dichotomy, did i mention the fact there are two actors (Theoden and the guy from the Flash) in there so it kinda broke the immersion but that's not on Cameron...

Oh, yeah, I remember.

The freaking "could they have both hold on to the door" debate?

It doesn't have any reason to happen.

Because Jake could have been on the door and rescued without a problem if Miss Rose here had not left the lifeboat where she was already seated to stay with him. Her stupidity (which, yeah, youth and all but when it has such consequences on the plot and it's not even adressed seems like they just didn't notice when they wrote it) costs the life of her lover!

The only way it would have been redeemed to me is if she really suffered the consequences after that. But we just learn that she leaves her family behind without telling them she's still alivle (which... fine, they're not the best. but still...) and fast forward eighty years, she still has the gem so we don't know how she had the money to live on her own after cutting ties with everyone? the big bad guy just kills himself in an unrelated accident 15 years later, and everyone dies death that are either stupid (killing oneself or again the fucking DOOR) or anticlimactic (of old age in someone else's boat, and to quote downton abbey to die in someone else's house you've got to seriously lack manners)

Also I don't like diCaprio's face in his young phase. I had a highschool friend who was always hyping him and all and I was like "meh he's not that good looking" and so idk maybe he's got a beautiful face no one could resist and that's why everyone's so stupid or enamoured or both around him in the movie but it really didn't work on me.

[huihuiheart]

Goretober D31: Halloween House of Horrors- NCT 2020

NCT 2020 + Gender Neutral Reader

Warnings: sirens, werewolves, hybrids, vampires, fallen angels, ghosts, zombies, demons, devil, creepy doctors, mad scientists, serial killers, fangs, mildly suggestive themes.

Word Count: 4,651

Note: Hendery is in this despite the current situation. That part was written long before anything happened. I haven’t included him in the tags, since I know that is important and will not help clear the tags. Still I put this out. If the situation doesn’t resolve I’ll consider editing this piece, depending on how much time I have and so on. If it does resolve I may consider adding him to the tags.

“Hi! Welcome aboard as part of the NCT House of Horrors this year. I know it seems a little early for you to be here, but we have so things to get in order before we can open the haunted house to the public. That being said I’ve arranged this list of things we need that I’d like for you to get. I’ll text it to you along with directions on where to look for them.”  Your new boss informs you and soon enough your phone dings,

~1 New Message~

- 3 Sirens

-2 Hybrids

- 2 Werewolves

- 2 Vampires

-2 Fallen Angels

- 2 Ghosts

- 2 Zombies

- 2 Demons

- 1 Devil

- 1 Creepy Doctor

- 2 Mad Scientists 

-2 Serial Killers

Your brows furrow as you look over the list and the map that your boss had texted you before looking up at them again, “Oh so you need me to find actors for the house then?”

Your new boss practically rolls with laughter at your question, shaking their head, “ No silly. The reason why our house is always the best, is because we don’t work with actors, we use the real thing. I’d be careful too the werewolves can be especially feisty around some of the others. That map should have fairy accurate locations from where they are and as long as you’ve got the badge I gave you on you should be fine! If you run into any problems just look into the manual I gave you, you should also find starting rates of pay for each of them in there as well. Good luck!” 

With that your boss is back inside the house closing the large double doors shut behind them, leaving you on your own with the task of collecting together what you thought a few moments ago were nonexistent beings. Looking over the locations on the map your boss had given you, you try to determine the most logical path to use to get everywhere. It meaning that you were starting with the sirens, likely one of the most dangerous ones you’d be dealing with. Yet, the coast came up before anything else, and so that seemed like the most logical starting place. 

The ocean not seeming so keen on you being it's latest visitor as the sky filled with dark clouds, only occasionally brightening with a crack of lightening only to return to darkness as waves crashes ashore. Your breath shaky as you step closer soon hearing voices mingled in with the waves, signaling that you've found what you were searching for. Though they still managed to startle you.

"Well what do we have here? Such a pretty human all alone. That's not safe for you." A voice calls from the side the man it belongs to shaking his head a little and sending droplets flying from his still damp hair as two other dripping men hung out behind him.

Your hand shakes slightly as you point out the badge to them, "I-I was sent here to hire some sirens for our haunted house. Would you three be interested?"

One of the other men chuckles as your voice trembles and you try to shake off your tremors to flip through the manual to find what you were to offer them.

The third man snickering slightly before speaking up, "Don't bother precious, we've worked there before we know the pay. If you're gonna be the one there with us then I'll accept at least. I'm Renjun. This is Jaemin and Mark.... I'm sure we'd all love to join you."

"G-Great I still have to find the others for the house is it alright if you head there in your own?" You inquire assuming they knew the way if they'd been before.

"I mean we could, but that wouldn't be a horrible thing to do considering you're going to be going to unsafe places alone then. We'll come with. Offer you some help." Jaemin offers with a soft smirk that had you gulping as your spot the sharp teeth. Maybe this job hadn't been the best idea....it was too late to back down now though. Next you would have to make your way to find the hybrids. Assuming from the wording that any variety would be fine for the house.

"So precious where are we off to? What do we have to find?" Mark asks as he slinks in closer, arm slipping around your middle and causing you to tense a little at being so close to someone so potentially dangerous.

"We need two hybrids they should be between here and the werewolves." You let him know as you looked over the map, earning a soft hum in acknowledgement.

"We know where to find them." Renjun lets you know, taking the lead as Mark and Jaemin stood at either side of you, even if Mark kept his arm to himself now. You were somewhat relieved they weren't using their abilities to trap you, but you were sure that didn't mean they wouldn't use their teeth or anything if they felt like it. Yet, your boss had assured you protection somehow so at this point you'd just have to trust that.

"We're getting close to hybrid territory now, we'll have to keep an eye out, we'll probably run into some soon. Or more of they'll find us." Jaemin is already glancing around for any signs that someone might have caught onto your being there.

Things so silent that you felt as if your heartbeat echoed through the forest, a hazy fog only making your vision worse. Though the sirens with you didn't seem too fazed by it. Though they did freeze as a low growl sounded behind you all, it feeling as though the deep rumble of it vibrates through your soul.

"Just what are you all doing here? Did the little human really think an escort of sirens would keep them safe through our territory?" The voice practically mocked, whoever owned it staying well hidden between the trees still, leaving you only vaguely aware of the direction he was in.

Mocking laughter coming from the opposite direction as suddenly as the first voice came, "Unlucky for you sweet thing sirens won't stop us one bit."

"Show them your badge." Mark whispers to your trembling form, your hands shaking as you move to hold up your badge for them to see.

"I-I'm just passing through to search for some hybrids to come work at our haunted house. The sirens are coming with to the house as well." The laughter rings out again in response to your stuttering voice. The two hybrids stepping into your line of sight as they still move to circle you as if sizing your group up. One a black panther hybrid, with piercing eyes, his long tail flicking behind him. The other a spotted hyena hybrid, explaining the laughter, his sharp teeth much more noticeable than the panther's as he seems to still be chuckling softly at your group.

"Oh so you are untouchable sweet thing....if going to the house means being around you maybe we'll take up your offer. I'm Jeno and the hyena hybrid is Taeil." The panther licks his lips as he eyes you up once more before nodding to the other hybrid.

"Don't worry we won't bite~ Unless you ask is to that is~" Taeil adds with a playful snap of his teeth before giggling almost....almost.... innocently. They made you uncomfortable quite in the same way as the sirens had, but you knew that searching for other willing hybrids might take a lot of time and delay your getting back and getting away from them. So you decided to put up with it.

"Fine, you two can be the hybrids I guess....so next we need to find two werewolves." You determine looking over your list and map. Jeno scoffing and rolling his eyes at your mention of werewolves, but the way his tail bristled is what truly have him away even if the words wouldn't be admitted by the hybrid himself.

"Whatever let's just find them and move on with our lives." Jeno's words hold venom as he takes the lead. For the first time since you've met you notice Taeil doesn't seem to laugh as he trails behind the younger. Things seeming much tenser than you had thought it had been with the sirens when going to find the hybrids, not that you had a big cat leading the way to wolves. Jeno pausing suddenly, ears twitching towards the trees to your left.

“They’re here.” Taeil tells you glancing that way as well, “You might want to make yourself known before the blood bath starts though.”

His words weren’t fast enough to motivate you, but the growls being exchanged between Jeno and the forest certainly were.

“Wait, we aren’t here to fight!” You quickly call out holding up your hands, badge showing in one, “I’m here to hire some werewolves for our haunted house!”

You hear a scoff before two faces show through the darkness, drawing closer the one’s ears a white while the other a rusty brown color.

“Let me guess we’ll be stuck working with the cat again?” The one who scoffed rolls his eyes as he speaks.

“W-Well he’s going to be working there yes. Though whether you two will be in the same area I can’t say for sure...” You stutter out hearing the rumbling growl from behind you where Jeno paces eyeing the wolves cautiously.

“We’re in.” The one with rusty brown ears chuckles, “I’m Hendery and this is Sicheng.” He nods his head towards the one with white ears who is slowly stalking closer to you.

“You smell good, that’s definitely a perk.” Sicheng gives you a hungry grin, almost on top of you before Jeno slips between you both baring his teeth at the wolf.

“We were here first mutt! Back. Off.” Jeno’s growl is met by both Sicheng’s and Hendery’s, not phased by being out numbers as Taeil paced anxiously behind you knowing how ugly this could get very quickly. Clearing your throat and stomping your foot you gather their attention to you.

“I’m under protection by working for the haunted house, yes?” Your question has them nodding despite being a little lost at the suddenness of where it seemed to come from, “Well then since all of you are employees of them now too that protection applies to all of you now, even from other workers. What’s more, we don’t have time for this right now. We don’t even have half the people we need to gather. Now if this really is going to be a problem I’ll send all of you off without me so you can be separated.”

Your threat to make them leave you seems to stick as they shape up, throwing a few muttered growls as a final point before turning away from each other.

“We aren’t going to go anywhere and let you get yourself lost or worse all alone in these woods. Besides it’s not like it can get worse than this. So who are we going to get next?” Hendery inquired as you looked over the map on your phone once more.

“Next we need to find two vampires.” You inform him with a sharp nod before heading in the direction that the map said as he sighs loudly.

“I stand corrected, it can apparently get much worse.” He mumbles behind you as Sicheng takes the lead through their territory, though he slowly falls back behind you as your group leaves his comfort zone and enters the vampires territory, knowing it’d be safer for him to be behind you now.

“Wow is it really that time already? You little humans sure love that haunted house don’t you?” A voice chuckles before a man, or vampire rather, appears before you.

“Lucas I don’t think it would be wise if you came this year, not after what happened between us last year.” Sicheng counters only making Lucas smirk wickedly.

“Oh? And let you have this pretty little thing all to yourself? I don’t think so.” Lucas steps closer holding eye contact with you, “They still need you to get fallen angels little one?”

You blink at him for a moment, looking between him and the list before nodding meekly, “Y-Yes, but I need another vampire first too.”

“Just follow me little one, we’ll find you another vampire and the fallen angels in the same spot.” Lucas insists turning to lead the way, expecting you to follow instead of waiting for you to actually move. The wolves especially bristling as you scurry after him, knowing he was leading you right into the heart of his coven. That being where the fallen angels that they found would stay in a highly esteemed position. Knowledge that you didn’t have until you were standing before the castle that was bustling with the liveliest nature a place that seemed to scream death could. This being the energy you assumed the haunted house you worked for hoped to achieve. 

“So they did send someone today hmm?” A man chuckles as you follow Lucas inside, “Guess that means I lot the bet and will be joining you. I’m Haechan.” 

He addresses you at the end, when he finally looks over your form. Taking his time to appreciate your appearance before licking his lips and giving the quickest flash of his fangs, before his grin is gone.

“Why are you here though? You could have just called me.” Haechan turns back to the other vampire. 

“She was tasked with getting a few fallen angels too, and I thought everyone might just appreciate the view...” Lucas smirks eyeing you up again. 

“It is a nice view and I doubt some of us would mind coming to help them with whatever.” The voice belongs to the same person whose gaze pierces your form from over the banister, “If they need more than one of us I have an idea of someone who might like to tag along too. Wouldn’t you Yuta?”

“I certainly would.” Another man nods in agreement as he descends the stairwell before you, “What do you say pretty? Do Johnny and I seem like the perfect fallen angels for you?”

From the way Yuta smugly grinned at you it seemed as though he already knew what you would say.

“S-Sure, I mean I’m not too particularly picky. I just need to find people and get them back.”  You try to seem unfazed, but something about them just seemed to affect you. The sirens seemed to pick up on it though, Mark moving to look into your eyes to break off their affect with his own, before breaking his so you could think clearly.

“None of that now. You know the rules so play by them or there will be trouble.” Jaemin adds from behind you. Yuta snickers but backs down for the time being at least. 

Haechan tilts his head watching you, “So little human where are we off to next?”

“Next we have to find some ghosts.” You tell him, holding a map in a way so that a lot in your group could see if they so choose.

“Ah they might be harder to find, they can be a little shy at times.” Johnny sighs before leading the way, “You may have to call out to no one when we get there and see if any are willing to show themselves after hearing what you have to say.” 

You nod in understanding as you leave the coven for the forest again, specifically a clearing in the forest. Filled with ruins from a collapse block city, fog settling in as you enter it. 

“H-Hello? I’m here with the haunted house to ask some ghosts to come work there for us. We’re hoping to get two to join us, when we get there we can offer you different things, or I can show you some of the incentives in this book here.” You feel silly talking to the air since you didn’t see anyone yet.

“Oh, that’s why you’re here? Does that mean we can be friends if we come with you?” A voice sounds behind you before a foggy face is besides yours, smiling and wide eyed looking at you. He looked so young and innocent that you wondered what could have possibly happened to him.

“S-Sure, what’s your name?” You ask turning to face him hoping for no more surprises.

“I’m Chenle! And I know a friend who would be willing to come too, he’s just a little shy, but I can go get him!” The ghost beams as you from his spot, letting you nod before vanishing before your eyes again. Appearing only a moment later with another ghost besides him, “This is my friend Xiaojun. He’ll come too!” 

“Hello Xiaojun.” You smile giving the shier ghost a small wave, which he returns fading a little bit as he hides behind his friend observing the whole group, “It’s alright, the second you join us you’re guaranteed protection from anyone and anything.”

 Your assurance seems to lure him out a little further until he came to stand by your side. If he could have he likely would have grabbed your hand at this point, considering the chill that ran over your arm only a moment after he took a spot at your side.

“Next we’re off to find some zombies, do you know where we’re going Xiaojun?” He nods in response, but seems hesitant about leading the way, glancing between you and the path ahead.

“I can lead the way! Xiaojun can stay with you and just double check where we’re going!” Chenle offers happily as he already drifts away towards the direction of the zombies.

“I-I’m friends with one of the zombies you should let me go get them, it’s safer than you going in there where they all are. Even if you have protection.” Xiaojun’s voice is in a soft whisper as he speaks to you.

“If that’s what you’d like to do then sure go get your friends. I’ll wait here for you to bring them to me, as long as you trust them, and then we’ll be on our way. Simple as that.” You smile, giving him some soft encouragement to do what he suggested and go to get them himself.

Xiaojun vanishing before your eyes before twirling back into view only moments later with two what you would assume are zombies following behind him, “ This is Sungchan and Chittaphon, but you can call him Ten if it’s easier.”

You look at Chenle with wide eyes, leaning over to whisper softly to him, “They look so human like.” 

Chenle giggles, “Zombies aren’t as dramatically obvious as most humans think. They’re pretty well hidden, like vampires. You’ve probably seen one before, which is fine. They’re only really dangerous in large groups and they come out here when they struggle to control themselves.”

You pickup on what he meant as you look at them again to see their hungry eyes and the way Chittaphon licks his lips while looking at you that way. You shuddering in effect and almost cowering away.

“It’s okay, you’re not in danger. We just can’t help but notice how delicious you look pretty.” Sungchan smiles so sweetly at you. Too many of them looked far too innocent to be so deadly, you wondered if the same would be true for those who were still left to get. Tensing only for a moment as Chittaphon links his arm with yous.

“May I see the map? I’d like to know where we’re going.” Chittaphon blinks at you, looking over your shoulder at the item in question.

“O-Oh um sure...here you go Ten.” You angle it better for him to see as he hums softly.

“This should be interesting. Who exactly are you going to get from there?” Chittaphon inquires with a raised brow.

“Well....next on the list is...”You pause, gulping as you realize who is next for you to get, “N-Next is the devil and two demons.”

“Will Doyoung allow that?” Sungchan looks at some of the others to answer his question knowing that you would be lost.

“He always says that it’s based on how busy they are, but in reality he does it based on how attractive the person asking is. So in this case I’d bet that it’ll be fine.” Haechan chuckles and you feel yourself flushing a little at the compliment despite who it was coming from. Not realizing how much jealousy it might stir up in the whole group as you felt heat rise to your cheeks. Though for an entirely different reason than the heat you felt on your skin when you reached the gates of hell.

“Well what’s such an angelic thing like you doing someplace like this? Looking for trouble?” One of the two men standing guard at the gates asked.

“N-No, no trouble, I-I just came here because I was tasked with getting the devil and some demons to make our haunted house better.” You respond, eyes squinting slightly at the flashes from the scorching fires behind them.

“Hm we’ll see what he has to say then. You better hope this isn’t a waste of his time though. Or there will be trouble.” The other man says before disappearing into the flames, returning with a third man behind him. One with piercing red eyes.

“Well hello pretty, YangYang said you needed something?” He smirks almost lazily at you, seeming oh so comfortable in your presence at the moment. 

“Y-Yes, I’m supposed to see about bringing the devil and some demons with me.” You inform him, opening the page designated for him to display it for them to see.

“Well pretty it would be our pleasure to join you. I think we can make that work at least for a while. Especially to enjoy your presence a little longer. As for introductions I’m Doyoung the devil himself. The one who came to get me is YangYang and the diligent guard is Shotaro. They’ll be the ones joining us.” Doyoung snaps and the gates open, the three slipping out to join your group before they close behind them once again.

“Well you have quite the large group here is that everyone now?” Shotaro looks over the various people who have been ardently following you the whole time.

“We have to collect a few more people as we go through the city to get back to the haunted house. Though apparently three will be in the hospital together, one is a doctor and two work in the labs there.” You glance at the map before starting off again, “After that we’ll just need to find some serial killers and then that’ll be everyone.” 

Though coming upon the hospital you hadn’t been expecting it to be empty, the abandoned building lit by only a trail of lights leading off into either direction. Debating before deciding to go to the right first and following the stairwell up until you were met with another lit trail. Following it and the slowly growing sounds of clanking in the distance.

“Hello? Is anyone here? I was sent to find some people at this hospital.” You call out, eyes widening as a head pokes out from a doorway in the distance before the figure steps out, looking over you.

“Why hello doll. You look perfectly healthy who on earth could you be looking for here?” The man questions though his smiles is slightly off-putting, letting you know he was likely one of the ones you were looking for.

“Have you worked for the haunted house before? As there creepy doctor? I was told I could find them and the mad scientists here.” You try to calm you rapidly beating heart as your fight or flight response tried to kick in once again.

“I certainly am who you’re looking for doll, I’m Qian Kun, the mad scientists though are the other direction when you first come in. Go get them while I wrap up what I’m doing and I’ll meet you at the entrance, okay?” Despite your being a little curious as to what exactly he had been doing you were too afraid to do anything other than go look for the others, afraid you might see something that would continue to haunt you afterwards. So you followed the lights back past the entrance and to the stairwell on the opposite side of the hospital, following it down until you were met once again by more lights. Greeted this time by the sound of shattering glass.

“Are there any people down here, who would be willing to be mad scientists at a haunted house?” You call out not sure what exactly they could have dropped everywhere or if it was dangerous.

“Oh! Is it already that time of year again?” You hear a voice chuckle before two men slip out of the room, pushing their goggles atop their heads.

“Sounds like it would be a great time.” The other smiles at you, “We’ll gladly come with.  I’m Taeyong.”

“And I’m Jisung.” The other waves, “ Looks like you have almost everyone already. Let’s get going then, we wouldn’t want to take too long getting back. After all I’m sure there’s still more to prepare before people can start showing up.”

You nod and quickly retrace your steps to the entrance where Kun is waiting for you, smiling at the sight of you, “So who do you have left?”

“Just some serial killers it says.” You bite your lip slightly anxious about trying to find people like that without any harm to yourself.

“Ah I know some, they’ve helped me with some research before. Is two enough?” Kun inquires already starting off in the direction he knew they’d be in.

“Yes, two is exactly what they wanted me to get.” You nod following him into a warehouse that smelled heavily of bleach.

“Jaehyun? Jungwoo?” Kun called looking around, “Is it safe in here for innocent eyes? I have a pretty face here with a proposition for you both.”

“Oh is that so?” One man asked with a grin as he appeared, wiping off his hands as another follows behind.

“It’s alright lovely, we just finished cleaning up. There’s nothing traumatic to see here, unless that’s what you were hoping for.” The other seems too sweet for all the implications surrounding him.

“N-No I’m alright. I’m just here to ask if you’d be willing to work at the haunted house that sent me? They offer different things to the various people they want to come work for them.” You explain as the one puts his hand up to stop you from flipping through the book.

“We’re aware of the stipulations lovely. We’ll come along. It’ll spice things up.” the first man shrugs.

“So who is who then?” You question recalling the names Kun had called out when you had arrived.

“I’m Jungwoo and he’s Jaehyun.” The second man answered, Jaehyun tossing the cloth he’d been using to wipe his hands off to the side.

“Well lead the way lovely, you’re in charge now.” Jaehyun insisted, though despite his words you felt like the least in charge person of the entire group. Eager to get back to your boss before anything could go wrong or any little bickering could break out into something more.

“Ah great work Y/N! Looks like you got everyone!” You boss excitedly joined you, “ You can go help with the inside of the house now if you want.”

Once you had left your boss turned to the group that had followed you here, “So have you all decided what you want as payment?”

The response among them was almost immediate and entirely unanimous in decision......

............“Y/N.”

[kevinspaceyarchives]

Looking Closer at Kevin Spacey, Star of American Beauty

by MATT MCCORMICK, Texas A&M Battalion Staff writer | November 22, 1999

(photo not included with the original article)

Kevin Spacey established himself as one of Hollywood's most gifted actors with his Oscar-winning role in 1993's The Usual Suspects. Known for his ability to lose himself in a character, Spacey went on to star in such films as Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil and The Negotiator.

His new film, American Beauty, has opened to widespread critical acclaim and box office success across the country and has many people saying his name and Academy Award in the same sentence again. The Battalion participated in an interview with the actor as he talked about his latest film and the character he plays, Lester.

Battalion: When you take on a character, you always have a different look. How do you prepare for a character role?

Kevin Spacey: It starts with usually a discussion. Sometimes you might have a notion of how somebody might look, just from reading it. Or, in fact, it might be described by the writer. It usually starts with a discussion with the director. How do you see this character looking? How do you see them dressing?  Do they have a particular walk or way of moving that's different? So I usually try to collaborate with the director. Then you have other people come on. You have a production designer who decides how your desk in your office is going to look and a costume designer who may bring in a huge rack of stuff. All of those things go in to make a sort of image and a picture of what someone will look like. Hopefully you do it in connection with all the other departments. You're not showing up in a jacket that, against that wallpaper, looks like hell.

In this movie, there was this transformation that Lester had to go through, and we didn't have the luxury of shooting in sequence. In the morning, we created Lester, and we had his kind of pear-shaped, defeated pasty look with slightly larger costumes and really white, horrible makeup. I slumped a great deal. And then in the afternoon, I'd be shooting the later stuff. I had to be in the best shape possible during the whole shooting of the movie. We just sort of created the earlier stuff in the movie through performance.

Battalion: When you were shooting some of the earlier stuff later in the day, would you go work out?

Kevin Spacey: It's embarrassing to admit, but we had a muscle truck. It was like a roving gym. It was a big moving van, but they made a gym out of it. I'd go in there before a particular scene -- we had target dates for particular scenes -- so we worked toward the target, I and the trainer, knowing I had to have a certain kind of build for that next two weeks. If they needed me to be a little bloated, he would let me go out and eat pizza and banana splits and all sorts of stuff.

Since there was never a moment in the screenplay when there was an epiphany, or a sudden change, we never wanted the audience to see him change. We wanted there to be an almost seamless and organic evolution of who he became.

Battalion: Mentally, what makes you draw into this Lester character?

Kevin Spacey: I just think I understood, maybe like most people do, the feeling of wanting to break out and do new things. I was on that sort of journey for the last couple of years, and this gave me the opportunity to go to a new place. I think everybody understands the feeling of wanting to shake it up and try new things. Who wouldn't want to tell their boss what they're really thinking about them?

Battalion: Lester's transformation was shaped by the music of his youth -- What kind of music shaped your youth?

Kevin Spacey: A lot of that music I loved, and Sam (Mendes, director) was very specific about music very early on about the kind of cuts he was going to try to get. The first issue in movies is "can you get the rights?" Will the songwriter or their estate let you use it? We got very lucky with a lot of cool music. You forget the '70s and the trajectory of what that music was and all the artists. We found something in common. We say "Wow, that's the kind of music I would listen to in my garage." So I listened to a lot of the similar stuff that Lester listened to. He's two years older than me.

Battalion: In the movie, the garage is Lester's personal space. Did you have a choice in the kind of props used in there?

Kevin Spacey: Sam and I started talking about the garage sort of becoming Lester's sanctuary. It clearly had been taken over by just storage, you know. It lost its...whatever a garage might have been in his life earlier. We decided to go back and find all the things Lester would have had if he was still in college. That sort of became his place. He left the cold and rather stark home inside that house and slowly moved his life out into the garage. One of my favorite images is that red car sitting in the driveway. He's just shaking it up.

Battalion: What's your stage background? What was it like having somebody like Sam directing this film?

Kevin Spacey: I've been incredibly fortunate with first-time or second-time directors. I like it a lot because there's no pattern to their way of working. They really are open to almost anything. So you find that they are willing to take more chances. They're not sort of entrenched in their own ideas.

And he kept us informed. He would always show us storyboards and how he wanted a scene to be framed -- what he wanted it to look like, how he wanted us to look in the frame. So I knew all that going in, but I could have never known going in that his use of images, his use of music, his feeling and mood cinematically was startling.

Battalion: I love the narration in the movie. Was it scripted?

Kevin Spacey: All of the narration was there [in the script]. Sam and I, one day, needed a guide track to give the editors and we went up to a small room with a recorder, like these little ones, and we recorded all of Lester’s voice-overs. And I never redid it. There was something about not knowing what those images would be that that dialogue went well with.

Battalion: Your movie shatters the vision of a utopian suburbia. If you had a message you'd like the audience to take away from this, what would it be?

Kevin Spacey: Let me play devil's advocate with the premise of your question because I don't think it reveals anything specifically about suburbia any more than it reveals anything about urban life. I think where this film takes place, the fact that these two very specific families are examined, in no way shape or form means that we're trying to say this is what life is like in suburbia. I think this is what life is like for a lot of people.

Battalion: Tell us about the catchline, "Look Closer".

Kevin Spacey: We actually give our production designer the credit for that. She cut that out of a fashion magazine. She was going through a fashion magazine deciding what should go on certain walls and she decided "look closer" should be on my bulletin board at the office. And that wasn't the campaign, but what happened was, they kept screening the movie and finally the Dreamworks marketing people said "What does that say behind his desk?" So they saved themselves hundreds of thousands of dollars in marketing meetings to find a concept because it actually turns out to be pretty accurate.

Battalion: What would you say to those who are upset that an older man is having a relationship with a teenager?

Kevin Spacey: I think that anybody that feels uneasy about it, it's uneasiness about the subject, not uneasiness with the actual relationship because there isn't one. There's a fantasy life that Lester has. There is no relationship until the very end of the film, where he makes the right decision.

Keep it in the context of the film. Those two people, what they learn from each other, I think is breathtaking. I think its the most uplifting message you could possibly have.

Battalion: The movie is about finding beauty. What things do you find beauty in?

Kevin Spacey: Sometimes the things that are presented as beautiful or the things that we think are beautiful sometimes makes us miss the things that are really truly beautiful, but appear mundane. I think that's true with people, too. People judge people on how they look or how they dress, how they behave and how they act -- I think of the two characters from the film...you first meet them and you think a certain thing about them, And as the film goes on they begin to emerge.

Battalion: You've got the Hollywood star of fame. What is involved with that?

Kevin Spacey: It started with a fan club. They recommended to the Hollywood chamber of commerce that they consider me for that. I didn't think anything happened like that until you were much older. In fact, all of my colleagues who came that day said "we don't know anybody as young as you, that's pretty cool." There's a certain part of that stuff that's a little Hollywood cheesy, but what actually made the day amazing is it actually became a pretty personal thing. I think it meant even more to all the people that have been working with me than it did for me. But I understand already that there's gum on it.

[embryon-heartbreaker]

Finally getting around to this! Sorry about the delay! My phone doesn't have all of the emojis, so sorry about that. I'll add them in if I have them.

🎥 Do you have any favorite scenes from your hyperfixation?

Since my current hyperfixation is Digital Devil Saga and Quantum Devil Saga, I'll do an answer for both!

DDS: One of my favorite scenes that comes to mind from the first game has to be Heat interrogating Harley about Sera. Specifically, you can hear the build up in his voice. The desperation, the frustration, and just sheer emotion welling up as it practically explodes as his irises flash red. It's amazingly well delivered, and his voice actor did an amazing job! Haven't heard this scene in Japanese yet, though. I really want to! This, and the entire balcony scene at the end of the Amusement Park dungeon. You know what, I loved that entire dungeon tbh. Also, almost all of the scenes in dds2 were great, and I can't pick just one!

QDS: Part of me wants to say "Every part where Serph describes Heat", but I honestly feel like it'd be a bit cliche(even though those parts are GREAT!).

Although, I'd have to narrow it down to the parts where you can really see Gale's personality and mental state shining through his programming and conditioning, and almost any time Cielo and Sera are together. Those two are so adorable! So many books and shows feel the need that if a boy and a girl are close that they need to be romantically involved! It's absolutely refreshing to see those two being as close as a pair of siblings, and their relationship honestly reflects that. Also Cielo's line of "Your smile is better than any medicine!"(or something along those lines) just kills me from cuteness every time!

💕 Tell us about one of your favorite characters and why you like them!

Out of both pieces of media, I honestly can't pick just one character. I might end up picking two, honestly. XD

DDS: Heat is definitely a high candidate for "favorite character". No, this isn't because of "hurhur big hot beefy man me likey!" Legitimately, I find his character incredibly interesting and compelling. He goes from this angry and aggressive man who probably caused at least 1 character to have anxiety problems, to someone who quite honestly cares a lot about those under his care. During the return to the Maribel's base, he is the ONLY PERSON to voice concern about the fact that the only person with a High Atma who could protect Sera was Cielo. He was worried about the kids back at their base, and after you fight Bat, HE is the only one who immediately makes a b-line straight back to base. I'm not even going to get into the whole "Destiny Castle" deal, and everything that happens in dds2, because we'd be here all day otherwise.

Second favorite character in DDS would probably be Cielo. He starts out as the happy-go-lucky comic relief, but from the start, even before his emotions fully awaken, he shows signs of worrying and caring about everyone. He voices concerns when Heat suggests going to the Vanguards' base, and he's even still very close to Gale after the guy went berserk and tried to eat him! Let's not forget how he and Sera still have a brother/sister relationship in the games as well! 

Although, I feel like his character fully blossoms during the second game, where one of the minor villains not only causes him to actually snap, but he still finds it in him to smile, laugh, and joke, despite his world almost literally crumbling around him.(Also, not trying to spoil this for anyone else, but the first time I watched through dds2, and I made it to the part where Cielo dances and jokes about showing God his "Latin Rhythms", the context of what had happened just prior, and what was going to happen… Seeing him do that fucking broke me. I was actually curled up on my bed under fuzzy blankets, my box of tissues next to me, crying. Bless you, funky little Cielo.)

QDS: GALE. 100%, one of my favorite characters by far in the books(besides still Heat and Cielo), would be Gale. Why, you might ask?

Gale in the books is shown to be exceptionally intelligent, but has a hard time comprehending his own emotions and expressing them. He tries to bury his own inner turmoils and anxieties under his own work, although he still cares a lot about the well being of his teammates, especially Serph, and that's beyond his programming as a Bishop. He is also shown to be very creative with his planning, and is able to relatively accurately judge how people may react to certain situations, despite not understanding himself. Also, he has some slight nervous fidgets(tapping his fingers on desks, rubbing his temples, etc), and he is shown to, despite having Sera's calming presence and the effects of her blood(long story) nearby, he does visibly have a lot of anxiety at having his whole world and environment changed, as well as his careful routine, and has a tendency to hyperfocus on things, and he spirals into a loop of repeating thoughts when Serph ends up causing Gale to question if his loyalty lies with Serph or with the Tribe.

Gale. Is. AUTISTIC.

I, myself, am Autistic. I have ADD, and a severe anxiety disorder on top of this. QDS is probably one of the best written autistic/neuroatypical characters I have ever come across, and he's not played off as "comic relief", "childish", or even bordline sociopathic! He CARES! He cares A LOT! He even ends up in a healthy and stable relationship in the end! Also, he's the team's designated driver, holder of the braincells, and the team mom!

(Also, I like all of the characters in the books one way or another. They're all wonderfully written, and I enjoy them all a lot!! 8D)

🍀 Do you have any kins or comfort characters from your hyperfixation?

Hm… I'm not entirely sure how to respond to this. I'm guessing this means whichever characters give me the most happy feelies?

DDS: Almost all of the Embryon squad+Roland. Characters that give me the most happy feelies would probably actually be Cielo, Sera, Heat, Gale...I'm probably gonna end up listing all of them. XD Also, O'Brien. Part Irish people unite!!!!

QDS: Gale for obvious reasons(I need to post/reblog my drawing of him later), Sera for being the physical embodiment of "babey", Cielo for being something similar, any time Serph and Heat are together and Heat's not being angry, and Argilla around Jinana.

Noticing that this is more situational, but this is the best way I can describe this.

This was really fun to to do! Everyone is free to ask me whatever they want! 8D

[daresplaining]

Daredevil Countdown: 8 Days

Trailer #1 Analysis

    We barely had time to recover from Iron Fist Season 2 before Netflix started dumping Daredevil content on us, and it’s been tough to keep up! We were away minding our own business at NYCC when this trailer dropped, and we’ve only just started to pick through it. There are some major revelations in this thing, which I’m very excited about. There are also a few scenes excerpted here that we saw in their entirety at NYCC, so while I’ll try to keep spoilers to a minimum, expect some minor ones.

    Is it geeky to get a kick out of Matt saying this? Because this makes me really happy. He has spent so much time struggling with his superhero identity that just hearing him call himself Daredevil is thrilling. Also, the background seems to suggest that he’s in the church, and may therefore be saying this to Maggie... which is good, because in one of the scenes we saw at NYCC, she called him “the Devil of Hell’s Kitchen” and I nearly pitched a fit. 

    We saw this scene, so I won’t go into details... beyond saying that it kicks off what sounds like will be an interesting (read: upsetting) relationship between Fisk and the FBI, and as well as Fisk’s manipulation of the justice system and the city as a whole this season. He is getting out of prison and aiming to reclaim  his throne, and this trailer gives us hints of some of the pawns he will be using to make that happen. 

    Hey look, it’s Rosalie Carbone!

    And we’ve mentioned it before, because it’s been in a bunch of the promos, but it’s great to finally have Fisk in his comics-accurate white suit! He looks great. 

    We’re also finally getting Sister Maggie! In the comics, of course, Maggie is Matt’s long-lost mother. In the show, we know that she works at the orphanage where Matt ended up after Jack’s death, and that she will be providing him some degree of emotional support (not to mention medical help...) following his near-death experience under Midland Circle. Their relationship is very strange, and in the comics they’ve spent a long time trying to negotiate their dynamic. They go back and forth on their degree of emotional closeness (depending on the writer), and while they will likely never have a parent/child relationship in the traditional sense, they do hold deep significance in each other’s lives. Whether that will become true in the show remains to be seen, but at the very least, Maggie will clearly act as a confidante for Matt during this difficult time. 

    This is one of several highly intriguing interactions between Matt and Fisk in this trailer. The surveillance is particularly interesting. It ties into the suggestion later in the trailer that Fisk will develop some control over media surveillance (in the comics he buys his own radio station during Chichester’s run). It also gives me a small amount of hope that we might get expert media manipulator Jonathan Powers (AKA the Jester) in the show, because that would be really cool. But why is Matt in a doctor’s office in a suit? The framing of this scene is great, and I really need to know what’s going on here. 

    Matt channeling that Stick vibe is something I never knew I needed. And this is another intriguing interaction between these two. What is the context here? For now, I love how cocky Matt sounds in this clip. Clearly, his spirit has not been broken (yet?) by this point. 

    At NYCC, there was some mention of a scene that would rival the hallway scene from Season 1. This may be it. I’m already pumped about this, because I love when Matt fights in civvies! If I were to guess what was going on here, I’d assume these are prisoners in Fisk’s pocket who have been instructed to take Matt out. This has serious “Devil in Cell Block D” (a story arc in which Matt is sent to prison) vibes, and that is very exciting. Whether or not the actual story draws from that arc, just a reference to the tone or basic concept would be awesome. 

    After two full seasons of teasing, we’re finally getting a Gladiator origin! Back in our Season 2 countdown, I wrote a post detailing Melvin Potter’s story in the comics, hoping that it would be adapted soon. The show has already laid down several key elements of his character: his vulnerability (particularly in regards to being manipulated by the people around him) and the tug-of-war between his gentle nature and his capacity for violence. In the comics, many of Melvin’s most compelling stories cover this struggle, as Matt and Betsy Beatty (Melvin’s social worker-turned-girlfriend) attempt to help him suppress the dangerous, out-of-control side of himself. As we see later in the trailer, Fisk is going to start using Melvin for his own ends again this season, thus pushing him to protect himself and Betsy by becoming the Gladiator. 

    Yet another oddly candid moment between Matt and Fisk. This is so uncanny that I almost wonder if it’s a hallucination. It’s also worth noting Matt’s lack of sunglasses in these scenes. In both the comics and the show, the glasses serve Matt as a type of mask, and his scenes are given an added layer of intimacy and exposure when he takes them off. Regardless of context, it’s clear that Fisk will be seeing Matt this season at his most vulnerable, with all facades and pretext removed. Which brings us to that quote... 

    Get excited, because it looks like we’re finally getting some big deal Daredevil Secret Identity Shenanigans(TM)! Matt having his secret identity exposed is a longtime Daredevil tradition; such a pervasive plot point that even Matt has begun joking about it. 

Daredevil vol. 3 #7 by Mark Waid, Paolo Rivera, and Javier Rodriguez

    Going all the way back to the Mike Murdock Saga in the 60s, Matt has struggled with keeping his double life hidden-- a surprisingly challenging task for a blind guy without outwardly obvious superpowers. Ben Urich figured it out through research and deduction, and while he has remained loyal in keeping Matt’s secret, a fellow reporter once nearly stole his notes and made them public. In “Born Again”, the Kingpin found out and used the information to ruin his life. Later, one of the Kingpin’s underlings sold the information to the FBI, which then made its way into the newspapers. Recently, with his secrets being used as blackmail, Matt decided to make his identity public. He has gone to extreme lengths over the years-- faking his death, lying under oath, creating various alternate personalities-- to protect his dual identity, and the thought of seeing him finally faced with this same challenge in the show is very exciting.

Melvin: “I don’t like it. I know who you work for, Felix. And the Kingpin is never up to anything good.”

Felix: “What is there not to like, Potter? You construct costumes. I am heretowith commissioning from yourself a costume. Said costume being one you are infinitely familiar with-- during such time frame as before you did renunciate your status as a prominent member of the criminal class to open this shop within which we now converse. Speaking of this most neatly custodiated establishment, we will summarily execute its premature demolition-- not to mention the removement [sic] of your most valued body parts-- should you perchance fail to render unto us a perfect duplicate of the uniform of a certain Man Without Fear.”

Daredevil vol. 1 #230 by Frank Miller, David Mazzucchelli, and Christie Scheele

    As we know, that’s going to be Bullseye’s costume. This is a combination of two plot points: one from “Born Again” (above) in which Fisk commissions a DD suit from Melvin to give to a convicted murderer, who he sends to kill Foggy, and one from Nocenti’s run in which Bullseye himself runs around causing chaos as Daredevil. 

    As indicated above (and just like he attempted in Season 1), Fisk is out to ruin Daredevil (and maaaaybe also Matt Murdock?)’s reputation, even more than Matt might manage all on his own.   

    This is a terrifying image, because it brings to mind Karen’s funeral in “Guardian Devil”. But a bunch of the people in the audience are smiling, so hopefully not...  

    ...Unfortunately, they’re still screwed. Bullseye in the church is both a “Guardian Devil” reference and (even better) a movie reference!

    We were shown this scene at NYCC, and it is awesome! I can’t wait for everyone to see it, so that I can talk about what makes it so great. It’s an absolutely killer fight scene that emphasizes just how intense Bullseye is as an opponent when handled well. And I’m not going to spoil this moment in particular... All I’ll say is that it’s something we’ve all been waiting for for two damn seasons, and when it happened at the panel, the whole room screamed. 

    *Cough* Don’t worry, that’s not Bullseye. 

    Also, there is not nearly enough Foggy and Karen in this trailer. 

Bullseye: “Yup! I’m Daredevil now. I wonder-- it’s been easy to play the bad guy-- maybe too easy. Be kinda fun to play the hero. After all, I am Daredevil!”

Daredevil vol. 1 #290 by Ann Nocenti, Kieron Dwyer, and Steve Buccellato

    As mentioned above, Bullseye will be prompted by Fisk to run around as Daredevil, ruining Matt’s reputation. Both actors have talked a little bit about Fisk’s manipulation of Dex, and the fact that this will play a large part in the latter’s turn to villainy. In the final arc of her run, Ann Nocenti penned a story in which Bullseye and Daredevil switched costumes, resulting in an intense exploration of villainy and heroism, and of their bizarre relationship as nemeses. In the show, it should be fun-- and probably a little horrifying too-- to see how this jumbling of identities affects how Matt and Dex see themselves and each other. 

    T-minus one week!

[jamesginortonblog]

James Norton and Juliet Rylance lead the cast in McMafia, the BBC and AMC’s global crime drama about a family of Russian ex-gangsters struggling to stay respectable.

Langleybury House, a splendiferous stately home on the outskirts of London, oozes opulence. The drawing room boasts a set of matching statement chandeliers and enough oil paintings to fill several rooms at the National Gallery. There are two classical columns in the middle of the room and a gigantic marble fireplace across one wall. The room screams megabucks.

When DQ visits, however, ‘megaroubles’ might be more accurate, as the sumptuous home is doubling as one of the residences of the fictional Godman family, a clan of former Russian gangsters who have made serious money from illicit activities around the world.

When you look around their home and eye items such as the incredibly ornate drinks table – where surely they only mix White Russians – your first thought is, ‘Who says crime doesn’t pay?’

On the back of their dodgy dealings, the family have turned respectable. They have whitewashed their stained past and become a worldwide corporation, with a lucrative franchise on every continent. They are the McMafia.

This sweeping new eight-part drama, also called McMafia, is produced by the BBC, AMC, Cuba Pictures and Twickenham Studios and distributed by BBC Worldwide. It’s adapted by Hossein Amini and James Watkins from Misha Glenny’s bestselling 2008 non-fiction book, McMafia: Seriously Organised Crime.

The story centres on Alex Godman, played by James Norton with the same suavity he brought to the role of another powerful and charismatic Russian, Prince Andrei in War & Peace. Now an upstanding businessman, the English-raised Alex has spent his entire life attempting to extricate himself from the tentacles of his family’s mafia history. Forging a legitimate business as the head of an ethical hedge fund, he is trying to escape his background and build a law-abiding existence with his girlfriend Rebecca (American Gothic’s Juliet Rylance).

But when the Godmans’ criminal legacy comes back to haunt them, Alex swiftly becomes enmeshed in a sinister underworld and is obliged to reassess his values in order to shield those he loves from peril.

This ambitious thriller investigates how the rise of globalisation has dramatically narrowed the gap between the corporate and the criminal. When businessmen and gangsters wear the same hand-made suits and inhabit the same first-class lounges, how can you tell the difference?

Amini, who previously wrote the highly regarded screenplays for The Dying of the Light, Jude, The Wings of a Dove, Drive and Our Kind of Traitor, takes a seat in the luxurious mansion to explain what drew him to McMafia. “The book is factual and there are no storylines as such, but what was really exciting is that the world Misha’s book painted was so interesting,” he says. “It was such a potentially exciting canvas. The book gave us great characters and a great world, and it’s easy to invent scenes for that.”

The Iranian-British filmmaker continues: “I’ve always loved the gangster genre, but even shows like The Sopranos, which I loved, are all about the end of that genre and the end of the gangster. They told us about the death of that in the 1990s.

“But then I read this book, and it was all about how gangsters were being reborn globally. Suddenly the triads were dealing with the cartels who were competing with the Russian mafia. It was like Game of Thrones with mobs.”

The authenticity of McMafia is underlined by the fact the producers insisted Russian actors played Russian characters, Israeli actors played Israeli characters, and so forth.

Watkins comments: “There was a big conversation we had with AMC and the BBC first off, which is that I didn’t want to do that thing where, not naming any other productions, you cast a big-name British actor to play Alex’s Russian dad.

“It feels false straight away – I can smell it. It’s costing us quite a lot to fly all the actors in, but it’s worth it in terms of the reality it gives. When you’ve got four actors from Tel Aviv playing a scene in Hebrew, you can’t fake that.”

The director, whose other works include The Woman in Black, Eden Lake and The Take, adds that this approach has enhanced the verisimilitude of the project. “It’s fantastic, because as a director you want truth. This is not about heightened drama, it’s about truth. It’s about understated performance, and I think some of those European actors really bring that. I don’t know what’s in the water, but it’s really amazing. Less is more.”

The Russian cast members have clearly relished the experience of working on a British drama. A big star in her own country, Maria Shukshina plays Alex’s Russian mother, Oksana. “I’m very happy James is now my son,” she says, laughing. “He has a big following in Russia, a lot of fans. When I was coming over here, all the ladies were telling me to say ‘Hi’ to him and saying, ‘Give him a hug.’ So I said, ‘Of course!’”

Shukshina says she has found very little difference between the shooting techniques in the UK and in Russia. “It’s absolutely the same, apart from the lighting. It’s a lot darker on set here, there’s no light. It’s only natural light, really.

“I gave a Russian doll to the director of photography as a celebration of International Women’s Day and now he puts up a light panel when they’re doing wide shots of me – I know what I’m doing!”

Filmed in no fewer than 11 countries (including the UK, Russia, India, Israel, Turkey, Qatar and Croatia), the project is conceived on an epic scale and Watkins has evidently had to summon up great depths of energy to make it.

He spent seven weeks just filming in India, for example, and has also been leading the McMafia crew all over London. “We’ve shot in the Sky Garden at the top of the Walkie-Talkie building [the distinctive skyscraper officially named 20 Fenchurch Street] and we had a huge Russian banquet scene in the Victoria & Albert Museum. We’re trying to use London as this city where anybody can buy their way in.”

Norton, who has also starred in Happy Valley, Black Mirror, Grantchester, Lady Chatterley’s Lover and Life in Squares, pulls up a seat beside the filmmakers and chips in: “When we talk about the Mafia, it is so tied up with those portrayals that we’re so used to in The Sopranos and The Godfather. But what’s so lovely and fascinating and so relevant about this story is that it shows how the mafia is a totally new phenomenon.

“It’s now a globalised corporate entity. It straddles all these different countries and financial systems. It’s no longer just a protection racket. It’s the Panama Papers, it’s corrupt presidents and prime ministers, it’s even in the possible link between the Kremlin and the White House and how that’s facilitated. That was a real eye-opener for me, and I hope that’s what the show will reveal.”

Another intriguing aspect of McMafia is the fact that even though Alex is very much an anti-hero, viewers are – almost in spite of themselves – still drawn to the magnetic central character. Watkins describes him as “The Russian bear in the bowler hat.”

So is it a case of ‘the devil has all the best tunes?’ Norton believes it’s more nuanced than that. “It is fascinating, and it’s kind of sexy and empowering because there is this whole underworld of people who don’t abide by the rules and do what the hell they want – and it’s exciting. You get seduced by it, but you’re never quite sure how much you’re being seduced.

“Alex convinces himself that it’s about protection and survival, but there’s another side to it, and the beauty of Hossein’s writing is that he and the audience are never quite sure. Each choice Alex makes – is it to do with survival or is it a bit more to do with the fact that he just wants to go deeper and deeper and gather more control and money? So, McMafia is brilliant because it’s never about villains and heroes – it’s all about that wonderful mess in between.”

Before he is called back on set, Watkins expresses his hopes about what viewers will take away from McMafia. “You look around you and realise crime is everywhere. The point of the book and the series, really, is that it’s invisible, but that it’s all around us. We’re all, in some way, complicit. If someone buys a fake watch, say, they’re part of the problem.

“Or look at illegal labour. That affects people in ways that they don’t necessarily realise. McMafia is about the blurring of those lines between governments, corporations, intelligence, police, criminals. Particularly in a ‘post-truth’ world, people aren’t clear what those boundaries are.”

The director continues: “I think McMafia is very timely. For me, the best drama has some kind of grip on the world and touches on that. I hope that it’s not only entertaining, but also that on the way home, or in the pub, people talk about it. It’s not Chekhov, but you’re hoping it has something that has a little bit of grit.”

Amini closes by homing in on one tiny detail in McMafia that underlines the authenticity of the drama. “Misha told us about a gangster whose hobby is going to dog shows. I could never have invented that.” Did that make it into the series? “Yes, it’s in. You can’t ignore a thing like that.”

[movietvtechgeeks]

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Brad Pitt's amazing national parks images hit plus American Idol

Now that some time has passed since news broke of his impending divorce, actor Brad Pitt is finally opening up about his sudden split from long-time partner Angelina Jolie. As you may remember, people all around the world were left in a state of shock when it was officially announced that Angelina had filed for divorce from Brad. Subsequently, it was revealed that Angelina’s filing was partially prompted by an incident that happened while the Jolie-Pitt family was on an airplane, in which Brad had reportedly gotten physical with their adopted son Maddox. For the latest issue of GQ Style, Brad posed for three different covers, which feature him in various National Parks across America. In addition to the covers, Brad also got surprisingly candid with the publication - particularly about his recent relationship troubles and his decision to quit drinking. Looking back at the time of Angelina’s divorce filing, Brad recounted to GQ, “I was really on my back and chained to a system when Child Services was called. After that, we’ve been able to work together to sort this out. We’re both doing our best. I heard one lawyer say, ‘No one wins in court – it’s just a matter of who gets hurt worse.’ And it seems to be true. You spend a year just focused on building a case to prove your point and why you’re right and why they’re wrong, and it’s just an investment in vitriolic hatred. I just refuse. And fortunately, my partner in this agrees. It’s just very, very jarring for the kids, to suddenly have their family ripped apart.” It has been roughly 8 months since Angelina and Brad officially announced their split and since then Brad has made some major changes in his life. The Benjamin Button actor revealed to the publication that he moved out of his former Hollywood Hills mansion, as it was “too sad” for him to be living there on his own. In discussing his decision to get sober, Brad confessed, “"I can't remember a day since I got out of college when I wasn't boozing or had a spliff, or something. Something. And you realize that a lot of it is, um — cigarettes, you know, pacifiers. And I'm running from feelings. I'm really, really happy to be done with all of that. I mean I stopped everything except boozing when I started my family. But even this last year, you know—things I wasn't dealing with. I was boozing too much. It's just become a problem. And I'm really happy it's been half a year now, which is bittersweet, but I've got my feelings in my fingertips again. I think that's part of the human challenge: You either deny them all of your life or you answer them and evolve." Below is an excerpt from the indepth interview with Brad Pitt.

Let's go back to the start. What was it like growing up where you grew up? Brad Pitt: Well, it was Springfield, Missouri, which is a big place now, but we grew up surrounded by cornfields—which is weird because we always had canned vegetables. I never could figure that one out! Anyway, ten minutes outside of town, you start getting into forests and rivers and the Ozark Mountains. Stunning country.

Did you have a Huck Finn boyhood? Half the time. Half the time, yeah.

How so? I grew up in caves. We had a lot of caves, fantastic caverns. And we grew up First Baptist, which is the cleaner, stricter, by-the-book Christianity. Then, when I was in high school, my folks jumped to a more charismatic movement, which got into speaking in tongues and raising your hands and some goofy-ass shit.

So were you there for speaking in tongues? Yeah, come on. I'm not even an actor yet, but I know… I mean the people, I know they believe it. I know they're releasing something. God, we're complicated. We're complicated creatures.

So acting came out of what you saw in these revival meetings? Well, people act out. But as a kid, I was certainly drawn to stories—beyond the stories that we were living and knew, stories with different points of view. And I found those stories in film, especially. Different cultures and lives so foreign to mine. I think that was one of the draws that propelled me into film. I didn't know how to articulate stories. I'm certainly not a good orator, sitting here telling a story, but I could foster them in film.

I remember going to a few concerts, even though we were told rock shows are the Devil, basically. Our parents let us go; they weren't neo about it. But I realized that the reverie and the joy and exuberance, even the aggression, I was feeling at the rock show was the same thing at the revival. One is Jimmy Swaggart and one is Jerry Lee Lewis, you know? One's God and one's Devil. But it's the same thing. It felt like we were being manipulated. What was clear to me was “You don't know what you're talking about—”

And it didn't fuck you up? No, it didn't fuck me up—it just led to some eating questions at a young age.

Have you ever felt the need to be more political? I can help in other ways. I can help by getting movies out with certain messages. I've got to be moved by something—I can't fake it. I grew up with that Ozarkian mistrust of politics to begin with, so I just do better building a house for someone in New Orleans or getting certain movies to the screen that might not get made otherwise.

You're good at playing that kind of character, the one that doesn't have a truly accurate vision of himself. It makes me laugh. Any of my foibles are born from my own hubris. Always, always. Anytime. I famously step in shit—at least for me it seems pretty epic. I often wind up with a smelly foot in my mouth. I often say the wrong thing, often in the wrong place and time. Often. In my own private Idaho, it's funny as shit. I don't have that gift. I'm better speaking in some other art form. I'm trying to get better. I'm really trying to get better.

And the movie really pokes at this, too, right—America's hubris? When I get in trouble it's because of my hubris. When America gets in trouble it's because of our hubris. We think we know better, and this idea of American exceptionalism—I think we're exceptional in many ways, I do, but we can't force it on others. We shouldn't think we can. How do we show American exceptionalism? By example. It's the same as being a good father. By exemplifying our tenets and our beliefs, freedom and choice and not closing borders and being protectionists. But that's another issue. You want me to tell you something really sad? I thought this was so sad. We were looking at—let me say, a certain war film that was looking to promote itself. The European posters had the American flag in the background, and it came back from the marketing department: “Remove the flag. It's not a good sell here.” I was, like, Man, that's America. That's what we've done to our brand.

You've played characters in pain. What is pain, emotional and physical? Yeah, I'm kind of done playing those. I think it was more pain tourism. It was still an avoidance in some way. I've never heard anyone laugh bigger than an African mother who's lost nine family members. What is that? I just got R&B for the first time. R&B comes from great pain, but it's a celebration. To me, it's embracing what's left. It's that African woman being able to laugh much more boisterously than I've ever been able to.

Do you think if the past six months hadn't happened you'd be in this place eventually? That it would have caught up with you? I think it would have come knocking, no matter what.

People call it a midlife crisis, but this isn't the same— No, this isn't that. I interpret a midlife crisis as a fear of growing old and fear of dying, you know, going out and buying a Lamborghini. [pause] Actually—they've been looking pretty good to me lately! [laughs]

There might be a few Lamborghinis in your future! “I do have a Ford GT,” he says quietly. [laughs] I do remember a few spots along the road where I've become absolutely tired of myself. And this is a big one. These moments have always been a huge generator for change. And I'm quite grateful for it. But me, personally, I can't remember a day since I got out of college when I wasn't boozing or had a spliff, or something. Something. And you realize that a lot of it is, um—cigarettes, you know, pacifiers. And I'm running from feelings. I'm really, really happy to be done with all of that. I mean I stopped everything except boozing when I started my family. But even this last year, you know—things I wasn't dealing with. I was boozing too much. It's just become a problem. And I'm really happy it's been half a year now, which is bittersweet, but I've got my feelings in my fingertips again. I think that's part of the human challenge: You either deny them all of your life or you answer them and evolve.

Was it hard to stop smoking pot? No. Back in my stoner days, I wanted to smoke a joint with Jack and Snoop and Willie. You know, when you're a stoner, you get these really stupid ideas. Well, I don't want to indict the others, but I haven't made it to Willie yet.

I'm sure he's out there on a bus somewhere waiting for you. How about alcohol—you don't miss it? I mean, we have a winery. I enjoy wine very, very much, but I just ran it to the ground. I had to step away for a minute. And truthfully I could drink a Russian under the table with his own vodka. I was a professional. I was good.

So how do you just drop it like that? Don't want to live that way anymore.

What do you replace it with? Cranberry juice and fizzy water. I've got the cleanest urinary tract in all of L.A., I guarantee you! But the terrible thing is I tend to run things into the ground. That's why I've got to make something so calamitous. I've got to run it off a cliff.

Do you think that's a thing? I do it with everything, yeah. I exhaust it, and then I walk away. I've always looked at things in seasons, compartmentalized them, I guess, seasons or semesters or tenures or…

Really? So, this is the season of me getting my drink on.… [laughs] Yeah, it's that stupid. “This is my Sid and Nancy season.” I remember that one when I first got out to L.A. It got titled afterwards.

So then, you stop yourself, but how do you—I don't know why this comes to mind but I think of a house—how do you renovate yourself? Yeah, you start by removing all the decor and decorations, I think. You get down to the structure. Wow, we are in some big metaphor here now.… [laughs]

If you can believe it…American Idol might be returning to your television screen sooner rather than later. The show, after 15 seasons, came to an end back in 2016. While it was initially believed that the reality singing competition had run its course and was permanently going off the air, it now appears as though it will be returning after just a brief hiatus. According to media outlet TMZ, TV networks FOX, NBC and ABC are all in talks to host a reboot of the show. The outlet also revealed that ABC is very serious about winning the rights to the show, as they are hoping to debut a brand new season early next year (2018). Earlier this week, ABC TV personality Kelly Ripa announced that former American Idol host Ryan Seacrest would be joining as her co-host on her daily morning show Live with Kelly. This makes ABC’s interest in taking over American Idol even more interesting, as they now have Ryan Seacrest on-hand to potentially return to his AI hosting gig. Although American Idol’s viewership ratings dropped drastically during the last few seasons, it looks as though TV executives are not ready to completely give up on the show just yet.

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