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dollycas · 2 months

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#FlashbackFriday featuring Checked Out for Murder: A Haunted Library Mystery by Allison Brook #Review / #Giveaway @AllisonBrookML

On Flashback Fridays I will share with you the books I was not able to review when they were first released that have been screaming at me from my To-Be-Read bookshelf. Checked Out for Murder: A Haunted Library Mystery Cozy Mystery 4th in Series Setting - Connecticut Publisher: Crooked Lane Books (September 8, 2020) Hardcover: 320 pages ISBN-10: 164385447X ISBN-13: 978-1643854472 Digital ASIN: B082738ZNV Carrie Singleton and Evelyn the ghost sleuth the slayings of a starlet and a star-crossed psychic in Agatha Award nominee Allison Brook's fourth Haunted Library mystery. Daphne Marriott strolls into Clover Ridge and informs librarian Carrie Singleton that she's a psychic. But had she foreseen what fate awaited her, Daphne would have steered clear of the quaint Connecticut town. Evelyn, the library ghost, tells Carrie that there's more to Daphne than she lets on. The mysterious woman grew up in Clover Ridge with her no-good dad, who apparently met his end at the hands of Daphne's brother, Billy. Still, Daphne proves a welcome distraction when Carrie's overbearing mother hits town. Mom's much younger husband, Tom, is in a movie that's lensing locally, and she's there to keep an eye on him: Tom's costar, sultry Ilana Reingold, is also his ex-fiancée, and there's no denying the chemistry is still there. Soon after mingling with the moviemakers at a meet-and-greet, Daphne is found dead. Carrie and Evelyn investigate, assisted by bushy-tailed library cat Smoky Joe. But the suspect list could overflow the library shelves. Has Billy killed another relative? Is their long-missing mother involved? Or Daphne's mean ex-husband? Carrie's sure she knows who committed the crime, but can she bind together the clues before the culprit Dewey-decimates the town? Dollycas's Thoughts Clover Ridge librarian Carrie Singleton has an unexpected visit from Daphne Marriott. She tells Carrie that she is a psychic and would like to do a library program about psychic abilities and give some minute readings. Carrie has a cancellation to fill so she agrees to allow Daphne to present her program. After the woman leaves, library ghost Evelyn informs Carrie that Daphne is up to something. Evelyn knows Daphne and explains that Daphne grew up in an "unhappy dysfunctional family. Her father drank and was abusive. Her mother worked two jobs, and she has an older brother Billy. Daphne's father was murdered when she was 16 or 17 and her brother was convicted of the crime and went to prison. He was later released and the case reopened when new evidence was found. Evelyn believes Daphne's return to Clover Ridge may have something to do with the murder. Carrie's mother is also in town with her much younger husband Tom. Tom has been cast in a movie that is filming in Clover Ridge along with his ex-fiancée, Ilana Reingold. Her mother can see their chemistry with her own eyes and plans to attend each day of shooting to be sure their affection is only on film. The residents of Clover Ridge have a chance to meet the "movie people" at a meet-and-greet on the Green. Carrie runs into Daphne at the event and helps her out of a sticky situation but later the psychic is found dead. Carrie feels a little responsible for Daphne's death, she should have reached out to the woman but her friend, police Lieutenant John Mathers does his best to get her to let him handle the case. But soon she, Evelyn, and library cat Smoky Joe start their own investigation. Could Daphne's brother be responsible? Her ex-husband? Someone else from her past? or could the killer be someone Carrie knows in Clover Ridge? It is going to take a clever plan to catch the killer. Can Carrie do it and keep herself safe? ____ I have wanted to get back to this series for a while. The core characters are so strong I knew even after a few years, I would be able to pick up right where I left off. I was right. Carrie continues to grow stronger in each story. She has come a long way from the day she came to Clover Ridge. Her relationship with Dylan is going strong. Her mother has a tough time in this story and my heart warmed when her dad came into town for a few days to support her. The tension between Carrie and her mother started to ease too. Librarian ghost Evelyn is a wise one. She can fill Carrie in on things that happened long before Carrie arrived. I love the way Carrie is still startled when Evelyn appears but then is so comfortable talking with her. Smokey Joe is a neat cat, who loves his library and all the attention he receives. It was funny that he was having Spring Fever and really wanted to be outside. Ms. Brook has created such dynamic characters. It is very easy to get caught up in everything that is happening around them. The mystery was cleverly plotted with several suspects, twists, and turns. A second murder adds extra drama. There were plenty of clues to work through and follow, some going back years. Carrie tries hard to keep her promise to John and Dylan but I think they both knew that was never going to happen. She does keep them abreast of everything she learns. The set-up to catch the killer was smart. I fell for all the misdirection Ms. Brook threw into this story. The killer was not on my radar at all. It did make me feel better that Carrie was surprised as well, but she held it together for the perfect takedown. Enjoyable, entertaining, and fun, Checked Out for Murder was another Perfect Escape from Allison Brook. Death on the Shelf is calling to me from my Kindle. I will be reading and reviewing it soon. Your Escape Into A Good Book Travel Agent About the Author A former Spanish teacher, Marilyn Levinson writes mysteries, romantic suspense, and novels for kids. Her books have received many accolades. As Allison Brook, she writes the Haunted Library series. DEATH OVERDUE, the first in the series, was an Agatha nominee for Best Contemporary Novel in 2018. Other mysteries include the Golden Age of Mystery Book Club series and the Twin Lakes series. Her juvenile novel, Rufus and Magic Run Amok, was an International Reading Association-Children’s Book Council Children’s Choice. And Don’t Bring Jeremy was a nominee for six state awards. Marilyn lives on Long Island, where many of her books take place. She loves traveling, reading, doing crossword puzzles and Sudoku, and chatting on FaceTime with her grandkids. Author Links Website Facebook Goodreads Twitter/X Bookbub I am giving away a Kindle Copy! The contest is open to anyone over 18 years old. Duplicate entries will be deleted. Void where prohibited. You do not have to be a follower to enter but I hope you will find something you like here and become a follower. Followers Will Receive 2 Bonus Entries For Each Way They Follow. Plus 2 Bonus Entries For Following My Facebook Fan Page. Add this book to your WANT TO READ shelf on GoodReads for 3 Bonus Entries. Follow Crooked Lane Books on Facebook for 3 Bonus Entries Follow Crooked Lane Books on Instagram for 3 Bonus Entries Pin this giveaway to Pinterest for 3 Bonus Entries. If you share the giveaway on Threads, X, or Facebook or anywhere you will receive 5 Bonus Entries For Each Link. The Contest Will End March 8, 2024, at 11:59 PM CST The Winner Will Be Chosen By Random.org The Winner Will Be Notified By Email and Will Be Posted Here In The Sidebar. Click Here For Entry Form Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. Receiving a complimentary copy in no way reflected my review of this book. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.” Read the full article

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kristinkisska · 2 months

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Award nomination for THE HINT OF LIGHT

I'm excited and honored to share that my debut novel, THE HINT OF LIGHT, was nominated for the Agatha Award for Best First Mystery Novels!

Below is a complete list of all the nominees in the five award categories:

The winners will be announced at the Malice Domestic conference in April. Good luck to all the nominees!

#kristin kisska #suspensegirl #the hint of light #debut novel #novel

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sharonlwrites · 1 year

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So much fun celebrating at the Agatha Awards with nominees MA Monnin and Nina Wachsman and friends! @thegalleryofbeauties @malicedomestic @levelbestbooks @m.a.monnin @judithkindell — view on Instagram https://ift.tt/d1EYaBQ

#Instagram #IFTTT

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tendersky · 2 years

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Dewey Decimated book review

Dewey Decimated by Allison Brook 336 pages publishes September 6th, 2022 Librarian Carrie Singleton is back on the case, alongside library ghost Evelyn, in the sixth installment of Agatha Award nominee Allison Brook’s Haunted Library mysteries. Carrie Singleton is just off a hot string of murder cases centered around the spooky local library in Clover Ridge, Connecticut. She could really use a…

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#cozy mysteries #haunted library #latitude&039;s library #library

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kkecreads · 2 years

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A Dead Man’s Eyes by Lori Duffy Foster

Published: April 13, 2021 Level Best Books Pages: 191 Genre: Women Sleuths KKECReads Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I purchased this book on Amazon, and I leave my review voluntarily. Lori Duffy Foster is a former crime reporter who writes and lives in the hills of Northern Pennsylvania. She is the author of A Dead Man’s Eyes, the first in the Lisa Jamison Mysteries Series, and an Agatha Award nominee.…

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lost-on-t-umblr · 3 years

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CONGRATS TO THESE TWO LADIES FOR THEIR EMMY NOMINATIONS!!

Elizabeth Olsen -> Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited Series or Movie

Kathryn Hahn -> Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited Series or Movie

#emmy awards 2021 #kathryn hahn #elizabeth olsen #wandavision #wanda maximoff #agatha harkness #scarlet witch #mcu agnes #emmy nominations #emmy nominee #emmy awards #emmy 2021 #marvel series #marvel cinematic universe #marvel #mcu #mcu actresses

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emmynominees · 3 years

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kathryn hahn as agatha harkness/agnes the nosy neighbor in wandavision

primetime emmy award nominee for outstanding supporting actress in a limited series or movie

#kathryn hahn #agatha harkness #wandavision #supporting actress in a limited series or movie #2021

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end0r4 · 3 years

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Hi there Agatha Harkness/Wandavision/Wanda/Monica stans we need to vote! Wandavision got five nominations at the MTV Movie & TV Awa!!! 🤩🤩

Best show: WandaVision

Best villain: Kathryn Hahn

Best hero: Teyonah Parris

Best fight: Wanda vs. Agatha

Best performance: Elizabeth Olsen

The page will open directly at the best villain category but you can scroll and vote for the other categories

PLEASE REBLOG SO MORE PEOPLE CAN SEE AND VOTE💕💕

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dollycas · 1 year

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Killer Cupid (A Melanie Travis Mystery) by Laurien Berenson #Review / #Giveaway - @LaurienBerenson @KensingtonBooks

Killer Cupid (A Melanie Travis Mystery) Cozy Mystery 29th in Series Setting - Characters travel to Massachusetts Kensington Cozies (December 27, 2022) Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 208 pages ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 149674103X ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1496741035 Kindle ASIN ‏ : ‎ B09YKNJQ3C

Melanie Travis is taking a much-needed break from the dog show circuit for a romantic Valentine’s trip with her husband Sam, but when someone at their cozy Berkshires inn has an unexpected date with death, Melanie must slip into something sleuthier for the weekend . . . Melanie is delighted at the prospect of three uninterrupted days alone with Sam (and, of course, her prize-winning Standard Poodle, Faith). They’re booked at the White Birch Inn, a picturesque New England resort nestled at the foot of a snow-covered mountain. The inn has a full slate of couples activities planned for the busy Valentine's weekend—date nights, sleigh rides, tobogganing, ice skating, and pop-up shops in the inn's ballroom —from the bubbly to the bubble bath, the resort is a perfect match for Melanie and Sam’s vacation. But the first night of festivities feature an event that isn’t on the program: murder. The sheriff quickly launches an investigation, but at the inn keeper’s urging—and because she suddenly finds herself a person of interest in the case—Melanie tries to sneak a little detective work into her romantic getaway. But with the resort nearly sold out for the holiday weekend, there's no shortage of suspects, and Melanie’s secret sleuthing is already attracting the wrong kind of attention. Her Valentine’s trip is heating up faster than the chocolate fondue . . . just not in the way Melanie hoped. But if she doesn’t catch the cold-hearted killer soon, another innocent victim will get the kiss of death . . . Dollycas's Thoughts Thanks to their sons and Aunt Peg's gift Melanie, Sam, and Faith, their Standard Poodle, along with Melanie's brother Frank and his wife Bertie are enjoying a Valentine's Getaway at the White Birch Inn in the Berkshires. The resort has all kinds of events planned for the holiday weekend. Murder though was not on the schedule. Someone went rogue and killed the events coordinator. The inn is full of suspects and while the local sheriff appears to have the investigation under control the owner of the inn asks Melanie to do a little sleuthing. With Bertie acting as her Watson, Sherlock Melanie starts looking into the crime. But if they're not careful their Valentine's vacay could end very badly. This is the 29th book in the series and it is still going strong. Melanie and Sam deserved a break and some alone time and I loved that Faith was allowed to tag along. She even made a new friend at the inn, a beautiful Samoyed named Sammy, the resident canine at the inn. Frank and Bertie also came along. It was funny though, all the events were set up for couples and sometimes that meant Frank and Sam going to the event, not the couples the inn had in mind, while Melanie, Bertie, and sometimes Faith did their snooping. They did all go tobogganing together and to the hayride followed by a bonfire. Both sounded like a lot of fun. The mystery is pretty complicated but Melanie does her thing, ticked off a couple of people but kept digging like a dog after a bone. She finds an important clue that sets up quite a showdown with Melanie and Bertie in a precarious situation driving the suspense level to a nice pitch as everything plays out. Killer Cupid is a well-plotted humorous Valentine's mystery. Being novella length it was a quick entertaining read that I enjoyed this story very much. I am looking forward to visiting these characters, both human and canine again soon.

Your Escape Into A Good Book Travel Agent About This Author

Laurien Berenson is an Agatha and Macavity Nominee, winner of the Romantic Times Reviewers’ Choice Award, and four-time winner of the Maxwell Award, presented by the Dog Writers Association of America. She and her husband live on a farm in Kentucky surrounded by dogs and horses. Her latest book Killer Cupid was released on December 22, 2022. Find out more about her and her books on her webpage here. Find her on Facebook here and on Twitter here.

Read the full article

#cozymystery #Kensington #LaurienBerenson #Massachusetts #NetGalley

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thecrownnet · 3 years

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*The 2021 Emmy Awards will air this Sunday at 8 pm. ET on CBS. It will also be available to stream on Roku, Hulu with Live TV, YouTube TV, AT&T TV, Sling TV, Fubo TV and CBS’ streaming service Paramount+. The Crown has 24 nominations this time! Claire Foy has already won Outstanding Guest Actress Drama, Adriano Goldman for Cinematography, and Yan Miles for Editing last weekend!

Emmy Nominations 2021: Vanity Fair Predicts Who Will Win

A close look at every award that will be handed out during Sunday night’s broadcast, from an intense actress showdown to the potential for history to be made.

After a year of television that felt more than a little unusual given the pandemic that surrounded it, the 2021 Emmy Awards will be an opportunity to celebrate the shows that got us through, whether via fantastical escapism, well-costumed romance, or the optimistic wisdom of a certain football coach. Just like last year, Vanity Fair’s experts have their eyes on a specific trio of shows—this year it’s The Crown, Ted Lasso, and The Queen’s Gambit—to take home the bulk of the prizes, but there is also plenty of room for surprise. Will The Handmaid’s Tale be the comeback kid? Will the final season of Pose soar to the top? Was it really Agatha all along? Read ahead to find out, and tune in to the Emmy Awards on Sunday night to see if we got it right.

A guide to Hollywood’s biggest races

DRAMA SERIES

The Boys Bridgerton PREDICTED WINNER: The Crown The Handmaid’s Tale Lovecraft Country The Mandalorian Pose This Is Us

In the culmination of its long, triumphant awards season, Netflix’s The Crown should finally win the top prize for its acclaimed fourth season. The period drama has won every equivalent precursor, from awards given by key industry guilds like the PGA and SAG to those given by notable outside groups at the Critics’ Choice Awards and Golden Globes, and found an entirely new audience with its rich rendering of the Charles-Diana saga. In the time since its airing, a serious challenger has not emerged to overtake it, even with the support for Pose’s final season or the sheer popularity of The Mandalorian. It’s time for The Crown to finally take the, well, you know. —David Canfield

ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES

Sterling K. Brown, This Is Us Jonathan Majors, Lovecraft Country PREDICTED WINNER: Josh O’Connor, The Crown Regé-Jean Page, Bridgerton Billy Porter, Pose Matthew Rhys, Perry Mason

Tighter than it first appeared, this race comes down to two very different contenders. The smart money may actually be on Billy Porter, considering the overall Emmy performance of Pose for its final season—the FX drama has already won three trophies this year via the Creative Arts awards—and the fact that Porter has already won this category. He’s nominated again for a true showcase of a season that’s hard to deny. But as Schitt’s Creek proved last year, the Emmys love a sweep, and The Crown—with its deep ensemble and clear overall front-runner status—looks tailor-made for one. Josh O’Connor stepping into the series’ center with his indelible Prince Charles is likely to find embrace amid the wave. —David Canfield

ACTRESS IN A DRAMA SERIES

Uzo Aduba, In Treatment Olivia Colman, The Crown PREDICTED WINNER: Emma Corrin, The Crown Elisabeth Moss, The Handmaid’s Tale Mj Rodriguez, Pose Jurnee Smollett, Lovecraft Country

Emma Corrin’s devastating breakout turn as Princess Diana sits comfortably atop this list—which feels a bit strange to say, given that she’s surrounded by awards heavyweights like Oscar winner (and costar!) Olivia Colman and multi-Emmy winners Uzo Aduba and Elisabeth Moss. But so it goes. And in fact, her chief competition is probably another first-time nominee—Mj Rodriguez, repping the surging Pose and having already made history as the first trans nominee in the category’s existence. Will voters jump at the opportunity to make even more history? It’s a long shot, but don’t count her out. —David Canfield

SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES

Giancarlo Esposito, The Mandalorian O-T Fagbenle, The Handmaid’s Tale John Lithgow, Perry Mason Tobias Menzies, The Crown Max Minghella, The Handmaid’s Tale Chris Sullivan, This Is Us Bradley Whitford, The Handmaid’s Tale PREDICTED WINNER: Michael K. Williams, Lovecraft Country

Voting closed before the tragic passing of Michael K. Williams on September 6, but the actor, whose work included The Wire and Boardwalk Empire, was already predicted to win this award for his performance in HBO’s now canceled Lovecraft Country. Winners of this category are often well-respected veteran actors (Peter Dinklage, Ben Mendelsohn, John Lithgow) who voters seem to be honoring not only for their current project, but their entire body of work. And that would be the case for Williams—a five-time Emmy nominee—this time around. It would be a bittersweet way to remember a beloved member of the acting community who created some of TV’s most memorable and vulnerable characters. —Rebecca Ford

SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A DRAMA SERIES

PREDICTED WINNER: Gillian Anderson, The Crown Madeline Brewer, The Handmaid’s Tale Helena Bonham Carter, The Crown Ann Dowd, The Handmaid’s Tale Aunjanue Ellis, Lovecraft Country Emerald Fennell, The Crown Yvonne Strahovski, The Handmaid’s Tale Samira Wiley, The Handmaid’s Tale

Dowd won in 2017 for her work on The Handmaid’s Tale, but with this crowded category stacked with her costars from the show, they’ll likely split the votes. And Anderson has always been the front-runner anyway for her transformative performance as Margaret Thatcher in the fourth season of the Netflix series. She already won the Globe earlier this year, and in all likelihood will beat out her own costars to take the Emmy as well. —Rebecca Ford

DIRECTING FOR A DRAMA SERIES

Bridgerton, “Diamond of the First Water,” Julie Anne Robinson Pose, “Series Finale,” Steven Canals The Crown, “Fairytale,” Benjamin Caron The Crown, “War,” Jessica Hobbs PREDICTED WINNER: The Handmaid’s Tale, “The Wilderness,” Liz Garbus The Mandalorian, “Chapter 9: The Marshal,” Jon Favreau

There’s a strong correlation between this category and the best-drama-series Emmy, which should give the edge to drama front-runner The Crown, and particularly the propulsive season four finale, “War.” But we’re spotting potential upsets in the beloved series finale for Pose and particularly the Handmaid’s Tale season four finale, “The Wilderness,” directed by Oscar-nominated documentarian Liz Garbus. Given how much The Handmaid’s Tale outperformed expectations in the nominations, we suspect this might be a place for the show to surprise again. —Katey Rich

WRITING FOR A DRAMA SERIES

Lovecraft Country, “Sundown,” Misha Green Pose, “Series Finale,” Ryan Murphy, Brad Falchuk, Steven Canals, Janet Mock, Our Lady J The Boys, “What I Know,” Rebecca Sonnenshine PREDICTED WINNER: The Crown, “War,” Peter Morgan The Handmaid’s Tale, “Home,” Yahlin Chang The Mandalorian, “Chapter 13: The Jedi,” Dave Filoni The Mandalorian, “Chapter 16: The Rescue,” Jon Favreau

Oddly enough, The Crown has never won this category, despite the dense history layered into each episode, which we suspect should give series creator Peter Morgan an edge here. For potential upsets keep an eye on Pose and the long list of heavy hitter credited writers; this is, after all, the category where Friday Night Lights and The Americans finally won after years of being overlooked. Pose is surging in Emmy attention for its final season, and you never know just how far that affection might go. —Katey Rich

[More via link above.]

#olivia colman #tobias menzies #helena bonham carter #gillian anderson #the crown netflix #the crown #emma corrin #josh o'connor #erin doherty #emerald fennell #claire foy #peter morgan #emmy awards 2021 #the crown season 4 #thecrownnet

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kathrynhahndaily · 3 years

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Kathryn Hahn nominated for Dorian TV Awards

Kathryn Hahn has gotten 3 nominations and Wandavision is leading the pack of nominees with 5 nominations.

» Best TV Performance (Elizabeth Olsen) » Best Supporting TV Performance (Kathryn Hahn) » Best TV Musical Performance (Kathryn Hahn - Agatha All Along) » Most Visually Striking Show (Wandavision) » Campiest TV Show (Wandavision) » Wilde Wit Award* (Kathryn Hahn) *Performer, writer or commentator whose observations both challenge and amuse.

#kathryn hahn #t:news #elizabeth olsen #agatha harkness #wanda maximoff #wandavision

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brian-in-finance · 2 years

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Movie-loving British period drama fans have had a busy year.

With cinemas kept closed for the majority of 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic, many exciting titles had their release dates postponed, resulting in a year that was jam-packed with new films to watch.

Here, in alphabetical order, is every new British historical and period drama movie from 2021!

What’s it about?

Caitriona Balfe (Outlander), Judi Dench (Skyfall), and Jamie Dornan (50 Shades of Grey) star in this poignant story of love, laughter and loss in one boy’s childhood.

Written and directed by Academy Award nominee Kenneth Branagh, Belfast is set amid the music and social tumult of the late 1960s in Northern Ireland.

What did the reviews say?

“There is a terrific warmth and tenderness to Kenneth Branagh’s elegiac, autobiographical movie about the Belfast of his childhood: spryly written, beautifully acted and shot in a lustrous monochrome, with set pieces, madeleines and epiphanies that feel like a more emollient version of Terence Davies.” ★★★★★ – The Guardian

“It’s a film of formal beauty, letter-perfect performances, complex and textured writing (also from Branagh) and enough comedic one-liners and Van Morrison musical montages to make you forget that you’re watching a drama about seething sectarian hatreds. It will nab an easy best picture Oscar nomination next year.” ★★★★★ – The Times

What’s it about?

Based on actual events, World War II drama Six Minutes to Midnight stars Judi Dench (Casino Royale), James D’Arcy (Broadchurch), Jim Broadbent (War and Peace), and Eddie Izzard (Victoria & Abdul).

In the summer of 1939, influential families in Nazi Germany have sent their daughters to a finishing school in an English seaside town to learn the language and be ambassadors for a future looking National Socialist. A teacher there sees what is coming and is trying to raise the alarm. But the authorities believe he is the problem.

What did the reviews say?

“There’s a fascinating film — a mix of The Beguiled and Picnic at Hanging Rock — trying to escape from this creaky passion project of Eddie Izzard’s.” ★★ – The Times

“Judi Dench and Jim Broadbent co-star in a peculiar blend of spy thriller and Ealing comedy that wobbles tonally but will keep you smiling.” ★★★ – The Telegraph

What’s it about?

Based on Stephen Michael Shearer’s An Unquiet Life, this movie – originally titled An Unquiet Life – stars Hugh Bonneville (Downton Abbey) as Roald Dahl in the early 1960s as the British children’s author struggles to write some of his most famous works. Brian’s note: Sam Heughan (Outlander) plays Paul Newman.

The story focuses on Dahl’s marriage to American actress Patricia Neal, played by The Durrells star Keeley Hawes.

What did the reviews say?

“Hugh Bonneville steps effortlessly into the role of the author, portraying a slightly eccentric yet ultimately grief-stricken man on the brink of a creative jackpot. Due praise must also be awarded to Keeley Hawes whose portrayal of Patricia Neal is equally enthralling.” ★★★★ – The Upcoming

“A well-intentioned biopic about a little-discussed but pivotal moment for both artists. If it’s never transcendent, it at least offers charming child performances, and Hawes is a particularly good fit as Neal. ” ★★★ – Empire

Complete 2021 list: https://britishperioddramas.com/lists/2021-best-new-british-period-drama-movies/

2022 is looking like another exciting year for British period drama fans.

Here, in alphabetical order, are all the new British historical and period drama movies you need to see next year!

What’s it about?

Kenneth Branagh returns as Hercule Poirot in the sequel to 2017’s Murder on the Orient Express.

Based on Agatha Christie’s classic murder mystery novel, Death on the Nile sees Poirot investigate a murder while on a luxury cruise on the Nile River in Egypt.

The all-star cast includes Gal Gadot (Wonder Woman), Armie Hammer (Call Me By Your Name), Rose Leslie (Downton Abbey), Letitia Wright (Black Panther), Annette Bening (American Beauty), Ali Fazal (Victoria & Abdul), Sophie Okonedo (Christopher Robin), Tom Bateman (Vanity Fair), Jennifer Saunders (Absolutely Fabulous), Dawn French (The Vicar of Dibley), and comedian Russell Brand.

When’s it out?

Death on the Nile will finally sail in to cinemas in February.

What’s it about?

Set in 1862 and based on Emma Donoghue’s 2016 novel, this Irish period drama movie stars Florence Pugh (Little Women), Tom Burke (The Musketeers), Niamh Algar (Deceit), Toby Jones (Dad’s Army), and Ciarán Hinds (The Woman in Black).

The Wonder follows a young girl who stops eating, but remains miraculously alive and well. English nurse Lib Wright is brought to a tiny village to investigate, as tourists and pilgrims flock to witness the girl who is said to have survived without food for months. Is the village harbouring a saint ‘surviving on manna from heaven’ or are there more ominous motives at work?

When’s it out?

The Wonder will premiere on Netflix in 2022.

Complete 2022 list: https://britishperioddramas.com/lists/2022-best-new-british-period-drama-movies/

Remember the last time you didn’t enjoy a British period drama?

#Tait rhymes with hat #Good times #BelfastMovie #British Period Dramas #19 December 2021 #22 December 2021 #Belfast #Now in North America #Worldwide 2022 #Twitter

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poirott · 5 years

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Death on the Nile casting list announced via the official Agatha Christie Twitter!

Five-time Academy Award® nominee Kenneth Branagh returns as director and once again stars as famed Belgian detective Hercule Poirot.

He is joined by an all-star cast of suspects which includes: Tom Bateman (who reprises the role of Bouc from Murder on the Orient Express), four-time Oscar® nominee Annette Bening (Captain Marvel), Russell Brand (Ballers), Ali Fazal (Victoria & Abdul), Dawn French (French and Saunders), Gal Gadot (Wonder Woman), Armie Hammer (Call Me by Your Name), Rose Leslie (Game of Thrones), Emma Mackey (Sex Education), Sophie Okonedo (The Secret Life of Bees), Jennifer Saunders (Absolutely Fabulous) and Letitia Wright (Black Panther).

"Crimes of passion are dangerously sexy,” says Kenneth Branagh. "Agatha Christie has written a riveting story of emotional chaos and violent criminality and Michael Green has once again written a screenplay to match. With a cherished group of long-time artistic collaborators and a brilliant international cast, it is truly a pleasure to join Disney, Fox and Agatha Christie Ltd. in bringing this daring thriller to the big screen. There are significant new twists, an awe-inspiring desert landscape and a chance to celebrate big screen entertainment in glorious 65 millimetre celluloid!”

- October 1 2019

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dweemeister · 4 years

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2019 Movie Odyssey Awards

As the 2019 Movie Odyssey Award for Best Original Song final was extended, the 2019 Movie Odyssey Awards themselves are late. As always, this is the annual awards ceremony to recognize a year of films that I saw for the first time in their entirety in the calendar year. All films featured - with the exception of those in the Worst Picture category (and even then, the Worst Picture winner won a competitive award below) - are worth seeing.

The full list of every single film I saw as part of the 2019 Movie Odyssey can be seen in this link.

Best Pictures (I name ten winners, none of which are distinguished above the other nine)

The Ascent (1977, Soviet Union)

An Autumn Afternoon (1962, Japan)

BlacKkKlansman (2018)

The Informer (1935)

Kuroneko (1968, Japan)

Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (2019)

Sons of the Desert (1933)

Victor/Victoria (1982)

The Westerner (1940)

Woodstock (1970)

Three of these Best Picture winners received 10/10 from yours truly: The Ascent, Sons of the Desert, and Woodstock. To my discredit, there are - for the second consecutive time - no silent films here. It is also the second consecutive Best Picture lineups without entries from the 1990s or 2000s. This is the first Best Picture lineup without a winner from the 1950s. It is, as a result of my seeing fewer feature-length films than usual this year, the most monolingual Best Picture field in a while. This field of ten runs the gamut of comedy, documentary (Woodstock is only the third documentary of 80 over the last eight years to be a Best Picture winner), horror, musical, American Western, war, family drama, and historical drama.

Best Comedy

Booksmart (2019)

Design for Living (1933)

The Great McGinty (1940)

Jewel Robbery (1932)

Jour de Fête (1949, France)

Sitting Pretty (1948)

Smokey and the Bandit (1977)

Sons of the Desert

Toy Story 4 (2019)

Victor/Victoria

Most of these had me bursting in laughter. Design for Living not Jewel Robbery may not have been gut-burstingly funny, but I appreciate the wittiness of ‘30s romantic comedies and so there get a spot here. Booksmart is the best pure comedy of 2019 and Smokey and the Bandit has been described by a few Southerners of not so much a comedy as it is a documentary of Southern culture in the 1970s. But Sons of the Desert, with Laurel and Hardy’s slapstick mastery, takes it away here. Fun fact: “Sons of the Desert” is the name of the international Laurel and Hardy fan club (its founding documents co-written by Stan Laurel).

Best Musical

Frozen II (2019)

The Happiest Millionaire (1967)

King of Jazz (1930)

Mary Poppins Returns (2018)

The Perils of Pauline (1947)

Rocketman (2019)

Thousands Cheer (1943)

Victor/Victoria

Oh this wasn’t close. Some films here may have packed more songs into their runtime (The Happiest Millionaire and Mary Poppins Returns), others were more fantastical (Rocketman), or dispensed with a plot altogether to concentrate on the music (Thousands Cheer)... but Victor/Victoria felt narratively decades of its time and was bolstered by an outstanding performance by Julie Andrews. Credit to Henry Mancini and Leslie Bricusse for their musical score, too.

Best Animated Feature

Frozen II

Fun and Fancy Free (1947)

How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World (2019)

Modest Heroes (2018, Japan)

Toy Story 4

There have been years where some category dries up in its nominees. This year, it was certainly animated feature. The wave of recent non-English language animated films that usually populate this category were severely diminished to just one last year: Modest Heroes. The weakest Toy Story film of the four - note that this bar is extremely high - is your winner, just edging HTTYD.

Best Documentary

The African Lion (1955)

Hale County This Morning, This Evening (2018)

Made in Vietnam (2017)

Minding the Gap (2018)

Pavarotti (2019)

Seadrift (2019)

Walk Run Cha-Cha (2019 short)

While I Breathe, I Hope (2018)

Woodstock

Yellowstone Cubs (1963)

A year that saw yours truly watch many more documentaries than usual sees Woodstock, directed by Michael Wadleigh, as the winner here. Woodstock perfectly immerses the viewer into the totality of the eponymous 1969 music festival of the same name and is one of the great concert films. Runners-up included the experimental Hale County This Morning, This Evening (a collection of contemporary images of black lives in Hale County, Alabama) and the excellent Minding the Gap (an observational glimpse into the lives of three friends from Rockford, Illinois who are all drawn to skateboarding and a devastating portrait of youth and masculinity in America) - both Oscar nominees and both shown on PBS earlier in 2019.

Congratulations to Walk Run Cha-Cha for being the first short film nominated in this category since 2015. I first saw it as part of the curatorial committee on Viet FIlm Fest this year and this New York Times film is now shortlisted as a potential Best Documentary Short Film nominee for the 92nd Academy Awards.

Best Non-English Language Film

The Ascent, Soviet Union

An Autumn Afternoon, Japan

Barnali (1963), India

The Garden of Mr. Vong (2017 short), Germany

Ginger and Fred (1986), Italy

Jour de Fête, France

Kuroneko, Japan

La Pointe Courte (1955), France

Pitfall (1962), Japan

Song Lang (2018), Vietnam

I may have seen fewer non-English language films this year, but there’s still a great selection here. In what was essentially a choice between The Ascent or An Autumn Afternoon, the only 10/10 recipient is the winner here. Vietnam has its first appearance in this category with Leon Le’s Song Lang - which is still making the film festival circuits.

Best Silent Film

Bobby Bumps and His Pointer Pup (1916 short)

Bobby Bumps at the Dentist (1918 short)

Bobby Bumps, Chef (1917 short)

Bobby Bumps in Their Master’s Voice (1921 short)

Bobby Bumps’ Last Smoke (1919 short)

Bobby Bumps Starts for School (1917 short)

The Curse of Quon Gwon: When the Far East Mingles with the West (1916 short)

Dr. Mabuse the Gambler (1922, Germany)

The Racket (1928)

Street Angel (1928)

As you can see, I didn’t see a lot of silent films this year. Dominated by Earl Hurd’s Bobby Bumps series of animated short films - Hurd innovated cel animation, a technique that would be used by pretty much everyone in hand-drawn animation for several decades - the winner is Fritz Lang’s sprawling crime epic, Dr. Mabuse the Gambler. The first Mabuse film is a solid, if imperfect, example of German Expressionism, a movement emphasizing darker stories and production/lighting design depending upon extremely angled sets and high-contrast lights and shadows.

Personal Favorite Film

Booksmart

The Farewell (2019)

House of Usher (1960)

The Moon-Spinners (1964)

Murder, She Said (1961)

One Foot in Heaven (1941)

Smokey and the Bandit

Sons of the Desert

Toy Story 4

The War of the Worlds (1953)

“I can hear the scratch of rat claws in the stone walls.” I mean, come on. How could one not appreciate Vincent Price’s straight performance in a fun, albeit loose, adaptation of Poe’s The Fall of the House of Usher? Such a great horror movie for an October evening and you don’t want to be scared out your wits. Runners-up were two other literary adaptations: Murder, She Said (adapted from Agatha Christie’s 4.50 from Paddington and starring a fantastic Margaret Rutherford as Ms. Marple) and The War of the Worlds (a chilling adaptation of H.G. Wells’ novel, with special effects convincing for its time and a change of setting to SoCal).

Best Director

Stuart Cooper, Overlord (1975)

John Ford, The Informer

Fritz Lang, Dr. Mabuse the Gambler

Spike Lee, BlacKkKlansman

Laurence Olivier, Henry V (1944)

Yasujirô Ozu, An Autumn Afternoon

Irving Rapper, One Foot in Heaven

Larisa Shepitko, The Ascent

Kaneto Shindô, Kuroneko

Michael Wadleigh, Woodstock

By no agenda at all, we have our first woman winner in Best Director. Shepitko directs her film with the utmost discipline and interest; it is to cinema’s misfortune that she died so young. Other considerations were Ford, Olivier, Ozu, and Wadleigh.

Best Acting Ensemble

An Autumn Afternoon

BlacKkKlansman

The Farewell

The Great McGinty

The Holly and the Ivy (1952)

O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000)

Once Upon a Time in Hollywood

One Foot in Heaven

Victor/Victoria

The Whales of August (1987)

Standout performances alone don’t always triumph here, nor do big names. So when it comes to collective performances, there was a wealth of options from the 2019 Movie Odyssey. Just edging An Autumn Afternoon (recommended for those who have seen several Ozu films) and The Whales of August (which I would recommend for those who have seen plenty of Bette Davis, Lillian Gish, and Vincent Price) is The Farewell. What surprised me most about the movie was how well-directed it was. I came into it expecting it to be poignantly written, but the caliber of acting from the cast was astoundingly high.

Best Actor

Demián Bichir, A Better Life (2011)

Yul Brynner, Anastasia

Rudolf Klein-Rogge, Dr. Mabuse the Gambler

Fredric March, One Foot in Heaven

Marcello Mastroianni, Ginger and Fred

Victor McLaglen, The Informer

Laurence Olivier, Henry V

Vincent Price, House of Usher

Burt Reynolds, Smokey and the Bandit

Edward G. Robinson, Little Caesar (1931)

Somewhat forgotten amid more popular John Ford films is The Informer. And with that, mostly forgotten is Victor McLaglen’s performance. McLaglen was a major star who peaked in the late 1920s and 1930s, mostly playing Irish drunks even though he himself was of English origin. He was relegated to supporting roles in the 1940s and beyond. He’s a force of nature as Gypo Nolan in The Informer though, and it is his brute force and physical acting that carries him over the likes March, Olivier, Price, and Robinson (who is my second choice here).

Best Actress

Jane Alexander, The Great White Hope (1970)

Julie Andrews, Victor/Victoria

Constance Bennett, What Price Hollywood? (1932)

Ingrid Bergman, Anastasia

Janet Gaynor, Street Angel

Giulietta Masina, Ginger and Fred

Yûko Mochizuki, Farewell to Dream (1956)

Lupita Nyong’o, Us (2019)

Ann Rutherford, Murder, She Said

Sharmila Tagore, Barnali

What can she not do? We think of Julie Andrews so much as the governess or nanny who makes everything right in the end. For those who don’t know, Andrews stars in Victor/Victoria as Victoria Grant, a struggling song-and-dance lady who, going along with her friend Robert Preston’s get-rich-quick plans, plays a man named Count Victor Grezhinski who plays a woman. Confused? Then you probably haven’t seen the movie (thanks to Blake Andrews’ direction, the film sells the illusion even though we the viewer can see through the disguise). Behind Andrews are Bergman, Nyong’o, and Rutherford.

Best Supporting Actor

Mahershala Ali, Green Book (2018)

Walter Brennan, The Westerner

Jackie Gleason, Smokey and the Bandit

Tom Hanks, A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood (2019)

Tim Blake Nelson, O Brother, Where Art Thou?

Brad Pitt, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood

Robert Preston, Victor/Victoria

Anatoly Solonitsyn, The Ascent

Akim Tamiroff, The Great McGinty

Eijirô Tôno, Farewell to Dream

Supporting categories tend to like villainous roles. In a faux supporting role, Walter Brennan - that raspy-voiced (because of his exposure to mustard gas while serving in WWI) coot who had the misfortune/fortune? to always look at least sixty or seventy years old - is “Judge” Roy Bean, a hanging judge who holds kangaroo courts in his lawless corner of Texas. Charismatic, out-of-touch, sexist, and silver-tongued is Brennan in this film... and never for a moment is he anything other than a delight to watch (as much as you may hate his character). Within striking distance are Brad Pitt and Akim Solonitsyn.

Best Supporting Actress

Amy Adams, Vice (2018)

Beulah Bondi, One Foot in Heaven

Doris Davenport, The Westerner

Helen Hayes, Anastasia

Holly Hunter, O Brother, Where Art Thou?

Regina King, If Beale Street Could Talk (2018)

Yoshiko Kuga, Farewell to Dream

Maureen O’Hara, Sitting Pretty

Kiwako Taichi, Kuroneko

Lesley Ann Warren, Victor/Victoria

The most recent Oscar winner for Best Supporting Actress does the same thing here for If Beale Street Could Talk. As the mother of the female lead in the film, King is an emotional scene-stealer from the first moment we meet her. Her character’s sojourn to Puerto Rico late in the film solidifies that. Far behind King is Yoshiko Kuga.

Best Adapted Screenplay

Yuri Klepikov and Larisa Shepitko, The Ascent

Charlie Wachtel, David Rabinowitz, Kevin Wilmott, and Spike Lee, BlacKkKlansman

Ben Hecht, Design for Living

Lulu Wang, The Farewell

Howard Sackler, The Great White Hope

Kaneto Shindo, Kuroenko

Dudley Nichols, The Informer

Ethan Coen and Joel Coen, O Brother, Where Art Thou?

Casey Robinson, One Foot in Heaven

F. Hugh Herbert, Sitting Pretty

One Foot in Heaven is a film with its Christian themes on its sleeve. Hell, the film does revolve around a Methodist minister, his family, and the community he serves over the course of a few decades. But it is a film with no need to proselytize, its heart understanding how human suffering can be tempered with mercy and forgiveness. Runners-up were BlacKkKlansman; The Farewell; and O Brother, Where Art Thou?

Best Original Screenplay

James Gray and Ethan Gross, Ad Astra (2019)

Kôgo Noda and Yasujirô Ozu, An Autumn Afternoon

Emily Halpern, Sarah Haskins, Susanna Fogel, and Katie Silberman, Booksmart

Federico Fellini, Tonino Guerra, and Tullio Pinelli, Ginger and Fred

Preston Sturges, The Great McGinty

Rian Johnson, Knives Out (2019)

Quentin Tarantino, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood

Christopher Hudson and Stuart Cooper, Overlord

Kôbô Abe, Pitfall

Oliver Hardy, Jack Barty, Stan Laurel, William A. Seiter, Glenn Tyron, and Eddie Welch, Sons of the Desert

Ozu’s final film shows that, though he usually revolved around familial dramas, never changed his signature visual aesthetic, and demanded little sensational acting, his films were always imbued with a deeply-ingrained humanity - asking complex questions about aspects of our familial or public lives that we would not give a second thought to. Ozu and his frequent collaborator Noda make those mundanities cinematic. That is why he is one of the greatest writer-directors who has ever lived.

Best Cinematography

Hoyte Van Hoytema, Ad Astra

Alfred Milotte and Elma Milotte, The African Lion

Vladimir Chukhnov and Pavel Lebeshev, The Ascent

Robert Krasker, Henry V

Joseph H. August, The Informer

Kiyomi Kuroda, Kuroneko

Roger Deakins, O Brother, Where Art Thou?

John Alcott, Overlord

Paul Ivano and Ernest Palmer, Street Angel

Frank V. Phillips, The Wild Country (1970)

In the history of WWII films, Overlord almost always never gets a mention. But this highly personal story of one young British soldier’s service on D-Day - and its shocking, but realistic ending - is beautifully shot. Runners-up include The Ascent and Kuroneko.

Best Film Editing

Norman R. Palmer, The African Lion

Uncredited, Dr. Mabuse the Gambler

Andrew Buckland, Michael McCusker, and Dirk Westervelt, Ford v Ferrari (2019)

George Hively, The Informer

Alain Resnais, La Pointe Courte

Ethan Coen, Joel Coen, and Tricia Cooke, O Brother, Where Art Thou?

Jonathan Gili, Overlord

Barney Wolf, Street Angel

Everett Douglas, The War of the Worlds

Thelma Schoonmaker, Jere Huggins, Martin Scorsese, Michael Wadleigh, Stanley Warnow, and Yeu-Bun Yee, Woodstock

Taking editing techniques that had been used but not pieced together so masterfully before give the Woodstock team the victory here. Their closest competition came from Ford v Ferrari, Overlord, and The War of the Worlds.

Best Adaptation or Musical Score

An Ton That and Leon Le, and Song Lang

T Bone Burnett, O Brother, Where Art Thou?

Alfonso Corelli and Milton Ager, King of Jazz

Robert Emmett Dolan, The Perils of Pauline

Ian Neil, Rocketman

Robert Lopez and Kristen Anderson-Lopez, Frozen II

Henry Mancini and Leslie Bricusse, Victor/Victoria

Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman, Mary Poppins Returns

Robert B. Sherman and Richard M. Sherman, The Happiest Millionaire

Herbert Stothart, Thousands Cheer

Every song was an original in Song Lang. And with cải lương a receding artform in Vietnam, what an unlikely shot in the arm Song Lang is - the beauty of its melodies and especially those lyrics. This category, which advantages musical scores over adaptation scores, also saw Mancini and Bricusse nearly take this one.

Best Original Score

Terence Blanchard, BlacKkKlansman

Bronislau Kaper, The Red Badge of Courage (1951)

Alfred Newman, Anastasia

John Powell, How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World

Leonard Rosenman, Fantastic Voyage

Alfred Schnittke, The Ascent

Max Steiner, The Informer

Leith Stevens, The War of the Worlds

William Walton, Henry V

John Williams, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (2019)

Not the best field for Original Score, but our winner ranks among the greatest film scores of all time. For the second straight year, a composer better known for their classical music work rather than film scoring has won. Following Ralph Vaughan Williams for 49th Parallel (1941) is fellow Englishman William Walton. For Olivier’s adaptation of Shakespeare’s Henry V, Walton was inspired by Elizabethan music, stunning magisterial fanfares. And, of course, there is the passacaglia “Death of Falstaff”. Walton beats Newman, Steiner, and Williams by a country mile.

Best Original Song

“Are We Dancing?”, music and lyrics by Richard M. Sherman and Robert B. Sherman, The Happiest Millionaire

“Crazy World”, music by Henry Mancini, lyrics by Leslie Bricusse, Victor/Victoria

“East Bound and Down”, music and lyrics by Jerry Reed, Smokey and the Bandit

“I Wish I Didn’t Love You So”, music and lyrics by Frank Loesser, The Perils of Pauline

“(I’m Gonna) Love Me Again”, music by Elton John, lyrics by Bernie Taupin, Rocketman

“Le Jazz Hot!”, music by Henry Macini, lyrics by Leslie Bricusse, Victor/Victoria

“The Next Right Thing”, music and lyrics by Robert Lopez and Kristen Anderson-Lopez, Frozen II

“The Shady Dame from Seville”, music by Henry Mancini, lyrics by Leslie Bricusse, Victor/Victoria

“Trường Tương Tư”, music and lyrics by Leon Le, Song Lang

“Woodstock”, music and lyrics by Joni Mitchell, Woodstock

Thank you all to those who participated in the preliminary and the final round of MOABOS this year!

Best Costume Design

René Hubert, Anastasia

Roger K. Furse, Henry V

Walter Plunkett, The Informer

Herman Rosse, King of Jazz

Yoshio Ueno, Kuroneko

Mary Zophres, O Brother, Where Art Thou?

Sarah Edwards, Ocean’s Eight (2018)

Edith Head and Waldo Angelo, The Perils of Pauline

Ghia Fam, Song Lang

Patricia Norris, Victor/Victoria

There were a handful of films I saw in 2019 that were revue musicals - something that, unless you’re an aficionado of musical theater history or know musical films, is unfamiliar to most people in 2020. A revue musical is a musical that features a collection of musical numbers that serve no narrative purpose when put together, often integrating dance or comedy sketches. Revue musicals were far more popular in the first half of the twentieth century. King of Jazz is an early two-strip Technicolor revue musical and its costume design reflects the extreme stylistic and cultural differences of its musical numbers. Behind King of Jazz are Anastasia and Song Lang.

Best Makeup and Hairstyling

Ma Kalaadevi Ananda and Tony Ward, A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

Uncredited, Dr. Mabuse the Gambler

Tony Sforzini and Vivienne Walker, Henry V

Jack P. Pierce, King of Jazz

Shigeo Kobayashi, Kuroneko

Louise McCarthy and Alan D’Angerio, Ocean’s Eight

Wally Westmore, The Perils of Pauline

Le Cam Huong, Song Lang

Greg Cannom, Kate Biscoe, and Patricia Dehaney, Vice

Paul Engelen, Harry Frampton, Peter Frampton, and Bobbie Smith, Victor/Victoria

Damn there was a lot of makeup in this movie, rendering certain actors unrecognizable. As much as despised Vice (more on that shortly), it takes the cake here. Also being considered was Dr. Mabuse the Gambler.

Best Production Design

John Graysmark, Andrej Andrejew, and William C. Andrews, Anastasia

Otto Hunte, Erich Kettelhut, Karl Stahl-Urach, and Karl Vollbrecht, Dr. Mabuse the Gambler

Jack Martin Smith, Dale Hennesy, Walter M. Scott, and Stuart A. Reiss, Fantastic Voyage (1966)

Paul Sheriff and Carmen Dillon, Henry V

Van Nest Polglase and Julia Heron, The Informer

John Myhre and Gordon Sim, Mary Poppins Returns

Anthony Masters, The Moon-Spinners

Cedric Gibbons, Daniel B. Cathcart, Edwin B. Willis, and Jacques Mersereau, Thousands Cheer

Rodger Maus, Tim Hutchinson, William Craig Smith, and Harry Cordwell, Victor/Victoria

Harper Goff, The Vikings (1958)

An absolutely ridiculous German Expressionist classic with ridiculous production design that would not have passed in an era with color. The amount of sets needed would have been mind-boggling. Behind Mabuse is Henry V (credit to the reconstruction of the Globe Theater).

Achievement in Visual Effects (all are winners because it would be unfair to compare the visuals of Ad Astra against 1953′s The War of the Worlds)

Ad Astra

Detective Pikachu (2019)

Fantastic Voyage

Ford v Ferrari

Godzilla: King of the Monsters (2019)

King of Jazz

Niagara (1953)

The War of the Worlds

Worst Picture

Gus (1976)

The Last Flight of Noah’s Ark (1980)

Vice

The World’s Greatest Athlete (1973)

Adam McKay’s conceit for The Big Short (2015) fails spectacularly with Vice - which I found neither funny nor enlightening. It is your “winner” over some pretty culturally insensitive, somewhat entertaining movies that folks who were creating Disney+ probably have not watched.

Honorary Awards:

Kevin Brownlow, for his efforts in silent film preservation

Earl Hurd, for innovating cel animation in film through the Bobby Bumps series

Robert Israel, for his modern-day film scores helping audiences connect to silent films

Jacqueline Stewart, for her scholarship on black cinema in the United States

FILMS WITH MULTIPLE NOMINATIONS (excluding Worst Picture... 48)

Fourteen: Victor/Victoria Nine: The Informer Eight: O Brother, Where Art Thou? Seven: The Ascent; Henry V; Kuroneko Six: Dr. Mabuse the Gambler; One Foot in Heaven Five: An Autumn Afternoon; BlacKkKlansman; King of Jazz; The Perils of Pauline; Smokey and the Bandit; Song Lang; Woodstock Four: Frozen II; Ginger and Fred; The Great McGinty; Once Upon a Time in Hollywood; Overlord; Sons of the Desert; Street Angel; The War of the Worlds Three: Ad Astra; The African Lion; Booksmart; The Farewell; Farewell to Dream; The Happiest Millionaire; Mary Poppins Returns; Rocketman; Sitting Pretty; Thousands Cheer; Toy Story 4; Vice; The Westerner Two: Barnali; A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood; Design for Living; The Great White Hope; House of Usher; How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World; Jour de Fête; La Pointe Courte; The Moon-Spinners; Murder, She Said; Ocean’s Eight; Pitfall

Victor/Victoria’s nominations haul is a record for the Movie Odyssey Awards.

WINNERS (excluding honorary awards and Worst Picture; 28) 3 wins: The Ascent, Victor/Victoria; Woodstock 2 wins: An Autumn Afternoon; Dr. Mabuse the Gambler; The Informer; King of Jazz; Sons of the Desert; The Westerner 1 win: Ad Astra; The Ascent; Detective Pikachu; Fantastic Voyage; The Farewell; Ford v Ferrari; Henry V; House of Usher; Godzilla: King of the Monsters; If Beale Street Could Talk; Kuroneko; Niagara; Once Upon a Time in Hollywood; One Foot in Heaven; Overlord; The Perils of Pauline; Song Lang; Toy Story 4; Vice; The War of the Worlds

85 films were nominated in 26 categories.

#2019 Movie Odyssey Awards #My Movie Odyssey

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beaubcxton · 6 years

Text

“You’re so brew-tiful, Snow.”

For @recgulus on her birthday. I love you & I hope you enjoy this 5.8kish mess. What is canon, right? Also, I made Simon say Crowley because I really like the word even if it doesnt have any context here. This is rushed but like, enjoy.

It happens on a Monday. Of course, it does Nothing good ever happened on a Monday. Simon should have known to keep his head low on a day like this. Children sobbing was the welcome tune that announced the beginning of a new day, fingers stumbled on the steering wheel; a sign that the night before might have been exhilarating but now was just, tiring. Mondays were like the thorns in a bed of roses.

Back in the day when his dad was still decent, his father warned him to take care of himself. ‘Nothing like a Monday, mate. Can’t smoke or drink, can ya?’ And Simon had smiled toothily at his father, shrugging off the advice like it was dust that had found its way onto his coat.

He really really shouldn’t have done that.

Reason 1: His mom died two years ago in June on a Monday.

Reason 2: Agatha broke up with him last week. Surprise, surprise! It was on a Monday!

Reason 3: He just spilled hot coffee on the fittest guy in the world on a fucking Monday aka today.

---

“Simon!!”

Feet wheeling automatically at the familiar voice, I extend my arms right in time for Penelope Bunce to fling herself against my chest. Her giggles send a row of vibrations in me that shudder each bone. I-weirdly- find myself inhaling her hair as if to assure myself she’s there. (She smells of watermelon and ink. Typical of her to do something study related even on vacation ) I shift uncomfortably in the hug, her phone digging in my arm.

Pen is my best friend. Been since we were tiny tots. She'd been gone for nearly a month. Being the only person who included me in social ongoings also known as parties where you could get wasted, Penny was the Jake to my Boyle. When conversations had the opportunity to become awkward and stifling, Pen was pretty cool to divert my attention. We'd video called at least five times a week this month.

She pulls back, grins still wide on both of our faces and surveys her surroundings.

It’s earlier than I would like it to be; it’s just barely afternoon and I’ve been awake since dawn. It’s a tiny cafe, huddled alone with its vivid hues of orange and brown amongst the grey concrete building. Good for business. Unlike the outdoors, the interior of the cafe’s temperature induced warmth and placidity. I usually notice several kids hunched and pored over their studying material. Textbooks that hid their anxious face from view are stacked on the tables, their coffees long since drained but I rarely pay attention to it, opting for my ‘want a free refill, mate?’ chime. Employed at the beginning of fall, I was given only a few days to suit the shop with the atmosphere outside. Pumpkins decorate the cashier desk and they’ve been carved to look like famous people. My favorite one is the one that looks like Miley Cyrus. Strings of lights, the ones you get in IKEA fall from the ceiling casting a mellow glow in the gloominess of the upcoming winter.

“I can’t believe you work here now.” She huffs, still having a staring competition with one of the pumpkins. Taylor Swift must have won because my best friend snaps her gaze towards me as if waiting for an explanation. I know where she's going with this and I have no intention whatsoever to get into it. It'll just end with her storming out or worse so I just hum in agreement or whatever she expects from me.

Surprisingly between tucks of hair and another staring completion with Shawn Mendes, she tells me, “It’ll be good for you. I hope, at least. You’ve been a mopey mess since Agatha, now don’t give me that look Si. You know it’s true. I told you not to get involved with her but-“

I will my jaw and heart to loosen. “Missed you Pen.”

Her teasing and motherly grin could light the whole shop up. “Micah and I missed you too.”

My smile wavers. Right. Her boyfriend in America. Really decent bloke, always up for the occasional drag though he’s a right wanker when he’s reading a book. We get along swimmingly. And it's not like I like like Penny but whenever she talks about Micah, it reminds me of my recent break up with Agatha. Someone who I thought I'd spend my life with. For fuck's sake, we're twenty-three. I'd be Pinocchio if I told you that I didn't go ring shopping.

“Simon?” I run a hand through my hair and grimace when it comes out sticky. I haven't talked about Agatha since she broke up with me.

“I’m alright,” I say and conclude the statement by sending her a shaky smile. Penny looks wary but doesn’t do something weird like putting her hand on my shoulder or lending me a hug. I’m grateful for it but also resentful.

The door tinkles and-

“Simon Snow?”

My first thought is ‘Fuck me.’ My second is ‘I’m going to act like a dunce. Crowley, this boy knows my name.’ And my third is nothing.

I go blank. Nada and nil, both poetic wonders dance from my tongue. Penny pinches my arm. I can see her smirking and hiding a giggle but I don’t reproach her for it. Not when Adonis is standing right in front of me, his muscular form a barrier against the cool wind he’s brought with the open door. With slanted eyebrows and thin lips, he looks like someone you’d see in portraits at castles, despite the smirk on his face.

“Simon Snow?” He calls out again and I watch mesmerized as his mouth opens and pronounces my name. I flush. It’s probably in my best intentions if I don’t drool over a customer and with hardly any cool, I raise my arm up like a moron and squeak out a “Here?” like we’re kids and back to roll call.

Super Fit bloke- as I recently decided to call him in my head- shifts his searching glance and focuses on me and I almost reel back in surprise. He’s wearing a hat that shadows his features but even blind, I’d recognize him anywhere. His eyes are grey and unlike anything that I’ve seen. It’s like a storm in there and I’m captivated by observing them. It’s so different watching them up close, up person in daylight than stalking his Instagram profiles at 2am. And his hair is carefully messed up in an extravagant manner, dark and shiny locks peeking out lazily.

I'm speechless. This is the best day of my life.

“Bastillon Pitch?”

My mouth blurts the words out but I suspect even if I had time, I’d say those same words. That same name. Do you know who is standing in my-not mine but you get the point- coffee shop right now? Award winning and three-time Oscar nominee, Bastillon Pitch. He has nine million and seven thousand followers on Instagram (not that I would know) and he’s been called to Ellen which he’s refused, by the way. For all my understanding (and obsessive knowledge) about him, I could never understand why he would do that. I mean, who refuses Ellen? That’s like refusing chocolate. Only a few months older than me, he’s the youngest actor to star in so many bloody iconic movies.

The man grimaces and looks around to see if anyone’s heard my exclamation but that would be ridiculous because the only people in the room are him, Pen, me and two ladies with floral blouses and wrinkled fingers. The latter are deep in conversation and are stealing glances at us occasionally to check whether we’re eavesdropping. They’re loud so that’s taken care of. In the seventeen minutes that they’ve been there, I’ve learned that they are lesbians whose gay son eloped with a girl. I'd like to say that's the strangest thing I've heard but it doesn't even rank top ten in today's conversations.

“I go by Baz and shut up, I don’t know what you’re talking about. Rathe dumb, aren’t you? You’re the barista here?” His voice is smooth and dark like wine drunk on a summer night. The tone, however, implies he thinks I’m incompetent. It’s like he’s trying to convey, ‘You? You’re the barista here? Seriously?’ I feel like I’ve been slapped. Hurt and embarrassment course through me simultaneously.

It’s not every day that one gets to meet their fucking celebrity crush but well (I like boys too, you see) I imagine I’m handling it rather well, never mind that my face is probably beet red and I’m this close to stammering. Don’t give me that look. ‘Baz’ Pitch is literally an icon. He’s acted in several movies and he’s so good at it that I get goosebumps watching him. And Crowley, I’d be lying if I said he wasn’t the fittest person I’d seen in my life. 10/10 ass and a perfect asshole. I don’t think I can handle his fucking beautiful lilt this early in the morning what with Agatha presence still ghosting my mind. Bastillon Pitch or not.

“Yes.” I bite. “Why?”

“Just expected a bit more, I suppose. Most baristas have a uniform” He breaks off suddenly and stretches hard like, his shirt literally goes up and I have a view of strained muscles. Crowley. I’m staring at it so hard I’m not aware he’s speaking till he coughs. Shit. I want to wipe that smirk off.

“You seem like the type of guy to like Brooklyn Nine-Nine but you don’t even wear a uniform so I can’t consider you a true fan. Seriously Snow, who wears that to work?” His mouth is opening and closing but all I hear from him is the sign ‘I’m a prick.’

“Sorry, we can’t look like posh assholes all the time.”

He rolls his eyes again at my attempted jab. “You-“

“You know,-“ I interrupt loudly, “-I wonder if you keep rolling your eyes because you’re trying to find a brain back there.”

The asshole grins and I’m disarmed by the beauty of it for a moment. His teeth do not contrast well with his tanned appearance. They look almost yellow in the dim light of the coffee shop but they’re sharp. I oddly wonder if he’s played a vampire. But then I know he’s not. I’ve watched all of his movies. Twice. Okay, thrice. (And maybe a few more times after that)

“Touche” As he walks towards me, I can swallow my disgust. He’s so damned tall. Seriously what was the point of these people with their ridiculous heights of six foot when I, a mere mortal was just five foot one? (I never said I wasn't dramatic.) “I didn’t expect it from you. Soft, aren’t you Snow?”

Pen, the traitor is nicely backing away.

“Soft?” I splutter manically even though I know being soft is wonderful but Bastillion Pitch cannot know in any universe that Simon Snow is soft. It would not bode well on his impression of me.

He grins wolfishly. “Shame.”

Shame? Shame? What does that even mean?

His sudden bark of laughter shakes the bloody walls. “Flustered, mate?”

Oh. Oh. Pen has long since retreated, thankfully because I wouldn’t feel like quitting if she was here. It’s just like the universe to make the (EX) love of my life an arse who has no consideration for my feelings. I admonish myself for sounding like a sap.

“I only get flustered in front of cute. Hot, hot people.”

Predator smirk combined with no reply sets me on edge. “What do you want?”

“Good grades but I already have them. Do you, Snow?”

I try not to let the bitterness seep into my tone. Of course, acting isn’t enough for the Great Bastillon Pitch. He’d have to study and rank too, possibly. I couldn’t understand why he’d need to work with all that money.

“Stop calling me that.”

Damn, how does he raise just one eyebrow?

“It’s a name, Snow. Surely, even you know what their purpose it?”

What? I’m so confused right now. I rack my brains and ask myself if I’ve done anything to warrant such behavior but I come out short. Did I bump into him on the street and not apologize? Kick his dog? No to both because I’d remember being a shithead. I don’t want to be on bad blood with Bastillon Pitch, however, so I try to rein my irritation in. Maybe we got off on the wrong foot.

“What are you majoring in?”

He stares at me. Blinks. Stares. “I want to become a lawyer.” He draws out the words like he thinks I’m a moron.

Who knew it’d be hard to have a conversation with Bastillon Pitch? Not me.

“I think you playing a vile asshole has rubbed on your in real life personality.” This time, I’m teasing.

His laughter is a sound I’ve not heard before. It’s warm and cold, both at once like he’s rarely had the opportunity to full on laugh, uncontrolled and unpracticed and he’s not sure how to excel in the skill. I think that irks him, not being able to control it because he stops quickly though I won't forget how, for a moment, his eyes crinkled shut and how his fingers curled in. I shiver.

It’s like someone has clicked a button on his personality. His face becomes a mask of nonchalance. “Coffee.” He orders. “Tall and with milk.”

Disappointment finds its way to me. Despite the ongoing insults, it was exciting to spar with someone. I’m just usually bored here. I grind the dusty little machine on (it’s certainly not Starbucks material) and waits for the hum that it’s working before I assemble the milk and sugar, distinctly aware that eyes are trailing me.

“You’d be a good lawyer,” I say suddenly as I pour a teaspoon of milk in, anxious to continue the conversation. His eyes widen. “Make people all mad and that. That be two pounds.”

His lips twitch as he silently hands over the money. I draw up the bill and as I’m handing over the coffee, full to the brim in a paper cup. His nails brush the desk as he leans forward, breath warm against my cheek as he murmurs, “You’ve got a nice arse, Snow.”

And because, I’m Simon Snow, because I’m a walking disaster, because Bastillon Pitch is an asshole who deserves it, I splutter and my hands shake for one infinite second before the cup goes down, falling and the piping beverages jumps onto Baz’s leather clothes.

Times stops in that standstill of a second. Nothing moves. In that second, I’m not an idiot but the spell is broken and I realize what an A class clown I am.

“You’ve got a little coffee there.” I murmur, mortified as Bastillon Bloody Pitch stares at himself for several seconds before his charged animal eyes hook me in place.

“What the fuck, Snow?”

I splutter maniacally, flinging drool here and there. Sending a plea to the ground to swallow me up, I stumble in my haste to get some towels. I start to dab one on his chest and flush when I realize I’m essentially touching his breasts. I am touching Bastillon Pitch, Oh my Gosh.

Do not think about that, Simon Snow. Do not think about that.

Baz pushes me off and tugs the towel and wipes himself. He’s snarling and his eyes have darkened but I (shockingly) notice pink coloring his cheeks.

“Rubbing it won’t help, Bastillon. You’re supposed to dab-”

“I reckon you’d know a lot about this. This your ninth time dropping coffee on a customer? And I go by Baz, how many fucking times-”

I raise my hands and back away. He seems almost embarrassed but I do not want to be in the way of an angry ‘Baz’ Penny, please be there. “I’m sorry. Coffee’s on the house.”

“THERE IS NO COFFEE, TO BEGIN WITH!”

Well, he has a point there. I concede defeat and murmur apologies. Baz drops the towel on the floor like a wanker and storms out, the door slamming shut behind him and the texture of frost whipping across my face for a millisecond as I process the previous events.

The old ladies are looking at me and grinning. I bury my hands in my face and groan.

I could not catch a break.

---

“Snow!”

Fuck. What is he doing here? I shut my eyes for a second, try to collect any calm in this universe and curse softly.

“SNOW!”

I move out from the kitchen and press my apron, hastily. The warm aroma of coffee ground hits me as I step out the door and face to Bastillon.

“Hey.”

He sneers. “Where's the apron?”

My eyebrows pinch together and I look down at myself, just to double check. I had worn it.

“What are you on about, mate? It's right here.” I say and gesture to my clothes.

Surprisingly, Baz flushes and growls out, “Where's my apron, you moron?”

I know he's trying to be a really tough boy and crap but whenever he growls, it sounds really cute, almost like he's imitating a baby bear. I have the sudden urge to pinch his cheeks and coo over him.

“Snow!”

He even has the personality of a bear.

“Sorry. Lost in thought. What did you say?”

Baz shutting his eyes will forever be one of the most dramatic and exaggerated actions in the world. It's like one of those slow things. First, he twists his fingers and they curl around the table. Then, his lips purse. All the while his eyes are slowly shutting. Maybe, he took classes for that.

“I said,” He manages to say. “Where the fuck is my apron?”

Sighing, I run a hand through my hair. “Look mate, I can make you a cup of perfectly fine coffee, provided you don't startle me like-”

“Urgh!” Baz implores to some deity. “I’m working here, you dumbass.”

I freeze.

There is no way I heard correctly.

“What?”

“Fucking Crowley.” He murmurs, throwing his look downwards.

Just when you think life’s picking up, when you finally move on from the incidents of yesterday and go a few hours without this complete and utter arse, Bastillon Pitch drops in and says, “Hey! I‘m going to work with you. ”

“Please tell me you’re joking.”

“Crowley, I'm going to need to tell my aunt about you.”

Somewhere inside me, my heart stumbles. “What?”

“My aunt?” Baz smirks. “The owner?”

Are you serious? Someone up there had it out for me. Embarrassment rings through me.

Pinching my lip, I have a revelation about what I must do. Alrighty then. I give him my apron and resign. Guns and Roses blare in the background as I do this mighty and heroic deed. I leap off the platform, pluck my sunglasses off and kiss the mole on Bastillon face because no matter how much of an asshole he is, I will forever be attracted to him before I pull away and slam the door on my way out.

Well, I imagine all of this. Could you tell? I really cannot believe my luck. Now, his aunt who I assumed was a perfectly good woman is going to fire me and I’ll live on the streets for all eternity. Staring at how happy Bastillon looks with the bombshell he's just dropped doesn't help me in the slightest. Moving to get him an apron, I throw it towards him and cross my arms as a thought strikes me.

“When did you start?”

Chuckling low and warm, Baz pulls the apron on top of himself and smiles. “And here I thought you were dull. Yesterday.”

Xxxxxxxxx

We’ve settled into a routine. Baz and I. It’s really just one rule though we’ve found it hard to obey. Do not interfere with the other.

Sometimes, I’m making coffee when Baz leg brushes against mine and while both of us turn pink, I choose not to say anything while he goes into a rage about how I’m an imbecile who hogs all the space and how ‘you hog all the space with your fucking stupidity, Snow!’

So I’d retaliate. The other day, for example, he’d asked me for a cuppa. He was on break and by obligation, I had to make him one so I set out to make a cup of tea when this brilliant idea struck me. I boiled the gatorade up and put it in a cup with sugar on its side. Waiting patiently as he raised his eyebrows, sipped the tea and then, spat it out, I couldn’t help but feel vicious satisfaction.

We play a bunch of games too. Not the friendly ones that children in playgrounds do but the ones that people with no lives and who thrive on annoying their rival do.

One of them is the growling game; every time, we roast each other and someone doesn’t retort but growls, loses. The other is The Quick Game; we have a tally on who serves the most customers. So far, Baz is winning by a marginal. (a lot) My favorite is the Embarrassment Game; when we’re talking to customers, we tell them ridiculous things about the other. Baz, of course, started it first. He had told one of my favorite customers that I’m a rather dull kid and his aunt had hired me in pity. I had told the next customer he was gay. He, surprisingly, didn’t have anything to say to that and we haven’t played the game since.

---

“You’d think that a barista would know how to make a cup of coffee.” Baz is saying to his aunt, Fiona who is coincidentally my boss. Did I mention that before? We’re at her office, not because she’s called me though that was what I was led to believe, cue angry glare at the boy on my left. “But Snow dropped the whole fucking mug, sorry, freaking mug on me on my first day and I had to go home.” Baz added, opting for a pout.

Crowley, he looks brilliant. Bugger. We’re playing the Embarrassment Game again and I am not ready, for once.

I try to display some professional mannerism. Might as well look good before I was fired. Still, I feel melancholic as I rack my brains about my future prospects. What would I work as now? Who’d want to hire me? The guy who can’t hold a cup of coffee? I wouldn’t hire me. I can’t help but feel resentment towards Baz.

“Simon.” Fiona reproaches, leaning forward, hands crinkling some papers as she does so. I liked Ms. Pitch. Despite her hubris and ridiculous attire; fluffy clothes that suited a ball venue and not a coffee shop, she was sweet when you (really) got to know her. Never in my wildest dreams would I imagine her to be connected to Baz Pitch. It was typical of my luck for my rival’s aunt to be my boss. “I am very disappointed in you.”

My eyes shut, ashamed. You’d think I’d be used to it, right? The shouts that I’m not good enough but-

“You should have poured the whole bloody machine on his head. He certainly deserves it!”

Baz’s eyes widen proportionally while my mouth drops open.

“What?” We both articulate.

Ms. Pitch goes on as if she hasn’t heard out exclamations. “I thought I couldn’t love you anymore. I was wrong.” Her eyes fixate on me and I stare back, stupefied.

“Go on, then! You have a coffee shop to run.”

As I’m leaving, she says, “And Simon? Expect a raise soon.”

The door slams shut before I can express my stupefied gratitude. I think of going in, again but then I hear Baz’s groans and protests and my feet express a desire to get away, as quickly as possible.

Xxxxx

“Hey, Baz?” I begin, crumpling the cupcake wrapper in a ball and stuff the cake in my mouth. We’re on lunch break now. Sitting right in front of me is Baz though his focus is on his phone and not me. It’s a real pity. Is my sarcasm obvious? I wonder if he’s hungry. Looks like he’s starving. That would explain his pallid color. I know he’d prefer sitting away from me but it’s either here, in the kitchen or outside and attending to people. Every introvert’s worst nightmare. “Baz?”

He rolls his eyes at his phone and cranes his neck upwards. “What, Snow?”

I tsk. He’s like a fucking crab, always ready to bite my head off even though I’m perfectly pleasant. I suspect that even if the Queen of England were to knock, he’d slam the door in her face, grumbling about something.

“Do you ever eat?”

Surprise flashes in his eyes before he scoffs. “No, Snow. I don’t. I’m a vampire and I drink blood.”

I grin toothily at him. They’re probably yellow and red, resultants of the red velvet cupcake and gummy bears I had for lunch.

“Always knew you were a soul-sucking monster.”

Baz turns back to his phone though I can see a hint of a smile at his lips.

---

The other day, word got out that the Bastillon Pitch works at a humble cafe so we’ve been swarmed by teenage girls. Baz, true to his credit, threw them a stellar personality before he said rather dismissively, “We’re closing early! Technical issues.”

I had thrown him a look. “Baz. We worked at a cafe.”

“No shit, Sherlock.”

I rolled my eyes and sent his fans a smile but they ignored me. “Can you sign this, Baz?” “Baz! Will you marry me?”

The requests were strange but Bas took them in stride. Soon, we had most of them out but camera lights still flashed in out direction. When we decided to close for the day, Baz and I lazed about in the room. Him working on study material and I worked on getting my Tumblr theme.

“I don't understand what those girls see in you.”

Baz barely spares me a glance as his fingers click the keyboard.

“I’m an actor, Snow.”

“And a real-life vampire.”

Baz grins. Hides it. “What are you studying?”

“I don't go to college anymore.”

“Oh?” Baz seems surprised. “If you wanted money, you could ask-”

I don't know if he's jesting or being genuinely kind but it stings me, regardless. “I don't want to go.”

“Oh.”

---

“Sorry! I’m latte!” The pun comes naturally as I burst in the coffee shop, almost an hour late. The bell tinkles as I run towards the cashier.

Baz is leaning against the counter, no customers in sight. It’s a slow day. But apparently, I’ve made a horrendous mistake as Baz folds his arms over his chest and stares me down, the textbook picture of condescension.

“Thank Crowley” I breathe as I pull over my apron. Normally, I’m not late. I’m really not but today, right as I was about to leave the flat, Agatha comes barging in, tears cascading down her pretty face. Her mascara was smudged so I’d known she had been crying for hours.

“What’s wrong?” I had set her down on the sofa and went off to make some tea. That’s all I’ve been doing lately. Agatha started going on about how she missed me and agreed that maybe, we should have given us another shot.

“Let’s get back together, Si, alright?” Agatha had said, staring at me with those bluebell eyes I had grown so accustomed and fond of seeing.

And then, I had a revelation. I did not want us anymore. It wasn’t so much that I was afraid of being hurt again but something else. I had moved on. It felt weird because I was so used to being in love with her, I forgot the feeling of not loving her. And, this feeling was so great I wanted to giggle but I couldn’t do that, not with Agatha flooding my apartment with her tears so I had steered her out and said very softly, mind you that ‘No, I’m sorry, Aggy but no.”

Now, here I was, still panting and victim to ‘Bastillon Pitch Full On Glare’, something I did not want to ever see. He’d looks like he’s swallowed dung. So fucking angry.

“I met up with Agatha.” I say, shortly. That does not dissuade him in the slightest. If I had to say, he looked even angrier. I had rambled about my ex to him in the past weeks. I wish I hadn’t.

“Oh,” He says cooly. “And, I suppose the lovely pair has gotten together again?”

“I didn’t want to.” I pacify him and he cools down, slightly.

“Oh.” He sounds like Christmas has come early. Wanker.

“I can’t expresso your attitude-”

Baz groans. “Stop with the fucking puns, Snow. You’ve been on them since yesterday.”

“And you’re still not used to it? Oh, bugger.” I mock a sympathetic sigh.

And then out of the blue, he says something that sends my heart which is already pounding a million miles per hour, race again because he’s looking at me like that and the twat leaves the room after he says it, like he knows I can’t chase him after the bombshell he’s just dropped.

He stares me right in the eye and says, disinterestedly, “I’m gay.”

Xxx

Ever since he’s told me he’s gay, I feel like something’s changed between us. Do I tell him I’m gay or bisexual too? It’s gotten awkward. I tried to talk to him and transfer the message that I’m not homophobic to him but he gets all clammy if I’ve walked two steps up to him and begin with ‘Baz?’

Normally, I don’t let this bother me. We get on each other’s nerves. Totally normal if I kept persisting. But he looks genuinely uncomfortable and he probably regrets telling me even though I don’t know why he’s told me in the first place, to begin with. I steer out of his way the rest of the day.

As the day progresses, he gets even more on edge, nearly snapping at an old lady who couldn’t see the menu. I try to manage the orders and let him work near the machines. But after, he kicks the machine that we all know doesn’t work, I give up trying to soothe him.

When two people have filed a complaint, I almost facepalm. My killer headache helps in making my day worse. With that and Baz’s mood swings, there’s nothing more I want but to go back home. But of course, that’s when the day gets worse.

It’s nearly night when Fiona rings us up. She rarely comes to the shop but does her paperwork at home. Efficient and tactical.

Baz picks up the phone and I can hear Fiona’s distant chattering but I focus more on Baz’s darkening face. Suddenly, he slams the phone down and tells me, “Close down.”

“It’s not 8pm, yet,” I state, dumbly.

“Fast, you imbecile.”

“But-”

That is, of course, when the lights flicker off and we’re buried in darkness. Baz’s shadow stands out prominently, in front of me and his groan followed by a curse, splits the air.

“Blackout.” Baz explains when I continue staring as he drops on the ground. I rub my eyes and lean against the counter. This was perfect. Fiona had installed those automatic doors today in the afternoon, the ones that functioned on electricity so we were locked in. Two rivals trapped in a room together. Maybe, once I went insane, psychologists could study me and they’d be shocked with the observations.

And maybe, they'd be surprised at how much I still like Bastillon Pitch.

---

Charcoal darkness has winnowed in and coated us with anxiety and tension. There were no curtains so we’d stumbled behind the counter, afraid and weary.

“Sleep in the kitchen?” I say as we’re munching leftovers.

“You can take the kitchen.” He's talking to me. “I’ll sleep here.”

Scoffing, I nudge him with my foot which apparently sets him off. “Don't be ridiculous, Baz. We’re thin enough to fit in the kitchen.”

It'll be cramped and we’ll be arm to arm but I wager we’ll manage.

Baz tears through the bread with his teeth. “Fine.” He bites off.

My foot starts to sleep so I shake it.

“Would you stop doing that?” Baz murmurs after a few minutes. He sounds agitated as he rubs his head. We’re just sitting in darkness now, doing nothing but analyze each other.

“What?”

“Shaking your fucking foot, Snow. I'm trying to sleep.”

My jaw clenched. He was so infuriating sometimes. “You are not sleeping here.”

“Oh?” Baz scoffs, curling into the wall. “Since when do you care? You’re always running after-”

I let out an angry cry. And I don't think, I do. I want him to shut up. Surging forward, I notice how Baz’s monologue starts to delve. He has his eyes shut, I faintly register before I tilt my head and kiss him.

Bas stills and sags beneath my palms like I’m draining all of the oxygen in him. And Crowley, he’s so warm. I care, I try to tell him. You're the sun and I'm crashing into you. You mean so much to me.

I'm leaning over and when he doesn't respond, I pull away, disappointed and embarrassed. He's breathing heavily and I can see his grey beautiful eyes stare at me, wide with shock. I'm stumbling to get away when I fall into his lap. Pushing away, I’m horrified and about to fucking shoot myself.

All I can think about is how the door is locked and I'm trapped with a guy who's probably going to sue me because I assaulted him and oh my god, what am I-

“Snow.” Baz murmurs.

“Here,” I repeat like so long ago.

“Snow, what the fuck?” Baz is already departing his wall. At least, he’s engaged in being frustrated.

“Look, just don't tell the table-”

Baz tsks. “You’re such a moron, Snow.”

I splutter but then he kisses me.

And my mind goes blissfully blank.

---

We sleep in the kitchen that night, my arm draped across his body and his fingers twitching for me.

There’ll be time to talk about what I am, what we are later. How it’ll affect the press and other matters.

For now, it doesn't matter. We don't care. It's just us, two boys who’ve found solace and whose heart aches for the other, suspended in the dark, in time.

It's Baz and me.

#ahsdaosdhfao im even more sorry for this lmao #mine #lotte #carry on #simon snow #snowbaz #snowbaz fanfiction #bastillon pitch #baz #simon x baz

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