#liev schreiber one shot

[imagines-to-quench-thirst]

Social Media AU: Y/n makes use of a photo shoot for her "Big Boy" Victor Creed

#victor creed one shot #marvel imagine #avengers imagine #victor creed x reader #victor creed smut #victor creed imagine #sabertooth imagine #sabertooth x reader #sabertooth #xmen dark phoenix #xmen apocalypse #new xmen #imagine #marvel #liev schreiber #fake social media #avengers social media au #marvel social media

[softquietsteadylove]

Hi. Have a request for a prompt! Thenamesh au where Gil is a special force agent and Thena being his commander in charge. Gil is at a risky dangerous mission and Thena, having a secret crush, is watching worriedly through his and the other teammates bodycam, talking with him at a quiet moment. A bit of angst and fluff? :) would be interesting to read something like that!

"All teams in position."

"T minus ten minutes," Thena spoke into the mic from the safety of the command post. She eyed the monitors, displaying their access to the security feeds as well as her team's body cams. "This happens fast, it goes smoothly. You move as we practised...no one gets hurt."

"Yes, sir."

Thena stepped back, holding her arms folded around herself. They had gone over this, they had trained and planned for it. Everything was in place and things were expected to go fine. But she was worried.

She shouldn't have been. It was...inappropriate for her to be.

But her eyes drifted up to the corner monitor, displaying Gil's position at the end of the hall. He was one of the only ones of the team isolated from the others. But his strength would be needed if they had to restrict access to the windows and stairwells.

"Hey, Boss?"

Thena switched over channels, uncaring how suspicious it was to want the privacy. "Gil."

"Sorry," he sounded like he was smiling. He could always speak casually, even if they were in the middle of a critical and dangerous mission.

"No, what is it?" Thena asked softly--too softly.

"I guess," he sighed. Anyone else pulling this would have gotten an earful about her not being a therapist, and that if they were having doubts then they didn't have to be part of her squadron. But Gil was different. "Are you sure you're safe over...?"

Thena bit into her lip, trying not to smile. It was silly, really. She was in a secure location, the command post for operations being just within range for her to keep an eye on her team. "The area's been cleared. We're perfectly safe."

"You're right," he mumbled, shifting anxiously as their countdown continued. "You know I just...worry."

She did know. She knew that he was entirely too sweet for this line of work, and that he was a great home cook, and that his favourite colour was green-

"What if they know where you are?"

"They don't," she answered plain and simple, hoping she sounded like a commanding officer when she said it. This wasn't the first time she had gone out of her way to assure Gilgamesh wasn't worrying about her when he needed to have his eyes in front of him.

"I guess they'd be in for somethin' else even if they did," she heard him chuckle on his end. "I wouldn't wanna face down the Goddess of War one-on-one."

Thena let out a faint laugh before she could stop it. He heard it, though, and she could tell. "Focus, Gilgamesh."

"Yes, Ma'am." It sounded dangerously like flirting when he called her that.

"Gil," Thena began again before she could stop herself. But her nails were digging into her palms and her heart was pounding. "Keep your eyes on the prize. No unnecessary risks."

"Get in, get out," he finished for her, and she watched his bodycam rise slightly as he straightened up his posture again.

"Just," she paused, her throat tight and dry. "Come back...to me."

Whoops.

"Alive!" she rushed out to add on, "come back to me alive!"

There were a few seconds of silence on his end, and Thena felt as if the temperature in her saferoom had increased tenfold.

"Count on it," he promised her, sounding much more serious than he had before.

"Gil, I'm serious."

"So am I," he responded quickly. "We'll be back before you know it, Boss."

Thena went back to folding around herself, pacing as their time ran out second by second. "You better mean that."

Gil held position as the first unit blew the door open down the hall. They were out of time. The image of his cam feed blurred as the smoke bombs went off.

"Thena, I promise."

#Thenamesh AU #the dRAMA #I have a weakness for the #commanding officer is weak for one (1) of their own #also I watched Salt when I was home sick #and it changed my brain chemistry #it's actually such a good action movie #it legitimately didn't go where I thought it would #and also #when she blocks off the cameras #and Liev Schreiber tells her to get her 'goddamn panties' off the camera #altered something in me #anyway #CIA (or whatever) Thenamesh #Thena has to keep her cool #but every time a mission is over all she does is fall to her knees until she hears Gil's voice #and he's all cheery like #Hey Boss everything went great and I only got shot twice! #and Thena is so cool and collected #but on the inside she's a wreck #Thenamesh Special Forces AU

[mogwai-movie-house]

Asteroid City (2023)

Visually, compositionally, Wes Anderson is without peer, and any individual shot out of his latest film will make practically every other movie released this year look like a provincial teenager's first TikTok video. Everywhere you look the details are never-endingly exquisite and hilarious, and my eyes haven't experienced so much pleasure since the last Wes Anderson flick. He's the only director left standing that I will still pay to go to a cinema to see.

The downside is that the story itself is awkward, convoluted, flimsy and whimsical - flimsical, if you will - and it's often hard to follow or care about what is going on, especially in the larger story arc, which flits between a black & white 1950s TV production and the glorious technicolor of the main story. I would have been perfectly happy to have lost the needlessly distracting B&W sections, as they add very little in the long run, and sap the energy and pace of the rest. The clever story Anderson is trying to tell here could work, but he doesn't have a strong enough grip on all the narrative and character elements to convey it in a clear and emotionally engaging way, so there are parts that feel more of a private joke or a personal fancy than a work made for the wider world. It could be I'll think differently about that on further viewings, but I would still expect to find this is what weakens the film the most.

The ridiculously stellar cast is dazzling, but there's just too many famous faces here for one film to do them justice: newcomer Tom Hanks is a great fit but woefully underused, and something similar could be said for Steve Carell, Tilda Swinton, Matt Dillon, Jeff Goldblum, Margot Robbie, Hope Davis, Bob Balaban and Willem Dafoe, all of whom are most welcome sights, but simply aren't onscreen long enough to convey anything of real substance, and they all deserved more fleshed-out roles they could get their teeth into.

For the first time in a Wes Anderson movie there is some rather obvious diversity hiring in the casting department (presumably in order to meet the new qualifications for an Oscar), some of whom work better than others, but the returning Jeffrey Wright and Tony Revolori are both excellent, and Ethan Josh Lee is a good new addition to the family.

Bryan Cranston and Edward Norton get more screen-time than most, but the first feels like a walk-on guest spot in a TV sketch show and the other looks somewhat lost in the confusing shuffle. Jason Schwartzman is, of course, the perfect Anderson avatar, and Scarlet Johansson is, for the most part, very dependable too. Liev Schreiber fits in surprisingly well, and the running gags with his son Aristou Meehan are perhaps the funniest high points of the film.

-----

All in all, it's hard to know how to rate this: it's definitely one of the weakest Wes Anderson movies, but for all the undeniable flaws in narrative it still gives me more joy to watch than just about anything else modern cinema has to offer, and I think by December I might still regard it the best thing I've seen all year. So that's odd.

★★★★★★½✰✰✰

#film reviews #asteroid city #wes anderson

[popentertainment-moviereviews]

ASTEROID CITY (2023)

Starring Jason Schwartzman, Scarlett Johansson, Tom Hanks, Jeffrey Wright, Tilda Swinton, Bryan Cranston, Edward Norton, Adrien Brody, Liev Schreiber, Hope Davis, Stephen Park, Rupert Friend, Maya Hawke, Steve Carell, Matt Dillon, Hong Chau, Willem Dafoe, Margot Robbie, Tony Revolori, Jake Ryan, Sophia Lillis, Fisher Stevens, Rita Wilson and Jeff Goldblum.

Screenplay by Wes Anderson.

Directed by Wes Anderson.

Distributed by Focus Features. 105 minutes. Rated PG-13.

“What a strange experience this is.”

That line was spoken by Tom Hanks’ character in Asteroid City; however it could easily be referring to the act of watching Asteroid City.

Welcome back (again) to Wes Anderson-land. It is a place where extremely repressed people speechify about the big questions in life as well as the trivial pursuits, all in a kitschy old-fashioned diorama of cheesy sets, ticky-tacky product placements, winkingly outdated-looking special effects and Americana-laced backlots.

As always with Anderson, the story is somewhat inscrutable. Is it the story of a bunch of sci-fi fans in the 1950s who happen upon an alien invasion? Or is it a story of a bunch of actors doing a play about a bunch of sci-fi fans in the 1950s who happen upon an alien invasion? Is it an allegory about the quarantine? Is it a love story? A family drama? A military-industrial complex conspiracy theory? An old-fashioned western?

It is a little of all of those things, but not really any of them. Did you really expect Wes Anderson to spell anything out for you?

How you react to Asteroid City will pretty much rely on your patience for Anderson’s very specific filmmaking style. Some people find him brilliant, a dour and surreal chronicler of middle-class angst. Others find his particular style precious, fussy and humorless.

There was regular laughter by some of the critics at the film screening I attended, so obviously some people just GOT it. The rest of us mostly looked like we’d been given a shot of Novocain.

Asteroid City tells the story of a sprawling group of eccentrics and misfits, gathered in the New Mexico desert ghost town (or in a Hollywood Theater, or wherever the hell it takes place). They settle in a series of old cabins which look like old lean-tos, and look out towards the stars (the stars in the sky and the movie star in their midst) in search of… interplanetary life? Love? Understanding? The perfect photograph? An odd metallic ball?

Their conversations are as dry and arid as the surrounding desert, just tinged with a barely acknowledged longing that none of these characters seem motivated to act upon. None of the people here say quite what they want to say, and none of them gets quite what they want to get, either.

In fairness, stylistically, Asteroid City looks incredible. Even if you don’t quite get Anderson’s stylistic quirks as a storyteller, you have to acknowledge that he has a very specific and fascinating eye as a filmmaker.

Let’s face it. If you are a fan of Wes Anderson’s previous films, chances are that you will find Asteroid City to be brilliant. If you don’t like his work, this won’t be the one that changes your mind.

Jay S. Jacobs

Copyright ©2023 PopEntertainment.com. All rights reserved. Posted: June 23, 2023.

#Asteroid City #Tom Hanks #2023 #Movie Review #Wes Anderson #Jay S. Jacobs #Youtube #PopEntertainment.com

[legion1227]

Asteroid City: Movie Review

Pretty strong first impression to me from an esteemed director.

Wes Anderson has been directing films since the 90s. Anderson has made many critically acclaimed films like Isle of Dogs, The Grand Budapest Hotel, and The French Dispatch, to name a few. However, his latest escapade from this year, Asteroid City, was the first film of Anderson's I had the privilege to watch. I've wanted to watch a Wes Anderson film for quite some time, and for the first one, I gotta say…

It's pretty good. And kinda complicated.

The plot is meta and contains layers, but at face value, Asteroid City follows a group of people attending a Space Cadet Convention in a desert town in America circa 1955. And yet simultaneously, the convention's events are shown to be staged as a play, with scenes sprinkled in to show the play's creation. The film features a dynamic ensemble cast including Jason Schwartzman, Scarlett Johansson, Tom Hanks, Tolda Swinton, Edward Norton, Bryan Cranston, and countless others.

One of the best aspects of the film has to be the cinematography. The way the film is presented shows a lot of still shots within a vibrant, colorful setting. Nearly every character or object of importance is placed in the middle of the screen. Your eyesight will tend to fixate on the center as he intended. Combined with eye-catching blues, yellows, greens, and otherwise, merely looking at the film is aesthetically pleasing. Like, if you watched the movie on mute with no subtitles, it's a treasure to stare at.

Story and character play second fiddle to the looks. The large cast gathers together to throw witty lines and banter amongst one another in the desert town to intriguing levels. Jason Schwartzman simultaneously plays Jones Hall, who plays war photojournalist Augie Steenbeck. (Remember, this is a play within the movie). As Augie, he shares tender moments with Midge Campell, whose character is an actress. (Played by Scarlett Johannson…so Johannson is playing an actress who's playing an actress?) Schwartzman works best off of Johansson and Edward Norton as Conrad Earp. There's a compelling theme across the board as Schwartzman and his dual characters deal with love and loss. The unfathomable loss of a lover plagues Schwartzman's characters throughout the film. As both Augie and Jones are trying to cope, differentiating between the two with scenes of color or black and white, it's rather apparent that these characters are the driving force of the emotional impact of the story.

As far as the other characters go and their addition to the plot, it's a mixed bag.

The majority of other characters focused on in the film vary from fun to okay. Tom Hanks, as Augie's father-in-law, has some humorous and entertaining banter with some of the young children. Members of the government merely exist to be foils to the townspeople. Edward Norton is engaging in his few scenes, and Bryan Cranston is equal in his limited screen time. But others like Liev Schreiber and Steve Carell's characters feel like missed opportunities as side characters with quirky side material going on.

Honestly, it's just an odd film, but I really enjoyed it. Some characters went through decent arcs, and others were there to be silly and eccentric. I want to see if other Wes Anderson movies are similar to this vibe. It's gorgeous to look at, and there are a couple characters to gravitate toward. I'd say it's worth at least one watch. Good film. 3.5/5.

#wes anderson #asteroid city #movie review #movie #review #fypツ

[crookedtable]

'X-Men Origins: Wolverine' (feat. Jose Lopez Jr.)

Despite the less-than-enthusiastic response from fans and critics, 2006's trilogy-ending X-Men: The Last Stand did at least offer fans something of a sense of closure (that final shot and post-credits scene notwithstanding). But it also outperformed its two predecessors at the box office. So it didn't take long for Fox to begin exploring ways to extend the franchise.

On paper, a solo film exploring the dark backstory of Hugh Jackman's fan-favorite character was the obvious way to continue. At the time, such a film was meant to start a whole subset of X-Men Origins movies featuring different beloved characters. But 2009's X-Men Origins: Wolverine didn't exactly deliver the strong kickoff the studio or fans hoped for.

Jose Lopez Jr. joins the show to help us break down one of the most maligned entries in the X-Men franchise. We'll discuss whether X-Men Origins: Wolverine does right by Jackman's mysterious mutant, the behind-the-scenes drama, the addition of Liev Schreiber as Sabretooth, and -- of course -- Ryan Reynolds' inauspicious debut as "Deadpool."

Connect with Crooked Table Productions on social media:

Facebook  |  Twitter  |  Instagram

Check out this episode!

#movies #movie franchise #movie series #podcasting #movie podcast #movie review #film

[hypermanga]

Out of my mind (Victor Creed x reader)

Word count: 2402

Summary: After recieving an unexpected visit in the X-Mansion, you engage in an adventure that will test your life as well as the relationship you have with a certain feral man.

~~~~~

Debris was all you could see : falling from the sky that landed dangerously near you, creating big craters. Then you saw them, both jumping, Victor first and Logan next, before they disappeared in the dust.

Running towards the mist, you came face to face with Gambit, the only mutant who had been able to escape the island "Remy?" "C' mon (Y/N), let's get you to safety" You wanted to protest, to run to the feral brothers, but you found yourself too tired to put any fight. As you were being dragged to the helicopter, a bang could be heard in the distance, two, three.

And darkness.

Waking up in sweat, you gasped for air "Nightmare?" Ororo asked, startling you "How long have you been here?" "A couple minutes, I guess, I came to tell you-you have a visit". Still startled from the nightmare, you bolted out of bed and freshened up a bit. It was not every day you had someone visit you.

The thing was, you had no clue who could that be.

Straightening your jacket, you descended the stairs, where you could make out some voices at the Mansion's entrance. As you saw who had come to visit you, you skipped the three last steps, jumping right into his arms "Victor!"

“Long time no see, kitten” He smirked, engulfing you in his arms. You were more than surprised to see Victor, and even dumbfounded that he remembered you "How did you-" "Hightened senses, remember?" "Oh...Yeah, that's true" You laughed sheepishly.

Even all these years apart hadn't changed the crush you had on him "Well, we'll leave you be" Ororo concluded, turning back to Victor" Don't try anything. If you betray us, it will be worse for you"

Closing the door to your bedroom, you turned to Victor, who watched you intently.Your smile turned into a straight line "I have to tell you something"

As soon as you said it, sparks appeared in your hands, making Victor's eyes widen "Since when?" "Five months ago, nobody knows…You're the first one" They danced in between your fingers, settling on your right hand before a ball was formed "Do you control it?" "More or less…But that's not the issue…I'm afraid I will put people in danger with my mutation, or even kill someone accidentally…Charles always says that this is a gift, but to me, it's a nightmare" Your sad eyes held embarrasment and fear, and the feral could feel the latter emane from you.

Victor's eyebrows furrowed, and a growl escaped his lips "Look" He said, taking your hands in his "I'm not the best one to give goodie two shoes advice, but this ain't something that can be taken from you, you're stuck with it. This changes your life, you and I both know it, but you either suck up and train to be strong or get experimented on and killed" Your eyes watered,even though you knew everything that having a mutation involved, the reality seemed much crueler "Hey kitten, don't worry, you'll be fine. I'm with you, ain't I?" Reassuring you, Victor gave your hands a soft shake, before retreating to his room.

~~~

"Well, if this is true, what are we waiting for?" Scott interveened, making you turn your head "For all we know, this could be a trap" Logan replied, crossing his arms "But what if it is not?" Your voice rose from the back of Charles's office "What if there are kids imprisoned or being experimented on?" "There's only one way to find out" Charles's concluded, ushering everyone out while Scott and Hank went to prepare the helicopter "(Y/N), could you stay for a minute?" "Of course, what's wrong?" "You'll be staying" "What?Why?" "Your mutation is not controlled enough, and we are not certain if the person who is conducting the experiments is-" -My father" Your balled your fists, making a disgusted face "But I know how to control it! I can be useful" "You won't go to this mission and the decision is final"

Leaving the office, you ran to the main entrance, where you found Jean "They left already" You opened and closed your mouth,she didn't need any questioning "But Victor is in the living room, if you were wondering" Smiling, you thanked her and went to find him.

"Charles doesn't let me go the mission" Plopping on the sofa, you awaited his reply "But you want to go, right?" "Yes, I feel that perhaps I will find answers to my questions" "Then don't listen to the old man and go: if there are kids congratulations, and if there is your father then you hit jackpot. If not, well at least you made a daytrip" He shrugged, getting up from the armchair he was resting on "The factory is not far, but how are we gonna get to it?" He didn't reply, just guided you to the back of the mansion, where a van stood "Your ride , princess"

"It seems pretty abandoned…" But even if it looked abandoned, you knew better than that, as the Island had looked like this factory.The eerie atmosphere was overwhelming, and the feeling on your gut that there was something very wrong made you shiver to the core "C'mon let's go" You took off running, Victor following close behind "I'm coming with you" "Suit yourself, but if we want to end quicker, we must divide"

After half an hour or so, there was still no luck in finding any kids, nor did you encounter the Xmen "Now…Let's see" Standing in front of a locked door with coding, you created some lightning to break in, expecting that there was to be something important inside. As the door opened, you stared into a dimly lit room, full of pipes and wires "What the-" Before you could finish your sentence, your head started to hurt, as if needles were inserted to them "Shit! Victor!" You cried, falling to the floorn, withering in pain "Please Victor! Help!" Starting to feel numb, you stopped fighting the tears, screaming with all your might "Screaming won't help you much, (Y/N)" A figure stepped from the shadows, wearing a soldier's suit.

William Stryker…Your father.

"What?Why?" "All in time, my dear daughter…For now…I have some questions that need answer…"Was all you heard before you succumbed to the pain.

Stryker smiled proudly, calling some guards to take you to the laboratory, where someone was already waiting for you.

"Shit! Victor!" In no time, he was crossing the factory, leaping through the floor in marvelous agility. His heart was pounding, and he could not concentrate on anything, but getting to you "Please Victor! Help!" He sped up, if it was even possible anymore. It all became blurry, he just saw the door, which looked to have been blown up, and crossed it.

"Where's (Y/N)?!" He roared, preparing himself to fight against the whole team of soldiers that were awaiting him.

But what was waiting in the last lab of the corridor was something he was not preparing to face.

Clutching on the safety ropes around your ankles, you watched frantically around the room : Needles, tubes, machines…Something out of a sci-fi horror movie "My (Y/N), so young and yet so dangerous" He looked old, tired "You don't know anything about me! Let me go!" "Sorry, but you're too much of a trouble to let go…You see, your mutation is something out of this world…Almost godly, you see" Zipping your mouth, you listened to him making his speech, trying to charge your power "So…It is of vital importance that you are subjected to experimentation" "You would to this? To your own daughter?"

"Well, I had to do it to your brother too, didn't I?" As if on cue, a light revealed a man, disheveled, and on a wheelchair. Was this…

"You fucking psycho! You'll pay for this you bastard!" As a blast was thrown from your hand, your brother's mutation kicked in, making you scream once again in pain "Please! Stop this!" Your screaming did nothing but increase as you saw your father approaching you with a syringe "This will prevent you from escaping nor killing me" "Nothing will stop me, I will not stop fighting to end with your madness!"

Just then, a ruckus was heard, getting nearer and nearer "It seems we have company…I should have killed Victor in the island when I had him under my control" "He would've beat you, you're no rival to him" "That's why you'll be the one to kill him" Your eyes shot open at that statement, fear pumping in your veins "This is a mind control serum, I'm pretty sure your new self won't have any inconvenience in killing him…Now don't cry (Y/N), don't feel sorry for the monster that he is" "He is no monster, you are!"

His face scrunched up in disgust at that, he even looked hurt "To know that my daughter feels anything for that…That animal…Makes me even sicker" A sharp pain shot up in your body, making you dizzy "I won't…Kill him…I won't succumb to this…This serum" Tears fell from your eyes, as you fell in a deep sleep.

At last, Victor arrived to the lab, throwing the door down with a swift kick "Kitten?" There was nobody, it was quiet…Way too quiet "Ah, Victor, so glad you could make it" Stryker appeared, clasping his hands together "Where is (Y/N)? I'll kill you if anything has happened to her" "Your "kitten" is here, she's adjusting" "Adjusting? To wha-?" He had no time to finish, as an electric blast sent him across the room. Your form appeared, levitating from the ground: your body was surrounded by lightning, as well as your eyes, that held no pupil whatsoever. Your clothes also had changed, they seemed godly like.

"To this. She fought hard, but not enough" "You'll pay for this!" He launged himself, but was yet stopped by you "Kitten! Goddamnit, get some sense in your head!" He dodged every attack, what was he else to do? He couldn't harm you in any way, he had promised it to himself. Your bolts were getting more precise as time passed just as Victor grew tired and started to lose hope.

"Now, (Y/N), that is enough playtime, just finish him off" His eyes widened, as you used a lightning bolt to strangle him, applying more preassure as you shocked him "Kitten, you don't want…To do this!" He choked up "Oh, I think she does" Stryker smirked, as he saw the feral starting to lose consciousness" "You've got to take control! Get your self back! Please, (Y/N)!"

At that, the pressure stopped, it seemed to have hit a nerve. Your head decayed to one side, as if you could be listening to him "(Y/N), you have to fight this, do not believe him, you're not like this…You've never been and will never be a monster! You're the most beautiful human being I've ever met, as well as the most caring…(Y/N) I…" Just then, his neck was missing air again "And you thought some cheesy love declaration would help anything?" Bolts were springing to Victor's body, making him growl in pain, baring his teeth "I'll bring you back, I will never stop trying it…Because I love you" He grabbed your waist, pulling you to him, making you gasp as his lips came in contact with yours.

"That's your last resort? Pathetic" Stryker spat, watching the scene in front of him.

He felt the most unbearable pain, but didn't care anymore.

He had to break you out.

You kept trying to overcome the serum, but try as you might, it wasn't enough, it was too strong; You were going to kill Victor, and there was nothing you could do about it.

You were ready to give up, to succumb to it, when you felt Victor's arms pull you to him, and his rough lips on yours. A gasp escaped your lips.

He still believed in you, he was sure that you wouldn't give up.

Not now, not ever.

With this new wave of energy, you resumed your fight against your father and your brother. Gathering all the strength you could muster, you fought against the chains that held you to this ill-driven fate.

Victor broke the kiss and watched as your eyes changed to normal and back to no pupils at all. "C'mon (Y/N), make them bite the dust" Clutching your trembling form in his arms, he awaited the lightning bolts that were to come. He was never going to let you go, even if the pain was too much to endure.

Your body changed from trembling to convulsing as the lightning strikes became stronger and deadlier, making Victor scream in pain. With a final blood-curling scream, you let out the biggest wave, falling unconscious and consequently making you both fall to the ground.

Victor got up as quickly as his healing factor let him, watching your silhouette, which wasn't moving at all. He heard your heart beating, making him huff in relief. Your eyes opened, quickly closing them as the blinding light hit you, but soon Victor's form shielded you from it "Victor?" You let out a breath "Yes, (Y/N)?" His gaze held worry, which soon turned to tenderness "Is this a dream?" "No (Y/N), this ain't no dream" He smirked, kissing you softly. It was not the kind of kiss you had imagined from the feral man, but reciprocated nevertheless.

Stryker could not believe his eyes. He had been defeated by something out of a children's book, a true love's kiss "This is impossible! How could yo-" His form was thrown against the wall, Victor's hand in his neck "Victor! Don't" You slithered to them, holding Victor's arm, preventing it from delivering the final blow "He deserves to die for what he's done" "His death will make matters worse, we will embark in a war we have to be prepared for" Baring his teeth, he knocked your father unconscious "If I didn't love you, I wouldn't have let this through…Nobody gives me orders" "Lucky me huh?" Smiling, you took Victor's hand, pulling him away from the lab and back to the X-Mansion.

Your words proved to be true, as the army was prepared to attack if anything had happened to your father.

Lucky for you, you were going to live today to fight tomorrow, but not alone.

With Victor at your side, not anymore.

@creedslove @imagines-to-quench-thirst

----

MASTERLIST

Requests are open!

#xmen x reader #xmen one shot #xmen imagine #xmen #victor creed one shot #victor creed x reader #victor creed imagine #victor creed #sabretooth one shot #sabretooth x reader #sabretooth imagine #sabretooth #marvel x reader #marvel imagine #marvel #liev schreiber x reader #liev schreiber one shot #liev schreiber imagine #liev schreiber

[ourloveisforthelovely]

The Monster Within (one shot)

Fenrir Greyback AU 

Summary: Every monster has a beginning. There is always something that pushed someone over the edge. Your death was the catalyst in Fenrir Greyback becoming the monster that he is known to be. Its time to say goodbye to the human and hello to the monster within.

Pairings: Fenrir Greyback x Reader 

Rating: M- angst and violence 

Song in the beginning. Say You’ll Haunt Me by Stone Sour

Liev Schreiber as Fenrir Greyback

________

Say you wanna stay. You want me too, say you’ll never die you’ll always haunt me. I want to know I belong to you. Say you’ll haunt me.

“It doesn’t matter what you are. I love you...I’ll always love you.”

The words echoed through Fenrir’s mind as he looked down at your massacred body with wide pain-filled eyes. It didn’t matter what he was...until now. This moment, this cruel soul-splitting moment, where a good man officially became a monster.

Attacking and killing the one loving person that had given him a chance (not caring about his “condition”) was enough to let the monster inside begging to be let out of its cage and take control. Was it completely his fault? Fenrir would never know because now he didn’t care. He was done trying. Trying was too difficult and no longer did Fenrir care about another living creature on the planet.

Looking down at your now cold blue lips, Fenrir shivered in rage as he leaned down for one final kiss. No longer were your lips warm and inviting. Your eyes no longer shone with lively innocence that kept your borderline homicidal boyfriend on a straight path. Now, they were stagnant and forever set in an expression of pain and agony.

You looked like Sleeping Beauty lying in the hospital bed. The healer, after pronouncing you dead, pulled the sheet up to your neck and closed your eyes. She didn’t say a word to Fenrir but the old woman couldn’t bear to look at the deep slash wounds that raked down your chest or the bite marks that cut a huge chunk of your neck away from the bone. What had once been an attractive-looking young woman with vintage charm was now just another casualty.

The healer knew the moment that Fenrir carried you into the hospital moments before that you wouldn’t make it. She had seen werewolf attacks and they never turned out good. You were to be just another number...another name added to the list killed by a monster. No one would see you again as the daughter of a prominent member of the Ministry for Magic or the sweet girl who dressed herself as a princess...nope...you were a girl killed by a werewolf that appeared to be nameless.

It's the boyfriend…

The healer knew that Fenrir was the wolf that killed you. She could see the guilt in his eyes. Once again, the healer had seen enough werewolf attacks over the years to know just who was guilty. She had seen plenty of werewolf lovers drag their dead darlings corpses into the hospital begging for help to do her a lifetime...you were just another number on an ongoing list.

He was furious with himself, the universe that hated him, and you. Why did you go outside the night before? You knew better! 3 years with a werewolf for a lover was more than enough time to know that staying indoors was imperative. It was the one rule that Fenrir sat down when the two of you became a couple...and you blatantly disobeyed.

“I’ll never love again.”

It was a cold promise but again Fenrir didn’t care. He was going to fall apart and enjoy every second of doing so. It was time to give in to the urges that had been screaming at him since his infection in childhood. He wouldn’t care about his looks. Who did he have to stay handsome for? His morals were now shot to hell and Fenrir didn’t care.

Being a monster would be all that mattered now. If he had to suffer then there would be people suffering with him. If Fenrir could savage his one true love then he would be able to kill anyone else with little to no sympathy. What would another life matter? Obviously, yours mattered little to the universe so no one else would matter to him.

“I’m sorry, darling. I never meant for things to be this way. It looks like you were wrong after all. I am a monster and that is just how things have to be.”

It was the last truly human feeling that Fenrir Greyback would ever have again. He fought the urge to kiss you again. Fenrir knew that if he kissed you once more...he would fall apart. That couldn’t happen. It was time to be cold and cruel.

Cold and cruel people don’t cry over lost loved ones…

“It's all your fault. I knew that I never should have let Y/n be with you...I begged her not to but she insisted...she said you were a good man...now look what you've done to my sweet angel...you’ve torn her apart.”

Fenrir’s head snapped up to see your grief-stricken father. Snarling, Fenrir wanted nothing more than to rip the old man’s head off. He was already well aware that your death was his fault and didn’t need to be reminded of it.

“I never meant to hurt her, foolish man.”

“ But you did…I trusted you.”

Fenrir again snarled before grabbing a hold of your father and slamming him against the wall. Still partially under the effects of the full moon, Fenrir’s superhuman strength was still ever-present. He smirked at the expression of fear on the old man’s face.

Exactly what I want.

“That was your first mistake, you foolish old man. Now you’ll be reunited with your precious daughter.”

Before your father could react, Fenrir wrapped his large hand around the older man's neck and squeezed tightly. Your father kicked pathetically but he was no match for the monster of a man that held him.

Fenrir watched emotionlessly. This was exactly what he wanted. He felt nothing. Watching the light leave your father’s eyes offered no pain, sorrow, or guilt. In fact, Fenrir only wanted the man to die faster. Reaching out, Fenrir grabbed the scalpel that lay on the table to his left.

“Die already, you bore me.”

Before another word could be uttered, Fenrir slashed your father’s neck, ending the life of a second person for the night. Fenrir let the body fall before casually stepping over him as if the other man was merely dirt. He looked back at your body, this time feeling hollow and empty.

“Goodbye, my darling.

Walking out of the hospital, it was time to cause chaos and havoc. It was time to say goodbye to the humans and hello to the monster. This night...Fenrir forever gave in to the monster within

________

Everything Tag list 

@brokencasbutt67-writer @authoressskr @moldy-old-boot @hankypranky @summer-novak @summer-novak @emiwrites3reads @shaylybaby2032 @li0nh34rt @tas898 @shadows-and-padlocked-hearts @knight-of-gleefulness @stuckinsaudi1 @marichromatic @untoldshortsofthefandoms @deanwherescas @sprnaturallover @wontlookaway @shitfaceddaniel @mycuddlycorner @siriuslyceleste @mimisparkle12 @teletubiswszpilkach @georgeweasleydumbhoe @fific7 @fandomsxxregulus @vixen @wolfstar4lifee @saturntomars @fangirlforever2412 @dumybitch @zievyimas @acciosiriusblack @rubyroscoe1 @hazncalsgal @bennyberry @criminalyetminimal @jessyballet @knreidy1 

#Fenrir Greyback #Fenrir Greyback x Reader #origin story #Liev Schreiber as Fenrir Greyback #hp #hp reader insert #Fenrir Greyback origin #angst and violence warning #werewolf #character death #pre-hp universe #really sucking at tags for this #sorry but the reader is dead #tags and stuff #my fics #one shot #The Monster Within #The Monster Within one shot #update #I’ll be back to my normal Regulus programming tomorrow

[justimagaine]

Liev Schreiber

When you and Liev moved in together you already knew that it was going to be amazing.  Liev and you had been talking about moving in together for a long time, but his work schedule as in the way until one day he came to your apartment and said he wants to do it now. That’s what you did, you packed up your stuff and were on your way. 

It was now week one into living together, everything seemed to be perfect. You and Liev seemed to have gone into sync. Liev would wake up before you and make coffee for the both of you. While he was doing that you would go down to the kitchen and watch him. Liev would sometimes hum to himself or even sing out a melody. Every since you two moved in together he has became much more happier. If you could you would watch him all day like that, but Liev would notice you pretty fast.

“You know some would call this creepy” Liev said seeing you standing in the door frame and smiling. “but I love it” he said walking up to you, handing you a cup and your coffee.

“Morning” you smiled up at Liev and planted another kiss on his lips. Soon you would find yourself on the couch, drinking your morning beverages and talking about the day.

“What do you want to do for dinner?” you asked Liev when he pulled you closer to him. Liev buried his head in your neck and hummed.

“I don’t care as long as we have dinner together” Liev said and even though you two were having a sweet moment you weren’t going to miss a chance to make some jokes.

“Oh damn, I thought I could actually have dinner with my other boyfriend” you smirked as Liev took a tighter grip on you,

“Aren’t we funny” he said planting kisses on your neck and shoulder. You couldn’t help but giggle. Lievs phone rang and only by the tone you knew it was his manager. Liev grunted and as much as you didn’t want to and he didn’t want to ether you moved letting him get up and go to his phone. He tried to keep everything positive, he smiled at you while walking to the kitchen. When he picked up the phone his smile went away.

“What is it?” you asked walking in the kitchen, leaning on the kitchen counter. Liev turned to you, with a slight worried look.

“I need to fly to New York to do few interview and it might be for few days.” Liev looked at his phone and you could tell he was trying to think of a way to get out of it, but that wasn’t right.

“Liev, don’t worry. It’s fine” you placed your cup on the table and walked up to him, placing your hands on his chest. Liev looked at you, wrapping his arms around your waist. “We both know this is going to happen a lot, but I’m a okay with it” you leaned up giving him a kiss.

“I’m very lucky” Liev said pulling you even closer. “I love you Y/N”

“I love you too” you felt just as lucky as him. Liev has changed your life and made you hope for your future to come faster, and you knew your future had him in it and many kids.

#Imagine #Liev Schreiber #Liev Schreiber Imagine #One Shot

[imagines-to-quench-thirst]

Hi I was wondering if you could do a Victor creed x female reader where reader is a mutant just like Victor but she has the same type of abilities as he does and this is like a love story filled with fluff and smut and Victor and reader both get married after dating and have six kids three boys and three girls and they end up having mutant abilities just like their parents if this isn't too troubling for you I understand 🥰 thank you and have a wonderful day

5 Times In Time

→pairing: Victor Creed x fem!reader

→warnings: 18+ SMUT at the end, some swear words

→notes: I took a different turn with the stories but stillllll, i didn't think it would be this long, enjoy

1 Meeting him

The battlefield was scattered throughout the country. No man, woman, child, or mutant was saved from the extreme pain the villains brought upon the doomed world, even without their help. The fire rained upon Y/N skin, burning like a slight ticket to the mutant skin capable of healing every would that touched her skin. Her nails extend far beyond imagined for the average human as she runs, jumps, and kicks her enemies while leaving no head attached to the shoulders. Her eyes landed on the famous cyclops and his partner as they huddled to talk about a newly formed plan which Y/N did not know yet. 'Y/N, there's new help coming in.' Cycopls said while his red-glasses covered eyes scanned the enemies' how many?!' she waited impatiently for the answer, his pointer and middle finger shooting up '2.' he replied, 'what?! There's no way only two people will help with hoards and hoards of monsters?!' 'believe me, those two will.' behind them, the now well-known Wolverine ran towards them, followed by a black-coated figure, his claws bouncing off the red glow of the fiery skin. 'who the fuck is that?!' Y/N shouts, her anger raging. The two muscled men stop their huffs loud and heavy. 'the names Victor darlin. don't use it too much now.' with an unmistakable glimmer in his eyes, Y/N felt the same glimmer glaze in her eyes.

2 Kiss kiss

'Victor…Victor…Victor…Victor…Victor…Victor!!!' Y/N shouted in the mansion, looking for the clawed fella. Her steps throttled on the expensive white marble, her eyes locking onto the most miniature scene of a black coat disappearing into the nearest hallway. Her feet took a strong left into the hallway seeing the cool-as-ice mutant leaning on the wall, one foot up on the wall, arms crossed, and his gaze on her. 'why didn't you respond to my calling?' she huffed, inching closer within arm's reach. 'I wanted to hear you use my name, little cat.' his tongue stayed longer on the cat, making it a strong 'tt' sound, irritating her ears. 'I told you don't call me that.' 'But you have no hero name, little cat. What should I call you then.' 'My name…Y/N.' she paused, feeling his hand grab hers, gently pulling her closer to him. 'You are cute when you huff and puff, similar to the wolf from little red riding hood.' Victor whispered, his lips staying on her right ear 'the wolf ate the grandma and little red. I did not eat anyone.' she responded, her hands staying on his muscular chest, feeling his heart beating steadily. 'Can I eat you?' he pulls back his lips in a wickedly naughty smile uncovering his white beastly teeth. 'We can make a deal. We are both reasonable, right?' y/n answered with a question, feeling a strong urge to kiss his lips. inching closer and closer their lips…'No kissing!' a voice erupted. The pair turned to see a small, mean student looking at them both. Victor turns to his girl and says loud enough. 'Y/N, what's the time?' ' 1 pm. Why?' looking back at the kid, he answers, 'Lunchtime.' The child's eyes open in shock, running to get cover and leaving the couple alone again as they continue their interrupted moment.

3 I wanna make it pop, pop

'Vic, come on, we are late. We will miss it.' y/n shouted at the mutant as she stood at the top of the hill, waiting for her protector to catch up with her. 'Darlin, you may be younger, but I am over 134 years old. I am an old man. Give me a break!' he retorted as he finally reached her. huffing out, Y/N sits on the blanket, pulls the man down, and sits next to each other 'If we missed it, you are sleeping on the couch for the next five weeks, no negotiation.' 'it's just fireworks!' 'Yeah, but it's only once a year, and I haven't seen it live yet. I want to see it with you.' Victor leans on her, his hands caressing her tight 'Is that so?' 'Not going to work, Creed. Now stop. It's starting.' The frameworks sound first and pop off the explosion of colors, sizes, and shapes. The midnight sky colors itself with the iridescent light sparks letting the people and mutants below enjoy the view that was present once a year. Victor stops to gaze at the sky and looks at his love, her eyes mirroring the scene unfolding between them, his heart rumbling and talking to him in the form of a robust crescendo-like heartbeat rhythm. His hands find the back pocket, and he presents it to her. She looks down for a wink and witnesses a ring. she looks at him, her gaze holding thousands of questions. 'I wanted to pop this question from the moment I kissed you. What do you say, little cat? Can I call you my wife?' 'Only if I can call you daddy in 9 months.' she pulls his hand, letting it rest on her stomach. 'You just made me the happiest in all my lifetime.'

4 2+1=4?

'I am not popping any more kids for you, Creed. The twins are more than enough!' Victor laughed at his wife's statement walking closer to her and pecking her expecting lips. 'However, will I change your mind, my little cat?' Punching his chest, she answers, 'By stopping calling me little cat, I am your wife, call me appropriately.' 'You have a punch…wife. But still, the twins are now 3, and we might as well have at least one more kid so they can have each other to lean on.' 'Are you talking about your kids? the same ones that ate sand yesterday! Those are your stupid gens. I will die happily enough knowing that they will learn how to use scissors not and adequately stab each other. Plus, I was delivering them for …' '12 hours. I know I was there with you every second of it. I messaged your stomach, was there when you had contractions, and fed you.' He cut her off, holding his stance towards his love. 'Congrats, you did the bare minimum while I was doing the most brutal stuff ever.' 'You really are something, wife. So feisty and stubborn.' he leans down to kiss her forehead, his hands caressing her back. 'I do love that. Especially in the bedroom.' his voice purred, and Y/N felt her knees go weak at the sounds. 'Well, I guess… maybe one more could be good…' she whispered, her cheek heating up.

5 Home Run

The bed creaked, and the sound of harsh skin slapping was heard. Y/n's head was on the pillow, her teeth biting the plush material, her hands holding onto the sheets as her mate rutted in her. His hips snapped back and forward, his pace slowly getting sloppier and slower, finishing in her. Victor looks at his woman, her skin, her eyes watering, and her lisp so damn kissable. Leaning down, he steals kisses from her, his tongue playing with hers as he massages her stomach, pulling slowly out. 'You think this is it?' he hushed; Y/N chuckled. 'Well, even if it didn't, I would mind repeating this. You always get so possessive when you want to breed me.' 'Have you seen yourself, pretty girl? That's the effect you have on me, and there is no medicine for it but just to fuck you and breed you.' Y/N looked at her big bad wolf, kissing his lips, her hands trailing all over his chest and arms, stopping at his left hand on the wedding band. 'You promised, remember?' 'You think I would break my promise to you? Never, I will kiss, lick, protect and fuck you until the end, sweetheart.' 'Damn right.'

If you like it, let me know.

#victor creed #victor creed x reader #victor creed imagine #victor creed smut #victor creed one shot #xmen apocalypse #new xmen #xmen #avengers headcanon #avengers imagine #avengers smut #imagine #wolverine imagine #wolverine #liev schreiber #5 times in time #requested imagine #fluff #avengers au #sabertooth imagine #sabertooth x reader #sabertooth

[betterdaysareatoenailaway]

RANDOM REVIEW #2: ANY GIVEN SUNDAY (1999)

“This game has got to be about more than winning. You’re part of something.”  Any Given Sunday (1999), directed by Oliver Stone and featuring Jamie Foxx, Dennis Quaid, Cameron Diaz, Al Pacino, LL Cool J, James Woods, and Matthew Modine, is my favourite sports movie of all time. Of all time.

I’m not betraying my favourite sport by saying this. The Mighty Ducks is a kid’s movie. It’s okay, but it’s not a timeless classic. I don’t like the Slap Shot series, Sudden Death is fun but silly, and the Goon movies were a missed opportunity. The only truly good scene in Goon is the diner scene where Liev Schreiber tells Seann William Scott: “Don’t go trying to be a hockey player. You’ll get your heart ripped out.”

  Such is the sad circumstance of the hockey enforcer. They all want to play, not just fight. Here’s a link to a video in which the most feared fighter in the history of the NHL, Bob Probert, explains that he wanted to be “an offensive threat...like Bobby Orr,” not a fighter: https://youtu.be/4sbxejbMH4g?t=118 Heartbreaking. But not unusual.

Donald Brashear, Marty McSorley, Tie Domi, Stu “The Grim Reaper” Grimson, Frazer McLaren: they all had hockey skills. But they were told they had to fight to remain on the roster, so they fought. As Schreiber says in the film: “You know they just want you to bleed, right?”  If the players don’t bleed, they don’t get to stay on the team. So they fight, and they pay dearly for it later. Many former fighters have CTE or other head injuries that make day-to-day life difficult. The makers of Goon should have taken that scene and run with it. I was so disappointed they didn’t, especially given what happened right around the time the film came out, with the tragic suicides of Wade Belak, Derek Boogaard, and Rick Rypien, all enforcers, all dead in a single summer. So Hollywood hasn’t even made a good hockey movie, let alone a great one. Baseball has a shitload of good films, probably because the slower pace of play makes it easier to film. Moneyball has a terrific home run scene, Rookie of the Year does too. Angels in the Outfield was a big favourite of mine when I was a kid, plus all the Major League films, and Bull Durham. 

Football has two good movies: The Program (1993) and Rudy (1993).    

And football has one masterpiece. The one I am writing about today.

A young Oliver Stone trying not to die in Vietnam. ^ Now, I know Stone is laughed at these days, given his nutty conspiracy theories and shitty behaviour and the marked decline in the quality of his films (although 2012’s Savages was underrated). I know Stone is about as subtle as a sledgehammer, but do you want a football movie to be subtle? Baseball, sure. It’s a game of fine distinctions, but football? Football is war. And war is about steamrolling the enemy, distinctions be damned, which is why Any Given Sunday is such an amazing sports film. I love the way it shows the dark side of football. In fact, the film is so dark that the NFL withdrew their support and cooperation, forcing Stone to create a fictitious league and team to portray what he wanted to portray.

This is not to say the movie is fresh or original. Quite the opposite. Any Given Sunday has every single sports film cliché you can think of. But precisely because it tries to stuff every single cliché into its runtime, the finished product is not a cliched mess so much as a rich tapestry, a dense cinema verite depiction of the dizzying highs and depressing lows of a professional sports team as it wins, loses, parties, and staggers its way through a difficult season.  Cliché #1: The aging quarterback playing his final year, trying to win one last championship. (Dennis Quaid) 

Sample dialog: Dennis Quaid (lying in a hospital bed severely injured): Don’t give up on me coach. Al Pacino: You’re like a son to me. I’ll never give up on you. ^ I know this sounds awful. But it’s actually fuckin’ great. Cliché #2: The arrogant upstart new player who likes hip hop and won’t respect the old regime. (Jamie Foxx) 

Cliché #3: The walking wounded veteran who could die if he gets hit one more time. Coincidentally, he needs just one more tackle to make his million-dollar bonus for the season. (Lawrence Taylor) 

Cliché #4: The female executive in a man’s world who must assert herself aggressively in order to win the grudging respect of her knuckle-dragging male colleagues (Cameron Diaz). Diaz is fantastic in the role, though she should have had more screen time, given that the main conflict in the film is very much about the new generation, as represented by her and Jamie Foxx, trying to replace the old generation, represented by Al Pacino, Dennis Quaid, Jim Brown, and Lawrence Taylor. Some people think Diaz’s character is too calculating, but here’s the thing: she’s right. Too many sports GMs shell out millions for the player an individual used to be, not the player he presently is. “I am not resigning a 39-year old QB, no matter how good he was,” she tells Pacino’s coach character, and you know what? She’s right. The Leafs’ David Clarkson signing is proof positive of the perils of signing a player based on past performance, not current capability. Diaz’s character is the living embodiment of the question: do you want to win, or do you want to be loyal? Cuz sometimes you can’t do both.

Cliché #5: The team doctor who won’t sacrifice his ethics for the good of the team (Matthew Modine).

Cliché #6: The team doctor who will sacrifice his ethics for the good of the team (James Woods) 

Cliché #7: The grizzled, thrice-divorced coach who has sacrificed everything for his football team, to the detriment of his social and familial life, who must give a stirring speech at some point in the film (Al Pacino…who goes out there and gives the all-time greatest sports movie “we must win this game” speech) 

Cliché #8: The assistant or associate coach who takes a parental interest in his players, playing the good cop to the head coach’s bad cop (former NFL star Jim Brown). 

Best quote: “Who wants to be thinking about blitzes and crossblocks when you’re holding your grandkids in your arms? That’s why I wanna coach high school. Kids don’t know nothing. They just wanna play.” 

Cliché #9: The player who can’t stop doing drugs (L.L. Cool J).

Okay, so the first thing that needs to be talked about is Al Pacino’s legendary locker room speech.  Now, it’s the coach’s job to rile up and inspire the players. But eloquence alone won’t do it. If you use certain big words, you lose them (remember Brian Burke being endlessly mocked by the Toronto media for using the word “truculent?”). The coach must deliver the message in a language the players understand, while still making victory sound lofty and aspirational. This is not an easy thing to accomplish. One of my favourite inspirational lines was spoken by “Iron” Mike Keenan to the New York Rangers before Game 7 against the Vancouver Canucks in 1994. “Win tonight, and we’ll walk together forever.” Oooh that’s gorgeous. But Pacino’s speech is right up there with it. 

“You know, when you get old in life…things get taken from you. That’s parta life. But you only learn that when you start losin’ stuff. You find out…life’s this game of inches. So’s football. In either game – life or football – the margin for error is so small. I mean…one half a step too late or too early and you don’t quite make it…one half second too slow, too fast, you don’t quite catch it. The inches we need are everywhere around us. They’re in every break of the game, every minute, every second. On this team, we fight for that inch. We claw with our fingernails for that inch. Because we know when we add up all those inches that’s gonna make the fuckin difference between winnin’ and losin’! Between livin’ and dyin’!” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m_iKg7nutNY  Somehow, against all odds, Any Given Sunday succeeds. It is the Cinderella run of sports movies. You root for the film as you watch it. The dressing room scenes are incredible…the Black players listen to the newest hip hop while a trio of lunkhead white dudes headbang and scream “Hetfield is God.” There is a shower scene where a linebacker, tired of being teased about the size of his penis, tosses his pet alligator into the showers where it terrorizes his tormentors. There is a scene where a halfback has horrible diarrhea, but he’s hooked up to an IV so the doctor (Matthew Modine) has to follow him into the toilet cubicle, crinkling his nose as the player evacuates his bowels. There is a scene where someone loses an eye (the only scene in the film where Stone’s over-the-top approach misses the mark). There are scenes that discuss concussions (which is why the NFL refused to cooperate for the film), where Lawrence Taylor has to sign a waiver absolving the team of responsibility if he is hurt or paralyzed or killed. I wonder how purists and old school football fans reacted to the news that Oliver Stone was making a football film. If they even knew who he was (not totally unlikely…Stone made a string of jingoistic war movies in the 1980s) they probably thought the heavy hands of Oliver would ruin the film, take the poetry out of every play. But the actual football is filmed perfectly. The camera gets nice and low for the tackles. It flies the arcs of perfect spiral passes. It shows the chaos of a defensive line barreling down the field. When Al Pacino asked quarterback Dan Marino (fresh off his own Hollywood experience acting in Ace Ventura: Pet Detective) what it was like to be an NFL QB, Marino said: “Imagine standing on a highway with traffic roaring at you while trying to read Hamlet.” A great explanation. Shoulda made the movie. So the football itself is fabulously done. Much better than what Cameron Crowe did in the few football scenes in Jerry Maguire. The Program had some great football, as did Rudy, but neither come close to the heights of Any Given Sunday. In one of the film’s best scenes, Jamie Foxx insists that his white coaches have routinely placed him in situations where he was doomed to fail or prone to injury, and we believe him because white coaches have been doing that to Black players for decades. Quarterback Doug Williams, who led his Washington Redskins team to a Superbowl victory in 1987, was frequently referred to by even liberal media outlets as a “Black quarterback,” instead of just “quarterback,” as if his skin colour necessitated a qualification. Even now, in 2021, the majority of quarterbacks are white, although the gap is gradually closing. The 2020 season saw the highest number of starting Black quarterbacks, with 10 out of a possible 32.  Quarterback is the most cerebral position on the field, and for a long time there was a racist belief that Black men couldn’t do the job. Foxx’s character is a composite of many of the different Black quarterbacks who came of age in the 1990s, fighting for playing time against white QBs beloved by their fan base, fawned over in hagiographic Sports Illustrated profiles, and protected by the good ol’ boys club of team executives and coaching staff. Foxx’s character isn’t demoted because he can’t play the game. He wins several crucial games for his team en route to the playoffs. He’s demoted because he listens to hip hop in the dressing room, because he recorded a rap song and shot a video for it, and because he’s cocky. Yes, the scene where he asks out Cameron Diaz is sexist, as if her power only comes from her sexuality, not her intelligence and business acumen, but it’s meant to show how overly confident Foxx is, not that he’s a sexist prick. Any Given Sunday isn’t a single issue film. It’s basically an omni-protest piece. It gleefully shows football’s dark side, and there is no director better than Oliver Stone for muck-raking. He’s in full-on investigative journalist mode in Any Given Sunday, showing how and why players play through serious brain injuries. How because they are given opiates, often leading to debilitating addictions (this happens in all contact sports...Colorado Avalanche player Marek Svatos overdosed on heroin a few years after retiring from injuries). As to why, Stone gives two reasons. One, team doctors are paid by the team, not the players, therefore their decisions will benefit the team, not the players. And two, the players themselves are encouraged to underreport injuries and play through them because stats are incentivized. James Woods unethical doctor argues with Modine’s idealistic one because an MRI the latter called for a player to have costs the team $20k. But the player in question, Lawrence Taylor, plays anyway because his contract is stat incentivized and if he makes on more tackle he gets a million dollars. Incentivizing stats leads to players playing hurt. And although I loathe this term, a lazy go-to for film critics, Stone really does give an unflinching account of how this shit happens and why. When Williams is inevitably hurt and lying prone on the field, he woozily warns the paramedics who are placing him on a stretcher to “be careful…I’m worth a million dollars.” It’s tragic, yet you’re happy for him. The film really makes you care about these guys.  Thanks to the smartly written script, the viewer knows that Williams has four kids, and you’re pleased he made his bonus because, in all likelihood, after he retires, his injuries will prevent him from any kind of gainful employment (naturally, they give the TV analyst jobs to retired white players, unless Williams can somehow land the coveted token Black guy gig). Stone is not above fan service, a populist at heart, and he stuffs the film with former and then-current NFL players, a miraculous stunt given the fact that the NFL revoked their cooperation. Personally, I think this was a good thing because it meant Stone didn’t have to compromise (the league wanted editorial say on all issues pertaining to the league…meaning they would have cut the best storyline, which is the playing hurt one). It also meant that they had to rename the team and the league. While I’m sure this took away from the realism for some fans, I’m cool with it. It also allowed the moviemakers to name the team the Sharks, a perfect name for this roving band of predatory capitalist sports executives. In another example of fan service, the call-girl Pacino’s quintessential lonely workaholic character rents a girlfriend experience from is none other than Elizabeth Berkley of Showgirls, who had been unfairly blacklisted after the titular Verhoven/Esterhaz venture, a movie my wife showed me one day while I was dopesick, which I became so transfixed and mesmerized by that I forgot I was. As mentioned above, the only misstep in the film is one of the offshoots of the Playing Hurt arc, where a player loses an eye on the field. Not because he gets poked, but because he gets hit so hard his eye simply falls out. A medic runs onto the field and puts the white globe on ice. Stone cast a player with a glass eye in order to achieve this effect. No CGI! Still, the scene is unconvincing, a tad too over-the-top. But this is Oliver Stone. At least Any Given Sunday’s sole over-the-top moment is a throwaway scene lasting all of thirty seconds. It easily could have been a secondary plot-line in which government officials try to sneak a Cuban football prodigy out of Castro’s communist stronghold but the player is brutally murdered the morning the officials arrive at his apartment to escort him to the private plane. Or else the team GM is revealed to be a massive international cocaine dealer. Or the tight end is one half of a serial killer couple. The film follows its own advice, focusing more on the players growth, particularly Beamon’s (Foxx). The anonymity of the title, Any Given Sunday, elevates the game, not the players. Thank God, the movie doesn’t force Beamon to assimilate into Pacino’s mold. He buys into the team-first philosophy without renouncing his idiosyncratic POV or his fierce individuality. This is a triumph. One of my biggest problems with sports is the flattening effect it can have on creative individuals. Players take media training in order to sound as alike as possible during media interviews, a long row of stoic giants spouting cliches. It’s boring. Which is why media latch onto a loudmouth, even while they scold him for it. All sports are dying for an intelligent mouthpiece who can explain his motivations in a succinct, sound-bite-friendly, manner. Sports are entertainment. As much as I love Sidney Crosby, in my heart I have to go with Alexander Ovechkin because Ovechkin is far more thrilling, both on and off the ice. Unlike almost every other NHL star before him, all of whom were forced to kneel and kiss Don Cherry’s Rock Em Sock Em ring, Ovechkin defiantly told the media he simply did not care about Cherry or Cherry’s disgusting parental reaction to one of Ovie’s more creative goal celebrations (called a “celly” in the biz). On the play in question, Ovechkin scored the goal, then dropped his stick and mimed warming his hands over it, as if his stick were on fire. As cheesy as the celebration appeared to the naked eye, it’s both a funny and accurate notion. Ovechkin was the hottest scorer in the league for many years and his stick was on fire, metaphorically speaking. The only celly I can think of that matches up in terms of creativity and entertainment value came from Teemu Selanne in 1993, who scored a beauty of a goal, threw one of his gloves straight up into the air, then pumped his stick like a shotgun while “shooting” his glove. Of course, Cherry took exception to it. Cherry’s favourite goal celebration features Bobby Orr putting his head down and refraining from raising his hands over his head. Cherry’s idea of an appropriate goal celly is no celly at all. This from a man who claims “we’ve got to sell our game.” But when an arrogant player shows up and he’s not white, he’s in for a shitload of bad press. Foxx’s Beamon illustrates this beautifully when he yells at Pacino after Pacino cuts him for an older QB who has lost four games this season. “Don’t play that racism card with me,” Pacino warns. “Okay…okay…” Foxx nods, “Maybe it’s not racism. Maybe it’s ‘placism’…as in…a brother got to know his place.”

Here is the original theatrical trailer, featuring Garbage’s classic “Push It.”

Above Lawrence Taylor begs Matthew Modine for Cortazone.  There’s also a great scene where Pacino is trying to figure out where he has gone wrong and Diaz just looks at him. “You got old,” she says simply. No enterprise is more cruel to an aging human being than sports. And this movie makes football a big giant corporate machine that chews players up and spits them out, injured and drug addicted, after four or five years. Those who play for a decade are lucky. This is still how the NFL works. And the NHL is increasingly becoming a young man’s game. Experience matters less and less.

When I started watching hockey in the 90s, players regularly competed into their late 30s. Not so anymore. Players peak at 23-24 now, and are often out of the league by age 35. Thornton and Chelois are exceptions, not the rule. After more than two hours, Any Given Sunday finally lurches across the finish line, bravely refusing to give its viewers a traditional happy ending, in the great tradition of underdog sports films like Rocky and Rudy. The bombshell dropped by Pacino’s character at the end feels less surprising than inevitable, but by now the movie has explored so much of professional sports' seedy underbelly that you're glad it's over. The film is great but exhausting. Stone seems to be advancing the notion that the sport itself is pure, but the people in it are corrupt. If money weren’t involved, the game would be played for its own sake.

I agree with this. People playing pond hockey are engaging in wholesome fun, not necessarily practicing to make a professional league. Commerce corrupts the purity of the game, and the extent to which it corrupts is directly proportional to how badly the individual in question needs the commerce. Of course, the sport is highly racialized, with people in positions of authority white, and those being told what to do with their bodies Black.

Any Given Sunday is an important film, but it never sacrifices entertainment for the sake of moralizing. That it pulls off such a strong moralistic stance is a testament to the actors, who are all incredible, and the material, which is among the strongest of Stone’s career.

He never really made a great movie after this one. So check it out sometime.

#betterdaysareatoenailaway #anygivensunday #al pacino #jamie foxx #dennis quaid #james woods #matthew modine #jim brown #lawrence taylor #cameron diaz #ll cool j

[loadthree979]

Daniel Craig Clue Movie

Filter by:

Daniel Craig Clue Movie Poster

List Of Daniel Craig Movies

Daniel Craig Film Clue

Knives Out—In theaters November 27, 2019. Daniel Craig, Chris Evans, Ana de Armas, Jamie Lee Curtis, Toni Collette, Don Johnson, Michael Shannon, LaKeith Sta. This crossword clue Notting Hill Actor Who Plays Daniel Cleaver In The Romantic Comedy Movie Bridget Jones's Diary: 2 Wds. Was discovered last seen in the June 18 2020 at the Daily Themed Crossword. The crossword clue possible answer is available in 9 letters. This answers first letter of which starts with H and can be found at the end of T. Clue (1985) is one of my favorite comedies ever as it is a quick 96 minutes of non-stop hilarity. Director Jonathan Lynn makes long sweeping shots of the gorgeous mansion set look as lovely as his quick cuts to each character. His fast paced direction makes Clue a breeze to watch and revisit time and again. The reason you are here is because you are looking for the Fictional spy portrayed by Daniel Craig crossword clue answers and solutions which was last seen today August 21 2018, at the popular Daily Themed Crossword puzzle. Clue: Fictional spy portrayed by Daniel Craig Possible Solution: BOND Already found the solution for Fictional spy Read more →.

The reason you are here is because you are looking for the to Die upcoming spy film starring Daniel Craig which is the 25th installment in the James Bond series: 2 wds. Crossword clue answers and solutions which was last seen today January 2 2020, at the popular Daily Themed Crossword puzzle.

No Time to Die

2020

UK

2h 43min

Directed by: Cary Joji Fukunaga

Cast: Daniel Craig, Rami Malek, Lea Seydoux, Ralph Fiennes, Naomie Harris, Ben Whishaw, Rory Kinnear, Jeffrey Wright, Ana de Armas, Dali Benssalah, David Dencik, Lashana Lynch, Billy Magnussen

UK release: 2 April 2021

The 25th James Bond film is directed by Cary Joji Fukunaga and sees Daniel Craig in the lead for one last time.

Knives Out

2019

US

2h 10min

12A

Directed by: Rian Johnson

Cast: Daniel Craig, Chris Evans, Ana de Armas, Jamie Lee Curtis, Michael Shannon, Don Johnson, Toni Collette, Lakeith Stanfield, Katherine Langford, Jaeden Martell, Christopher Plummer

UK release: 27 November 2019

When mystery writer Harlan Thrombey (Plummer) is found with his throat slit, puffed-up private detective Benoit Blanc (Craig) gets on the case. A wickedly knowing, flamboyantly bitchy take on the whodunnit, with a great cast, bags of style and a splendidly outrageous comic turn from Craig. Bloody good fun.

Logan Lucky

2017

US

1h 59min

12A

Directed by: Steven Soderbergh

Cast: Channing Tatum, Adam Driver, Seth MacFarlane, Riley Keough, Katie Holmes, Daniel Craig

UK release: 25 August 2017

Jimmy (Tatum), his brother Clyde (Driver) and sister Mellie (Keough) enlist the help of redneck jailbird and explosives expert Joe Bang (Craig) to rob the Charlotte Motor Speedway. Soderbergh’s latest comedy heist movie is perhaps his best, with a great cast, a satisfying plot and witty dialogue.

Kings

2017

UK

1h 26min

Directed by: Deniz Gamze Ergüven

Cast: Halle Berry, Daniel Craig, Lamar Johnson

Following the life of a foster family in LA amidst the riots that followed the Rodney King trial verdict.

Spectre

2015

UK

2h 28min

12A

Directed by: Sam Mendes

Cast: Daniel Craig, Christoph Waltz, Léa Seydoux, Monica Bellucci, Ralph Fiennes, Naomie Harris, Ben Whishaw, Rory Kinnear, Andrew Scott, Dave Bautista, Stephanie Sigman

UK release: 26 October 2015

James Bond (Craig) comes up against a global crime syndicate, while back at home, the 00 programme is under threat from reckless moderniser C (Scott). With its swagger, dry humour and frequent, well-executed action it's a solid crowdpleaser, but the story is predictable, the characterisation is thin and overall it lacks…

Skyfall

2012

UK

2h 25min

12A

Directed by: Sam Mendes

Written by: John Logan, Neal Purvis, Robert Wade

Cast: Daniel Craig, Javier Bardem, Judi Dench, Ralph Fiennes, Albert Finney, Naomie Harris, Bérénice Marlohe

UK release: 26 October 2012

When cyber-terrorists steal an MI6 hard drive, 007 is ordered to recover it. After the let-down of Quantum of Solace, the 23rd official Bond movie is a belter; the script is smart, Craig is better than ever, and Bardem is a thrilling villain. 50 years on from Dr No, it's a well-wrapped birthday present.

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

2011

US / Sweden / UK / Germany

2h 37min

18

Directed by: David Fincher

Cast: Daniel Craig, Rooney Mara, Christopher Plummer, Stellan Skarsgård, Steven Berkoff, Robin Wright, Yorick van Wageningen, Joely Richardson

UK release: 26 December 2011

An investigative journalist (Craig) forms an uneasy alliance with a computer hacker (Mara) in an attempt to solve a disappearance. Th400 transbrake kit. Fincher amps up the dark poetry and Mara exudes a barely suppressed rage in every scene, elevating a populist novel into a compelling (if overlong) drama of bleakness and corruption.

Dream House

2011

US

1h 31min

15

Directed by: Jim Sheridan

Written by: David Loucka

Cast: Daniel Craig, Rachel Weisz, Naomi Watts, Marton Csokas

UK release: 25 November 2011

Publisher Will (Craig) relocates to the suburbs with his wife (Weisz) and daughters, but when their house turns out to be the scene of a massacre, the domestic dream turns sour. Best remembered as the movie that saw Craig and Weisz get together, because their chemistry can't save the clunky script and inert direction.

The Adventures of Tintin: Secret of the Unicorn

2011

US / New Zealand

1h 47min

PG

Directed by: Steven Spielberg

Cast: Jamie Bell, Andy Serkis, Daniel Craig

After buying a replica model ship at a flea market, Tintin (Bell) is embroiled in a world of subterfuge. Not since Indy's third outing has Spielberg felt so fresh and unshackled; it feels like a hark back to the heyday of 1980s adventure cinema.

Cowboys and Aliens

2011

US

12A

Directed by: Jon Favreau

Cast: Daniel Craig, Harrison Ford, Olivia Wilde

Drunk and trouble maker Jake (Craig) is broken out of jail and forced to help grumpy old Arizona lawman Percy (Ford) when aliens start to attack. Dull, humourless and over written sci fi western from Iron Man director Favreau.

One Life

2011

UK

U

Directed by: Michael Gunton, Martha Holmes

Written by: Michael Gunton, Martha Holmes

Cast: Daniel Craig (voice)

Documentary for kids featuring stunning footage of animals in the wild and narrated by Daniel Craig.

Defiance

2009

US

2h 16min

15

Directed by: Edward Zwick

Written by: Edward Zwick, Clayton Frohman

Cast: Daniel Craig, Liev Schreiber, Jamie Bell, George MacKay

Remarkable true story of the Bielski brothers, three real-life heroes who, against all odds, preserve a community of Jews who escape Poland for the forests of Belarus during WWII. Allied with the Russian resistance, the community thrives unexpectedly, leaving leader Tuvia Bielski (Craig) with heavy responsibilities.

Flashbacks of a Fool

2008

UK

1h 53min

15

Directed by: Baillie Walsh

Written by: Baillie Walsh

Cast: Daniel Craig, Harry Eden, Claire Forlani, Felicity Jones, Eve, Emilia Fox, Jodhi May, Miriam Karlin

Set in present-day California and an English seaside resort circa 1972, Joe Scott (Craig between Bond outings), is a washed up Hollywood star who recalls a traumatic teenage experience that leads to professional success and personal self-destruction. Good supporting performances and rather pedestrian flashbacks make for…

Quantum of Solace

2008

UK / US

1h 45min

12A

Directed by: Marc Forster

Written by: Ian Fleming, Michael G Wilson

Cast: Daniel Craig, Olga Kurylenko, Mathieu Amalric, Gemma Arterton, Judi Dench, Jeffrey Wright, Giancarlo Giannini

'Quantum of Solace' starts with a trademark action sequence involving cars burning rubber around narrow roads and then proceeds to jump from one thrill to another, while moving through locations like pages in a travel brochure. A major plus is Amalric's turn as the villain Dominic Greene, head of an organisation which…

The Golden Compass

2007

US / UK

1h 45min

12A

Directed by: Chris Weitz

Cast: Dakota Blue Richards, Freddie Highmore, Nicole Kidman, Daniel Craig, Sam Elliott, Eva Green, Jim Carter, Tom Courtenay, Ian McKellen, Ian McShane, Ben Walker

Based on the novel by Phillip Pullman, this fantasy adventure follows Lyra (Richards), who has been entrusted with the last remaining 'alethiometer', or golden compass, which she must keep from the power-crazed Magisterium. The world Weitz has created is beautifully designed and fascinating, but choppily structured and…

The Invasion

2007

US

1h 39min

15

Directed by: Oliver Hirschbiegel, James McTeigue

Written by: Dave Kajganich, Wachowski brothers

Cast: Nicole Kidman, Daniel Craig, Jeremy Northam, Jackson Bond, Jeffrey Wright, Veronica Cartwright

Another reworking of classic 1950s thriller 'Invasion of the Body Snatchers'. A mysterious epidemic is sweeping the world, and when a DC psychiatrist (Kidman) discovers its extraterrestrial origin, she and her colleague (Craig) must work together to find a cure before they become its next victims. A waste of celluloid.

Infamous

2006

US

1h 58min

15

Directed by: Douglas McGrath

Written by: Douglas McGrath, Book:, George Plimpton

Cast: Toby Jones, Sandra Bullock, Lee Pace, Daniel Craig, Jeff Daniels, Peter Bogdanovich

A more flamboyant and light-hearted biopic of Truman Capote than Bennett Miller's 2005 film 'Capote'. Jones is great in the lead as the eccentric writer but a weak supporting cast renders this the lesser of the two.

Casino Royale

2006

US / UK / Czech Republic

2h 24min

12A

Directed by: Martin Campbell

Written by: Ian Fleming

Cast: Daniel Craig, Eva Green, Mads Mikkelsen, Judi Dench

The prequel to the other Bond films time warps back to the enduring action hero becoming a 00 licensed to kill. The latest Bond (Craig) proves to be a strong leading man, but the film is let down by trying to do too much. With a weak villain and Bond girl to boot, it doesn't really feel like a Bond film at all.

Renaissance

2006

France / UK / Luxemburg

1h 45min

15

Directed by: Christian Volckman

Cast: Daniel Craig, Romola Garai, Jonathan Pryce

Impressive looking 3D futuristic thriller with a black and white render which never quite gets going. Paris 2054. Ilona Tassueiv (Garai), a young and brilliant researcher is violently kidnapped. Avalon, a giant multinational corporation and her employer, wants her found. Dellenbach (Pryce), Avalon's CEO, has requested…

Enduring Love

2004

UK

1h 40min

15

Directed by: Roger Michellv

Cast: Rhys Ifans, Daniel Craig, Samantha Morton

Based on Ian McEwan's bestseller, a man's worldview is bruised when his attempt to save a boy from a hot air balloon accident goes wrong.

Part 2: How to access iMessage on Chromebook 1. The app Chrome Remote Desktop must be downloaded from chrome web store on your Mac or Win computers. The downloading and installation will be quickly completed on the computers. Imessage on chromebook. Chrome Remote Desktop allows access to another computer's apps and files securely via the Chrome browser or Chrome book. So connect the two computers through the security code and enjoy the iMessage on your Windows PC. 2 Jailbreak your iPhone. There is one more method through which you can get iMessage for windows.

Layer Cake

2004

UK

1h 45min

15

Directed by: Matthew Vaughn

Cast: Daniel Craig, Sienna Miller, Michael Gambon

Daniel Craig Clue Movie Poster

A cocaine dealer works his way through two tough assignments from his boss on the day before his retirement.

The Mother

2003

1h 30min

Directed by: Roger Michell

Written by: Hanif Kureishi

Cast: Anne Reid, Daniel Craig, Cathryn Bradshaw

A recently widowed grandmother embarks on an affair with a man half her age, who is also sleeping with her daughter.

Sylvia

2003

UK

1h 40min

15

Directed by: Christine Jeffs

Cast: Gwyneth Paltrow, Daniel Craig, Lucy Davenport

A biopic of the relationship and fatal attraction between poets Sylvia Plath and Ted Hughes.

Road to Perdition

2002

US

1h 57min

15

Directed by: Sam Mendes

Cast: Tom Hanks, Paul Newman, Jude Law, Daniel Craig, Tyler Hoechlin

A Depression era gangster picture with solid American family values. It may also, like Mendes' absurdly overrated Oscar-winner 'American Beauty', fool cinema-goers into confusing its moody self-importance for profound insight. For here are Big Stars, Big Themes (Fathers and Sons, Loyalty and Betrayal, Sin and Salvation…

Filter by:

No Time to Die

2020

UK

2h 43min

Directed by: Cary Joji Fukunaga

Cast: Daniel Craig, Rami Malek, Lea Seydoux, Ralph Fiennes, Naomie Harris, Ben Whishaw, Rory Kinnear, Jeffrey Wright, Ana de Armas, Dali Benssalah, David Dencik, Lashana Lynch, Billy Magnussen

UK release: 2 April 2021

The 25th James Bond film is directed by Cary Joji Fukunaga and sees Daniel Craig in the lead for one last time.

Knives Out

2019

US

2h 10min

12A

Directed by: Rian Johnson

Cast: Daniel Craig, Chris Evans, Ana de Armas, Jamie Lee Curtis, Michael Shannon, Don Johnson, Toni Collette, Lakeith Stanfield, Katherine Langford, Jaeden Martell, Christopher Plummer

UK release: 27 November 2019

When mystery writer Harlan Thrombey (Plummer) is found with his throat slit, puffed-up private detective Benoit Blanc (Craig) gets on the case. A wickedly knowing, flamboyantly bitchy take on the whodunnit, with a great cast, bags of style and a splendidly outrageous comic turn from Craig. Bloody good fun.

Logan Lucky

2017

US

1h 59min

12A

Directed by: Steven Soderbergh

Cast: Channing Tatum, Adam Driver, Seth MacFarlane, Riley Keough, Katie Holmes, Daniel Craig

UK release: 25 August 2017

Jimmy (Tatum), his brother Clyde (Driver) and sister Mellie (Keough) enlist the help of redneck jailbird and explosives expert Joe Bang (Craig) to rob the Charlotte Motor Speedway. Soderbergh’s latest comedy heist movie is perhaps his best, with a great cast, a satisfying plot and witty dialogue.

Kings

2017

UK

1h 26min

Directed by: Deniz Gamze Ergüven

Cast: Halle Berry, Daniel Craig, Lamar Johnson

Citrix workspace silent install. Following the life of a foster family in LA amidst the riots that followed the Rodney King trial verdict.

Spectre

2015

UK

2h 28min

12A

Directed by: Sam Mendes

Cast: Daniel Craig, Christoph Waltz, Léa Seydoux, Monica Bellucci, Ralph Fiennes, Naomie Harris, Ben Whishaw, Rory Kinnear, Andrew Scott, Dave Bautista, Stephanie Sigman

UK release: 26 October 2015

List Of Daniel Craig Movies

James Bond (Craig) comes up against a global crime syndicate, while back at home, the 00 programme is under threat from reckless moderniser C (Scott). With its swagger, dry humour and frequent, well-executed action it's a solid crowdpleaser, but the story is predictable, the characterisation is thin and overall it lacks…

Skyfall

2012

UK

2h 25min

12A

Directed by: Sam Mendes

Written by: John Logan, Neal Purvis, Robert Wade

Cast: Daniel Craig, Javier Bardem, Judi Dench, Ralph Fiennes, Albert Finney, Naomie Harris, Bérénice Marlohe

UK release: 26 October 2012

When cyber-terrorists steal an MI6 hard drive, 007 is ordered to recover it. After the let-down of Quantum of Solace, the 23rd official Bond movie is a belter; the script is smart, Craig is better than ever, and Bardem is a thrilling villain. 50 years on from Dr No, it's a well-wrapped birthday present.

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

2011

US / Sweden / UK / Germany

2h 37min

18

Directed by: David Fincher

Cast: Daniel Craig, Rooney Mara, Christopher Plummer, Stellan Skarsgård, Steven Berkoff, Robin Wright, Yorick van Wageningen, Joely Richardson

UK release: 26 December 2011

An investigative journalist (Craig) forms an uneasy alliance with a computer hacker (Mara) in an attempt to solve a disappearance. Fincher amps up the dark poetry and Mara exudes a barely suppressed rage in every scene, elevating a populist novel into a compelling (if overlong) drama of bleakness and corruption.

Dream House

2011

US

1h 31min

15

Directed by: Jim Sheridan

Written by: David Loucka

Cast: Daniel Craig, Rachel Weisz, Naomi Watts, Marton Csokas

UK release: 25 November 2011

Publisher Will (Craig) relocates to the suburbs with his wife (Weisz) and daughters, but when their house turns out to be the scene of a massacre, the domestic dream turns sour. Best remembered as the movie that saw Craig and Weisz get together, because their chemistry can't save the clunky script and inert direction.

The Adventures of Tintin: Secret of the Unicorn

2011

US / New Zealand

1h 47min

PG

Directed by: Steven Spielberg

Cast: Jamie Bell, Andy Serkis, Daniel Craig

After buying a replica model ship at a flea market, Tintin (Bell) is embroiled in a world of subterfuge. Not since Indy's third outing has Spielberg felt so fresh and unshackled; it feels like a hark back to the heyday of 1980s adventure cinema.

Cowboys and Aliens

2011

US

12A

Directed by: Jon Favreau

Cast: Daniel Craig, Harrison Ford, Olivia Wilde

Drunk and trouble maker Jake (Craig) is broken out of jail and forced to help grumpy old Arizona lawman Percy (Ford) when aliens start to attack. Dull, humourless and over written sci fi western from Iron Man director Favreau.

One Life

2011

UK

U

Directed by: Michael Gunton, Martha Holmes

Written by: Michael Gunton, Martha Holmes

Cast: Daniel Craig (voice)

Documentary for kids featuring stunning footage of animals in the wild and narrated by Daniel Craig.

Defiance

2009

US

2h 16min

15

Directed by: Edward Zwick

Written by: Edward Zwick, Clayton Frohman

Cast: Daniel Craig, Liev Schreiber, Jamie Bell, George MacKay

Remarkable true story of the Bielski brothers, three real-life heroes who, against all odds, preserve a community of Jews who escape Poland for the forests of Belarus during WWII. Allied with the Russian resistance, the community thrives unexpectedly, leaving leader Tuvia Bielski (Craig) with heavy responsibilities.

Flashbacks of a Fool

2008

UK

1h 53min

15

Directed by: Baillie Walsh

Written by: Baillie Walsh

Cast: Daniel Craig, Harry Eden, Claire Forlani, Felicity Jones, Eve, Emilia Fox, Jodhi May, Miriam Karlin

Set in present-day California and an English seaside resort circa 1972, Joe Scott (Craig between Bond outings), is a washed up Hollywood star who recalls a traumatic teenage experience that leads to professional success and personal self-destruction. Good supporting performances and rather pedestrian flashbacks make for…

Quantum of Solace

2008

UK / US

1h 45min

12A

Directed by: Marc Forster

Written by: Ian Fleming, Michael G Wilson

Cast: Daniel Craig, Olga Kurylenko, Mathieu Amalric, Gemma Arterton, Judi Dench, Jeffrey Wright, Giancarlo Giannini

'Quantum of Solace' starts with a trademark action sequence involving cars burning rubber around narrow roads and then proceeds to jump from one thrill to another, while moving through locations like pages in a travel brochure. A major plus is Amalric's turn as the villain Dominic Greene, head of an organisation which…

The Golden Compass

2007

US / UK

1h 45min

12A

Directed by: Chris Weitz

Cast: Dakota Blue Richards, Freddie Highmore, Nicole Kidman, Daniel Craig, Sam Elliott, Eva Green, Jim Carter, Tom Courtenay, Ian McKellen, Ian McShane, Ben Walker

Based on the novel by Phillip Pullman, this fantasy adventure follows Lyra (Richards), who has been entrusted with the last remaining 'alethiometer', or golden compass, which she must keep from the power-crazed Magisterium. The world Weitz has created is beautifully designed and fascinating, but choppily structured and…

The Invasion

2007

US

1h 39min

15

Directed by: Oliver Hirschbiegel, James McTeigue

Written by: Dave Kajganich, Wachowski brothers

Cast: Nicole Kidman, Daniel Craig, Jeremy Northam, Jackson Bond, Jeffrey Wright, Veronica Cartwright

Another reworking of classic 1950s thriller 'Invasion of the Body Snatchers'. A mysterious epidemic is sweeping the world, and when a DC psychiatrist (Kidman) discovers its extraterrestrial origin, she and her colleague (Craig) must work together to find a cure before they become its next victims. A waste of celluloid.

Infamous

2006

US

1h 58min

15

Directed by: Douglas McGrath

Written by: Douglas McGrath, Book:, George Plimpton

Cast: Toby Jones, Sandra Bullock, Lee Pace, Daniel Craig, Jeff Daniels, Peter Bogdanovich

A more flamboyant and light-hearted biopic of Truman Capote than Bennett Miller's 2005 film 'Capote'. Jones is great in the lead as the eccentric writer but a weak supporting cast renders this the lesser of the two.

Casino Royale

2006

US / UK / Czech Republic

2h 24min

12A

Directed by: Martin Campbell

Written by: Ian Fleming

Cast: Daniel Craig, Eva Green, Mads Mikkelsen, Judi Dench

The prequel to the other Bond films time warps back to the enduring action hero becoming a 00 licensed to kill. The latest Bond (Craig) proves to be a strong leading man, but the film is let down by trying to do too much. With a weak villain and Bond girl to boot, it doesn't really feel like a Bond film at all.

Renaissance

2006

France / UK / Luxemburg

1h 45min

15

Directed by: Christian Volckman

Cast: Daniel Craig, Romola Garai, Jonathan Pryce

Impressive looking 3D futuristic thriller with a black and white render which never quite gets going. Paris 2054. Ilona Tassueiv (Garai), a young and brilliant researcher is violently kidnapped. Avalon, a giant multinational corporation and her employer, wants her found. Dellenbach (Pryce), Avalon's CEO, has requested…

Enduring Love

2004

UK

1h 40min

15

Directed by: Roger Michellv

Cast: Rhys Ifans, Daniel Craig, Samantha Morton

Based on Ian McEwan's bestseller, a man's worldview is bruised when his attempt to save a boy from a hot air balloon accident goes wrong.

Layer Cake

2004

UK

1h 45min

15

Directed by: Matthew Vaughn

Cast: Daniel Craig, Sienna Miller, Michael Gambon

A cocaine dealer works his way through two tough assignments from his boss on the day before his retirement.

The Mother

2003

1h 30min

Directed by: Roger Michell

Written by: Hanif Kureishi

Cast: Anne Reid, Daniel Craig, Cathryn Bradshaw

A recently widowed grandmother embarks on an affair with a man half her age, who is also sleeping with her daughter.

Sylvia

2003

UK

1h 40min

15

Directed by: Christine Jeffs

Cast: Gwyneth Paltrow, Daniel Craig, Lucy Davenport

A biopic of the relationship and fatal attraction between poets Sylvia Plath and Ted Hughes.

Road to Perdition

2002

US

1h 57min

15

Directed by: Sam Mendes

Cast: Tom Hanks, Paul Newman, Jude Law, Daniel Craig, Tyler Hoechlin

Daniel Craig Film Clue

A Depression era gangster picture with solid American family values. It may also, like Mendes' absurdly overrated Oscar-winner 'American Beauty', fool cinema-goers into confusing its moody self-importance for profound insight. For here are Big Stars, Big Themes (Fathers and Sons, Loyalty and Betrayal, Sin and Salvation…

[ljones41]

"SALT" (2010) Review

”SALT” (2010) Review It has been a while since I last saw a movie or television series directed by Philip Noyce. In fact, the last Hollywood production I can recall was the first episode of the 2016 miniseries, ”ROOTS”.  Then I came across an old DVD of the 2010 political thriller, “SALT”.  Imagine my surprise when I realized that Noyce had been the director of this film, as well.

Starring Angelina Jolie in the title role, “SALT” told the story of a CIA agent named Evelyn Salt, who is accused of being a KGB sleeper agent. She eventually goes on the run to try to clear her name. 

The movie begins when a Russian defector named Orlov arrives at the CIA Headquarters in Langley.  Salt’s supervisor, Ted Winters, orders Salt to interrogate Orlov.  And the latter informs her about an operation featuring a group of sleeper agents that is still being managed by a powerful Russian with Soviet ties since the Cold War.  This organization, according to Orlov,  will lead to the destruction of the United States. Orlov mentions that at the funeral of the late Vice President in New York City, the visiting Russian President will be killed by Soviet sleeper agent - Evelyn Salt. Shaken at the accusation, Salt attempts to contact her husband Mike, a German arachnologist, fearing for his safety. Meanwhile, Orlov escapes, which prompts Salt to escape. This causes Winters and a counterintelligence agent named Peabody to believe she actually is one of these sleeper agents.  After finding her husband missing at their apartment, Salt grabs a few essentials and continues her flight. After barely escaping a highway pursuit, Salt takes a bus to New York City to deal with the threat of the Russian president being assassinated. When I first learned about the plot for ”SALT”, the first thing that came to mind was that it was a female variation on the BOURNE movie franchise that starred Matt Damon. And in a way, it was. After all, Jolie portrays a CIA agent, who finds herself pursued by her former colleagues. And her character performs stunts that would make Damon . . . or his stunt man rather proud. However, after the movie’s setting had switched to New York City, Kurt Wimmer and Oscar winner Brian Helgeland’s script took an unexpected turn that left me a little breathless. And if that was not enough, another plot twist awaited, once the movie shifted back to Washington D.C. and a plot to kill the U.S. president. Another aspect of ”SALT” that surprised me was that the movie was released on the heels of news about a real Russian spy ring that was recently discovered in the U.S. Angelina Jolie had come a long way since her two LARA CROFT movies. In her portrayal of Jennifer Salt, she was more assured and matured. And thankfully, she had also dropped a poseur attitude that had slightly marred her performances as Lara Croft. Not only did Jolie do a first-rate job with her action sequences, she also skillfully guided the emotional turmoil that her character endures throughout the movie. Adding solid support was Liev Schreiber, who portrayed her supervisor, Ted Winters. Beneath the charm and intelligence, Schreiber did a great job in conveying Ted’s emotional reaction to the possibility that Salt might be a Soviet deep-cover mole. And Chiwetel Ejiofor was also effective as the intense and determined counterintelligence agent, Peabody, who genuinely believes that Salt was a mole. He managed to convey this without indulging in any hammy acting. Daniel Olbrychski gave a fascinating performance as the Russian defector, Orlov, who accused Salt of being a Russian agent. August Diehl portrayed Salt’s husband, the soft-spoken arachnologist, Michael Krause. Although he hardly had any lines in the film, he quietly conveyed his role as Salt’s emotional center.  One of my favorite performances in the film came from Corey Stoll, who an engaging performance as one of Salt’s former colleagues, who had ended up at the Pentagon.  I was surprised to see Hunt Block, who portrayed the U.S. president. I have not seen him since the 1980s nighttime drama, ”KNOT’S LANDING”. I was also surprised to see Andre Braugher in the movie. He portrayed one of the President’s aides, yet he only had one or two lines. At first, I thought his career had really taken a nose dive back then, until I remembered that he was on the TNT television series called ”MEN OF A CERTAIN AGE” around the same time of this movie’s theatrical release. So, how did he get stuck in a role that called for only two lines? Noyce worked well with cinematographer Robert Elswit and film editors Stuart Baird and John Gilroy to create some very interesting action scenes . . . especially the fantastic sequence featuring the attempt to assassinate the Russian president in New York. Jolie contributed to these scenes with some of her own stunt work. Yes, I realize that some of the stunts seemed implausible – especially one that featured a jump by Salt from a Washington D.C. expressway to the top of a moving truck. But I have seen stunts in other movies that I found a lot more implausible. It seemed a pity that the movie was set either during the late fall or the winter. Although the cold season did not take any atmosphere away from the Manhattan sequences, I cannot say the same about the Washington D.C. exterior shots. I have always believed that the capital looked a lot better on film during the spring, summer and early fall seasons. In the end, I enjoyed ”SALT” very much when it first hit the theaters ten years ago.  I still do.  I believe that it was one of the better summer movies from 2010. Director Philip Noyce did a first-class job with a solid script written by Kurt Wimmer and Brian Helgeland, and skillful performances from a cast led by Angelina Jolie. I noticed that the movie ended on a vague note that I would usually find annoying. I had originally given that ending a pass in hearing rumors about a sequel.  But the sequel, much to my disappointment, never materialized.  Hmmm . . . pity.

#salta #salt 2010 movie #philip noyce #brian helgeland #angelina jolie #liev schreiber #chiwetel ejiofor #august diehl #daniel olbrychski #corey stoll #andre braugher #hunt block #kurt wimmer #russian sleeper agents

[plussizeappreciationfics]

Sixth Masterlist

AUGUST WALKER

Headcanons

* Uncovering the truth

ALEX ANDERSEN

One shots

* Die for you

ARTHUR CURRY

One shots

* Don’t want to be lonely anymore

Headcanons

* Aquaman

BEN BARNES

Headcanons

* Ruin my life

BUCKY BARNES

One shots

* Cold shoulder

Headcanons

* Special proposal

* Destiny

BRUCE BANNER

Headcanons

* Let’s talk about kids...

CHRIS EVANS

One shots:

* Bad day

* Body like a back road

* Where did I go

* Disco tits

* Boundaries

* Finally found you

* Apples pt. 2

* Famous

* Unpleasant discovery l pt. 2

* Can’t help but feel insecure

* Rehearsing lines pt 2

* Small accident

Headcanons

* Facade

* Payback

* Pleasant discovery

* Best boyfriend ever

* Pleasant mornings

* Tattoos

* Appreciation

* When you do clownery...

* Cold feet

DANIEL ATLAS

Headcanons

* Magic

DACRE MONTGOMERY

Headcanons

* Give him a chance

DEAN WINCHESTER

Headcanons

* Head over heels

* Help you out

DOMINICK CARISI JR

Headcanons

* Meeting you again

ERIK STEVENS (KILLMONGER)

One shots

*Just say it

Headcanons

* Kinky honeymoon

* First date

* Pass out

EZRA MILLER Headcanons

* Sweet tooth

FLORIAN MUNTEANU One shots

* Stressful situation

FRANCIS FREEMAN

One shots

* Oh, love l Pt. 2

HAYLEY ATWELL

One shots

* Oo se kun oot/ Be as you are

HENRY CAVILL

One shots

* Waste it on me

* Motivate

* Beautiful

JAKE GYLLENHAAL

One shots

* Happy new year l Pt. 2

* No games

Headcanons

* A little insecure

* Stick up for you

JAI COURTNEY Headcanons

* Unexpected encounter

JAKE PERALTA

* Let them know

JAMES RHODES

One shots

* Forgotten anniversary

JAX TELLER  One shots

* 7 rings

JAY PARK

Headcanons

* Exposure

JORDAN CONNOR Headcanons

* Help you out

JOHN WICK One shots

* Ashes

KURT WAGNER Headcanons

* Asked out

LIEV SCHREIBER

Headcanons

* No need to worry

LOKI LAUFEYSON ODIN

One shots

* God and monsters

Headcanons

* Taking care

* Manic episodes

MACHINE GUN KELLY

One shots

* Papi pacify

Headcanons

* Bonding

M'BAKU

Headcanons

* Jealousy

* Being shy while making love

* Anxiety attack

* Finding out your pregnant

* Taking a break

* Period

MICHAEL B JORDAN

One shots

* Busted

* Need you by my side

MILO VENTIMIGLIA

One shots

* Fail

* Date

* Don’t want to be a secret anymore

* Ungrateful reaction

* Some dirty dancing

Headcanons

* Spoiler alert

* Sweet gesture

* Sex scene

* Succeeding in keeping a low profile

* Comfort

MIN-YOONGI Headcanons

* Eventful birth

* Song for you

NEYMAR JR

Headcanons

* The right moment

* Know when when to stop

‘

NOAH CENTINEO Headcanons

* Book worms

NORMAN REEDUS

Headcanons

* Get to you

POE DAMERON Headcanons

* Bad day

ROSA DIAZ Headcanons

* Sexuality

REMUS LUPIN

One shot

* Hookup

RICHARD MADDEN

One shots

* Don’t let them get to you

Headcanons

* Only eyes for you

SAM WINCHESTER

One shots

x

x

Headcanons

* Meeting the family

* Head over heels

* Came at the s right time

SCOTT LANG

Headcanons

* Dating Scott Lang

SHELODN COOPER Headcanons

* Appreciation

SHEMAR MOORE Headcanons

* Asked out

SPENCER REID

One shot

* Thinking bout you

* Something about you

Headcanons

* Karaoke night

* Unwanted encounter

* Eating good

STEVE ROGERS

One shots

* Big mistake

* What’s my name

* Every body here wants you

* Love someone

Headcanons

* Not the right guy

SCOTT LANG

Headcanons

* Worries

TIM MCGEE

Headcanons

* Meeting the team

THOR ODINSON

One shots

* Changes

Headcanons

* Touch starved

* Lightning scars

* Self care day

TOM HIDDLESTON

One shots

* Huge mistake

* Can’t hide it anymore

* No intimidation

* Cuz I love you

* Be there for you

* Dom Tom

* Find my person

Headcanons

* Period

* Disney movie

* Support

* There for you

* All natural

* Birthday

TOM HOLLAND

Headcanons

* Interruption

* Love at first sight

TOMMY COLON

Headcanons

* Bonding

TONY STARK

One shots

* Oh, it’s on

* Truth hurts

* Bored

* I don’t disappoint

* Distance and time

WADE WILSON

Headcanons

* Puns intended

WANDA MAXIMOFF

One shot

* Choose you

WINSTON DUKE

Firsts

YON-ROGG One shots

* Betrayal

ZAC EFRON One shots

* Rewrite the songs

ZACK ADDY

Headcanons

* Confession

ZACHARY LEVI Headcanons

* Beefed up

POLY FICS

T’CHALLA & M’BAKU

* Lazy days

CHRIS EVANS & WINSTON DUKE

One shots

* One 

GROUP TEXTS

Avengers

* Gift trading gone wrong

* Don’t be embarrassed 

#Chris Evans #arthur curry #ben barnes #ben barnes x reader #daniel atlas #dacre montgomery #dacre x reader #dean winchester #dominick carisi #Erik Killmonger #ezra miller #Hayley Atwell #jake gyllenhaal #jake peralta #james rhodes #Jay Park #kurt wagner #Liev Schreiber #Loki Laufeyson #mgk #mbaku #michael b jordan #milo ventimiglia #min yoongi #neymar #norman reedus #poe dameron #remus lupin #Sam Winchester #scott lang

[schreibertc]

Ray being possessive towards you. (Mistress)

W: SMUT!

You had been Ray mistress for a little while now. You would both see each other whenever he needed to get all of his problems out of his head and when he felt like distracting himself with something else than alcohol. Neither you or Ray had feelings for each other, but he was very possessive towards you.

It was Saturday afternoon and you were getting ready for your best friend's birthday party that was supposed to happen in the evening, but you always liked to be there a little bit earlier than anyone else.

You walked to your wardrobe and took out the Chanel bag that contained Ray's newest gift. It was a beautiful black dress with details made out of lace on the cleavage. It was short, but very elegant and sexy at the same time.

When Ray had surprised you with it, he had made you promise that you would never wear it in other occasions than for when you guys would meet up. And you had agreed...

But today was so special, and Ray would know nothing about it. You bit your lip and after a few minutes of looking at yourself in the mirror with the dress in front of your body, you finally decided you'd wear it, only for tonight.

Once you were totally ready, you checked yourself out in the mirror one last time and smiled as you applied the final touch: a deep red lipstick. You smiled to your reflection and headed out.

You started walking through the streets of Los Angeles, as you didn't feel like riding the bus today. The weather was amazing, so why not walk?

You looked straight in front of you as you didn't want to trip because of your high heels and walked proudly as you felt so beautiful.

Suddenly, you heard a loud noise and a car stopped right in front of you, in the middle of the street you were about to cross. You would have been scared if you had not recognized his car... Ray's.

You gulped as he lowered his tinted window. He had a serious expression on his face as he made a move with his fingers, indicating you to step closer. Once you were at the level of the door, he turned his attention back to the road. "Get in." He said on a serious tone.

"Ray, I can't. I need to-" You wanted to go on, but he cut you off. "Don't make me say it twice, Y/N." His eyes were still on the road. You sighed and looked around before to enter his car.

As soon as you sat on the passenger seat, he started driving again, until he reached an abandoned part of the big city. A place where only weird people would come, but at least, he knew nobody would recognize him there.

He stopped the car and made a move with his hand, pointing the dress. "I thought we had a deal." He turned his head to look at you.

"Listen Ray, I'm sorry it's-" The man didn't seem to want apologies right now. "Who are you going to see, huh?" He asked you.

You shook your head as you understood he thought you had a date. "I'm going to my friend's party. And I'm running late." You said, knowing you'd have to make up an excuse as no one knew about you and Ray.

Ray looked at you up and down. "We're going back to your house, you're getting changed." He was completely serious. You frowned and shook your head. "I'm la-"

You were about to finish your phrase when Ray pressed his lips against yours, making you shut up. Your heart started beating faster as his hand lay on your cheek. Now, you could only hear your heart pounding into your ears and the noise of his watch ticking every second.

He kissed you passionately, forcing the entrance of your mouth with his tongue. You could feel yourself getting wet and thought he could fuck you there, as a punishment, but instead, he just pulled away and looked into your eyes as his hand wrapped around your thigh.

"You are mine. I bought you this dress so that you could wear it for when we have dates. Not for a fucking stupid birthday party." His voice was low and you could totally feel threatened if the fact he was talking to you like that didn't wet your panties the way it did.

He sat up again and started the car. "If you wear it again, I will not let you cum for a month." He turned around to drive out of the abandoned place and back into the city. "I will fuck you, until I feel you're close. Then I will stop everything I'm doing until your body hurts with frustration." He looked through his window so that he could smirk without you seeing it.

You bit your bottom lip and nodded. "Yes Ray."

"Great, now we're going to your flat so you can get changed." He said, not even asking for your opinion.

Once you arrived at your flat, Ray got inside with you. As soon as you both walked through the door, he pushed you against the wall, unbuckled his belt and within a minute, he was shoved deep inside of you.

His thrusts were so intense and rough, as always. His forehead was resting against your neck as he fastened his pace. It didn't take him long to empty himself deep inside of you in a bestial groan. You smiled and caressed his short hair. "Don't change your panties and don't clean yourself." He whispered into your ear. "It'll be your punishment. Next time, you'll think twice about what you're doing."

After pulling out, Ray made sure you didn't get ready of your panties where your wetness was mixed with his thick cum.

Ray dropped you off at your friend, reassured that you had changed and that you had been punished for what you had done.

***

SO GUYS! What did you think about this one?! I can't help it, Ray inspires me so much for some great smut! 😅

#ray donovan oneshot #ray donovan imagine #ray donovan #liev schreiber #liev schreiber one shot #writing #oneshot #imagine

[insanityclause]

In the 1960s, British playwright Harold Pinter (1930-2008), who went on to earn a Nobel Prize, was married to actress Vivien Merchant but having a seven-year fling with BBC-TV personality Joan Bakewell. This personal experience was one of several important influences on his 1978 drama about marital infidelity, Betrayal, now receiving its fourth (and, possibly, best) Broadway production since 1980. I recall being unimpressed by that mostly lauded 1980 staging, largely because I considered its three usually outstanding American stars, Roy Scheider as Robert, Blythe Danner as Emma, and Raul Julia as Jerry, to be unconvincing as highly-educated Brits. I missed the 2000 revival, starring Liev Schreiber, Juliette Binoche, and John Slattery, as Robert, Emma, and Jerry. None was English, but, in 2013, when the potentially awesome all-British cast of Daniel Craig, Rachel Weisz, and Rafe Spall played the the same roles, my response (unlike that of most viewers) was only ho-hum. For the current, limited-run, revival at the Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre, which originated earlier this year during London’s Pinter at the Pinter season, the biggest name among the English leads is Tom Hiddleston (Loki in the Avengers movies), who plays Robert. This is not to say his bright costars, Zawe Ashton (Velvet Buzzsaw) as Emma and Charlie Cox (Philip, Duke of Crowborough on “Downton Abbey”) is Jerry, are in any way diminished by his charismatic presence. They play their roles with the diamond-cutting precision of master jewelers.

But that is still not enough to convince me that Betrayal is more substance than style. In fact, the brilliance of the acting here in Jamie Lloyd’s unconventionally minimalist, finely tuned staging only serves to emphasize the play’s technical glitter over its emotional heartbeat. In the interest of brevity, allow me to adapt the capsule summary of the plot from my review of the 2013 production. It tells the story of how, in 1968, Jerry, a literary agent (Pinter’s avatar), a married man and father, falls for and begins his affair with Emma. She is the gallery-owning wife of Robert, a publisher who is Jerry’s closest friend (his best man, in fact). The affair lasts seven years and ends in 1975. For much of the time, the lovers conduct their clandestine romance in a rented flat. Meanwhile, Robert begins his own affair, as does Jerry’s wife, Judith. A coda, set in 1977, two years after the affair ends, brings the former lovers together at a pub, and Emma reveals that she is now involved with another writer, one of Jerry’s clients whose publisher is Robert.

What makes this otherwise straightforward tale of adulterous love, male bonding and deception, and scratched memories (à la Proust) intriguing is its backward chronology, with the 1977 post-affair coda actually being the first scene, and with the play then proceeding to eight scenes set, respectively, in 1975, 1974, 1973, 1971, and 1968 (1977 has two scenes and 1973 has 3).

And what makes this production intriguing is its abandonment of realistic scenery in favor of an essentially bare stage, designed by Soutra Gilmour, using only a couple of chairs, and very few other props. Instead of recognizable locales, we see a low, beige, color-textured wall running straight across the upstage area beneath a black ceiling in which multiple, embedded lighting strips run parallel to the wings. Jon Clark’s exceptional lighting paints the background with a mood-enhancing palette, casting the actors’ razor-sharp silhouettes on the wall, as well as varying the spatial feeling with shuttering effects.

In line with this spare, visual restraint are both Pinter’s remarkably polite, reticent, outburst-free script and the actors themselves, each model-slender, wearing the same clothing throughout, their every movement calibrated for effect. Lloyd creates an almost Becketian world in which each gesture, twist of the leg, or crook of the neck--even the way Robert eats a meal--seems choreographed for imagistic impact, almost as if you could take a picture of any moment and get a Vogue-worthy shot. Ashton’s Emma seems especially prone to standing in ways that seem more poses than positions. Souter’s perfectly-tailored costumes further enhance the physical attractiveness, Robert’s black garb balanced by Jerry’s grayish jacket, with the principal source of color being Emma, the triangle’s pulse, perpetually barefooted in an elegant, high-shouldered, blue, silk blouse and slightly bell-bottomed jeans. Duologues are performed, often with those involved sitting in spindle-backed wooden chairs as the third member of the trio remains upstage, near the wall, present but not present, a constant reminder of his or her significance to the others in the layered strata of betrayal. And while the set may be ultrasimple-looking, it’s actually mechanically complex, using slow-moving concentric turntables that allow the chairs and actors to circle in opposite directions to fascinating effect. The tall, high-cheekboned Hiddleston, a classically-trained actor who has starred as Hamlet and Coriolanus, is in his element, as are his colleagues, in digging into Pinter’s pregnant pauses, elliptical sentences, and subtextual currents. Lloyd’s direction exploits the playwright’s mannerisms for all they’re worth, and the stage is often electric with unspoken thoughts and repressed feelings. But, over the course of 90 minutes, the plot’s revelations gradually lose power because, after all, the backward trajectory has begun by telling us the result of what has already happened and whose origins the play is seeking to uncover. There are few surprises in store in such a pattern, everything that transpires seeming only to put us on a path of diminishing returns. Betrayal is getting a first-class revival here, interestingly directed and designed, and played with just the kind of knowing reserve, cutting psychological insight, and brittle wit great British acting can provide. Every ounce of meaning would seem to have been squeezed from the dramatic tube. Yet,  in this coolly sophisticated, bitingly cerebral environment, the result is more head than heart, or, as I suggested before, more style than substance. All things considered, however, it’s definitely the best of my three Betrayals.

#Betrayal #review #Tom Hiddleston #Zawe Ashton #Charlie Cox