#also Stephen was like 35 or something at the end of the novel any way? Pipah might be like 33 maybe? | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

ironstrange1991 · 9 months

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Defender Strange Random Headcanons

Word Count: 0,800k

Warnings: None.

A/N: Headcanons written picturing the same reader from my previous Defender fics. Let me know if you want headcanons for the other Stephens

1. Defender is definitely a winter person, but since the accident he feels a lot of pain in his hands on cold days.

2. Spooky season is his favorite time of the year. Secretly loves Halloween but he won't admit it because he thinks halloween is a kid's thing.

3. Loves to read. He can spend all night reading. Likes to read novels but prefers to read his magic books. Always ready to learn something new.

4. Forests on rainy days is probably his favorite landscape. He would definitely live in a cabin in the middle of a forest in a tiny town if he could.

5. He's always working, but when he can rest he'll want to spend all day cuddling on the couch with you, eating junk food and watching your shitty tv shows.

6. Loves classical music, but also enjoys classic rock and other music genres. Loves Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds.

7. Amazing cook. Defender can cook any type of food with incredible ease.

8. Watch recipe videos secretly to learn how to cook new dishes to impress you.

9. Writes poetry.

10. Presents you with poems he writes for you.

11. Wears glasses to read, but is terrified you'll see him with them on.

12. Meditates when is very anxious for a mission.

13. Reads to calm you down when you're having an anxiety crisis or just because you asked him to. Will usually read until you fall asleep.

14. He doesn't usually have nightmares, but when he does, he loses sleep and ends up in the library reading.

15. Has nighmares where he's losing you.

16. He is sure he's not strong enough to live without you anymore.

17. It's a light sleeper. Sleeps on his stomach when sleeping alone in bed, but prefers to sleep with you in his arms, usually using his chest as a pillow and caressing his hair.

18. Very romantic and affectionate.

19. Kissing your forehead is his favorite way of saying he loves you without having to say the words.

20. Loves children. Is an amazing father.

21. Takes too many risks in his missions trying to protect everybody else.

22. He is a very serious man.

23. Thinks very carefully before saying anything. Reason always above feelings. His smiles and laughter are reserved only for you.

24. He's definitely a know-it-all, but tries not to come off as arrogant. He doesn't always succeed.

25. Very organized. Hates things out of place.

26. Hates having his things taken away from where he left them.

27. Very strict. He lives by his rules and expects everyone else to follow them too, especially you.

28. Loves to teach. He's a wonderful teacher, but since becoming the Sorcerer Supreme, doesn't teach anymore.

29. Likes animals, but believes the Sanctum is not the place for them, so won't allow you to have them.

30. He's not as vain as he was before the accident, but he spends a lot of time grooming his hair and beard. He's always flawless.

31. Before the accident he used to work out, but now the missions are enough to drain his energy.

32. Feels guilty for spending too much time working.

33. He loves that you take care of him when he arrives tired from his missions.

34. Loves hot baths with you. Loves that you wash and comb his hair.

35. Loves that you massage his back.

36. He doesn't swear a lot, but when he does, his favorite curse word is fuck.

37. It's not competitive.

38. He is extremely respected by everyone as Sorcerer Supreme and leader of the Defenders, for that reason he doesn't usually get into confrontations, but when necessary he can be extremely angry.

39. He doesn't usually get into fights or arguments, least of all with you. Tries his best to work things out by talking.

40. He knows how to hide his emotions very well, but he manages to open up to you a little.

41. Loves going to the theater. Loves musicals.

42. Gets mad if you disobey any of his rules and end up putting yourself in danger.

43. He hates asking for help with anything, especially if it has to do with his hands, but if he needs it he will ask you for help.

44. He hates driving since he had the accident so he uses magic to go anywhere.

45. Breakfast is his favorite food.

46. He prefers salty food to sweet food.

47. He doesn't usually drink, but when he does, he prefers wine to whiskey.

48. Drinks whiskey when nervous about something or extremely anxious.

49. Never gets drunk.

50. Doesn't tend to get mad at you easily, but gets mad when you get in the way of his work. However, he ends up giving in when he realizes that you just want his attention.

51. Will always be the first to apologize to you, even when he's right.

52. Is extremely resistant to pain. Usually takes care of himself when he comes home hurt after a mission, but will let you take care of him if you ask.

53. He is very quiet when he is tired or upset about something related to work.

54. He is extremely considerate of you.

55. Loves to take care of you whether it's because you're sick, on your period, had a bad day at work or any other reason.

56. He is not jealous.

57. Not given to public displays of affection.

58. He gets extremely shy when you kiss him around his defenders friends.

59. He is extremely selfless. Will always put your needs first.

60. He tends to be very focused on work, but sometimes he catches himself daydreaming about you which always brings a smile to his lips.

61. Is secretly afraid that you will one day get tired of his lifestyle.

62. Trust your love for him, but fear that one day you might leave him.

63. Never got over his sister's death, still blames himself for it and can't talk about it, not even to you.

Reblog please! Leave a comment if you liked it. Interact! I will love to read all of your comments and opinions. It inspires me to keep writing!

DEFENDER STRANGE MASTERLIST

MAIN MASTERLIST

Tag list: @doctorstrangelovemusic-blog @rachelessfreedom-world @a-tong @ppatricia34me @strangesgirls @dreamxonxx @benaddictcumberpatch @iamsherlocked1479 @evelyn-kingsley @veryladyqueen @notglucose @wickedscribbles @agathassscribbles @rmoonstoner @fanartka @katehawke @nicoletk @azu21 @captaincarmel416 @harlekin6 @coffedraven @withalittlehoney

@dontmindme262 @dementeddoll @yourmajesty13 @strangeions @bloodyflowerrr @insanelyobsessedwithdilfs @dragonqueen89 @newtsniffles @whiskeyho @sherlux @xourownsidee @kakashibabe02 @hobimysolecito @geeky-politics-46 @lykaonimagines @d0ct0rstrangewife @classickook @iobsessoverfictionalmen @bobateadaydreams @aphroditesdilemma @sassenach-on-the-rocks

@thealleydog @anadlockfan @pinkthick @loverofallbroken @butchers-girl @singhfae

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bookaddict24-7 · 3 years

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I said at the beginning of the year that I would share my reviews more on my blog instead of just on Instagram and Goodreads. I’ve been reading a lot so far this year, so my reviews will be delayed on here. I’ll hopefully post five (mini-ish) reviews per week!

Friend me on Goodreads here to read my reviews in real-time!

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31. Fat Chance, Charlie Vega by Crystal Maldonado--⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

“TW: Fat Shaming, Gaslighting I absolutely loved this book, not just because of the amazing representation, but because I saw myself in Charlie. I grew up as the fat friend. I lost my father when I was young and grew up with a mom who didn’t always say the right thing about my size. My mom and I are in a much healthier place now, but seeing Charlie experience the feelings she does brought back a lot of memories and endeared her to me in ways I can’t ever explain. Her relationship with her best friend was, in my opinion, the centre point of this story. Yes, her mother obviously had a huge impact on the story and so did the romance, but ultimately I think this is a story about the power of friendship and perspective. No one is perfect and just because we see things through our eyes, it doesn’t mean that there aren’t other perspectives. And while Charlie’s experiences sometimes are heartbreaking, she is a young woman on the incredibly tough journey of learning how to love herself. I love YA books that feature realistic friendships and don’t sugarcoat the realities of what it is sometimes like to be the “fat friend”. I think this author captured those insecurities mixed with the love between these two friends beautifully. This book also features great representation for LGBTQ+ (Her best friend is Pan and it is actually mentioned in the book!!), there are BIPOC characters, and important discussions regarding fat phobia, the toxicity of diet culture, and the common misconception that fat automatically equals unattractiveness are explored. If you love books with Latina characters who have strong opinions and have great character growths, then I think you’ll enjoy this one. Also, if you like imperfect friendships and really cute romances, then you might also love this one like I did!”

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32. Don’t Kiss the Bride by Carian Cole--⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

“Okay, this was sooooo good. This book was everything I was hoping TORN by the same author would be. It was so spicy and I don’t mean it in the usual way, but in the connection between the characters. Their angst, while sometimes frustrating because they belonged together, was also endearing because it made their HEA so worth the wait. Also, there were a couple of characters who had high audacity levels. If you love age gaps, some spice, and a hot chemistry, then you’ll definitely enjoy this one!”

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33. Shine by Jessica Jung--⭐️⭐️

“Wow, this book was disappointing. I almost DNF’ed it at the beginning because I wasn’t really into the tone of the novel, but decided to keep going. I get what the author was trying to do, but this book was full of so many toxic characters. I don’t know if the author was trying to make the MC someone the reader could empathize with, but she was kind of awful. And that ending!!! Literally felt like everything I’d read was for nothing? There were so many plots that were just never truly concluded. I get the message that was being shown in this book, but holy crap it just felt like I was reading a drama that didn’t have a real conclusion. *SPOILERS* What the hell was that ending? It’s like the antagonist won because sure there was that one last shot the MC got in, but there were zero consequences for the antagonist’s actions. I know it’s part of a series but I felt like there wasn’t a solid conclusion to this book. I won’t be reading the sequel because this one was so disappointing, but I hope the sequel is better for those who WILL pick it up!”

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34. How to Catch A Queen by Alyssa Cole--⭐️⭐️⭐️

“This romance had a lot more going for it than I anticipated and again, this is me not having read the synopsis, aha! I really enjoyed seeing the female MC fighting for women’s rights and being such a go-getter with her goals! The reason why I’m not giving this a very high rating was that the story was just okay? I expected a bit more but it honestly kind of felt like the kind of book you read during the summer beside the pool and promptly forget after the summer is done. But I WILL say that this book had some good spicy moments. There’s a particular moment where the male MC says something about sitting on a throne and...well...that was caliente. If you want a quick read with a strong female MC, then you’ll like this one. Don’t expect anything mind blowing, but know you’ll probably have fun while you read it!”

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35. Mr. Mercedes by Stephen King--⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

“I actually enjoyed this a lot more than I thought I would (but probably not enough to read the sequel, aha). In true Stephen King fashion, we got a really jaded MC and a REALLY messed up antagonist—to the point where you almost felt sorry for him because of all the abuse he experienced growing up, ALMOST. The language in this book is jarring, especially during Black History Month. That’s one of the things that’s always either made me widen my eyes at this author, or side eye him so hard that I’m sure he feels it. But the mystery was great and I enjoyed the MC’s determination to catch the bad guy. I’d recommend this book for fans of King, because you know what jarring language to expect. But if you’re new to this author, keep in mind that he writes like this to make you uncomfortable. It’s his thing.”

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Have you read any of these? Would you recommend them?

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Happy reading!

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dear-wormwoods · 5 years

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re: the discourse

I’m really surprised this topic went off the way it did, and I didn’t really want to get more involved, but here I am. Personally, I haven’t seen anyone actually attempt to villainize Eddie... not one person that I have seen has made Eddie out to be the abuser and Myra out to be the victim, because that is obviously not the case at all. What people, including myself, have been trying to say is that the toxicity went both ways, and the dynamic was unhealthy but not necessarily abusive. Saying it isn’t abusive does not take away from the fact that is isn’t healthy. It’s not healthy!!!

But here’s the thing - neither Eddie nor Myra know any different. Eddie’s entire worldview is a product of a decades-long abusive environment, to the point where he feels the most comfortable in that environment and seeks to recreate it. He recognizes that is exactly what he’s doing, but feels powerless to stop himself. He’s never known anything else (as far as he’s aware in the beginning of the novel), so the idea of being on his own scares him. On Myra’s end, she met someone who told her he was very sick, and she willingly entered into the role of caretaker because she also didn’t know any better. As far as she knew, Eddie was sick and needed someone to take care of him. She probably liked feeling needed because, in her limited experience, she thought that meant she was loved. Likewise, Eddie’s idea of love is caretaking, because that’s all he knows.

So the result is that they are super codependent and manipulate each other, whether they realize it or not, and they also take comfort in the marriage because they both enable each other’s vices. Eddie acknowledges this in that chapter too, by admitting that he relies on pills just like she relies on food. They both just let their addictions continue because they both want to stay in their comfort zones. It’s unhealthy as fuck because people should help each other become better, not act as enablers. But Myra giving Eddie pills he says he needs isn’t abusive, just as Eddie letting Myra binge eat isn’t abusive (although some of the things he thinks about her are Questionable At Best, I take them with a huge grain of salt because comparing Myra to a literal hog is probably more about Stephen King’s fatphobia, not Eddie’s).

Like… yes, Myra does represent Eddie’s abuse cycle, that is very true, but that does not mean she herself is abusive. Rather, her role in Eddie’s character arc is to show how sometimes the cycle of abuse is so long-term and familiar that it actually becomes comfortable, even wanted. This is directly a result of Eddie spending literally 35 years with an abusive parent and never achieving independence. It’s an incredibly sad reality for a lot of people with an abusive past, and it takes a lot of therapy to get out of that cycle for most people. Myra most likely had no idea she was perpetuating the cycle, but that’s not Eddie’s fault either... like I said when I reblogged that first post, everything goes back to Sonia. The person at fault is Sonia. The person haunting Eddie’s thoughts throughout the novel is Sonia.

I think it’s really important to have this kind of conversation, to see the nuance involved and how everything in IT relates back to trauma, without taking such a black and white stance on it. Sometimes people are straight up just bad for each other and it isn’t either person’s fault, it’s just the way it is when both parties have their own sets of baggage and poor mental health. Eddie and Myra should not have been together, point blank, for reasons way beyond the fact that he’s a closeted gay man. Their dynamic was codependent and unhealthy, and they both tried to fool themselves into thinking it was okay (though I think they both knew it wasn’t - Eddie obviously knew, and I think Myra knew something was wrong too because people generally don’t get that clingy and hysterical if they think everything is Great).

Anyway, after reading this fucking book way too many times and putting way too many hours of thought into analyzing Eddie’s life, this is just my two cents that there was no villain in that marriage (besides Sonia’s ghost)... just two deeply sad people who should have seen therapists instead of each other.

#give eddie a good therapist 2k19 #and myra too girl also needs a good therapist #eddie kaspbrak #stephen king's it #myra kaspbrak #it novel #this is like #really late to the party #listen it takes me a really long time to type with one hand #eddie spaghet tea #it meta #meta #my meta

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problematicwelshman · 4 years

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Michael Sheen on Good Omens, sex scenes, and why Brexit led to his break-up

28 NOVEMBER 2018 • 4:18PM

Michael Sheen may be 49, and sporting a grey beard these days, but mention Martians and the actor reverts to a breathless, giddy teenager.

It all stems back to one evening when Sheen was about 12 years old. “It was a significant moment in my life,” he tells me over coffee in a London hotel. “My cousin Hugh was babysitting, and he put on Jeff Wayne’s War of the Worlds.

“I remember us lying there, listening in bed in the dark. It absolutely terrified me, but I got obsessed with it. I’m worryingly into it. I know every single note, every word.”

Wayne’s 1978 rock opera has had a similar effect on countless fans, even if it prompts a bemused shrug from non-converts. Without ever topping the charts, it has slowly become one of the best-selling British albums of all time, and this Friday begins a stadium tour featuring a 35-foot fire-breathing Martian and a 3D hologram of Liam Neeson. It’s a geeky novelty, but one of epic proportions.

When Wayne asked Sheen if he would star in a new radio drama-style version for the album’s 40th anniversary, alongside Taron Egerton and Ade Edmondson, the Welsh actor “bit his hand off”. It had always been his dream. For decades, whether doing serious political dramas such as Frost/Nixon or the great roles of classical theatre – Hamlet, Henry V – the one part Sheen really wanted involved Martians saying “ulla-ulla”.

“When I was doing Caligula at the Donmar [in 2003], I was filming The Deal during the day – which was the first time I’d played Tony Blair,” he says. “I’d be so tired, to wake myself up [before the play] I would do whole sections of War of the Worlds.” He can even beatbox the sound effects, he adds proudly. “The other guys in the dressing room would all be really pissed off with me - but I was playing Caligula, so they had to put up with it.”

Enthusing about an outtake on a collectors version of the album where you can hear Richard Burton coughing, Sheen briefly slips into an impression of the late actor. It’s eerily spot-on. Burton played the role he takes in the new version, which feels apt; growing up in Port Talbot, Sheen was aware of following in his footsteps.

“Coming from the same town as him really helped,” he says. “It’s place you wouldn’t necessarily think would be very sympathetic to acting – it’s an old steel town, very working class, quite a macho place – but because of Richard Burton, and then Anthony Hopkins, there’s the sense that it’s possible [to be an actor], and people have a respect for it.

“Ultimately, though, we’re very different actors - Burton was very much a charismatic leading man, and I’m probably more of a character actor. He wasn’t known for his versatility.” Sheen, by contrast, is a chameleon, as he proved with a remarkable run of biopics from 2006-9, playing Tony Blair, David Frost, Brian Clough, Kenneth Williams and the Roman emperor Nero on screen in the space of just four years.

He concedes that he may have made a “partly conscious” decision to avoid biopics since then. “I’ve been offered quite a few I didn’t do. I did feel, for a bit, it was probably good for me to move away from it – certainly from playing Blair at least, because that’s the one I became synonymous with. I’d quite happily play real people again, but it’s hard to find good scripts and it takes a lot of homework. With some parts I’ve been offered, you might only have a few weeks to prepare for it - and you can’t do that with Clough or Kenneth Williams.”

Despite his best intentions, Sheen is playing another Blair in his next film – The Voyage of Doctor Doolittle, where he’s the nemesis of Robert Downey Jr’s animal-loving hero. “I don’t know if they did that as a joke or not,” he says. “He’s Blair Müdfly – there’s an umlaut that he is very specific about. He was at college with Doolittle, and hates him, and becomes the antagonist because of his jealousy of Doolittle. Müdfly is employed to try and stop him from finding... what he wants to find.” As the film isn’t out for 13 months, Sheen is tight-lipped about further plot details – but he hints that Müdfly is “a villain in the tradition of Terry-Thomas villains.”

It’s the latest in a series of quirky, eyebrow-raising roles. After playing a vampire in the Twilight films and a werewolf in the Underworld franchise, Sheen says he would often be asked in interviews why a “serious classical actor” was wasting his time on fantasy films.

“There’s a lot of snobbishness about genre,” he says. “I think some of the greatest writing of the 20th and 21st centuries has happened in science fiction and fantasy.” While promoting the films, he would back up that point by citing his favourite authors – Stephen King, Philip K Dick, Neil Gaiman. “Time went on, and then one day my doorbell rang and there was a big box being delivered. I opened the box up and there was a card from Neil saying ‘From one fan to another’, and all these first editions of his books.”

It was the beginning an enduring friendship, which recently became a professional partnership: Sheen stars in Gaiman’s forthcoming TV series Good Omens, based on a 1990 novel he wrote with the late Terry Pratchett. Set in the days before a biblical apocalypse, its sprawling list of characters includes an angel called Aziraphale (Sheen) and a demon called Crowley (David Tennant) who have known each other since the days of Adam and Eve.

“I wanted to play Aziraphel being sort of in love with Crowley,” says Sheen. “They’re both very bonded and connected anyway, because of the two of them having this relationship through history - but also because angels are beings of love, so it’s inevitable that he would love Crowley. It helped that loving David is very easy to do.”

What kind of love - platonic, romantic, erotic? “Oh, those are human, mortal labels!” Sheen laughs. “But that was what I thought would be interesting to play with. There’s a lot of fan fiction where Aziraphale and Crowley get a bit hot and heavy towards each other, so it’ll be interesting to see how an audience reacts to what we’ve done in bringing that to the screen.”

Steamy fan fiction aside, it’s unlikely Good Omens will match the raunch levels of his last major TV series, Masters of Sex (2013-16), a drama about the pioneering sexologists Masters and Johnson. In the wake of the last year’s #MeToo revelations, HBO has introduced “intimacy co-ordinators” for its shows - but, Sheen tells me, Masters of Sex was ahead of the curve in handling sex scenes with caution.

“It was a lot easier for myself and Lizzy [Caplan, his co-star], as we were comfortable in that set-up, because we had status in it. But for people in the background, or doing just one scene, it’s different,” he says. “It became clear very quickly that there needed to be guidelines for people who didn’t have that kind of status, who would probably not speak up. We started talking about that, and decided there need to be clear rules.”

Sex scenes, he continues, “should absolutely be treated the same way as other things where there’s a danger. If you’re doing stage-fighting, or pyrotechnics, there are rules and everyone just sticks to them. Whether it’s physical danger, or emotional, or psychological, it’s just as important.”

Despite having several film and TV parts on the horizon, Sheen says he is still in semi-retirement from acting. In 2016 he hinted that he might be quit for good to campaign against populism. “In the same way as the Nazis had to be stopped in Germany in the Thirties, this thing that is on the rise has to be stopped," he said at the time. But now things are less cut. “I have two jobs now, essentially,” he says. "Acting takes second place."

While many celebrity activists limit their politics to save-the-dolphins posturing, Sheen has been working with a range of unfashionable grassroots groups aiming to combat inequality, support small communities and fight fake news. As well as supporting Welsh credit unions, and sponsoring a women’s football team in the tiny village of Goytre, he tells me that he's been “commissioning research into alternative funding models for local journalism”.

If he returns to the stage any time soon, he says it’s likely to be in a show about “political historical socio-economic stuff, a one-man show with very low production values”. It’s clear he’s not in it for the glamour.

Sheen was inspired to become more politically active by the Brexit referendum – which also indirectly led him to break up with his partner of four years, the comedian Sarah Silverman. At the time, they were living together in the US. “We both had very similar drives, and yet to act on those drives pulled us in different directions – because she is American and I’m Welsh,” he explains.

“After the Brexit vote, and the election where Trump became president, we both felt in different ways we wanted to get more involved. That led to her doing her show I Love You America [in which Silverman interviewed people from across the political spectrum], and it led to me wanting to address the issues that I thought led some people to vote the way they did about Brexit, in the area I come from and others like it.”

They still speak lovingly of each other, which makes their decision to end a happy relationship for the sake of politics look painfully quixotic. Talking about it, Sheen sounds a little wistful, but he’s utterly certain they made the right choice. “I felt a responsibility to do something, but it did mean coming back here – which was difficult for us, because we were very important to each other. But we both acknowledge that each of us had to do what we needed to do.”

#michael sheen #dolittle #the voyage of doctor dolittle #he got so irrationally mad at this article on twitter #but hey bringing it back because people wanted to read it #and it had info about dolittle #but it's locked behind a paywall #so here u go fam

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moviesandmania · 5 years

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IT: Chapter Two will be released by Warner Bros. in the USA on Digital on November 19th 2019 and on 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray + Digital combo (the one to get!), Blu-ray + DVD + Digital combo and Special Edition DVD on December 10th. Content options vary in other regions but they should be released around the same time.

Special features:

Audio commentary with director Andy Muschietti

Pennywise Lives Again!

This Meeting of the Losers Club Has Officially Begun

Finding the Deadlights

The Summers of IT: Chapter One, You’ll Float Too

The Summers of IT: Chapter Two, IT Ends

Here’s our previous coverage of the movie with stacks of reviews:

IT: Chapter Two is a 2019 American supernatural horror feature film directed by Andy Muschietti (Mama) from a screenplay Gary Dauberman (The Nun; Annabelle; Within; Wolves at the Door; et al), based on the novel by Stephen King. Seth Grahame-Smith and Barbara Muschietti produced.

Bill Skarsgård returns as Pennywise the clown, with Jessica Chastain (Crimson Peak; Mama) as adult Beverly, Bill Hader (The Skeleton Twins) as Richie, James McAvoy as Bill, James Ransone (Sinister; Sinister 2) as Eddie, Isaiah Mustafa (Shadowrunner: The Mortal Instruments) as Mike Hanlon, Andy Bean (Allegiant) as Stanley, Jay Ryan (Mary Kills People) as the adult Ben Hanscom.

Plot:

Twenty-seven years later, the members of the Loser’s Club have grown up and moved away, until a devastating phone call brings them back…

Reviews:

“The group dynamics of the (very good) cast propel the film as each Losers Club member faces down his or her personal demons. (Chastain especially gives the material a lift.) Taking each storyline at a time, all accompanied by flashbacks, gives each character some depth, even as the crowded film — at nearly three-hours long — verges on turning into a clown car.” Jake Coyle, Associated Press

“The whole film is going damn near overboard, for better and worse. It’s easy to admire Muschietti’s film for its excess and imagination. It’s easy to watch and enjoy it as a fright flick. It’s just harder to connect with the adult versions of these characters than it should be, and it’s harder to take this story seriously than it was before.” William Bibbiani, Bloody Disgusting

” …each scene begins relatively innocently before exploding into a waking nightmare that preys on the worst fears and repressed memories of each of the Losers. All good stuff, but more often than not, director Muschietti and the first-rate special effects team deliver gross-out visuals in favor of truly chilling and tense psychological terror. I mean, the Losers have to deal with a lot of arachnid-inspired imagery.” Richard Roeper, Chicago Sun-Times

“The devotion that Dauberman and Muschietti exhibit towards the Losers is palpable from start to finish, and despite some pitfalls in the film’s pacing, overall what they’ve managed to achieve with their collaborative efforts on IT Chapter Two is nothing short of monumental, and I think they’ve crafted something very special with these two films.” Heather Wixson, Daily Dead

“A psychologically merciless sequel, everything here is as it should be: deeper, scarier, funnier. Muschietti, in particular, has stepped up, skilfully guiding us through a rollicking funhouse. It is obscenely entertaining.” Alex Godfrey, Empire

” …even if Chapter One was example enough, there are no diminishing returns when it comes to shock value. Any time Pennywise feeds on life there is genuine sadness over the loss (the naivety and insecurities of his child victims contrasted with Bill Skarsgård’s master manipulator tendencies ensure it so), whether it’s a character we are attached to or someone newly introduced. ” Richard Kodjer, Flickering Myth

“The terror of Pennywise is best glimpsed fleetingly. See the clown too many times, and he becomes a familiar joke. But also letting the air out of things is Muschietti’s penchant for CGI scares, where practical effects would be far more effective. The movie’s many monstrosities – a crawling eyeball! a giant spider! an insect with the head of a human infant! – don’t inspire fear.” Barry Hertz, The Globe and Mail

” …Chapter Two seems to consist of an indefinite number of big, scary set pieces, featuring interchangeable snaggle-toothed creatures, or occasionally gigantic, fairground-sized monsters lurching grotesquely up out of nowhere. The scenes deliver reasonably efficient scares, but with the tension level repeatedly and disconcertingly reset afterwards to zero…” Peter Bradshaw, The Guardian

“Muschietti’s faithful adaptation, with all its creative and creepy set pieces, can’t justify that ass-numbing run time; especially not when the characters are just doing a lot of the same things they did in the first movie. They run into cobwebbed houses, stare down nightmarish visions and get tangled up with a clown that can morph into all kinds of silly, gigantic creatures. It’s all so easily forgettable.” Radheyan Simonpillai, Now Toronto

“Chapter Two is darker than the first, Bill’s attempt to deal with the guilt of losing his little brother by saving another ending in a brutal bit of bloodshed. Yet there are really only a couple of scary jolts, too many scary CGI puppets repeating themselves, too many effects beholden to Carpenter’s The Thing. McAvoy feels miscast here, perhaps a first for the actor. Chastain, Ransone and Hader do a great job updating their childhood counterparts…” Laura Clifford, Reeling Reviews

“Maybe it’s just that an evil clown terrorizing kids is intrinsically scarier than one going after adults. Or maybe it’s that the filmmakers, apparently believing this themselves, put the majority of their focus on a series of digitally created monstrosities. Whatever the case, It: Chapter Two, though ultimately satisfying, doesn’t get at the deep-seated creeps its predecessor did.” Michael Gingold, Rue Morgue

“IT: Chapter Two never really depicts the way dewy sentimentality can curdle into pain and regret or considers whether the other side of middle age offers a way of letting go of the past. Its monster only occasionally embodies the otherworldly fearfulness that leads the characters to speak of it in hushed tones. But at least Muschietti is trying for something epic and intimidating…” Keith Phipps, The Verge

” …when the filmmakers don’t force the story to fit into strict parameters and just let the story flow with these characters that we love, IT Chapter Two can be just as effective and emotional as the first film. For fans of the novel, you shouldn’t miss this because much of what we love about the book makes its way to the screen, even if it can’t completely hit every high point. IT Chapter Two is clunky, too long, and not as scary as it could have been, but when it hits, it really hits.” Alan Cerny, Vital Thrills

“Real trauma is given the same consideration as a literal funhouse of horrors, which cheapens what the characters and audience are put through.” Alan Silberman, Washington Post

“What stands out in It Chapter Two is not the clearly labored-over insect effects but that moment with Mrs Kersh and the scene of Pennywise as Beverly’s father — both reliant on actors rather than technical wizardry. The human eye can tell that there is not much in effects but effects themselves with a story like this about evil. But an actor like Gregson or Skarsgård can channel evil for us because they are human…” Dan Callahan, The Wrap

NB. Scroll further down past the trailers for YouTube reviews

The New Line Cinema production is obviously the sequel to the smash-hit horror movie IT (2017) which took a whopping $700,381,748 at the box office worldwide against a reported budget of $35 million.

Controversy:

As reported by 9news, some parents in Australia say that giant billboards of Pennywise’s face have been giving their young children nightmares.

“It just totally freaks them out,” Brisbane mother Kellie told the Australian news outlet, speaking about her kids’ reaction to the billboards. Her daughter Piper added: “I get really scared because it’s hard to go to bed when you have a scary picture in your mind. Before I go to bed, I have to check the whole room. And when I finally go to bed I will wake up after a nightmare.”

Another mother also told 9news that her child is terrified by the imagery. “Some people do enjoy going to horror movies and that’s fine and that’s their choice, and I understand that but we’re not choosing to see this poster,” said Jane, who issued a complaint with Ad Standards. The latter body has confirmed that the ads don’t break any of their rules. [Source: Bloody Disgusting]

Production:

Filming on IT: Chapter 2 officially began on June 20 in Toronto with a release date of September 6, 2019.

Background:

IT: Chapter Two clocks in at a whopping 169 minutes.

“A movie is very different when you’re writing the script and you’re building a story compared to what the final product is,” director Andy Muschietti told Digital Spy and other press.

“At the beginning, when you’re writing and building the beats of the story, everything that you put in there seems very essential to the story. However, when you have the movie finally edited and it’s 4 hours long, you realise that some of the events and some of the beats can be easily lifted but the essence of the story remains intact.

“You cannot deliver a 4-hour movie because people will start to feel uncomfortable – no matter what they see – but we ended up having a movie that is 2 hours and 45 minutes, and the pacing is very good. “Nobody who’s seen the movie has had any complaint.”

Cast and characters:

Jack Dylan Grazer … Young Eddie

James McAvoy … Bill Denbrough

Jessica Chastain … Beverly Marsh

Bill Skarsgård … Pennywise

Sophia Lillis … Young Beverly

Finn Wolfhard … Young Richie

Bill Hader … Richie Tozier

Jaeden Martell … Young Bill

Jay Ryan … Ben Hanscom

Kate Corbett … Dean’s Mom

Javier Botet

Xavier Dolan … Adrian Mellon

James Ransone … Eddie Kaspbrak

Owen Teague … Patrick Hockstetter

Jess Weixler … Audra Phillips

Jake Weary … John ‘Webby’ Garton

Nicholas Hamilton … Young Henry

Wyatt Oleff … Young Stanley

Isaiah Mustafa … Mike Hanlon

Jeremy Ray Taylor … Young Ben

Jackson Robert Scott … Georgie Denborough (rumored)

Teach Grant … Henry Bowers

Andy Bean … Stanley Uris

Chosen Jacobs … Young Mike

Stephen Bogaert … Mr. Marsh

Logan Thompson … Victor Criss

Taylor Frey … Don Hagarty

Ryan Kiera Armstrong … Victoria

Janet Porter … Richie’s Mother

Jake Sim … Belch Huggins

Amanda Zhou … Waitress

Kelly Van der Burg … Victoria’s Mom

Angela Thompson … Comedy Show Patron

Will Beinbrink … Tom Rogan

Ari Cohen … Rabbi Uris

Lyla Elliott … Dead Young Girl

Angelica Alejandro … Asian Waitress

Rob Ramsay … Meaner Nurse

Divan Meyer … Audience Member

Erik Junnola … Bully

Anthony Ulc … Joe The Butcher

Martavius Gayles … Paramedic

Connor Smith … Carny

Shannon Widdis … Cheerleader #1

John Connon … John Koontz

Elena Khan … Derry townsperson

Chris Jiggins … Paramedic

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Image credits: Brooke Palmer / Warner Bros. Entertainment

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IT: Chapter Two released on 4K Ultra-HD, Blu-ray, DVD, Digital soon – invite Pennywise into your home! IT: Chapter Two will be released by Warner Bros. in the USA on Digital on November 19th 2019 and on…

#2019 #Andy Muschietti #Bill Skarsgård #film #Gary Dauberman #horror #IT: Chapter Two #Jaeden Lieberher #Jessica Chastain #movie #review #reviews #Stephen King

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writingdotcoffee · 6 years

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#50: A novel in the making

Welcome to another Writing Update—a weekly journal where I document the ups and downs of my writing life. It’s been almost a year since I started writing my current work-in-progress novel. It seems appropriate to dedicate the 50th post in this series to the story and what I’ve learned in the process.

A little more than a year ago, an idea for a fast-paced scene with an ensemble cast started floating in my head. I was flirting with another project at the time, and so I didn’t pay too much attention to it. Every time I dismissed it, the idea came back to nag a little more. I wasn’t entirely convinced that I was ready to start writing the other project I was researching, and so I finally conceded: I would write a fast-paced 20,000-word novella to clear my mind.

I started outlining, fleshing out the details. The scene in my mind was quite climactic, and, to write it, I felt like I needed to understand where these people came from and why they were doing it. A few weeks of work later, I had a story that didn’t only satisfy my curiosity. This is more than enough for a novel, I thought.

I was excited, but facing a dilemma: should I abandon the previous project to work on this expanded novella outline that I just stitched together? I wanted to write something with a speculative element to it which didn’t fit into this new project. After some deliberation, I decided to go for it.

I started writing the next day—15 August 2017.

The First Draft

The first days were a bit erratic as I was finding my stride. At around chapter three, I got into a routine and spent the next four months grinding one chapter after the other, writing to a goal of 6,000 words per week.

Now, I’m by no means a fast writer. The strenuous schedule took its toll, and by November, I was not only behind, but also exhausted. For the first time in years, I stopped posting on this blog just so that I could focus entirely on the draft.

Fortunately, I took V.E. Schwab’s advice and wrote the beginning first, then jumped to the ending, leaving the middle to be filled in last. I liked the ending way too much to have the heart to abandon the project. So I doubled down and typed the last words on a murky Saturday afternoon a month later — 16 December 2017. 51 chapters, 95,000 words.

Lessons learned: Word goals are essential. Pushing yourself through the first draft does work (subject to health & safety, of course).

The Winter Crisis

I listened to Stephen King’s famous recuperation advice and put the damn thing away for six weeks before editing. I celebrated Christmas by writing a few random short stories and spent January recovering. But then February came along, and I wasn’t feeling like going back to the project. Even just reading it was torture. I just didn’t want to. Resistance was having the better of me.

It took me a full month to read the thing cover to cover. In the end, I produced about 35 pages of mostly sarcastic notes of what was wrong with it. In retrospect, it would’ve been easier to make notes of what I liked instead. Characters disappeared, there were plot holes. Most chapters suffered from the lack of proper structure. But it wasn’t all just epic fails. I liked the character dynamics at the beginning and the big climactic scene at the end. It had potential.

Lesson learned: next time, I won’t wait that long before editing.

With that information, I bought a stack of index cards and re-outlined the project. My fear that I would end up scrapping the whole thing proved unfounded. I dropped 4 chapters and added 6 new ones. Out of 51, that wasn’t so catastrophic after all.

I compiled character sheets for every significant character, wrote the new chapters and was ready for the next step.

Lessons learned: Having an outline doesn’t mean that you can’t change a thing later on. Conversely, you can happily start writing even if you don’t have every single detail figured out up front. Everyone has a sweet spot between freewheeling and total control. You’ll find yours through experience.

The Rewrite

In May, I went all the way back to chapter one and started a sequential rewrite. I keep two documents open, and I’m restructuring each chapter to make it more engaging. Some chapters are good as they are, others need a major facelift. I look at things like tension and pacing. I’m doing much more characterisation.

At the time of writing, I’m about 60% done. All I can say is that this has been the most difficult and yet the most exhilarating part of the process so far. It’s hard to describe, but the writing is literally coming alive.

I know it won’t be the final editing pass yet. There are still things to fix. But they’re getting smaller and smaller.

Lesson learned: It will take much longer than you think. And that’s ok.

The Future

If you asked me a year ago whether I thought that I would be working on the same book today, I’d probably laugh and say something evasive. In my mind though, I’d think that you’re insane. A year on the same project? Don’t be silly.

When you’re in the trenches, doing the work every day, it seems inconceivable that a year later, you could find yourself at the very same desk and not be done. Some authors take 10 years to write each of their books. But every time you read a story like that you’re thinking, God, I hope that won’t be me.

Well, now I’m the silly one. But I don’t regret a minute that I spent working on this project. It taught me so much not only about writing and storytelling. Finally, after almost a year, I’m convinced that this was the book that I was supposed to write.

A day will come when I will finish this novel. I cannot wait to share it with you and the world.

Short Stories

I wrote a part of the sequel to The Dead Borough this week, but I didn’t have the time to finish it. It’s coming next week! Until then, check out part one:

SHORT STORY: The Dead Borough

I’m trying to set up the second in the series in a way that you can read it even if you haven’t read part one, but it will definitely be more enjoyable if you did.

Alternatively, here’s the one I published last week:

SHORT STORY: Beautiful Cadavers

What I am reading

I’m almost done with David Grann’s The Lost City of Z—a brilliant account of the life of a British explorer who disappeared without the trace in the Amazon while looking for evidence of an ancient civilisation that he believed could’ve developed in the depths of the jungle.

A masterfully told story. David Grann is a staff writer for The New Yorker who clearly spent decades honing his craft. Thumbs up!

Next, I’ll be picking up Charles Arthur’s Cyber Wars which I bought a few weeks ago in Cambridge.

Subscribe to my list

My email subscribers (also known as persons of the most distinguished taste :-P) receive a digest of what I published or found helpful in their inboxes every week. Hit subscribe below to join the club. (I won’t spam you or pass your address to a third party. You can unsubscribe at any time.)

Past Editions

#49: A novel in the making, August 2018

#48: Plodding Along, July 2018

#47: The only way out is through, July 2018

#46: Deliberate practice, July 2018

#45: Us and them, July 2018

#writing #writer #writers #write #amwriting #writing life #writing update #writing updates #personal #me #update #wip #writingcoffee #writingdotcoffe

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imjustthemechanic · 5 years

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Natalie Jones and the Golden Ship

Part 1/? - A Meeting at the Palace Part 2/? - Curry Talk Part 3/? - Princess Sitamun Part 4/? - Not At Rest Part 5/? - Dead Men Tell no Tales Part 6/? - Sitamun Rises Again Part 7/? - The Curse of Madame Desrosiers Part 8/? - Sabotage at Guedelon Part 9/? - A Miracle Part 10/? - Desrosiers’ Elixir Part 11/? - Athens in October Part 12/? - The Man in Black Part 13/? - Mr. Neustadt Part 14/? - The Other Side of the Story Part 15/? - A Favour Part 16/? - A Knock on the Window Part 17/? - Sir Stephen and Buckeye Part 18/? - Books of Alchemy Part 19/? - The Answers Part 20/? - A Gift Left Behind Part 21/? - Santorini Part 22/? - What the Doves Found Part 23/? - A Thief in the Night Part 24/? - Healing Part 25/? - Newton’s Code Part 26/? - Montenegro Part 27/? - The Lost Relic Part 28/? - The Homunculinus Part 29/? - The End is Near Part 30/? - The Face of Evil Part 31/? - The Morning After Part 32/? - Next Stop Part 33/? - A Sighting in Messina Part 34/? - Taormina Part 35/? - Burning Part 36/? - Recovery Part 37/? - Pilgrimage to Vesuvius Part 38/? - The Scent of Hell Part 39/? - She’ll be Coming Down the Mountain Part 40/? - Stowaways Part 41/? - Bon Voyage Part 42/? - Turnabout Part 43/? - The Apple Part 44/? - Vesuvius Wakes Part 45/? - Fire At Sea Part 46/? - The Real Jim Part 47/? - Return to Naples Part 48/? - La Mela Part 49/? - A Demonstration Part 50/? - Out of the Frying Pan Part 51/? - Into the Fire Part 52/? - The Last Homunculus Part 53/? - Transmission Part 54/? - Metamorphosis Part 55/? - Jones and the Cat Part 56/? - Love and Loss

It’s all over but the angry lecture from Fury.

Nobody’s phone was showing the time anymore – those that hadn’t been destroyed by water were out of batteries. Natasha therefore had no idea how long they spent bobbing in the Bay of Naples, watching random objects float around and waiting for some sign of Jim. At one point Allen reached out and tried to pick up one of the golden bubbles, but it was microscopically thin and collapsed under his touch. The shreds of gold leaf floated on the surface.

The sun rose, glittering on the water and making it look like the entire gulf had turned to gold, all the way out to the horizon. After some time had passed, another boat did appear – a large white one with a diagonal red stripe painted on the prow ahead of the words Guardia Costiera. It came alongside their little fishing boat and a number of startled sailors looked down Sir Stephen, Nat, Perenelle, Allen, and their collection of rescued animals.

“When I was a boy,” one remarked in Italian, “we sometimes had our movies in the theatres before the Americans did. Now look, it’s been how many years and we’re finally getting around to making an Italian Life of Pi!”

The captain of the vessel was not amused. “Have you seen any other survivors?” he asked them in English.

Natasha looked at Sir Stephen, and saw him look away. Both of them were going to have to admit it. In this case, it was Sir Stephen who did the honours, for which Nat was grateful.

“No,” he said. “No, we are the only ones.”

Back on shore, people from some animal control agency took charge of the Contessa’s pets, including the parrot, which had been keeping company with Sam’s pet falcon. The inhabitants of Naples began to drift back into the city, but there was no electricity – many of the cables and the transformers at the power station had turned to gold, and were either unsuitable or unsafe for use. Perenelle told the group she knew a place they could stay, and took them south along the Amalfi coast to Sorrento.

On the drive there, Nat caught Clint looking at his phone again.

“Well?” she asked.

“Limoncello,” he said. “What’s that?”

“It’s a liqueur,” Natasha replied.

She was dissociating, she realized. Natasha had enough knowledge of psychology, particularly as it related to physical and emotional trauma, to recognize the symptoms. She felt as if she were floating out of her body above the bus and yet able to see through the roof of it, watching herself talk to her companions. The medical term was ‘acute stress reaction’. Interesting. Nat wouldn’t have thought she was capable of that anymore.

They reached Sorrento, and Perenelle brought them to her friend’s house – a lovely villa overlooking the bay, owned by a middle-aged man in a droopy mustache whom she addressed as Enrico. Natasha was positive that wasn’t his real name and could probably have figured out who he was if she’d wanted to, but she didn’t care enough. As the sun finally set on what must have been the longest day of her life, she was standing on a balcony looking down on a garden full of yellow cinquefoils, her mind empty.

“Natalie?”

She didn’t jump, because she’d known Allen was there – nobody could sneak up on Natasha Romanov. She’d sort of hoped he would leave her alone, though. What was she supposed to say to him?

“You want to talk about it?” he asked.

“No,” said Nat.

But he came up and put an arm around her anyway. She stiffened, then sagged, putting her face in her hands on the balcony.

“It’s so stupid,” she said. “I wasn’t in love with him. I barely knew him. He barely knew himself.” Nat wasn’t supposed to be subject to those kinds of silly emotions. Love was for children. You are made of marble, her trainers had said. Marble didn’t feel, any more than gold did.

“No, but you were attached to him,” said Allen gently.

“This is why they wouldn’t let us get attached to people,” Nat said miserably. “Because then we’d be upset if they left. Or if we had to kill them ourselves. They trained that out of us from when we were kids. They’d put two of us out on the tundra and only one was allowed to come back. Whichever was the stronger.” She was losing it. Going soft, weakening. She’d lived with normal people too long.

“That’s not what you want to be, Ginger Snap,” said Allen, patting her shoulder. “Trust me on that.”

That should have been a statement of the obvious, but instead it stopped Natasha cold. He was right, wasn’t he? She thought she wanted to be like other people. They had things she didn’t, they could be things she never could. She was trying to learn how to be more like that, even if only to fit in better… and yet when it happened, she fought it.

“It hurts,” she whimpered.

He pulled her in for a hug, letting her rest her head on his shoulder. “Yeah,” he said. “A wise man once said that pain is how you know you’re alive.”

“A wise man? That’s from Crossroads of Twilight, Dad,” said Nat. “It’s a silly fantasy novel.” She straightened up a bit. “Do you read those?”

“Yeah,” he admitted, embarrassed. “Your Mom got me into them.”

Your Mom. Kathy Jones had never existed, any more than Allen himself had before the Holy Grail had started messing with reality. “Tell me about Mom,” said Nat. It would distract her.

Allen leaned on the railing next to her and looked out to sea. “She had blue eyes. I like to think you got that from her more than me. And she loved snow. When you were little, at the very first snow she’d take you out in the yard to do snow angels and snowmen.”

Natasha could pretend she remembered that. It was an easy mental picture, a little girl with red pigtails building snowmen with her mother. She pictured it as an observer watching from the street, though, not as a participant… because it hadn’t happened to her.

“And she read fantasy books?” she asked.

“Yeah,” Allen nodded. “I watch Game of Thrones because I know she would never have missed it. I wondered if it were worth it, when I know now she wasn’t real, but… she was real to me. She’s a part of me and she always will be.”

In a way, Jim hadn’t been real, either. He’d been something Newton made up, brought to life for a purpose and then discarded. But he’d been real to the little group of people who’d known him for his few brief weeks of life, and they would remember him. It wasn’t the same as him actually being able to live on, but it was all they had… was that supposed to help? Nat honestly wasn’t sure if it did or not.

“When she got sick she was terrified,” Allen went on. “Her mother died of cancer. She knew the research had come a long way but when we were growing up, cancer was a death sentence. She didn’t want you to be scared but she also didn’t want to lie to you, so she sat down with you and explained what she had, and that it might take a long time for her to get well again. The doctors told her that staying positive was the best medicine, but I don’t think she ever really believed she was going to get better.”

“I’m sorry,” said Nat.

“Not your fault,” Allen replied automatically.

“No, it is,” she corrected him. “I’m the one who wrote your life story. I didn’t want to give myself too many living relatives because people would wonder why they never saw them, so I made myself an only child with one parent so I’d have an excuse to run off in an emergency.” She swallowed hard. It had all been just an exercise at that point. Something that would never affect reality. “I killed her.”

“You created her, too,” said Allen. “And you didn’t kill Jim, either. From what you said, he made a choice based on what he knew at the time… that’s all any of us can do, isn’t it?”

“I guess,” Nat said.

Allen put an arm around her again, and she leaned her head against his shoulder and let her eyes drift shut again. This was one of those things normal people had and Natasha didn’t – the comfort of another human being’s warm body, the knowledge that pain was universal and that nobody could change the past. The parts of humanity that Nat kept rejecting, she observed, were the bits that were considered weaknesses… and yet, she should know she couldn’t have the other parts on their own. Emotion was a package deal. She couldn’t be strong when her friends were weak, and then refuse to allow them to do the same for her.

“You need a kleenex?” Allen asked her.

She shook her head. “No,” said Nat. She knew that whatever else she could or couldn’t do, she couldn’t cry. She could cry on command, when a situation demanded tears from the perfect spy, but the mere fact that she was capable of that made her unable to cry and mean it. It would be a performance… and right now, what she really wanted most in the world was to stop having to perform.

The next morning they had a very Italian breakfast of pastries and espresso. Their host, Enrico, had presented Clint with a bottle of limoncello out of his private collection of wines and spirits, and was now chatting with Perenelle about homunculi over a bottle of morning wine, which was apparently something people did in Italy. In the middle of it all, a servant came up to announce that there were visitors.

“Both for your guests,” the man added. “Lady Andretti, and a gentleman from England, who says he is Earl of Dudley.”

Even in her low spirits, Nat had to smile a little. She knew Fury hated that title, but he didn’t want to give the Contessa priority.

“Let them in,” Enrico directed, and then turned to the CAAP.

“I heard,” said Nat, standing up. “Fury’s here,” she added to the others.

“Oh, boy, here it comes,” muttered Clint.

Fury was not the first to enter, though – instead it was a woman in an enormous hat and sunglasses, who breezed in trailing Valentino skirts and an enormous Louis Vuitton handbag. “Which of you is Doctor Jones?” she asked.

“That’s me,” said Natasha.

The woman came up and kissed Nat on both cheeks, and then did so again. “My darling!” she exclaimed. “I was never so angry with anyone as when they wouldn’t let me take my family off the ship! How can I ever repay you for saving them? Name anything! Whatever you like.”

Nat glanced up, and saw Fury waiting in the doorway. He was dressed in civilian clothes today, a light jacket, t-shirt, and black jeans, but the eyepatch was still in place and his ever-present scowl was there. For a moment she considered coming up with a choice of reward that would annoy him further, but then decided not to be petty. She had a much better idea.

“Oh, I don’t need a reward,” she began.

“Nonsense!” said Lady Andretti. “Let me make some gesture, at least!”

“Well… I don’t know if you’re interested in archaeology, but if you could help us fund a search for the ruins of Rogsey Abbey in Cornwall…” Nat glanced back at Sir Stephen, and saw him stand up a little straighter.

“I don’t know a thing about it, I’m afraid,” said Lady Andretti, “but I would be delighted!”

#fanfic #natasha romanov #steve rogers #clint barton #sam wilson #sharon carter

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bioclub778 · 3 years

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Free Trial Coffee Meets Bagel

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Coffee Meets Bagel Wiki

Coffee Meets Bagel is a San Francisco based startup with a dating and social networking mobile app of the same name. To stand apart in the crowded field of dating apps, Coffee Meets Bagel focuses on improving women’s online dating experiences by offering a curated selection of matches (based on an ever-changing profile matching algorithm) with the opportunity for continuing the introduction by commenting on something in a profile as an icebreaker, which might lead to further interactions on the platform.

About Coffee Meets Bagel. Coffee Meets Bagel is a San Francisco based startup with a dating and social networking mobile app of the same name. To stand apart in the crowded field of dating apps, Coffee Meets Bagel focuses on improving women’s online dating experiences by offering a curated selection of matches (based on an ever-changing profile matching algorithm) with the opportunity for. Actually, you can do it 'twice'. Sign up, make sure to cancel the sub immediately (which will still let you use the remainder of the duration) then go to another tab in the app. It apparently let's you try the trail again. While you still only have till the same expiration, it does give you another 6000 beans (so I ended up getting 12k) 2.

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Data from 2017 shows that Coffee Meets Bagel made ~2.5 billion introductions and more than 70,000 couples met using the app.

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Coffee Meets Bagel uses a variety of Amazon Web Services. Okcupid video chat free. From EC2 for compute to S3 and Redshift for storing their various data sets and many more (Kinesis, SQS, CloudWatch). Given Coffee Meets Bagel’s heavy investment in AWS, its management is ultra sensitive to unexpected or unintended costs arising from a sub-optimal use of these infrastructure components. That’s where CloudForecast comes in.

The Challenges

We spoke with Stephen Brandon, Manager of Engineering and Infrastructure at Coffee Meets Bagel. As the manager of all the infrastructure, as well as handling SRE and DevOps related aspects, Brandon is acutely aware of the need to keep the hundreds of servers on AWS operating with no down time and allowing the workflow to progress smoothly.

Like others, he found AWS tools for monitoring and reporting, such as Cost Explorer, cumbersome and confusing. While Amazon Web Services provide all sorts of APIs to extract raw data into CSV files (Cost & Usage Report), there were too many reports to compare to get actionable data. Prior to their investment in CloudForecast, they would often be surprised by cost overruns only when they got the monthly AWS bill. Also, it was not very easy to slice the CVS data to find the sources of the cost increase. It would have been cost-prohibitive and time-consuming to build a proper in-house reporting tool from all the Cost & Usage Report, and anything quick and dirty would have been a hack with limited usability.

The Screening Process

Brandon’s team surveyed the landscape of available tools, selecting four for evaluation. Their main requirement was that the tool provides the total daily and monthly spend in a simple and easy-to-understand manner — especially, as much of this data would be shared with C-levels in the organization. They didn’t need a lot of organizational tools and pay for features that might be more useful to a large enterprise.

Pricing was a major factor in their evaluation, but also the complexity that arises from too many features. Some of these offered far more features than Brandon’s team felt they would ever need. He says that CloudForecast’s AWS cost monitoring and reporting tool “..fits us to a tee. The tool makes it simple to let us know how much we are spending on AWS, the areas where we are spending, surfaces any cost increases and gives us a way to slice/dice our costs through our tags so that we can extrapolate our cost better.”

The Benefits Of Using CloudForecast

Coffee Meets Bagel found just the right amount of features in CloudForecast’s tool. “We wanted to make sure we would actually use the product and all the features. The product is simple and the daily cost reports we received are easy for me and my team to understand”, Brandon observes.

Brandon sends out two different AWS cost reports each day, via email and Slack, one to the engineering leads and another to himself and the CFO. Each report is built using CloudForecast’s custom report tool, tailored using cost tags to highlight those aspects that the recipients are responsible for, allowing them to react to any cost anomalies that day.

The engineering leads responsible for the data, which accounts for 60-70% of their monthly AWS spend, particularly appreciate this visualization and insight on their AWS usage. Prior to using CloudForcast, the data engineers would not have proactively used AWS Cost Explorer to check daily costs, or even monthly ones. “Now, with the daily cost reports from CloudForecast, I’ve had the data team leads message me noticing cost increases and catching them before I do,' Brandon observes.

For example, Brandon cites the case where the data leads noticed cost increases in AWS ECS usage because of the use of an old data model that was not being leveraged within their solution. Deprecating that model “saved us some money that would have been a recurring wasted cost had it not been caught earlier,” he said. Other examples of hidden costs include detecting zombie on-demand server instances not caught by the usual garbage collection tools, unnecessary large GPU on-demand instances, and unneeded “tests” when commiting code to GitHub in the staging process. Catching these early has saved them thousands of dollars per day.

With the straightforward visibility offered by CloudForecast, the engineers take greater ownership, responsibility and accountability for costs, a factor they have now added to their technical processes.

With CloudForecast, the CFO is now able to slice the data in different ways to better understand cost using novel, in-house metrics such as Revenue/Daily Active User and improve forecasts for AWS spend.

Saved us money that would have been a recurring wasted cost had it not been caught earlier.

Stephen Brandon, Manager of Engineering and Infrastructure

Summary

It takes a lot of time and effort to look at a company’s AWS infrastructure and check for situations that can cause unexpected or unintended cost spikes. With CloudForecast’s AWS cost monitoring tool, Coffee Meets Bagel has been able to catch these situations within a day, rather than wait for the surprise in the bill a month later.

A final note from Brandon: “You have probably paid for yourself 10 times over. I can’t put a number on it, but I know you have saved us at a minimum tens of thousands of dollars over the course of our engagement.”

You have probably paid for yourself 10 times over. I can't put a number on it, but I know you have saved us at a minimum tens of thousands of dollars.

Stephen Brandon, Manager of Engineering and Infrastructure

Coffee Meets Bagel Review

Is the Coffee Meets Bagel (CMB) dating app better or worse than other popular dating apps like Bumble or Tinder? How does Coffee Meets Bagel compare with these popular options?

We researched Coffee Meets Bagel and combed the internet for detailed user feedback and reviews. Here’s a quick but complete summary of our findings.

Bagel Meets Coffee App

How Does Coffee Meets Bagel Work?

Coffee Meets Bagel prides themselves on their algorithmic matching, and only handpicks a couple suggested users for you to like each day at noon.

Women only see users who have already liked them in their suggested list.

If you’re not into your suggestions, you can always browse through profiles in the “discover” tab of the app.

Does Coffee Meets Bagel Cost $?

How much does Coffee Meets Bagel cost? Nothing.

Coffee Meets Bagel is free to use, but like Tinder Plus and Bumble Boost, they offer a paid premium service with some extra perks (like increasing the amount of profiles you can like each day), and it costs from $20-$35/month. You’ll get the best deal on Premium if you commit to 6 months up front.

Like Bumble coins, CMB has their own in-app currency “beans” you’ll need to purchase to access premium and other perks. You can also earn free beans just by using the app.

Coffee Meets Bagel Dating App PROS

• Coffee Meets Bagel limits the amount of users you can like to five per day, which greatly discourages the swipe-now-look-later spirit of apps like Tinder. Thus, Coffee Meets Bagel attracts users who are more discerning and review whole profiles, not just pics.

• There are more women on the app than men. Coffee Meets Bagel has a ratio of about 60/40 women to men. This helps everyone out — women get to be more selective, and men don’t need to worry about competing with tons of other guys.

• CMB limits how long you can chat before setting up a date. You only have 7 days after matching to get to business and exchange info and/or plan an IRL meeting. This eliminates the who’s-going-to-make-the-first-move game, and cookie-jarring matches to hit up later.

Coffee Meets Bagel Dating App CONS

• Fewer opportunities for matching — Because CMB only shows users a handful of profiles each day, it can take longer than other apps to get matches. This longer process can feel discouraging for users who want a more min/max experience.

• There’s no desktop version of Coffee Meets Bagel.

• Some users have complained that not enough people are on the app, making high-quality match material more of a scarcity.

Overall Takeaway: ✔️

We can conclude our review by saying that Coffee Meets Bagel is a pretty cool dating app, and can be a refreshing change from the endless swiping game of Tinder and Bumble. We like CMB’s mentality that more doesn’t always equal better, and it can be a more fulfilling experience to carefully review a handful of profiles than swipe through hundreds.

How to Optimize Your Coffee Meets Bagel Profile?

Good pics.

Seriously, you can’t underestimate how much good pics matter, especially for apps that attract discerning users like Coffee Meets Bagel.

Coffee Meets Bagel Free Trial

With the wrong pics, you can end up with 0 matches. The right pics can change your dating life completely.

Test your dating pics on Photofeeler to make sure you’re using your best ones.

Coffee Meets Bagel Update

Go to Photofeeler.com now and give it a try!

Coffee Meets Bagel Sign In

Coffee Meets Bagel Wiki

Want more about CMB? Check out:

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foundcarcosa · 6 years

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ccc.

1. Favorite childhood book? >> (Three hundred surveys posted to this blog, wow. --I mean, over the course of nearly a decade I’ve probably filled out at least ten thousand, but.) I think that distinction would have to go to The Phantom Tollbooth. It’s one of the only books I remember owning, probably because I’d paged through it so many times. I also modified all the illustrations with pen so that Milo looked like a woman. 2. What are you reading right now? >> Condensed Chaos by Phil Hine -- more like limping through it, because I stopped setting aside time specifically for reading so I just end up grabbing a half a chapter here and there. I’ll have to do something about that. I’d started The Poisonwood Bible a while ago, too, but I keep forgetting to continue it. 3. What books do you have on request at the library? >> I rarely borrow books from the library unless they’re e-books because of my tendency to have to repeatedly renew and eventually take it back before I’m finished because I ran out of renews. 4. Bad book habit? >> Not reading. 5. What do you currently have checked out at the library? >> I don’t, for the reasons stated above. But for all the shit I talk about Grand Rapids, it has a lovely main branch, so I’ll probably end up stopping in again soon, maybe spending a few hours there for a change of scenery.

6. Do you have an e-reader? >> I have a phone, which functions as my e-reader. I also have a Kindle, but between its wack amount of storage space and its quick-draining battery, it’s been relegated to the position of glorified mousepad at this point. (It’s too bad, because I like the screen size.) 7. Do you prefer to read one book at a time, or several at once? >> Two or three at once. I think it’s interesting to see if/how they subconsciously weave themselves together in my imagination, even if -- especially if -- they’re about completely unrelated things. 8. Have your reading habits changed since starting a blog? >> It’s the internet in general that interferes with my reading habits, not just tumblr, but tumblr obviously plays a part. 9. Least favorite book you read this year (so far?) >> I quit on Cormac McCarthy’s The Road like 10 pages in, and I don’t usually do that but for some reason I got bored really quickly and couldn’t see the point in pushing through. That’s not a total vote in its disfavour because I didn’t actually form a full opinion. Sometimes I just pick up a book at the wrong time and have to wait until I reach the point in my life when I’ll need it. I’ll probably try again in a couple of years. 10. Favorite book you’ve read this year? >> I really enjoyed Reincarnation Blues, I thought it was an amazing story. I also got a lot out of M. K. Asante Jr’s It’s Bigger Than Hip Hop. When the Stars Are Right by Scott R Jones was fascinating as hell, and then of course there was my long-overdue (or maybe right-on-time, considering...) American Gods reread... 11. How often do you read out of your comfort zone? >> Occasionally. The thing is, there are so many books in my comfort zone that I want to read... 12. What is your reading comfort zone? >> I don’t know if it’s quantifiable. I like a lot of different kinds of books. I usually know within 10-15 pages of a book if I’m going to like it or not -- I try not to judge books by their covers, but I definitely judge them by their first chapter. 13. Can you read on the bus? >> Sometimes, but I generally prefer to listen to music and look out the window.

14. Favorite place to read? >> In bed. 15. What is your policy on book lending? >> I’ll give books away. Just take it, read it. Pay it forward. I don’t like to hoard books. 16. Do you ever dog-ear books? >> Hell yes, I do. They’re not a sacred object to me; their contents may well be sacred, but their contents already exist in me because I ate them. 17. Do you ever write in the margins of your books? >> Nah. 18. Not even with text books? >> I don’t use textbooks. 19. What is your favorite language to read in? >> I can only read in English. 20. What makes you love a book? >> It’s a very visceral and subconscious thing, and it’s not dependent on genre or the politics of the author or any of that as much as it’s dependent on who I am at that moment in time, what story I need to hear, and how lovingly the author told it. That sounds like it only applies to fiction books, but it really doesn’t. 21. What will inspire you to recommend a book? >> Some level of understanding of the person I’m recommending it to. 22. Favorite genre? >> I don’t know, honestly. 23. Genre you rarely read (but wish you did?) >> I wish I read more science fiction. The thing is, most of the scifi stories I love I kind of stumbled into accidentally. Whenever I go looking for scifi specifically, I run into a lot of duds (not that they’re badly written or anything, just that they’re bad for me). I’m going to try Philip K Dick soon and I hope that works out okay. 24. Favorite biography? >> I don’t have one. 25. Have you ever read a self-help book? >> Sure, but I don’t make a habit of it.

26. Favorite cookbook? >> I don’t have one. Well, okay, Feeding Hannibal is pretty cool, ngl, but mostly for the information rather than the actual recipes. We can’t afford to (or don’t have the room/appliances to) make most of that stuff. 27. Most inspirational book you’ve read this year (fiction or non-fiction)? >> Definitely American Gods, but that’s a hard-to-explain thing, lol. The Taboo Against Knowing Who You Are is a good runner-up, because as far as inspiration is concerned, Alan Watts probably had more than his fair share of it. (Do comic books count, because if so I’d like to also add in Promethea.) 28. Favorite reading snack? >> Alcohol. (But also anything I can eat with one hand, or doesn’t require a lot of, like, attention.) 29. Name a case in which hype ruined your reading experience. >> I don’t think that’s ever happened. 30. How often do you agree with critics about a book? >> I don’t read critic reviews often enough to know what the ratio of agreement to disagreement would even be like. 31. How do you feel about giving bad/negative reviews? >> A negative review is just as valuable as a positive review. I’d prefer people not be nasty in their negative reviews, but like... I also don’t have to read their review if I don’t like it. It’s not that big of a deal to me. 32. If you could read in a foreign language, which language would you chose? >> Russian, probably. I imagine untranslated Russian lit would be amazing to read. 33. Most intimidating book you’ve ever read? >> And actually finished? Ha! Let’s see... as far as length, I’d probably pick whatever the longest Stephen King book that I’ve read is. (He meanders, man. He fucking meanders. It’s great, but dear god.) As far as content, I’m probably gonna go with Atlas Shrugged. For, I mean, obvious reasons, really. 34. Most intimidating book you’re too nervous to begin? >> That doesn’t really happen to me. If I want to read something, I’ll start reading it. If it proves prohibitive to my limited ability to understand shit, then I’ll put it down and move on. 35. Favorite poet? >> I don’t have one. 36. How many books do you usually have checked out of the library at any given time? >> Zero. When I do check out from the library, I stick to three books max. 37. How often have you returned book to the library unread? >> Quite often. Usually because I ran out of time. 38. Favorite fictional character? >> YEAH, OKAY. 39. Favorite fictional villain? >> Actually that is almost impossible for me to determine because I don’t even put the “villain” flag on characters unless it’s super fucking obvious (like in a comic book) that they’re supposed to be the Token Bad Guy. I just don’t even think in those terms. -- Now that I say that, though, I remembered that Stephen King characters are written very polarised despite my personal interpretations of them, so I suppose my favourite villain is Walter O’Dim. 40. Books I’m most likely to bring on vacation? >> I don’t know, I don’t usually have time to read on vacation. Unless it’s on the plane or something, in which case I just bring whatever I happen to be reading at the time. It’s usually on my phone, anyway. 41. The longest I’ve gone without reading. >> I mean, I don’t go a day without reading something, even if it’s just articles I saw on my facebook feed. 42. Name a book that you could/would not finish. >> Fifty Shades of Grey. (I did try. I wrote detailed posts about my thoughts during my attempt to read it. They’re still on my old blog.) 43. What distracts you easily when you’re reading? >> Everything. It’s just hard for me to turn the “noise” (literal and figurative noise) of the world off in general, which is why I like it quiet when I’m trying to focus. 44. Favorite film adaptation of a novel? >> Well, LOTR. I was going to say Predestination but All You Zombies isn’t a novel. Uhh.... :/ 45. Most disappointing film adaptation? >> Good god, so many. 46. The most money I’ve ever spent in the bookstore at one time? >> Around $100, I guess. I don’t have much money in general so I try to just... avoid bookstores. 47. How often do you skim a book before reading it? >> I don’t. The first-chapter test usually works just fine. 48. What would cause you to stop reading a book half-way through? >> Boredom. 49. Do you like to keep your books organized? >> Well, we don’t own enough for a complex system to be required. 50. Do you prefer to keep books or give them away once you’ve read them? >> I really prefer to give them away. It’s just... I’m not a hoarder (I don’t even mean that in the negative sense, I just mean I don’t like hanging onto stuff I’m not actively using). I spent just about all of my adult life up until 2 years ago homeless or some version of transient and having to be ruthlessly exacting about how many belongings I had at any given time really changed the way my brain works regarding material items. I love being able to own things now, but it’s... hard to enjoy having too many objects. I get tetchy. It feels inorganic. Maybe that’ll change in the future (these things often do), but for now owning more than 20 or so books feels like an overindulgence. 51. Are there any books you’ve been avoiding? >> I don’t think so. 52. Name a book that made you angry. >> I can’t think of one right now. 53. A book you didn’t expect to like but did? >> The Fountainhead. Any Rand book, actually, because Vlad couldn’t stand her and we had such similar tastes in media that I figured I wouldn’t either. But the immense amount of annoying peer pressure from Sigma eventually got me to pick it up just to get them off my back, and..... well, the rest is hilarious “I’m in love with a crazy Russian woman who makes me want to yell at her constantly” history. 54. A book that you expected to like but didn’t? >> I don’t know. That doesn’t happen very often. 55. Favorite guilt-free, pleasure reading? >> All of it? I don’t feel guilty about anything I read.

#surveysofsamedi #surveys

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weekendwarriorblog · 4 years

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The Weekend Warrior Feb. 7, 2020 – BIRDS OF PREY: ETC. ETC.

Thank heavens that there’s only one new wide release this weekend, and just as thankfully, it’s a movie that could help revive an ailing box office that’s been all about Sony’s Bad Boys for Life, Universal’s 1917 and Dolittle for the past few weeks. I never got around to seeing last week’s Gretel and Hansel, and I might still if I have time, but The Rhythm Section wasn’t that bad, and it certainly shouldn’t have bombed as badly as it did, making less than $3 million in 3,000 theaters. Yup, last weekend wasn’t great, and it was only partially due to the Super Bowl.

Clearly, it’s time to move on to this week with the first “superhero” movie of the year, the follow-up to one of DC Entertainment’s biggest outings but also meant to be its own thing, which is BIRDS OF PREY: AND THE FANTABULOUS EMANCIPATION OF HARLEY QUINN (Warner Bros.). It stars recent Oscar nominee Margot Robbie reprising her role as Harley Quinn, the Joker’s girlfriend/therapist, who is branching out on her own with her own supergirl group, which includes Huntress (Mary Elizabeth Winsted), Black Canary (Jurnee Smollett-Bell), Renée Montoya (Rosie Perez) and Cassandra Cain (at one point, called Batgirl), played by Ella Jay Basco. Robbie first played the role in 2016’s Suicide Squad, which earned over $300 million domestic, which some might point to the popularity of Harley as a comic character, but you could also point to things like the fact it starred bonafide box office star Will Smith (whose most recent movie Bad Boys 2 is currently the biggest movie of the year. Birds of Prey also stars Ewan McGregor and Chris Messina, as two well-known Bat-villains, Black Mask and Victor Zsasz, making their big screen live action debuts.

Unlike Suicide Squad, Birds of Prey is Rated R as DC and Warner Bros. have seen the huge success of the recent Joker movie, as well as the two Deadpool movies as proof that R-rated comic book movies can still do well even without the teen and tween audiences that usually go to see them. Presumably, Birds of Prey will attract more women due to the characters, although I’m sure there will be some men who who are just as interested due to the connections to the DC Universe. I’m just not sure this will be as big a draw to men as some of those other movies. I’ll have my own review on the blog a little later today.

While I don’t think Birds of Prey will open as big as Joker– let’s face it, the characters therein just aren’t nearly as well known, even Harley – I do think it will do quite well, making somewhere in the $60 million range, maybe more if the reviews are as positive as the early raves that were posted last week. (Having seen the movie and with my review on the way, I don’t think it will fare that well among real critics. You can read my own REVIEW here.)

Either way, Birds of Prey will the weekend with relative ease, although we’ll have to see how Sunday’s Oscar celebration affects all the movies’ business towards the end of the weekend.

This week’s Top 10 should look something like this…

1. Birds of Prey, Etc. Etc (Warner Bros.) - $64.5 million N/A (up $1.9 million)*

2. Bad Boys for Life (Sony) - $9.7 million –45%

3. 1917 (Universal) - $6.3 million -35%

4. Dolittle (Universal) - $4.7 million -40%

5. Jumanji: The Next Level (Sony) - $3.7 million -38%

6. The Gentlemen (STXfilms) - $2.9 million -48%

7. Gretel and Hansel (U.A. Releasing) - $2.8 million -55%

8. Little Women (Sony) - $2 million -35%

9. Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (Lucasfilm/Disney) - $1.7 million -46%

10. The Turning (Universal) - $1.3 million -55%

* UPDATE: I lowered my prediction a bit after seeing the movie but seeing that reviews have mainly been positive, I think it will help the movie bring in more business before Sunday.

LIMITED RELEASES

Two genre films that have been playing on the genre festival for the last year or so will open in select cities, the first being COME TO DADDY (Saban Films), the directorial debut by horror producer Ant Timpson, who was responsible for horror anthologies, The ABCs of Death and The Field Guide to Evil, as well as popular genre flicks Turbo Kid and The Greasy Strangler. In the movie, Elijah Wood plays Norval Grenwood, a young man called to the remote cabin of his estranged father (Stephen McHattie) who he hasn’t seen in 30 years, since his father walked out on his mother when he was just five years old. Once he gets there, he learns that his father is an abusive alcoholic, and yet, nothing is really what it seems. I saw this at the Tribeca Film Festival and mostly enjoyed it, and I really like Timpsons’s sensibilities as a filmmaker but it really starts to go off the rails as it goes along. Some will definitely enjoy that.

Severin Fialla and Veronika Fanz, the Belgian filmmakers behind Goodnight Mommy, return with THE LODGE (NEON), a creepy thriller in which a couple kids (Lia McHugh, Jaeden Martell) go to a remote cabin near a lake for the Christmas holidays with their new stepmother (Riley Keough) after learning a lot more about her dark past before meeting their widowed father (Richard Armitage). There’s so much more to this movie than what you can see in the suitably eerie trailer, and I certainly will not spoiler any of the experience, although personally, I found this to be more of a downer than Hereditary, a movie that I absolutely loved. This one might take another viewing for me to really get behind it, but other than the performances, the overall look and eerie feel and the twists, it’s pretty dark and depressing, so I’m not 100% sure I’d really want to see it again or can recommend it wholeheartedly. Either way, both of these movies are opening at the Alamo Drafthouse in Brooklyn as well as other select cities.

Ben Cookson’s Waiting for Anya (Vertical), adapted from the novel by the same name from the author of War Horse, stars Noah Schnapp as Jo Lalande, a 13-yearold sheperd boy who joins with a reclusive widow (the amazing Anjelica Huston) to help smuggle Jewish children into Spain during World War II.

From Yash Raj Films comes this week’s Bollywood selection Mohit Suri’s Malang, starring Aditya Roy Kapoor as the introverted Advit, who visits Goa where he meets a free-spirited girl from London named Sara (Disha Patani), who has come to India to live like a vagabond or “Malang.” Something happens that changes as five years later, we meet a vigilante killer cop (Anil Kapoor) and a righteous cop (Kunal Kemmu)… And suddenly, I feel like I need to see this movie. It will probably open in 100 theaters or more.

STREAMING AND CABLE

Let’s start out with the Netflix offerings, beginning with the recent Sundance premiere, HORSE GIRL, the new film from Jeff Baena (The Little Hours, Life after Beth), co-written and starring Alison Brie as a socially awkward woman into horses and supernatural crime whose lucid dreams start infiltrating into her waking life. I haven’t seen it yet but I’m definitely interested in the premise, and I generally like Brie’s work.

I never really got into Joe Hill’s books/comics, but I’ll probably give the series LOCKE AND KEY a look when it debuts its first season on Friday. It involves three kids who move with their Mom to an ancestral estate where a series of keys unlock secrets and powers.

On Wednesday debuts the Netflix docuseries They’ve Gotta Have Us from Simon Frederick and Ava DuVernay’s ARRAY will premiere, looking at some of the important and iconic voices in Black Cinema.

If you haven’t had a chance to see DGA winner Alma Har’el’s Honey Boy, starring Shia LaBeouf, Lucas Hedges and Noah Jupe, based on Shia’s semi-autobiographical screenplay, then it will premiere on Amazon Prime this Friday.

Premiering on Hulu this Friday is Into the Dark: My Valentine, the latest horror feature from Blumhouse as part of this ongoing horror series, this one written and directed by Maggie Levin, who has directed a bunch of shorts. It involves a pop singer whose songs and identity are stolen by her manager ex-boyfriend and pasted on his new girlfriend, which comes to a head when they’re locked up in a small concert venue and things get violence.

REPERTORY

METROGRAPH (NYC):

If you went out to see Makoto Shinkai’s Weathering with You and enjoyed it but haven’t seen his previous movie Your Name (which is just as excellent) then you’re in luck cause the Metrograph is showing it a number of times starting Friday. Thursday might be your last chance to see the new 35mm print of Martin Scorsese’s 1977 film New York, New York unless it’s extended, but the Hal Hartley serieshas been extended through the weekend with reruns of Trust (1990), Simple Men (1992) and Amateur (1994), all good, but Trust is my favorite of those three. This week’s Welcome To Metrograph: Redux is a good one, Lars von Trier’s 1996 film Breaking the Waves, which will screen Saturday and Sunday nights.This week’s Late Nites at Metrograph is Orson Welles’ The Lady from Shanghai (1947), while the Playtime: Family Matinee sselection is Amy Heckerling’s classic Clueless (1995).

ALAMO DRAFTHOUSE BROOKLYN (NYC)

Wednesday might you can maybe get tickets for the “Weird Wednesday,” the Lone Wolf and Cub movie Shogun Assassin (1980) – I’ll be there for the 7pm screening. Thursday night is a screening of the 1932 Dorothy Arzner film Merrily We Go to Hell. On Monday, Video Vortex presents a J-Horror Bloodbath double feature of Demon Within and Biotherapy, both from 1985. ($5 admittance!) Next week’s “Terror Tuesday” is 1980’s Terror Train, starring Jamie Lee Curtis, and then next week’s “Weird Wednesday” is 1990’s White Palace, starring Susan Sarandon and James Spader, picked by Alamo programmer Christina Cacioppo, so you know it’s gotta be very weird! J

THE NEW BEVERLY (L.A.):

The Weds matinee is the musical The King and I (1956), starring Yul Brynner and Deborah Kerr. Weds. and Thurs. night are double features of the Safdies’ Uncut Gems with The Object of Beauty (1991), starring John Malkovich and Andie McDowell with the Safdies doing a QnA on Thursday. Friday’s matinee is the 1982 Paul Schrader Cat People remake, while that Friday’s midnight is True Romance, while Saturday’s midnight movie is 1975’s Aloha, Bobby and Rose. This weekend’s Kiddee Matinee is 2002’s Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, continuing that series, as well as there being a Cartoon Club on Saturday and Sunday mornings. Monday’s matinee is Vincent Gallo’s Buffalo ’66while the Monday night double feature is Fear is the Key (1972) and Villain(1971). Tuesday’s Grindhouse double is Hot Potato (1976) and Golden Needles (1974)..

EGYPTIAN THEATRE (LA):

Mostly taking a break this week to air the Oscar-nominated shorts but Joseph Mankiewicz’s 1950 classic All About Eve will screen in 35mm as part of the “Sunday Print Edition.”

AERO (LA):

Elliot Gould will be on hand Friday to discuss M*A*S*H* airing as part of the “Antiwar Cinema,” then Friday, there will be a double feature of Grand Illusion(1937) and Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence (1983). On Friday, Aero will screen Masaki Kobayashi’s “The Human Condition” trilogy, three movies from 1959 through 1961, airing as a triple feature.

QUAD CINEMA (NYC): This Friday, the Quad begins screening Albert E. Lewin’s 1951 film Pandora and the Flying Dutchman, starring Ava Gardner and James Mason, restored from Martin Scorsese’s own 35mm print. Also starting Friday, the Quad will also be screening a series of Man Ray shorts from 1926 to 1929.

FILM FORUM (NYC):

The “Black Women” series continues this week with The Omega Man and Strange Days on Wednesday, Set It Off, Bright Road and Poetic Justice on Thursday and more over the weekend. It continues through Thursday, February 13. This weekend’s “Film Forum Jr.” is the recent movie-musicalDreamgirls.

MOMA (NYC):

Modern Matinees: Jack Lemmon continues this week on Weds with 1951’s Kotch, Thursday with Robert Altman’s 1993classic Short Cuts, and then on Friday, another screening of the 1960 Oscar winner The Apartment co-starring Shirley MacLaine.

FILM AT LINCOLN CENTER (NYC):

On Friday, FilmLinc starts a new one-week series called “Dreamed Paths: The Films of Angela Shanelec,” and I honestly have no idea who that is. It’s a pretty comprehensive retrospective of the German filmmaker’s work, so I’m shocked that I’ve never seen a single one of her movies. Besides her work, the filmmaker will also be showing a few hand-selected films like Manoel de Oliveira’s I’m Going Home (2001), the Korean film The Day After and Maurice Pialat’s 1972 film We Won’t Grow Old (1972).

ANTHOLOGY FILM ARCHIVES (NYC):

The Anthology’s “The Devil Probably: A Century of Satanic Panic” continues this weekend with Edgar J. Ulmer’s The Black Cat (1934) on Wednesday, Sidney Hayers’ Burn Witch Burn (1962), Terence Fisher’s The Devil Rides Out (1968), Roman Polanski’s Rosemary’s Baby (1968) and more screening over the next week.

NITEHAWK CINEMA (NYC):

Not to be outdown by the Roxy, Brooklyn’s Nitehawk is getting on the Nicolas Cage love-a-thon with the Williamsburg doing an “Uncaged” series starting with Cage’s latest Color Out of Spaceat midnight on Friday, and then Peggy Sue Got Married (1986) on Tuesday. (The latter is sold out.) Williamsburg is also screening Tony Scott’s True Romance (1993) on Saturday afternoon.Prospect Park is showing Barry Jenkins’ Schmoonlight Saturday to kick off its Valentine’s Day series.

IFC CENTER (NYC)

Weekend Classics: Luis Buñuel is taking another weekend off for no obvious reason – it’ll be back next week -- but Waverly Midnights: Hindsight is 2020s will screen the 1973 sci-fi classic Soylent Green and Late Night Favorites: Winter 2020 is going with the 4k restoration of David Lynch’s Blue Velvet.

BAM CINEMATEK (NYC):

Starting Friday at BAM is Horace Jenkins 1982 film Cane River, starring Richard Romain and Tommye Myrick (both doing QnAs over the weekend), and the actors and relatives of Jenkins will be appearing at a number of screenings this weekend.

MUSEUM OF THE MOVING IMAGE (NYC):

2001: A Space Odyssey will once again screen as a Saturday matinee in conjunction with MOMI’s exhibit.

ROXY CINEMA (NYC)

The Nicolas Cage love continues with two of his movies from 2003: Charlie Kaufman’s Adaptation (2003) on Wednesday and Disney’s National Treasure on Thursday.

LANDMARK THEATRES NUART (LA):

Not to be outdown by the IFC Center, the Nuart’s Friday midnight movie is Dario Argento’s Suspiriafrom 1977.

Next week is Presidents Day weekend, another four-day holiday weekend, but it’s also Valentine’s Day Friday, so we’ll get kiddie movies like Sonic the Hedgehog (Paramount), romantic movies like The Photograph (Universal) and horror movies like Fantasy Island (Sony).

#TheWeekendWarrior ComeToDaddy BirdsOfPrey TheLodge BirdsOfPrey Movies Reviews

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richietoziersgazebos · 7 years

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The Clown Is Back

Interview with Argentinian Andrés Muschietti, director of the movie based on Stephen King’s masterpiece.

“It’s the metaphor of an era in which we get controlled by fear”

MADRID - The little paper boat swifts through the stream of water along the saidewalk. Georgie is 6 years old and is following the paper boat in his yellow raincoat. But the boat is faster than his legs. Before he can reach it - her - the boat falls in a drain and disappears into the dark. The kid kneels, looks for it, he’s afraid his brother might get angry at him for losing it. That’s when two gloved hands appear, holding the boat It’s the unforgettable opening scene of IT, Stephen King’s masterpiece, published 31 years ago: over a thousand pages written during a very dark moment of the writer’s life, when he was addicted to alcohol and cocaine. Through the story of 7 kids that have to deal with a murderous clown in the America of the 50s and then again 27 years later when IT comes back, IT is a splendid coming-of-age novel. After the 1990 TV miniseries, its first cinematographic transposition arrives in our theaters on October 19th, directed by Argentinian Andrés Muschietti, 44, who, in 2013 made his mark as a director with his first feature film, Mama, produced by Guillermo Del Toro. The movie, that evolves around the protagonists’ childhood (shooting for part 2 are expected to start in 2018), is already a huge international success, grossing over 185 mln USD in its first three days in the theaters (out of just 35 mln USD budget).

- Is it true that you wrote an apology to Stephen King asking for his forgiveness? Andy: Yes, because even if I tried to stay as faithful as possible to the book, I made some changes. For example the movie takes place in the summer of 1989, while SK had chose 1957, when he was 10 years old. I grew up in the 80s so it’s a time I feel closer to me. King reassured me, saying that he’s very happy with the result. I was very relieved.

- What makes IT a classic? A: When I read it the first time I was a kid, it struck me because it’s about things I was experiencing myself for the first time like violence and bullying but also love. Discovering what being part of a group means and finding your own strength is the emotional journey that these characters go through, and it resembles our owns. - Many tried to capture the mystery of childhood but failed A: King has been pretty clear about this: as children we learn how to live, as adults we learn how to die. We look back at our childhood as the golden years of our life, when death was miles away from our thoughts. The true horror is in knowing that we will never be kids again. - How did you find the protagonists? A: I wasn’t just looking for talent, I wanted to find actors that shared something with their characters. It wasn’t easy. Once the casting was over, I put them together in a room to see if they would’ve worked as a group. - Why is it so hard to get SK’s novels’ real essence? A: I think that bad adaptation came from directors that weren’t that emotionally invested with the original work or that undervalued its human aspect, focusing exclusively on the horror part. The Studios aren’t keen on the idea of playing with the different layers of a story while one of King’s qualities is his ability to move us, make us laugh and scare us at the same time. It’s like an emotional rollercoaster. - Something that’s also a part of the Italian cinema A: I’ve always loved Il sorpasso by Dino Risi: the observation of the human element is incredible and while it’s a comedy it’s dramatic at the same time! Americans will only watch American movies while in Europe there’s also space for independent movies. In the US the main goal is to produce commercial movies that will call for as many viewers as possible. In this way the different shades of the stories get lost: when you go to a meeting to present your idea, you have to make clear what kind of movie you want to make and if it resembles another that has already been made. Nowadays everyone’s afraid to invest on creativity, no one wants to take risks. - Do you? A: I want to experiment and, in the case of the horror genre, the risk of resulting ridiculous is pretty high. When I was shooting Mama, in 2012, we used to pull the strings of the monster creature puppet to make it move. You always end up discovering new amazing things when exploring new territories, while sticking to things you’ve already done before will only lead to a forgettable movie, something that has been already seen. - What’s the last movie that surprised you? A: Dunkirk. Christopher Nolan is one of the few directors who can entertain while remaining an author, even it took him three Batman movies to get the freedom to make something different. If you don’t want the Studios to interfere with your work you have to guarantee them a good profit first. - You were lucky: IT is one of the highest - grossing film of the year. What does Pennywise represent for you? A: He’s a demon that only children can see, because they still have imagination. But the clown also represents the confrontation with a new world of fear. To me, it’s something related to the fear we get injected every day through religion, the media, the government and the companies. Derry, the fake town where the story takes place, represents the cult of terror in which we’re living. - The tale of seven kids that, in order to survive, need to stick together, is it a metaphor of our times? A: Fear is used as a tool of control and submission. Bill - Georgie’s brother - more than once says to his friends that Pennywise’s illusions aren’t real. This how we should think too, in a world like the one we’re living in, when we process the informations we receive from the media or certain presidents that lie to us to keep us under control. Pennywise can kill them only if they’re apart and I think that we too are weaker when we’re divided. Our society teaches us to be afraid of different cultures and religions. Gullible, naive people scare me because they’re easy to manipulate. In America, for example, the man in charge is completely crazy. - You were born in Buenos Aires, how is it to live in the US? A: Being born and raised in Latin America I come from a different reality, which include experiencing imperialism. I travelled and lived in different countries, I know how things work outside Argentina. Some systems work, like socialism in Scandinavian countries, where everyone pays taxes and no one complains about the government. But in American socialism is associated to communism so it’s seen as bad. That’s why Bernie Sanders will never win. - Do you see a change in the future? A: Donald Trump is making so many mistakes that it makes me hopeful, actually:people are starting to criticize him and doubting his words. Unfortunately, when you criticize the government in the US you’re also attacking the whole country. It’ll take time to see some actual changes. - Give us a heads-up; in chapter two - when we’ll meet the protagonists as grown ups - will there be space for flashbacks? A: Yes, we’ll go back to 1989. Unfortunately, since our budget was pretty low, we didn’t have the possibility to shoot any of those scenes. Never mind: I was able to include some of the elements that will connect the two parts. The screenplay should be ready for January and I’d like to start shooting after March. I can’t wait.

Thanks for reading, I’m sorry for the mistakes and I’m very sorry if some of this doesn’t make sense, if I can help you with anything or if there’s anything you’d like to ask please don’t hesitate!

#andy muschietti #andrés muschietti #it #it 2017

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anythingstephenking · 7 years

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Drive My Car

After months without turning a single page, I am crusin’! Man I am really on a roll! If you haven’t guessed yet, I am making car puns, as we dive (drive?) into Christine, the killer car story King promised his publishers would come after Different Seasons.

(Side note: while reading I make notes on my phone of pages to reference back to, cause only a real monster dog-ears pages. My notes on Christine read “crusin’…. on a roll… think of other car puns.” I didn’t.)

Although Wikipedia claims this book was published in ’82, it was actually released in ’83. Really letting me down Wikipedia. But happily I move into the next year of King books, and one step closer to catching them all like they were a buncha Pokemon.

This cover art is the tits. Also, the author’s photo on the back! Lastly, the inner cover with SK initialed in red and gold, like Gryffindor for serial killers.

This book has no preface or afterword, which is where I usually learn all my fun facts, so I did a bit more digging (nay, googling) for the backstory on this guy.

Well I couldn’t turn out much of interest. Sorry to disappoint. The story must have just appeared in King’s brain one day. I did love that the book was dedicated to George Romero. I have enjoyed learning all about King’s friendships, and imagine they all get together once a month in some kind of bizarro-minds-club, play cribbage and gripe about how everyone thinks they’re weirdos.

Posted without comment.

Each of the 51 chapters starts with a song lyric about cars. If you’ve ever listened to Car Talk, you know the list of songs about cars is long. I recognized the Bruce Springsteen ones. It was a throwaway device IMO, and just made me feel bad for the intern that had to work to get the rights to use 51 different song lyrics. King actually calls this out in a brief Author’s Note on the copyright page of my “Book Club” edition copy, thanking specific folks for helping him get the rights. OK, I guess I forgive you Stephen. Kisses.

On the surface, Christine is a story that is part killer car, part demon possession and part star-crossed lovers. I know, right?

Christine tells the story of Arnie Cunningham and his car Christine. Annie is your run-of-the-mill nerd. He’s got bad skin and has never done anything his parents wouldn’t approve of. His best bud Dennis is decidedly a cooler cat - he plays football so that means he’s automatically elevated to a higher class.

One day Arnie sees Christine, sitting broken on the lawn of an equally broken house and decides he has to have her. Men (eyeroll). He buys her from the owner, Roland LeBay and off he goes to a local garage to fix her up.

Dennis is almost immediately unnerved by Christine. Rightfully so, since the car goes on to kill a bunch of people.

Then along comes Leigh Cabot, the new girl in school. All the guys have the hots for her, but she’s only got eyes for Arnie. For once, the pretty girl picks the nerd, and it doesn’t really go all that well for her. Pick the quarterback the next time honey.

So Arnie and Leigh are an item, and Leigh also hates Christine. No one can quite put their fingers on it, but a rotten smell runs through her interior and the radio seems stuck on the 50’s rock station. Dennis and Leigh are plagued by nightmares of Christine coming to life.

And suddenly the engine began to rev and fall off, rev and fall off; its a hungry sound, frightening, and each time the engine revs Christine seems to lunge forward a bit, like a mean dog on a weak leash… and I want to move… but my feet seem nailed to the cracked pavement of the driveway.

King takes his time to build the story up, as he so often does. Christine doesn’t claim her first victim until halfway through. Until then you’re stuck with this looming sense of dread, knowing terrible things are coming. Every time Christine’s headlights turned on by themselves I muttered “oh... no “ to myself.

It’s not enough that Christine comes to life and runs people over (even manages this feat on a guy who is inside his house), but Arnie begins to take on characteristics of the previous owner, Roland LeBay. Since Roland was a real grade-a asshole, this doesn’t sit well with his friend, girlfriend or family. He becomes more and more like LeBay, until there’s no nerd left. Watching Arnie fall apart is heartbreaking.

But past the surface, Christine is a story of the pains of growing up, which isn’t really a new theme for King, who came of age himself in the 50s. And so often with King’s stories of teenage agony, and even when the story takes place in 1978, the 50s are lurking.

Before Arnie’s demise, he makes off-handed comments about how his parents know that having kids remind them that they’re going to die. Pretty grim stuff.

And Dennis has this revelation while out in Christine for the first time:

I was surprised by a choking panic that climbed up in my throat like dry fire. It was the first time a feeling like that came over me that year - but not the last. Yet it’s hard for me to explain, or even define. It had something to do with realizing that it was August 11, 1978, that I was going to be a senior in high school next month, and that when school started again it meant the end of a long, quiet phase of my life. I was getting ready to be a grown-up, and I saw that somehow - saw it for sure, for the first time in that lovely but somehow ancient spill of golden light flooding the alleyway between a bowling alley and a roast beef joint. And I think I understood then that what really scares people about growing up is that you stop trying on the life-mask and start trying on another one. If being a kid is about learning how to live, then being a grown-up is about learning how to die.

And these kids learn their lesson.

In some ways, Christine felt like a stronger coming of age tale than The Body. I was really rooting for these kids.

7/10

First line: This is the story of a lover’s triangle, I suppose you’d say - Arnie Cunningham, Leigh Cabot, and, of course, Christine.

Last line: His unending fury.

Added Bonus: King said in an interview about Christine getting killed and perhaps coming back to life (35 year old spoiler, sorry!): "All I can think of would be if the parts are recycled, you'd end up with this sort of homicidal Cuisinart, or something like that!”

Hardy Har Har! I might not be scared of cars but I am now scared of my food processor.

Adaptations:

Christine The Movie was the quickest turn-around from page to screen of any King movie, which began filming just as the book was released. The producer was a friend of King’s, and signed on before the book was published. He had his pick between Christine and Cujo, and chose Christine because Cujo seemed “too silly.” For real bro? I mean, they’re both great stories but I would tend to think of a rabid dog as a more serious threat than a sentient car that love Buddy Holly songs and blood.

1983 was a busy year for King movies. I’ve lost track since I am reading the books chronologically but not watching the movies that way. I’ve already watched some spectacularly bad King movies, but at this point in 1983, the movie-going public had only seen Carrie, Salem’s Lot and The Shining. Given the popularity of 2/3 of these movies, I bet everyone in Hollywood wanted their hands on the rights to a King story.

In 1983 Cujo, The Dead Zone and Christine all hit the big screens in August, October and December, respectively. I don’t know for sure but if I had to guess, that was too much King.

So, if you expect a whole lot of a John Carpenter movie about a killer car, well then, that’s your own fault. This movie was a lot of fun. As with so many King movies, his storytelling and character building just doesn’t translate to the big screen. The screenwriters seemed to not even care to try, boiling the main characters down to stereotypes. Arnie rocks giant glasses with tape across the arch; Dennis wears his letterman jacket; Leigh’s got great legs. Christine rolls around killing people that cross Arnie. There’s little mention of LeBay or his backstory in creating (or at least encouraging) Christine.

Instead, there’s the film’s opening sequence to explain Christine’s origin, which I just adored. Christine’s rolling along the production line in Detroit, the sole red car in a sea of white. A line worker attempts to open her hood, and it promptly clasps down on his hand. All while George Thorogood’s Bad To The Bone plays. Just on the nose, great start.

Unlike the novel with its clear themes of friendship, first love and looming adulthood, this movie is about one thing and one thing only - a killer car. Which is really ok. John Carpenter does his best and there’s some suspenseful moments with Halloween-esque sound effects. Whenever someone is pissing Christine off she locks her doors and Little Richard starts singing from her stereo "Keep a knockin' but you can't come in.” Christine catches on fire and still manages to run someone down, setting him on fire in the process. I’m not much a fan of big action sequences, but knowing they used almost 30 cars to make this and everything was filmed sans CGI made me appreciate it more.

Before I go, quick notes on the cast. Kevin Bacon was set to play Dennis, but chose to do Footloose instead. Good call, past Kevin Bacon. So they cast this guy, who is basically a poor man Kevin Bacon.

Leigh is played by Alexandra Paul, who would go on to rock a rad red swimsuit on Baywatch. Kelly Preston has a small role, and would go on to play the role of a lifetime as John Travolta’s wife. Rounding out the supporting cast was Robert Proskey (who I remember as Mr. Lundy in Mrs. Doubtfire), and Harry Dean Stanton who has basically been in everything.

Next up is Pet Semetery, which is (Chris Trager voice) literally my favorite King. My goal is to get through It before the new movie comes out in September, which means I have six books to get through in 3 months. So (spooky voice) I’ll be right back!

#christine #stephen king #book review #movie review

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haectemporasunt · 7 years

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26, 32, 33, 39, 43, 44, 50, 10??, 4, 35

26. Favoritepsychological Horror Movie

Ah geeze already a tough one right off the bat. Um uh I’ll just choose one:

The Babadook! I thought it did a great job of showing the stress the mom was under, and I think (though some people disagree) that it kept the kid from being frustratingly annoying. The picture book was very well done, and scary, and I wish there had been more sequences involving it sharing creepy stories.

32. FavoriteAnimated Horror film

I’m blanking on any animated horror films i’ve seen, sorry! I’ll just post this, which did make me jump, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XHpuAAnHdEc, but alas i ve failed you :(

33. Scariestnon-horror movie

Friday the 13th: slashers aren’t really horror, fite me B)

Snark aside, there s plenty of movies that had scary bits in them that tore me up as a child. how about I put … the pressure chamber scene in License to Kill. The Bond villain knows one of his men isnt loyal so shoves the guy in a pressure chamber meant to get divers acclimated, you know. And the guy is begging and pleading and screaming in agony as the pressure increases. And he knows what’s going to happen, and I as a kid knew something unspeakable was about to happen, and then the Bond villain cuts a tube leading to the pressure chamber, and we have enough time to watch the doomed man inside gaze out as his head swells to monstrous proportions… and then SPLAT, the viewport is smeared red. The man burst.

It’s that the guy had time to know what was happening to him, and the way his head got so big. (shudder)

39. SomethingI used to be scared of that I now love

i hope you’re not trying to get me to admit that, although when i was little i was scared of it, nowadays i think the xenomorph is kinda hot!! because you’re wrong!!!!!

I do like Phantasm a lot more now than I did as a kid. When I was a kid the silver balls killed so brutally and so suddenly, they were horrible. But now that I’m older I guess I’m more used to sudden death happening in movies? I dunno.

43. FavoriteHorror novel

I ve searched for years for good horror novels, and if anyone has suggestions i m more than happy to hear em! But one of my favorites is still Shirley Jackson’s Haunting of Hill House. Very well written, you get into the mindset of the protagonist, and it’s not very comfortable in there… I also identify a lot with how the protag identifies so strongly with a place and feels increasingly isolated from the others.

44. ScariestDocumentary

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g-SL4ejpP94&list=PLu3Kxnrkh94_qbd5XYXdzze2AYMh8Gd-_&index=4

i’ve wracked my brain but this is the closest thing I can think of. Real documentaries are scary in the numb real life sort of way where you realize that things are getting worse

not really ‘scary’

but anyway, this vid definitely gave me the creeps!

50. Scariest movie ever

This is a cop out answer because I don’t know the name of the movie, but it scared the heck out of me. It was a haunted house flick, and a bunch of teens investigating it, and i was sitting their gripping my knees at eleven pm watching them get killed by supernatural phenomena. The glass in the windows wouldnt break so they couldnt escape, and I especially remember one scene where there was the stairwell up to the second floor, and the steps just led up into darkness, pure blackness. And at one point the camera just focuses on it, and we enjoy the tingling terror of waiting–something’s gonna happen, any second now, we’ll finally see the spirits haunting the house– and silence.

and then as the teens, unnerved, turn to walk away further down the corridor, it seems like it was a fakeout. Or, since it was an older cheaper movie, maybe just a straight up error. And then! One of the teens screams like an animal as she falls to the ground and starts getting dragged up the stairs by something invisible. The other teens yelling and crying as they try to hold on to her– and then, in my memory, it’s fuzzy. On the one hand it seems most likely that they pulled her back, and comforted her, and then tried to escape out the garage or something.

but /i / remember her slipping out of her friends’ grasp and choking as she disappears into the darkness. And she’s never seen again.

and that was the scariest thing i ever saw in a proper published horror movie.

10. ScariestWitch [??]

hmm!!!!

it’s me. i am :3

Eh, well, there’s a witch from a children’s story I heard on the radio nearly twenty years ago, a witch who would turn her victims, animal and human alike, into stone, and arrange them in a stone circle up in the mountains. It was terrifying, hearing her horrid laugh echoing over the howling wind … I still think about her a lot. Even at the end of the story, when she’s turned into stone herself, it’s said her last shrieks still echoed around and around inside the stone circle …

4. Favorite Scary Short Story

I have a more typical answer, and a better but technically incorrect answer because I never managed to find the rest of the pages of the ripped-up book.

The typical answer is: Room 1408, by Stephen King, because it’s the only short story that’s ever legitimately frightened me. How the room shifts subtly, and then not so subtly, and the goofy-when-you-try-to-describe-it-but-scary-when-I-read-it telephone voice blaring out scary nonsense.

The other answer is:

some years ago I was in my uncle’s home, looking through his books. He and I have a similar taste in literature so pretty much everything was a gem. Uncle did sometimes kinda cram his books into the shelves, though, so some got bent or bricked up by other books–which is annoying if you’re trying to survey all your options. So I was yanking out a couple books, when five or six yellowed pages fluttered out from behind some old tome and fluttered to the ground.

I pick them up, worried I’ve damaged a book. But no: these were free floating, they were the wrong size for all the other books on the shelf. And I read them. And they were a story about a man who was a caretaker for an old house. He was also exploring and investigating it on the side, because–the townsfolk claimed–the place was haunted. He walked the grounds, he found cold spots. Things moved when he wasn’t looking. There were secret passages leading to strange rooms. A weird house, to be sure. But haunted? The man scoffed.

And then, in the second week of his stay, he found he could no longer leave the house. The gate wouldnt budge. He would have to find a different way out, or hope that the woman who brought him food would show up a day or two early. I’m not describing this very well but I assure you the atmosphere was dense–I could feel the stress and isolation of this poor man who was rapidly running out of food, and the growing fear that there was indeed something stalking him through the rooms. He couldnt sleep without a light, but it had to be small so that there’d be little fear of it falling over and starting a fire, and even then he would wake up several times in the night to the sound of creaking floors a room or two over.

I was rapt. This is the sort of thing that happens in a gothic story, a guy stumbling across a scary story in a crumbling library. I remember the man was trying to use one of the secret passages he’d discovered, hoping it would lead off the grounds to freedom. His light flickers, and there’s something in the tangled ivy coating the dank walls …

And that’s where the last scrap of paper ended.

Boy howdy i’ve searched a long time for the rest of that story!

35. Scariestgaming experience

We werent a gaming family, my brother and i, until highschool nearly. The first game that scared me was JumpStart Adventures 4th grade: Haunted Island. it is an edutainment game. Yes, i am rightfully ashamed of my fear.

The island in which the game is set has multiple pathways between the minigames, all dark paths in groaning woods, your feet clattering over crumbling bridges, ghosts whirring past, howling and heavy breaths coming nearer… luckily for me, because i got easily lost both in real life and in game spaces, the game would auto-move you if you clicked on a map the minigame you wished to get to. So you click, your character clipclops along, takes a left, a right, etc, Boom youre there.

but one day, I x’ed out of the map and couldnt figure out how to get it back. this was halfway through a ‘move’ and in trying to get it back i stopped my character mid-travel. So. for the first time in the game i was really deep in the woods with no idea how to get anywhere. i was trembling, i had to keep going, but in what direction?

i kept moving, and i would jump every time a ghost popped up, and (do remember this was a time pre-gamefaqs) i was in deadly fear that something was following me. as far as i knew the game could actually do that.

my parents gave up on me playing the game because the Big Bad of the game, a witch (scary, but not the scariest), flew into the clearing i was in in order to give me a quick minigame, and when she burst into view i screamed out loud at three oclock in the afternoon.

i did not have a good first impression of fourth grade.

and the worst thing to me was not just my cowardice at giving up but, the goal of the game is to save your classmates, theyve all been transformed into monsters. so when i stopped playing i had in essence abandoned them on that haunted island.

i preferred the ClueFinders games anyway, haha

#Anonymous

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elriedreamer · 4 years

Text

Read in 2019 Books Part 2

May to August

May

14. Andrea Host - Stained Glass Monsters. Fantasy with interesting worldbuilding and absolutely boring characters. MC is Mary Sue. Uneven pacing. Boring battles. Extra boring cliche romance. I didn't care for anyone here. Do not recommend.

15. Stephen King - On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft. Surprise: I haven't read any of King's novels, only watched a couple adaptations. Horror is not my thing. But I'm always interested when writers write about writing.

16. Charles de Lint - Seven Wild Sisters. Liked it a little less than A Circle of Cats, but still it was a nice read, plus Charles Vess illustrations are amazing.

17. Robert Jackson Bennet - American Elsewhere. I loved City of Miracles, it is in my top of fantasy books. So, when I've seen newly translated book, I just grabbed it and started reading, skipping the annotation. For some reason I confused it with another Bennett's book in my to-read list - Foundryside, which is fantasy and more in my alley. American Elsewhere is... guess what? Horror/mystery. But, even if it's not my cup of tea, the story itself was interesting. So, if horror is your genre, try it.

18. William Goldman - The Princess Bride. Eh. My expectations were too high, I guess. I thought I would like it, but I didn’t like it at all. Should I watch the movie? Thoughts? 19. Naomi Wolf - The Beauty Myth. Made it in to-read list after 2 Talk Girls (my fav booktubers, look them on YouTube if you know Russian) reading diary. Classic for a reason, I only wish I’d read it 15 year earlier. 20. Christelle Dabos - A Winter’s Promise. Really good YA fantasy series, can’t wait for the 4th book. June

21. Christelle Dabos - The Missing of Clairdelune.

22. Christelle Dabos - The Memory of Babel.

23. Amy Harmon - The Bird and the Sword. Not too bad for romance fantasy. I’m not against romance in fantasy, I’m in fact very much here for it, problem is that often it’s written not very good, so I’m having a hard time remembering romance plots that I really liked in fantasy books (or not only in fantasy… hmm… in fact, I like romance plots in fanfiction (carefully selected) more).

24. Kelly & Zack Weinersmith - Soonish: Ten Emerging Technologies That’ll Improve and/or Ruin Everything. This was super interesting reading. Authors not only tell about new technologies, but also at what state they are now, what problems scientists have with them, what are possible ways of fixing this problems and why this is still haven’t done, what are possible good and bad outcome of said technologies. Writing is fun and complicated things are brilliantly explained. 25. David Duhovny - Miss Subways. When I heard about this book I was like: Agent Mulder wrote an urban fantasy/magical realism book? Must read! Okay, what can I say about it. Interesting concept, I see what he’s doing with it. But still, something was off, maybe the characters - and that would be unsurprising since Cuchulain and Emer are not the most interesting mythology characters for me. July

26. Nicholas Eames - Kings of the Wyld. Ohh, I loved it so much! One of the faves of 2019, can’t recommend enough. If you like classic RPG (for instance: Icewind Dale, Baldur’s Gate) and rock music this is must read! Gonna reread it in English, must be even more fun! 27. Simon Stalenhag - The Electric State. The first graphic novel in 2019. Bought after review from another booktuber: booksaroundme. Amazing imaginary, creepy post-apocalyptic world, mysterious ending, gives some food for thoughts. 28. Kerri Maniscalco - Stalking Jack the Ripper. Well, this is very historically inaccurate, so if you’ll be able to let it slide, that this book is ok for light reading. But not the best light reading, you know. 29. Alex Alice - Casle in the Stars: The Space Race of 1869. Part 1 of steam-punk graphic novel series. Incredible watercolor illustrations. The story reminds of Jules Verne books, but if in 1869 humanity started to explore space. Like for nostalgic feelings. 30. Brandon Sanderson - Warbreaker. How does he do all that complicated worldbuilding (and so different in all of his series) has my brain exploding. Just wow. This book was good and full of plot twists even with much less action than usual, I just liked it a little bit less than previously read Elantris and 2 monstrous tomes of Stormlight Archive. And maybe it’s just me, but it seems like Sanderson likes arranged marriage trope a little too much. But overall good read. 31. Rainbow Rowell - Eleanor & Park. Hey, another good YA novel here! I thought it is some school romance, but it’s also about family problems, and this is my thing. 32. Alex Alice - Casle in the Stars: The Moon King. See above. August

33. Tana French - Broken Harbor. Gonna read them all.

34. Celeste Ng - Everything I Never Told You. I was exploding with emotions and “What are you doing people?!” while reading this small book. Highly recommend. 35. Alex Alice - Casle in the Stars: The Knights of Mars. 36. Alison Matthews David - Fashion Victims: The Dangers of Dress Past and Present. Another really good nonfiction. Actually, horrifying reading. And it’s not only about corsets and Chinese foot binding, a lot of facts I didn’t know before.

37. Carol Dyhouse - Heartthrobs: A History of Women and Desire. Interesting read, but it only tells how female fantasies about men in pop culture changed through time, and I’d like it to be more analytic. Still, nice light reading.

#books #read in 2019 #part 2 of 3

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mikeyd1986 · 5 years

Text

MIKEY’S PERSONAL BLOG 137, January 2019

I’ve spent the last few days reflecting on 2018 and everything that I’ve achieved this year.

2018 has been one of the most challenging years of my life. It's been both progressive and regressive as far as my goals are concerned. I've started to embrace what it's like to be an "Aspie" or a High Functioning Autistic person, joining in several groups and social functions by Aspergers Victoria. I successfully become a participant with the NDIS and have began using my funding for services with Mentis Assist and Everyday Independence.

My fitness goals took a tumble especially in the second half of this year. It was to be expected following the change of my antidepressant medication with shifts in mood, motivation, poor sleep, high anxiety and stress levels. But this is something I am determined to work on for 2019. I want to lose weight again and maintain some healthy lifestyle habits.

I think this year I've become much more honest at times. I'm still a very sensitive person and yet I know when to cut the cord and not take any bullshit from others. I've burned a few bridges that ended up being blessings in disguise. I've learned a lot of things about self-care, forgiveness and where I should be focusing my attention. To challenge my negative thinking more and to realise that I’m stronger than I think sometimes, especially in stressful situations.

Local gigs took a back seat but my support for independent bands has never been stronger. I continue to promote and support them in my spare time. In particular, Windwaker, Reside, Ebonivory, Driven To The Verge, RESIST THE THOUGHT, Tapestry, Ocean Sleeper, Stuck Out, ÂME NOIRE, Hollow World, Greyview, Spectral Fires. Hopefully in 2019, attending local gigs will be a bigger priority for me again.

To say that 2018 was a rough year would be an understatement but I've certainty grown as a person and achieved many goals including taking on my very first civil claims case at VCAT, participating in the Men of Doveton program, beginning small group fitness classes at CinFull Fitness, attending yoga classes at Level Up Yoga, writing reviews for Behind The Scene, applying for the Disability Support Pension at Centrelink, seeing a psychiatrist for the first time (Dr. Ricardo Peralta from OPTIMIND at Nepean Specialist Group).

I used to get myself so worked up and depressed over the thought of being alone (All by myself, don't wanna be, all by myself anymore) on New Year's Eve. Or even worried that I wouldn't have any plans and have nobody invite me to their gatherings or parties. Now as a thirty-something year old, I simply don't give a shit that I don't have concrete plans for NYE straight after Christmas. I go with the flow and if a worthy opportunity comes along, then I'll take it.

Which is exactly what I did when Rhiannon Razzie Vergoz invited me out to a small intimate social gathering at her place. It was a last minute thing and I didn’t have any other plans so I figured why not. I guess I did have some concerns about whether I would click socially and get along with her friends but I feel like 2019 will be more about taking more chances in life.

I had to catch a train from Belgrave station to Camberwell station. It was then I realise that there was no services stopping at Auburn station and so I decided to walk it to Rhiannon’s place from there. My reusable bag filled with drinks, my Stephen King novel, antidepressants , a phone charger, glasses case, plastic wine flute and a jumper was heavy as but the walk through Camberwell Junction and along Riversdale Road made it worth the effort.

The houses were mostly 1920’s double brick English-styled cottages with weatherboard facades and lead-light windows. The streets were lined with towering oak trees. Once I found Rhiannon’s unit, I was greeted by their black cat named Maddy. The social awkwardness was already kicking in as I stood inside the kitchen while my friend was busy baking some spring rolls and cutting up a milo-chocolate brownie slice that she prepared earlier. Eventually I did go outside and introduced myself to Rhiannon’s friends and housemates.

This was a group of friends that I normally wouldn’t associate myself with being somebody who is quiet, shy, introverted, Gay and Autistic. Plus most of the humour was “blacker” than I’m used to, to the point where my mind questioned whether we should be laughing at those things. And yet I was willing to go with the flow. We spent the night playing Mario Kart on the Nintendo Switch, playing several rounds of Cards Against Humanity, chilling outside in the back patio area, eating loads of junk food and consuming lots of alcohol. There was also many weird and disturbing conversations had, nudie runs out on the street and the loud off-key singing of Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody and Cher’s If I Could Turn Back Time.

We briefly gathered outside the front of the street to celebrate the New Year and overheard the fireworks going off from the city. I passed out shortly after midnight as my body and mind were both clearly exhausted. I desperately wanted to fall sleep. I found a double bed inside the bedroom at the end of the hallway and swiftly collapsed into it. My thoughts did turn dark for a moment, wondering if the crew would notice that I’d gone missing or if my disappearance had gone unnoticed.

Thankfully they did and I was found very much mentally conscious but physically passed out. I was in some weird sleep paralysis like state where my body just didn’t want to move an inch and yet I was fine with that. Shortly after, Ben was sleeping beside me and I did my best not to move too much or disturb him from sleeping. But of course having sleeping problems of my own makes that almost impossible and I ended up tossing and turning anyway once the affects of the alcohol wore off.

Speaking up in a group filled with loud, wild extroverts proved far too difficult for me tonight. I also feel like I am capable of having decent conversations but it takes me a long time to finally open up and be comfortable enough with the people I’m around to do that. I think it’s hard blending in with ANY social group so I deserve credit for giving it a crack especially when I was meeting most of these people for the first time tonight. I could have snuck out during the night but I didn’t.

On New Years Day, I got myself out of bed around 9.30am, hearing birds chirping and a light breeze rustling the leaves outside the window. I was feeling slightly hungover and very groggy. I drank about 5 beers, a Jaggerbomb, a glass of champagne and 2-3 glasses of pink mascato. Everyone else was clearly feeling worse than me. Rhiannon and Ben cooked us up a lovely breakfast including rashers of bacon, hash browns, grilled tomatoes, mushrooms and toast. Talk about a great hangover cure!

We spent the morning flicking channels randomly from the CBS Today Show (featuring some painfully awful live performances of Hailee Steinfeld with backing dancers dressed up in raincoats) to the Morning Show Summer Series (featuring a highly disturbing segment with Larry Emdur trying to body roll with a group of male strippers at Sexpo) and a couple of episodes of Bondi Rescue (featuring dumb backpackers naturally!).

It certainly wasn’t a boring New Year’s that’s for sure and I was very grateful to be included within this small group of people. Did I feel uncomfortable and out of my comfort zone at times? YES! Am I glad that I spent NYE with friends rather than home alone though? YES! Sometimes risks are worth taking even if you don’t end with the desired outcomes. It was still an enjoyable adventure overall and I’m glad I went.

On Thursday morning, I decided to go for a walk around at Wilson Botanic Park Berwick. Unfortunately, it ended up being a brief stroll as my counsellor Ruth changed my appointment to an earlier time at the last minute. But instead of fretting and getting annoyed, I tried my hardest to appreciate the time I did have before 12 o’clock. I chose to walk around the lakeside track which passes by the Amphitheater and the lily pond near the entrance to the park. https://www.casey.vic.gov.au/facilities-hire/wilson-botanic-park-berwick

I only had about half an hour but it was a nice way to pass the time before my counselling session. Hopefully next week I’ll be able to plan things a bit better and have more time to spend exploring the other walking tracks and make a day of it. Plus the weather was heating up. Extreme heat always seems to have adverse effects on my ability to concentrate and function so I try not to stay outside too long when it’s 30 to 35 degrees or over. I also try to keep myself hydrated and wear a hat especially when I’m fully exposed to the sun. https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/heat

On Thursday night, I did a Body Pump class with Sarah at YMCA Casey RACE in Cranbourne East. Despite how warm it was outside, I still managed to motivate myself to come down to the gym tonight as I’d rather deal with mid-20’s than the scorching 42 degrees tomorrow. Sarah put us through release number 106 which features tracks including I Am Here by Pink, Tell Me You Love Me by Galantis & Throttle, Coco’s Miracle by Fedde Le Grand & Dannic vs. Coco Star and Revenge by Pink & Eminem. https://www.siphilp.com/bodypump-106-music-track-listing.aspx

It was a very challenging workout particularly the painfully brutal lunge track with far too many lunge pulses and no breaks. And it’s not wonder as most people would be feeling the same way post-New Year’s Eve. Sore and unfit. I wisely selected and use mostly lighter weights for that reason as I didn’t want to burn out too quickly. But at least Sarah made it entertaining and highlighted her own struggles with getting back into routine again. https://www.lesmills.com.au/bodypump

“Oh, I think I've landed. Where there are miracles at work. For the thirst and for the hunger. Come the conference of birds. And say it's true. It's not what it seems. Leave your broken windows open. And in the light just streams. And you get a head. A head full of dreams. You can see the change you want to. Be what you want to be.” Coldplay - A Head Full of Dreams (2016)

“And you can say what is, or fight for it. Close your mind and take a risk. You can "it's mine" and clench your fist. Or see each other as a gift. We're gonna get it, get it together I know. Gonna get it, get it together and flow. Gonna get it, get it together and go. Up and up. Fixing up a car to drive in it again. When you're in pain. When you think you've had enough. Don't ever give up.” Coldplay - Up&Up (2016)

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