#and how they snubbed Decision to Leave
Text
EYO THE OSCAR NOMS ARE OUT
Let’s discuss!
BEST PICTURE: I've seen four of the ten nominees this year! Not a bad score for me. Of the remainder I am very interested in American Fiction, Anatomy of a Fall, and Past Lives. American Fiction in particular got Jeffrey Wright a Best Actor nomination! I love Jeffrey Wright! He deserves more recognition! Any film that can get him that has gotta be worth something.
Of the ones I’ve seen… I’d probably select Killers of the Flower Moon as the best? It’s a hard watch, but the craft on display at every level is exceptional. If not that, then… I dunno, maybe Barbie? The Holdovers is a safe choice, it’s a great movie, but there’s almost nothing… surprising about it. Barbie is CONSTANTLY surprising! But it’s also a madcap comedy bathed in metaphor so… man I don’t know!
Regardless, I wouldn’t pick Oppenheimer. Not to disrespect it, I genuinely believe it to be a very interesting film that’s compelling to watch, and as always Christopher Nolan’s ability to make weird-ass films with experimental structures popular with a mass audience is worthy of tremendous respect. But its pacing is rushed, its script is sometimes awkward to the point of parody, and I just don’t know that it’s saying or doing anything THAT interesting or enlightening about the real people involved or about people or history in general. Y’know?
BEST DIRECTOR: Nothing but Best Picture nominees here, which makes sense. Pretty blown away that Alexander Payne didn't get a nom here for The Holdovers. Not blown away at all that Greta Gerwig didn't get one for Barbie, despite that whole thing clearly being her baby. A real Streisand situation here, I'd say! "Eight nominations on the shelf, did this film direct itself?" Regardless of who wins (or even who I think deserves to!) I'd definitely say Gerwig got snubbed here.
BEST ACTOR: All best picture nominees here, save for Colman Domingo for Rustin. Had never heard of this film before, because it's a Netflix film and they always bury all their work, but it's about a civil rights activist so that makes... how many years that the Academy has included one of these in a Best Actor/Actress context? Selma, Harriet, Judas and the Black Messiah. I'm sure Colman Domingo gives a good performance, just noting that the Academy loves to nominate these for acting awards and not honor them in most any other way. (Hey, Jeffrey Wright's in that movie too! Good year for him!)
Bradley Cooper's here too. I don't think I like him very much! I've never disliked him really, but I've never loved his performance either. But the Academy seems to, since he's been nominated... TWELVE TIMES? Holy SHIT no wonder I wasn't surprised to see his name. Never won one, though. He keeps this up, maybe they'll throw him a pity one like they did for DiCaprio. Then again, I don't think Cooper assigns as much value to it as Leo did -- or at least, it doesn't feel like it. I care so little about Bradley Cooper! I don't follow his personal journey very closely! He's fine, I guess!
As a fan, I'd LOVE to see Jeffrey Wright take it, even though I haven't seen his movie. Of the ones I have, Cillian Murphy is very good in Oppenheimer, no question, but I've gotta give it to my man Paulie G. Dude is an incredibly talented actor with a non-traditional look who's done great work for decades and deserves a big win. He's fantastic in Holdovers too! It's a layered, funny, incredibly natural performance that he just falls into. Not particularly showy, which lowers his chances for a win, but to me (and most sensible folks) that makes it a better performance, so there, nyeh!
BEST ACTRESS: I haven't seen four of these but if they don't give it to Lily Gladstone they've fucked up. Sorry, other nominees, that's all there is to it. Also, where the fuck is Margot Robbie? She's incredible in Barbie! If I get to Supporting Actor and Ryan Gosling is there, this is misogyny.
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR: This is misogyny!! But I'd love for Gosling to win for this. It'd be his first, and for a role like this that'd be hilarious. That being said it's still a tremendous performance! His commitment to the role both on-screen and off is clear, he's having a ball throughout, and he does his own dancing! God, I just wanna see his speech.
That being said, he has some extremely stiff competition. De Niro continues his golden year renaissance with an excellent performance of a very evil man in Killers of the Flower Moon, and Downey Jr. is so good in Oppenheimer that it took me a couple minutes and a scene transition to realize it was him at all! Also Sterling K. Brown and Mark Ruffalo are here! I like both those guys! If I had to pick one that I've seen that isn't Gosling? Probably Downey Jr. If I gave Oppenheimer one award, it would be this one.
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS: I like all these actresses, I think America Ferrera is very good in Barbie, and Jodie Foster has been doing great work lately, but this award belongs to Da'Vine Joy Randolph. She takes a character that could be one note in The Holdovers and invests them with so much life and complexity and history. I still think about that movie in part because of her, and because she made choices that made that character feel more authentic. It's maybe the most I've been impressed by an actress in a good long while, frankly! She deserves this one! Don't fuck it up, Academy! (but I know you will)
ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY: All Best Picture nominees, save for a movie called May December... because it's a Netflix film, of course. God, they sure do make a lot of award-worthy films I never ever hear about, huh! Wild how that happens! (Did you even know a new Spy Kids movie came out this year? Of course you didn't! It was on Netflix!)
I haven't seen four of these, but heard good things about Past Lives. I do really love The Holdovers though! Unless one of the others really knocks my socks off, I'd be comfortable with that winning here.
ADAPTED SCREENPLAY: Oppenheimer does not deserve this. I'm sorry, maybe it's a failure of editing, but the pacing on this thing is too breakneck. Maybe that's a failure of editing more than screenplay, though. Then again, the dialogue itself is uh... often pretty blunt and borderline silly, in that Nolan sort of way! So, y'know!
I'd love to see Barbie win it. It's so fucking funny, and occasionally vibrating with pathos. But I haven't seen the others, and they might rule, actually! American Fiction might be great! I'm looking forward to finding out when it hits digital!
ANIMATED FEATURE: I still think we probably shouldn't cordon these off into their own category, but then so few would get nominated for anything, so let's just live in the world we have, huh? The Boy and the Heron is a Miyazaki film, so that automatically makes it a contender, though I've heard some mixed things about it. Nimona is a dark horse that I remember having some buzz around it earlier this year, and Robot Dreams is a sad movie about a robot so it's automatically a movie I vibe with! Elemental... exists! (Why in the hell was this nominated and not Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem?! Why of all things did THAT get snubbed?!)
But we all know this belongs to Across the Spider-Verse. It might not be a complete narrative, but purely on visual spectacle alone, it should win. It is, without question, the wildest eyeball experience I've ever had watching a movie, finally dethroning the previous occupiers, the Wachowskis' Speed Racer and the animated film Redline. It is constantly visually surprising and experimental, to the point that much like its predecessor I don't know how they fucking did some of the stuff they did. It's not the out-of-nowhere immediate game-changer that its predecessor was, and it might not have the immediate influence on an entire genre in the same way... but I think it pushes the medium even further! I can't wait to see what other movies look like in the future because of it.
(also the production sounds like it was a nightmare, animators deserve more pay and more respect, unionize, etc.)
PRODUCTION DESIGN: I mean, of all the things about Napoleon, how it looked was the absolute best of them. I wouldn't be too upset if it won... except I would, because Barbie. I mean, come on. COME ON. This one's a gimme. (Though why is The Creator not here? I know it was a pretty bad movie, but the design? Absolutely impeccable vibes!)
COSTUME DESIGN: I mean. Barbie. Did you see Ken's outfits?
CINEMATOGRAPHY: This is my nerd-ass award I care about. I've liked Hoyte van Hoytema's work in the past, and if Oppenheimer won this I wouldn't think it a complete miscarriage of justice -- it's got some really great images in it. But to me this is Flower Moon's award to lose. I haven't seen the others, but I don't know that anything else is going to match that. It's not too showy, but it is pretty damn impeccable.
There are also movies that I think got snubbed here, like John Wick 4 (yes I'm serious) and Sisu (again, I'm serious) and The Killer. Heck, they didn't even nominate The Holdovers here, and that movie leans into its period setting by aping the cinematography of films from that period! That's neat!
EDITING: That Oppenheimer is here is more proof the Academy doesn't know what good editing is. I mean, if you isolated a couple scenes of that movie, there IS great editing there! And even structurally, I think it makes some bold choices that should be rewarded! But as a whole, I didn't feel like I had time to breathe during a scene, and most of that is down to Nolan always choosing to cut or transition too soon. Sometimes it's even a matter of seconds! But those seconds matter! They're the difference between me feeling like I'm moving through a room and feeling like I'm being hurried through a room, y'know what I mean?
I'd probably go with Flower Moon here, but Holdovers has a lovely, languid pace to it and some very funny cuts, so I'm leaning in that direction too. Haven't seen the others!
MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLING: How is Barbie not here?! What the hell kind of award show is this?! (A Bad one, we all know this.)
SOUND: (This used to be two awards, one for sound mixing and one for sound editing, and on a technical level those are two very different skills, but whatever, Academy!)
This is one I think that Oppenheimer will probably take, because it does some cool things with sound a few times. But it's also one that I think The Creator might actually deserve. Some really killer sound in that film, right up there with its production design -- which it should have gotten a nomination for! Also, Mission: Impossible dark horse, just to give it something. Because I love those movies, even if this year's was maybe my fourth-favorite Mission: Impossible movie that still makes it better than most movies!
VISUAL EFFECTS: It's kind of a long-shot, but I'm pulling for Godzilla Minus One here. Guardians looked good, The Creator looked good (it's about all it did) and I absolutely adore and respect the commitment to practical stunts and car chases and effects in Mission: Impossible and it should get all the recognition possible for throwing a real train off a real cliff... but c'mon. It's Godzilla. And by all accounts, it does so much with so little, at least in terms of budget. It's a movie directed by a guy who previously supervised visual effects! Of course it was gonna look good! That it looks that good at that budget though? Might be enough to get it the big win. Here's to hoping! It'd be nice to see a movie that cost about ten million dollars be recognized as having better visual effects than a movie that cost... two hundred and fifty million Jesus Christ what are you doing Disney.
ORIGINAL SCORE: Be neat to see Indiana Jones take this one! Good score, nice but not too reverent. But I don't have particularly strong feelings this like I have in previous ones. Don't remember many movie scores from this year, nothing's made it into my playlist beyond a couple Mission: Impossible tracks, certainly nothing's impressed me as much as something like The Batman's score or anything.
ORIGINAL SONG: Two songs from Barbie here, one from the Flamin' Hot Cheetos movie (yes it's real and yes it's historically inaccurate!) and one from... Killers of the Flower Moon. Uh oh. Uh oh! I was all ready to be ride or die for "I'm Just Ken" (and to be clear if it won I wouldn't object) but that song in Flower Moon and how it hits at the end... well. It should probably win, is what I'm saying. Even if it's not the fun choice. Be nice to see it performed, at least. These will all be great performances, probably!
DOCUMENTARY FEATURE: I haven't seen any of these! I usually don't until at least year or two after the fact! Just how I end up watching documentaries, usually. It'll probably be the one about Ukraine, though. Not necessarily because it's the best one, but because the Academy likes to think that making picks like that is somehow activism. (Also can you believe that's still happening? Ukrainian sovereignty, end the war, etc.)
INTERNATIONAL FEATURE: Haven't seen any of these, but heard good things about Society of the Snow. Zone of Interest is a best picture nominee, so odds are that'll be the one that wins. Surprised a Japanese film got in here but it's not Godzilla! Damn! Was hoping for a dark horse win for Big G!
ANIMATED SHORT: Never seen 'em!
DOCUMENTARY SHORT: Most of the short documentaries I watch are on Youtube these days!
LIVE ACTION SHORT: Good for all these people who got nominated!
THAT'S IT hoo boy the Oscars, huh. This year's a bit of a dull one, nothing that I'm really excited about winning anything outside of like, Barbie. Killers of the Flower Moon definitely deserves a lot of awards, but how many it'll get remains to be seen. Also I just realized DiCaprio didn't score a nomination for his part in that! Just Lily Gladstone! Haha! Good! (Though I do think DiCaprio's work has improved noticeably after he finally got his stupid Oscar. Almost like he stopped trying so hard and that made his performances feel more natural! Wild!)
Anyway, next year I'm gonna be stumping hard for Dune 2 so. Be prepared for that.
#movies#the oscars#Cinema™#i do enjoy an oscar party#even when it's mostly to get mad at them#or sometimes to celebrate when they get it right#i'd say they've gotten more right than wrong lately but then i remember Green Book#and how they snubbed Decision to Leave#and i'm like 'oh yeah these people don't know nothing bout anything'#anyway it's fun to be excited about movies#and i'll take any excuse to do so#even a dumb one by big dummies!!
7 notes
·
View notes
Text
.
#am i surprised? no. but i'm disappointed and hurt about it lol#it's just.... i'm not trying anymore. i'm not reaching out#if it's gone then it's gone. it will hurt. and i will miss it yeah#but i can't keep chasing people who clearly don't want me around#i can't do this anymore. i just can't. gentleness and consideration are not hard things to give#if a middle ground can't be found when things are clearly messed up then well what can i do alone?#i'm not letting go. i'm just not holding when when they clearly have let it go#no one is to blame. i'm just tired of feeling so terrible like this.#this feeling of being snubbed and thrown aside and just undesired around#it's choking me. being a fourth fifth sixth choice. it's not for me. i'm not strong enough for this#people leave your life just as swiftly as they came in and i hate that. i truly do#i'm genuinely not strong enough to deal with people leaving so you know. perhaps i shouldn't let anyone in#so crazy how you become nothing to people that means a lot to you in a blink of an eye#if people want to stay in my life they need to make an effort. it can't be one sided. i can't feel one sided#that's not my decision to make and God i can see where this is going. fucking radio silence#people could at least have the decency of telling me if they are staying or leaving. because wondering is not fun#valuing something that perhaps lost the value#i don't know i cried again#lol whatever#c'est la vie
0 notes
Text
Not enough discussion yet of the Logan-Colin scene. The man who has spent 3 seasons adamantly refusing to acknowledge his own mortality suddenly wants to talk about the afterlife. It's not real, but if IS real then he has some fucking theories.
Logan spends this entire episode wanting someone to tell him he's not that bad a person. Since the beginning of the show, he's used various shields to hold the allegations of moral rot at bay. Everything he's ever done, he's done for his children. This is nothing but cultural blowback, he's being punished for the sins of others. He's a good Catholic boy who couldn't even take off his undershirt in front of his wife. He just knows things about the world, that's how he makes a buck. Each excuse is flimsier than the last. And now, finally, he's out of excuses. The season 3 finale was the moment of truth where he was forced to reveal the kind of man he truly was. He's a man who wants to keep his children close even when it hurts them. He's a man who mocks love and fosters betrayal and whose only goal is to add more billions to his pile. He's a man who poisons everything around him.
And so now here he is, 81, only sycophants at his party. His children aren't here, revealing that he's not the loving father he presented himself as. Mencken isn't here, revealing that he's not as powerful or influential as he used to be (the Raisin would NEVER have snubbed a birthday invite). The Cardinal isn't here, so he can't point to the presence of a churchman as an endorsement of his own righteousness. (Why isn't the Cardinal here? Is it just because he doesn't care, or is there an unsaid moral condemnation involved in that decision?) So he leaves, and he goes to a diner with his "best friend" Colin, a man he pays to be by his side every hour of every day.
On the Succession podcast, Jesse Armstrong talks about Logan's perception of humans as something fundamentally childish. He doesn't know how to exist in the world. He doesn't have the vocabulary to relate to other people. We've spent 3 seasons debating what he considers to be a "real person", and here he reveals that he himself doesn't even know. The only way he can understand other people, the only way he can relate to them, is in economic and business terms. A person is an economic unit, moving through markets. It (and notice he says "it", not "he" or "she" or "they") has dreams and values and goals, but those simply serve to dictate how it moves through those markets. That's true for the random person on the street, but it's also true for himself and his children and everyone at Waystar. The difference is not that other people are economic units and he and his family are not. The difference is that he and his family are much bigger economic units, that make a bigger impact on the markets. They're 100 feet tall, and everyone else is pygmies, and yet being 100 feet tall doesn't make his tuna sandwich taste any better.
(And it's worth noting that when Tom and Shiv finally encounter each other, they use the same kind of economic language to discuss the state of their marriage. Shiv doesn't want to rake up a bunch of bullshit for no profit. Tom asks if she really wants to take a full accounting of all the pain in their marriage. They don't even realize that somewhere along the way they began perceiving each other and their marriage through the same lens that Logan perceives the world. They don't even recognize that they've reduced each other to economic units, moving through various markets searching for some shred of happiness or fulfillment.)
And then finally we come to the question of the afterlife. Logan doesn't believe there is an afterlife. Or does he? Maybe he genuinely doesn't. Maybe he's looked at the world and decided that heaven and hell don't fit into his market-centric worldview. Or maybe, the self-professed "good little Catholic boy" who's upset the Cardinal didn't come to his birthday party knows deep down that if there is an afterlife, he's not going to a good place. Maybe the only shield he has left to defend himself is the idea that there is no heaven and there is no hell, said with all the conviction of a man who fears his own damnation but doesn't see any way to avoid that fate.
And then he comes back to the party and he wants someone to roast him. He's staring down the gun barrel of his own impending death and he needs other people to join him in his glib assessment of his moral failings, to confirm that it's not a big deal, it's just business, his kids just suck and he's a pretty good guy and they all love him. And not a single one of them can. Karl and Frank and Gerri are too afraid of him to try and make light of his faults (in itself a somewhat damning statement). The only person even willing to try is Greg, and sure he has no comedic timing, but the deeper issue is that what's wrong with Logan is simply not funny. It's not lighthearted and glib. It's miserable and sad and lonely, and everyone is afraid of him, and there's no love or camaraderie in anything Greg says. Greg asks him where his children are and the only thing he can do is remind Greg that he, too, has been abandoned by the people who should care about him, that Greg is just as lonely and pathetic and desperately scrambling for connection as he is.
And then finally, we see Logan on the couch, in the middle of the night, watching ATN. Two men are left with life-threatening injuries after a brawl that went too far. A stupid pointless fight from which emerged no victors. Two men far younger than Logan, dying in a hospital. We know nothing about these men. We don't know what kind of legacy they might leave behind. We do know that whatever else they did will be overshadowed by the futility of their deaths. And that's when Logan calls Cyd to tell her that he doesn't like what he sees. It is the truth, but I don't think the root cause is something Cyd can fix.
260 notes
·
View notes
Text
DANCE WITH ME CHAPTER 1
“If you want to keep a secret, you must also hide it from yourself.”
Summary : All your life, you thought you were a beta, a simple and boring beta. Until everything change. But now that you've presented yourself as an omega, how will you manage to live and hide it from your six friends and best friend, all alphas and all in the same pack? (a/n : I'm a shit for summary I'm so sorry-)
Genre : soulmate au (of course I'm a bitch for this), omegaverse, bangtan alphas au!, omega reader, fluff, angst, eventual smut, polyamory relationships
Status : In process
Word Count : 2.5K
Warnings : the usual one I guess, like smut, angst, fluff (yeah its a warning for some people ) mention of depression, abusive parents (physically and morally), violence and blood, PTSD, scars, self harm,...
A/N : finally have the courage to post this (again) ! Hope y'all will enjoy it 🥺 this is my first omegaverse fic, I took a lot of points from the omega verse, and modified some of them to my liking hehe
ps : sorry for any mistakes (again yeah), english is not my first language ! 💜
Masterlist | ao3 | wattpad
Chapter 2
☾ ☾ ☾ ☾ ☾ ☾ ☾ ☾
At first, it was only the two of you. Jimin and you. You were friends since High School and meet each other at the dance club. You always admired Jimin’s dance skills. After months of hesitation, you finally had the courage to ask him for advice. One thing led to another and you became inseparable. You had even taken the dance school entrance exams together.
You wanted to go to the same one, why not do it together ?
To the world, the answer seemed logical. Jimin was an alpha, You were a beta.
Betas were ordinary and generally reclusive among themselves because of their low chance of breeding with alphas and omegas.
Coming from a wealthy, worldly background, you had therefore spent much of your life being snubbed and demeaned by the alphas or avoided by the omegas. You had noticed that this separation between classes was even more reinforced in the upper class, bordering on the aristocracy, of which you were technically a part.
Your parents had sent you to a public school from an early age, from nursery school to high school. That's where you met Jimin, who had the same mentality as you.
That was all that mattered to him.
After both of you had been accepted into the same school and knowing that you would have to leave Busan for Seoul, the question of housing came up.
It was natural for you to become roommates. The salary and living costs would be cut in half and you would have someone you could trust near you if you needed it. That was all you needed to make the decision.
Your parents had been reluctant at first, but as their youngest daughter was a simple beta from an alpha family, the treatment you had received in your life from your parents had always been more careless than your siblings. So you didn't have much difficulty persuading them.
You had a new life ahead of you. Away from your families, accepted in the school of your dreams, the most prized and reputed in the country, to be able to learn and practice your passion as much as you wanted.
And that's during the holidays before you started dance school that Jimin met Taehyung, also an alpha.
When you met Jimin again a few weeks before they started school and moved into your apartment, Taehyung introduced himself. He was the same age as Jimin and you and worked at a florist. It was love at first sight.
You noticed right away that they were made for each other. And before you met the others, you were even sure that they were soul mates.
Soon, classes started and you found yourselves in the same group where you met Jungkook and Hoseok.
Jungkook was two years younger than you and had managed to get into the school on a scholarship. A young prodigy like you rarely see.
Hoseok was probably the most talented dancer you and Jimin have ever met. He was a year older, but had spent a year in the United States perfecting his skills before entering this school.
Jimin, Jungkook and Hoseok quickly became friends. You took longer, being more reserved than your best friend. And then as a beta, you had always had trouble with alphas, because of your experiences with some of them.
But Jimin had quickly changed your mind about them. A lot of the students here didn't come from posh backgrounds like you, the mentality was different.
Well, unfortunately, it wasn't true for everyone.
There was that day when two second-year alphas decided to torment you. They said that as a beta like you, you didn't belong in such a prestigious school, which was completely wrong.
Status was of little importance here, only talent. These guys were pretty well known among the first years. They were always bullying the betas and sometimes even the omegas.
Jungkook and Hoseok had intervened. They happened to be walking through the corridors when they heard the two students and recognized you. They intervened and defended you.
That day you knew that once again Jimin had been right and that he was rarely wrong about people.
It was on that day that you really became friends with them.
Yeah, Jimin was right. Not all alphas were like these two guys, or the guys in their high school, or your family.
Being the only beta in a family of alphas was not easy. When you didn't show any signs of being an alpha, your family became colder and more distant than they normally were. Coming from an upper class, it was out of the question for your parents to show that their daughter was just a beta, an ordinary person.
You kept asking yourself why you still went home several weekends a month. You couldn't count the number of times you returned to the shared flat on Sunday nights in a pitiful state. Jimin and Taehyung had stopped counting the number of times they had found you crying, sometimes even with minor injuries on your face. But you couldn't afford to cut ties with your family just yet, you couldn't afford it. You were going to live in this hell for some time yet, until you could fully emancipate yourself.
Or until they were the ones to throw you out.
There was still one thing you couldn't stand about alphas. Their auras. They all had this overpowering aura about them that weighed on you. Even more with your housemates. You knew they couldn't help it, they were like that.
You had always believed that it was unique to alphas, that every beta and every omega felt that way.
It wasn't the case, but you didn't know that yet.
Jimin aura had never bothered you, on the contrary, you had always found it soothing and comforting. Perhaps because you had always had this fusional relationship with each other and because you had known each other for so long. As for Taehyung, Jungkook and Hoseok, let's just say that you got used to them over time.
Unlike the other alphas you were around, they did not seek any kind of domination over you, conscious or unconscious. They considered you, and every other beta and omega, as their equals.
A few months after school started, Taehyung had moved into your apartment. Anyway, he was still there. Things had happened naturally to a point where neither Jimin nor even you realized it. And that hadn't bothered you.
Their neighbors, an old lady, had also moved out. It didn't even take a month for new neighbors to move in. There were three.
When they had come to introduce themselves, Yebin had to use all the force in the world not to laugh at the situation.
Three more alphas.
Kim Namjoon, Min Yoongi et Kim Seokjin.
The first one ran a library. He was without doubt the most impressive alpha you had met so far. He didn't need to speak to earn his respect. But he was still a lovely person... and very clumsy.
Yoongi and Seokjin worked together. Seokjin ran a rather famous café in town while Yoongi was the pastry chef.
Unlike Seokjin, who, with Hoseok, was probably one of the most adorable and caring people on earth, you had some difficulty in sympathizing with Yoongi. It was true that despite his size, this guy was very intimidating. Cold on the outside, you quickly learned that a very warm personality was hiding behind him.
In the meantime and for the sake of convenience, as the dance school was close to the building, Jungkook and Hoseok had moved into the apartment above yours.
Something strange had happened between those seven boys. You quickly felt that a certain chemistry had developed between them. You could never explain why. Every weekend, when you came home, you felt that they were all getting closer and closer. You didn't have to be an Alpha or an Omega to feel it.
It was like they have always known each others.
Weeks passed, the bonding continued, and what had to happen, happened.
You didn't know when they became a pack, but it happened.
Honestly, you didn't see it coming. Taehyung and Jimin were already a couple after all. But later you learned that Namjoon, Seokjin and Yoongi were one, too, long before they became your neighbors.
You didn't really understand, and you didn't try to understand. It was an alpha thing. As a beta, you were part of the normal people, you didn't care about all that. In fact, you didn't mind it at all. Whether they were a couple of two, three or even seven, as long as no one suffered and they were happy, especially Jimin because he was your best friend, that was all that mattered to you.
But the question had been: did you still belong in that apartment, with them ? Surrounded by all those alphas connected to each other ?
One Friday evening, before leaving for the weekend, you asked them. They were all together in their living room.
They were all surprised, as if what you had just asked them was the most absurd thing they had ever heard.
“Why would you leave?” asked Hoseok.
“That's right, we don't want you to go ! I don't want you to go !” Jimin was quick to embrace you, his head resting on your shoulder, “aren't you happy here?”
“Yes, I am! Of course Chim, it's not that, it's just that- ”
“Because we're an alpha pack, and you're a beta?” Namjoon had finally stood up and approached you, “this is bullshit, you're our friend, y/n. You're one of us and you're a beta. You're one of us and you belong here, as much as any of us. If we've made you feel uncomfortable about something, I'm sorry.”
“But you don't have to leave!” Jungkook clung to your arm, his doe eyes meeting yours, “we like having you with us, don't go Noona, please!”
You had sighed, before smiling.
“I'm the one who's sorry, I thought that since you're... a pack you know, my presence might interfere and I don't want to…”
“You're not interfering with anything, don't worry.” Namjoon ruffled your hair, as you saw the others nodding at his words.
Namjoon was sort of the leader of the pack. Even with you, he would always have the last word. You trusted him. You nodded in turn, and kissed Jungkook's cheek before reaching for your bag.
“So forget what I said, okay? Ah, you're going to have your ruts soon by the way, right?”
These seven were so fusional they'd managed to get them at the same time, well, that's what they were saying, you couldn't make any sense of it anyway.
“Let me know when it's over,” you'd pointed your phone before putting it in your pocket, “it's not that I don't want to be smothered in your alpha pheromones and... hear you guys doing whatever it is you're doing to relieve yourself but... I really don't.”
Your ironic tone and grimace made them laugh. You gave Jimin a final hug and greeted the other alphas before leaving the apartment.
Mating season, yes. You were a beta, you had nothing to do with it. You should have stayed with your parents. The house they lived in was big enough for you to avoid them and your brother and sister. You would stay in her room, work on new choreographies, you had even taken with you some books that Namjoon had recommended. In short, you had plenty to do.
You were just a beta. What could go wrong ?
The night at your family's house, while you were lying in your king-size bed, the first heat wave took possession of your body. It was not the first one you had felt in your life, although this one was more violent than the others. But soon a second, more intense heat wave came, then a third, and a fourth.
When you had wanted to move and the simple friction of your (surprisingly wet) thighs between them made you moan... when the only thought that crossed your mind was that you needed something inside you, now.
Something big.
Something that could fill you up.
With your eyes closed, you had had a vision of a certain person, someone you knew all too well, leaning over you, his gaze piercing your being.
Jimin.
At that moment you felt that something was wrong.
Betas weren't supposed to be in heat. You knew that. You'd learned that in class. Yet your symptoms... no. That couldn't be it. You didn't want to believe it.
You had no choice but to call your mother. First, she gave you some suppressants to calm you down. She then calmly explained that there was nothing much to say or do.
It was rather exceptional, but it could happen in rare cases that the first heat of an omega could be triggered very late, when an omega denied being one or when it was submitted to a strong pressure or a very big stress. This was logical for you because of the family you had lived with all your life and the constant pressure they put on you.
You realized then that you were not a beta at all, as you, and everyone else for that matter, had thought.
On the top of that, your mother urged you to come to their house less often when the season ended. You had never seen so lacking in love and compassion in someone's eyes. The pain of this new rejection was made worse by the fact that it came, once again, from your own mother.
Were you really that disgusting now that you turned out to be an omega?
You suddenly thought of the boys. Of course, you were thinking about them, how could you not ? Since the beginning of your... heat, Jimin wasn't the only one who invaded your mind in visions... anything but innocent.
Panic suddenly surged through you.
Shit. You were an omega.
An omega who lived with alphas.
An omega surrounded by alphas.
Alphas who thought you were just a beta.
How would they react when they found out?
Probably like your mum. They'd end up rejecting you, too. They would be upset at you for not telling them. They would act differently and end up hating you too. You couldn't bear the thought of them looking like your mother, of Jimin rejecting you too. The thought of that hurt even more than the damn heat.
No, you couldn't tell them.
It was simple. You had to make sure you continued to act like a beta.
For your next heat, you would just improvise.
Yes, it was simple, wasn't it? What could go wrong?
It wasn't like you were thinking of them as alphas. Absolutely not.
Seven alphas were waiting for you at home...
Lying in your bed, you curled up on yourself. You were sure they could fill you up perfectly, each in their own way.
You squeezed your thighs and caught your hand between them, which made you moan again.
"Fuck..."
Yeah, maybe you were in trouble.
#rory's writing#rorythme#Dance with me#bts#bts au#bts soulmate#bts soulmate au#bts polyamory#bts poly#bts poly!au#bts poly!#bts poly au#bts x reader#poly!bts x reader#demons bangtan#bts fanfiction#bts fanfic#bts ff#bts x yn#omegaverse#bts omegaverse au#bts as alphas#y/n as an omega#x y/n#x reader
192 notes
·
View notes
Text
The Responder S2 (spoiler free review)
So, I just finished watching the 2nd season of The Responder.
What. A. Ride.
After the very excellent 1st season (still mad about the BAFTA snub(s) btw.), I wasn't sure if they could pull off the same level of quality again. Ok, the trailer looked great, but I think we can agree that trailers can be deceiving. But let me tell you: they did pull it off. Season 2 is as good as season 1 and I maybe even better.
We don't need to introduce most of the characters any more and dive right into the drama. Season 1 was dark and gritty, and this one is even darker and grittier. That's usually a turn-off for me, but we have that very subtle, very macabre humour again, which I loved (and needed).
The new characters were amazing additions. Bernard Hill (RIP 😢, felt so bittersweet to seem him) as Chris' father and Adam Nagaitis as Franny were both excellent.
The storylines were all very interesting and well executed. There were so many moments where I just mumbled to myself "Jesus Christ, how can it get worse?", but it's never over the top or unbelievable. Just a lot of very bad decisions by most of the characters who have to deal with the shit life is throwing at them and not knowing how to handle it. Really loved Rachel's storyline.
Martin must have loved filming season 2- there is so much more swearing! 🤭😂
Very, very good season!
PS: Don't expect any gifs from me until next week, I am leaving for a short vacation tomorrow (London!!).
@khorazir I am so glad that I waited. 😉
23 notes
·
View notes
Note
One questionable decision each hero made (or always makes), besides life decisions in the backstories…? Would love to hear your take
That was a bit difficult since the characters are so defined by their backstories. But here we go:
Arbalest: Had at least one chance to leave the merc life, maybe to get employment at a hospital, but refused. She doesn't entirely understand why the idea made her so afraid.
Man-at-Arms: Wishes he had told General Whatshisface to get bent and that he was too old for the young ladies he tried to woo. Barristan might have been a vapid fool in the past, but he wasn't the only one.
Grave Robber: Not paying attention to Aunt Margot when she tried to teach her accounting. At least now she would know how to commit tax fraud.
Leper: Baldwin had a few long-term projects for his kingdom he was waiting the "right time" to enact... He never had the chance.
Plague Doctor: Paracelsus was too afflicted to collect samples from the Flesh when they fought it. She greatly regrets that she can't experiment with the changing tissue.
Jester: Always goes "I'm going to finish them off" when battle takes too long. Sarmenti, please, you are a stick, stop throwing yourself at the swinetaurs.
Crusader: Convinced a young man to join the order. He died.
Highwayman: TOO MANY TO COUNT. It's like 70% of his personality.
Bounty Hunter: If you were to believe Tardif, it's giving anybody the time of the day. Actually the one responsible for the Vanilla Extract Incident while baking.
Shieldbreaker: Told the others at one point that she thought her nightmares were done. WRONG, PLISKIN UPON YE.
Antiquarian: Always throws away bandages and antivenom for more loot space.
Occultist: Snubbed a more administrative role at the University so as to not get distracted from his research. The contact with people with regular issues would have done him good.
Vestal: Always asks Audrey what she's up to, always regrets the answer.
Abomination: Refuses every kind offer by the other heroes, then feels bad about it.
Houndmaster: Didn't consider what *other* animals and creatures could hear his dog whistle.
Musketeer: Didn't bring more resources from home.
Flagellant: I mean it's difficult to figure out what decisions he makes that don't count as questionable. But he did commit minor crimes to survive before embracing the Light, and that still weights on him.
Runaway: Miss Poking Unindentified Objects Is Fun.
Hellion: If you want her to make a questionable decision, simply phrase it as a challenge. It will work, no matter how stupid the idea is. And she won't regret it.
43 notes
·
View notes
Text
Describe It to Me | Gyomei Himejima
Word Count: 1761
Setting: Gyomei x gn!reader (reader is a kakushi)
Content Warning(s): mentions of gore/violence, angst
Summary: a tap at your window, an emergency request delivered by a kasugai crow leads you to to devastation and a man you had not seen since the Final Selection.
A/N: full disclosure, I lost where I was going with this, and just cut it short. 🫣
Cries echoed into your ear drums, the stanch scent of iron that threatened the earth beneath your feet. Tarnished soil, dragged and muddled across gore and destruction. Limbs that tangled beneath their own weight, splintered, and shattered in the depths of the dark. The night robbed of light, the moon shied away from the horrors that you bore witnessed too. As though the sight were far too much for the gentle spirit to bear, the devastation littered throughout the landscape.
Trees torn from their roots, evidence of their once productive life, snubbed out with a single thrust. Trunks threatened to smash to bits, the mass majority of branches fractured. Only the occasional splintered branch worth consideration of mulch in the years to come. Left ruined amongst the forest floors. Foliage robbed of any chance of survival, crunched beneath zori. The embroidered mark of the slayers before you as you pressed forward, bundled together in a close knit as kakushi often traveled. Averted eyes that struggled to process the bloody scene. The ache of your heart upon your sleeves, the stench of death that left you unsettled and uneasy. An unusual nightly excursion to a devastated area, the call having been one of desperation begging for aid, a large quantity at that. A Kasugai crow that rattled against your bed window. Rose you from your slumber, leaving you with little time to process the severity of the situation. His delicately obsidian feathers were immaculately maintained soothed only by the night wind. A shadow amongst the cover of the trees, the distinct caws assisting with guiding you amongst the terrain. Small scowls you had been quick to decipher as attempts to assist your travel in the depths of the night. Shooed away any doubts, and anxieties that may have begun to fester in the pit of your stomach, and urged the others of your group to remain steadfast to the cause. Though they were less than tactful at tucking their emotions away, despite the clothes that clung to their features. A final cowl from the Kasugai. You had arrived.
Iron that threatened to spirit away your senses, overwhelming taint that threatened the vile in your stomach. Eyes that followed the trace of gore, and the eyes that met your own. Trembled from the faint glow of the lanterns you bore. Momentarily stunned, and confused, regardless of the time that passed you always found your feet. Bared your weight when your body threatened to give out, carried you regardless of how your heart hesitated. Fingers that weaved and picked through torn uniforms, the furrow of your brows as you patched small scratches, grazed over the smallest of blemishes. Several of the slayers falling in the mizunoto, new recruits that appeared dazed and confused. Dazed to the point that they neither flinched, nor registered the way your hands skated across their craniums. Evaluated their response, their reflexes. All well intact, the flutter of their chests, and raps of their breath as though the air threatened to abandon them. Their heartbeats rattling into your fingers, throbbed in veins and dashing beat, painfully aware of the clammy state of their skin devoid of color. “What happened,” your pressed, their eyebrows at the met of their tone betraying their frustrations. Snubbed of the greet of the teeth, it’s surprising how little the uniform shielded slayers from the wrath of the bearer. Taro’s bad temper once again straying him to rash decision making. A fairly recent transfer, he had indicated the desire to try his hand at caring for the wounded, and assisting their travels to the Butterfly Estate though his bedside manner betrayed any such sentiments. Whispers that the boy had merely wanted to avoid shuffling swordsman to the smithing village not without reason. The youth was tall, and barrel chested, so much so that his uniform left little to the imagination, nor did he take into consideration the way his size towers over the newer recruits, “OI! Answer me.”
“Shock,” you sighed, allowing yourself to draw to your feet. The patches of bandages secured to your patient’s face. The skim of the other kakushi readily at work before cutting your eyes at the kakushi at your side. His annoyance beginning to fester to the point that his fingers had caught at the brows of the patient, threatening to draw them to their feet should they not answer. “A patient that exhibits symptoms of shock should be treated with care—he’s not going to answer you,” the drip of warning poised in your voice. As sharp and lethal as the dagger secured at your hip. All too aware that the cloth shading your features to the night would not protect the inexperienced kakushi from your wrath.
The pitter of voices, fallen into trembled tones. Shook with e ach word that parted from dry lips, guided by the beckoning way of a subordinate. The frantic touch, drawn to rush to their side. Eyes that met the scratch of blood that had met at the top of the skull, being tended to with delicate fingers as the words threatened to overflower. Rattled mumblings of demons, and surprised attacks. The shatter of bark, and the sickening moan that it had released. A giant that could bear the weight of trees, yielded them as mere weapons no more than a means to combat a beast of the night. The tremble of the victim’s eyes and dilated pupils, telling symptoms of hallucinations. Concussions. The passing thought to review their status before the feathers ruffled near your ear. Perched a small creature that threatened to consume the entirety of your shoulder, its little beak peppered through your hair. It’s frail voice near begging, near mournful of its pursuits. The little crow who had dared the darkness of night to seek assistance. “Is this Kasugai perhaps yours,” you whispered to the ramblings of a madman. Ignored, and threatened to send the individual into a state of panic. The threading of their fingers through their hair, scratched into the aches of their scalp murmurs that were incomprehensible. The kakushi at their side, rattled by the sudden lurch of their body. Fumbled and anxious cries that bellowed, drew a finger to your side. Caught your eye at something that emerged from the ground. As though it had splintered the earth. A stone—no, the oddity of the shape a blade of some sort. The nudge of the crow in your ear, feathered through the strands of your hair at the insistence. Hefty, an abandoned blade amongst a battle field, far too aware the severity of such a loss should incur. Lifting upon it, caught amongst muck, an unholy mixture of dirt and blood that threatened to confine the remainder of the weapon. Chains that emerged like the dead from its pull. The sickening staunch of a scent you rarely had interactions with. Brain matter that clung to speared ends. Metal that formed tips, and edge upon the end of the chain. A ball marred by the spikes that bore casualties, the opposite of the hefty discovery clenched between your fingers. An axe and flail, and the weight your heart threatened to stop. The bit of your body stumbled to bear its weight. Giant. Fear taking over the better part of your senses, the distant reflection of a man. A mountain of a main carved from stone by the gods, the callous of his hands curiously embracing the touch of wisteria petals unheeded by the blood at his fingertips. Delighting in the presence of such beautiful fragrance though he would never know the sight that marveled before you. His mere presence the only reason you had survived the Final Selection, and the whisper of his voice, deep and soft, “Describe them to me.”
The only payment he had requested in return for your life.
The rush of feathers fluttered against wings as the shrieks of a scaw rang through your ears. Threatened your senses and drew you to muster what little strength you could manage. Strained muscles shook your core. Numb to the weight, leaving little choice but to draw the tug of the chain. The spike far too much for you to heave as it dragged through the blood-soaked dirt. No time to acknowledge the tears that edged their way to your eyelashes.
“T-Take me to him,” you demanded.
#demon slayer x reader#kimetsu no yaiba x reader#kny x reader#gyomei himejima x reader#gyomei x reader#himejima x reader#gyomei himejima#the stone hashira
26 notes
·
View notes
Text
Ted Lasso Season Finale Thoughts
Because for fuck's sake, Apple, if this is the series finale — I really need to teach y'all about how to do proper marketing. For fuck's sake.
I have *thoughts* for the last episode and I want to put my prediction out there now. Oy is it long...
So we know a lot of this show is a mirror of Sudeikis' life (and we know where he is in the breakup/custody battle based on Ted's emotional state.) taking that premise...WHAT IF...
Let's look at the facts:
Dottie said about Henry missing his dad
When Henry visits he's just so sad and how much he hates having the most frequent flier miles
problems in school (Failing Science, I sympathize Henry)
the bullying (even if that was solved)
Ted's decision to go back to Kansas isn't a permanent move whatsoever — it's to bring Henry home to Richmond.
With how the penultimate episode ended, we assume that Ted's truth bomb is he's leaving. What if, instead, he asks for a brief leave of absence. Leaving but not permanently. Nate is coming back, so the team for their last game is in good hands.
What happens next can go one of three ways:
Mirroring JSuds's life: Ted sues for custody. He gets Henry during the school year; Michelle has him during the summer. And Henry gets to be raised by Ted and Trent and the rest of the himbos. (Probably NOT what will happen, but, bears being included).
Ted arrives in Kansas, and is greeted by Michelle. A Michelle who has done some soul-searching and realizing that Henry needs his dad. After Henry snubs Dr Jake... she does what's right for Henry even if it's hard for her to say goodbye.
Michelle has finally come to her senses about Jake and decides it's time to move to London.
No matter which way they go, the last episode is about bringing Henry home... not Ted returning. Because Ted's home is Richmond. That's where his support system is. This where Henry can thrive. There's no place like Richmond home.
So Long, Farewell — it's not Ted saying goodbye to Richmond; It's Henry saying goodbye to Kansas.
There's the satisfying ending to S3 that's been built up since the pilot. The show has paid off everything it's said it's going to do. But it sets up for a S4 if we get one. How? If Ted's not there when they win... he wasn't there to win the whole fucking thing.
Guess they'll just have to go for back-to-back EPL wins and win the whole fucking thing... again!
AND, because of course I have to throw some Tedependent vibes here...
The episode can still end with a lovely voice over by Trent reading from his book. It pulls back to Trent having a book signing and being swamped by adoring fans. With his partner, Ted, right at his side. 💖 And who knows, Trent might even go back to Kansas with Ted as some moral support.
#ted lasso#ted lasso spoilers#ted lasso spoiler#ted lasso predictions#ted lasso season 3#ted lasso season finale#ted lasso meta#tedependent#because I'm still going to add my ship to my meta so sue me#trent crimm#tedtrent
54 notes
·
View notes
Text
7 Great Films Snubbed at the 95th Academy Awards
This year’s Academy Awards was a controversy-free celebration. Many of the awards handed out went to deserved winners, there were feel-good moments as Ke Huy Quan and Brendan Fraser accepted their awards after years away from the spotlight and there was no doubt that Everything Everywhere All At Once’s historic 7 wins were warranted. But, like all years at the Oscars, there are some omissions that deserved to be included. While we think this year’s winners were a wonderful collection of films, it would be remiss of us if we didn’t talk about some of the great films that were barely included.
1. Decision to Leave
Director: Park Chan-wook | Crime, Drama | Language: Korean
Arguably one of the best film’s from 2022, Chan-wook’s unique Crime Drama solidifies why he’s one of the most distinct Directors working today. The zippy pace and attention to detail are what hook you to Decision to Leave but the Director’s approach to storytelling is wholly unique – even when compared to the films nominated at this year’s Oscars.
Park Chan-wook’s storytelling is akin to that of Paul Thomas Anderson, while they are both dramatically different in style both filmmakers often tell their stories with an enigmatic quality that, although you’re not sure how or why, you are left completely in awe of the talent on show. Decision to Leave may not be as groundbreaking as Oldboy or as pitch-perfect as The Handmaiden, but it still stands head and shoulders above a lot of films released in the same year and while it’s been nominated numerous times over the award season, it feels like a shame not to see it honoured on the big night.
2. The Northman
Director: Robert Eggers | Action, Drama
The only logical reason that Robert Egger’s Viking epic could have been snubbed entirely for this year’s Academy Awards is that it was released so early in the year that it slipped everyone’s minds come voting season. Whether it was the striking score, beautifully constructed sets shot with stunning cinematography, captivating performances not only from the lead Alexander Skarsgard but Nicole Kidman, Anya Taylor-Joy, Ethan Hawke and Willem Dafoe, to the bold and inventive directing, there’s so much worthy of high praise.
Arguably the only aspect lacking compared to Egger’s previous outings is a uniqueness that something like The Lighthouse held – but it’s no excuse for excluding one of the best films of the year from the Oscars, especially when there is so much across the film’s production to celebrate.
3. Nope
Director: Jordan Peele | Horror, Sci-Fi
It’s difficult to pinpoint where exactly Jordan Peele’s newest film fits into the Oscars, potentially for its enigmatic screenplay, wonderful creature design or even for the scene stealing performance by Keke Palmer. But, regardless of where it fits, it seems a shame not to honour such a unique film.
The natural response to seeing one of his films is to compare it to Get Out, the film that won Peele his Oscar and became one of the most important films of the 21st Century. While Nope doesn’t feel as instant in its quality there is good reason to believe that in a few years, audiences will relish Nope for its singularity and also for Peele’s aptitude for storytelling. This is a wonderfully complex, funny and incredibly tense film that despite being snubbed for a lot of awards, will hopefully gather an audience for years to come.
4. The Woman King
Director: Gina Prince-Bythewood | Action, Drama, History | Languages: English, Portuguese
Gina Prince-Bythewood’s historical tale got two nominations at the BAFTAs, one for star Viola Davis’ powerhouse performance and also a nod for the Director herself, leaving to wonder just why it was left out at the Oscars. Davis’ performance, while commanding, was up against a number of fantastic Leading Actress performances this year. But, Bythewood’s lack of nomination seems to be a misstep from the Academy.
There is an argument that structurally The Woman King isn’t much different from a number of action films we’ve seen but what’s more important is the representation and celebration it’s giving to it’s story. In recent years the world has been imploring Hollywood to create more diverse and dynamic roles instead of changing old ones and The Woman King does exactly that. It’s just a shame the Academy wouldn’t celebrate the film as much as we did.
5. Broker
Director: Hirokazu Kore-eda | Comedy, Drama, Crime | Languages: Korean
Many people have compared Hirokazu Kore-eda’s latest film to his 2018 drama Shoplifters. In some ways it’s a spiritual successor (Kore-eda himself calling it a companion piece), skirting some of the same themes of class structure and social standings, as well as the functionalities of family and what makes a ‘traditional’ family. Broker manages to talk about these same issues as well as infusing discussions of parental responsibility whilst keeping the mood light and fun – no easy feat.
Alongside this, Kore-eda somehow manages to make you sympathise with human traffickers – not the most malicious or intelligent, but pursued by the police for their crimes nonetheless. It might not be the home run Shoplifters was, but Broker still manages to inject some incredibly human and joyous moments in a strange tale of selling a child, all in his non-native language of Korean, not missing a step in cultural references either. Whether it was for Best International Film, Original Screenplay, or even an argument can be made for Best Director, the Academy missed a gem of a film this year.
6. Aftersun
Director: Charlotte Wells | Drama
Charlotte Wells’ nostalgic drama is less of a snub due to Paul Mescal’s touching performance getting a nomination, but the film’s quality lies in much more than its performances. At the BAFTAs the director accepted the award for Outstanding Debut and described the film as a eulogy to her Father – something that she achieves with a visceral and subtle reflection of watching someone you love suffer in silence.
As a distinctly British product it’s understandable that this film didn’t shake the Academy voters as much as the BAFTAs, but the film’s gorgeously told story is one of the best of the year. Many films that tell a ‘personal’ story rarely achieve the emotional connection that Aftersun achieves, and while it was a shame not to see more limelight shed on the film as a whole, there is no doubt that everyone will be eagerly awaiting what Wells does next.
7. Bones and All
Director: Luca Guadagino | Drama, Horror, Romance
The most obvious reason for not including Luca Guadagino’s latest film could be the fact it’s a love story road trip about cannibals – but it’s for that same reason it seems like a missed opportunity to open up the wonderfully weird story to the mainstream. With films like Everything, Everywhere All at Once making waves it seems like the Academy are changing their tone to quirky independent cinema, branching into the originality out there.
Whilst it might not have won many awards the performances from Timothee Chalamet, and more notably Taylor Russell and Mark Rylance, are enticing and exciting, bringing a grounded and relatable edge to a story that could have easily been disconnected and unrelatable. Guadagnino balances David Kajganich’s script with ease and a certain aesthetic beauty that many people first noticed in Call Me by Your Name – despite being in an unusual narrative, comes together in an intoxicating (and sometimes terrifying) coming of age tale.
#decision to leave#the northman#nope#the woman king#broker#aftersun#bones and all#jordan peele#robert eggers#charlotte wells#film review#film list#movie review#movie list#oscars 2023#oscars#academy awards#oscar snubs#filmsfromreel
28 notes
·
View notes
Text
#1:
Perhaps making Malfoy a prefect was the wrong decision. Certainly the boy was charming enough, and a leadership role on his Hogwarts resume would only bolster his career prospects where ever the boy chose to land after graduation...
Except he'd told Malfoy to tell the boy to come see him after class and yet it was nearly nightfall and time for dinner and the boy still had not presented himself --
A timid knock on the doorframe interrupted his thoughts, made by the very subject of his peturbance.
"You wanted to see me, sir?"
At least, that's what he assumes that the Snape boy is asking underneath his atrocious accent. Bad enough for this child of such obviously inauspicious origins to be sorted into his house, but to have been doubly burdened with a decidedly regional elocution as well? Terrible. Terrible. The poor thing might have done better in an environment more conducive to his... unique challenges, but who was he, the Head of Slytherin House, to challenge the Sorting Hat's decision?
"Yes, my boy, I did -- come in, come in. Although I believe when Mr. Malfoy told you to come to see me today, we both rather meant for you to arrive at the start of my office hours, and not the very end."
The boy mumbles something that might be an apology, and only perches himself stiffly on the Cordovan leather chair after he makes a second entreaty for him to sit. Someone, somewhere instilled the bare minimum of manners into the boy. Perhaps there was something trainable there underneath... everything else.
"I had intended us to have a proper tea, but this close to dinner I'm afraid you'll spoil your appetite."
He hands the boy a cup of tea, which the boy accepts with whatever "thank you" is in his mother tongue. The boy takes the drink without milk or sugar, he notes for the unlikely future where they might be having tea under more promising state of affairs. Unusual taste this one. Even the Malfoy boy had habitually turned his tea into a milky-sweet mess once long ago, before his palate had refined with the onset of puberty. Even he drank this particular blend with a bit of sugar to tame it's acidic bite.
"I won't have you think I've been snubbing you, my boy, meeting with your year-mates first and leaving our meeting until so late... It's just the first week of classes is very busy for a teacher and House Head like myself, and you are something of a... special case that I wanted to devote some time to."
He takes a fortifying sip of tea before he begins wading into the tricky bit of this matter.
He couldn't recall when the last time someone of a muggle background had been sorted into Slytherin, and he'd been Head of House for decades now. Not that he would be biased against someone just because of their humble beginnings, but speaking from his experience perhaps it was best for all involved if the muggleborns were sorted elsewhere. Children could be so cruel to those who were different than them. He'd even seen half-bloods struggle, if their homes had leaned too muggle before they'd come to Hogwarts.
"I trust that your first week has gone well?"
He'd told Malfoy to keep an eye on the boy after the sorting -- whatever his parentage, the boy was one of theirs now. Outsiders frequently misinterpreted simple pecking order tussles as something more nefarious than they were, and soon innocent people were being accused of being pureblood supremacists.
"You're getting along with your roommates?"
There had been one of these spats between the Snape boy and his roommate Avery after the first day of classes. An unfortunately public brawl in the common room, where anyone could see. Fortunately, Malfoy had been able to break it up before much more than a bloodied nose occurred.
"My boy, I know you are very new here still, and getting used to how things work here, but I'm quite concerned about the tales you've been telling about being a half-blood. Do you know what a half-blood is?"
The boy's brow furrows as he scowls, making himself somehow even more homely than before. He'll have to work on that if he's ever going to survive the deficits of his background.
"On your mother's side? Well then... yes, I suppose you count. It's just not typically the way -- and what is your mother's name?"
Irene? Maybe he should make the boy write it down, but his penmanship is likely as bad as his diction.
"No, no... What was her family name before she married, that's the important thing--"
A gormless shrug. Well, Malfoy had his work cut out for him if he wanted to make this lump of clay into his fag for the year. Not only was he unattractive, poorly articulated, and ignobly bred but he was clearly a bit stupid as well. The Headmaster had been on him for the past few years to end the practice of fagging entirely, but how else would students like this Snape boy learn if not mentored by one of the older boys? He couldn't be expected to handle the task molding young minds alone!
"I see... well, it is time for dinner so off you go. Do try to listen to Mr. Malfoy, he's got a good head on his shoulders. He'll be going places and if you're lucky he'll take you with him."
85 notes
·
View notes
Text
[ matchmaking... ]
@pleasehelpaaaa : [ match report ready ]
your match is…
✦ Angel Dust
-> [ The Hazbin Hotel seems like a decent place to hide away from Vox’s attention and ire. ] Sure, you could consider staying at whatever home you’ve made for yourself in hell… But perhaps it would be a good idea to have a backup where you could hide yourself away from a certain overlord that you managed to upset. While you’d prefer not to put the hotel inhabitants at any sort of risk, you’ve probably gathered enough information to know that you’ll probably be safe from Vox there due to Alastor’s presence. Whether you’re interested in Charlie’s mission or not regarding redemption is essentially irrelevant - you’ll make your decision to stay or leave as it suits you, though playing up the idea that you’re considering redemption will allow you to assimilate a little better. Regardless, Charlie makes it a point to introduce you to everyone and you’ll spend enough time there to get to know the inhabitants at least a little.
-> [ Angel Dust finds your hesitance in opening up about your insecurities - and often joking about it when you do - to be very relatable. ] Honestly, it takes a long time for either of you to admit anything about your own insecurities, refusing to be vulnerable around anyone until they’re a stable, trustworthy presence in your lives. Even then, it can be a little daunting. Though Angel likes getting the juicy deets about things when he can, he doesn’t really force people to open up and knows when to drop an issue. There are no expectations from either of you to bare your hearts to each other when you’re not ready. Thankfully for you, he doesn’t react badly when you decide to talk about your issues in a joking manner, often laughing right along with you. He understands where you’re coming from - sometimes he just wants to get things off his chest in the moment without the pressure of having a serious conversation.
-> [ He plays up the flirtiness with everyone, so it ends up being extremely difficult for you to tell when he’s actually trying to flirt properly with you (even if others can tell he’s serious). ] There’s a softer look in his eyes and a shift in the tone of his voice, his compliments towards you becoming increasingly genuine and wholesome. But because Angel has always gone heavy with the playful, friendly flirting, it’s hard for you to discern if he’s still just being friendly due to your struggles with reading people. For a while, he did wonder if you were purposefully acting like you weren’t getting the hint, but in his eyes you really didn’t seem like the type to play dumb like that. Eventually he will just have to straight out say that he’s interested in you. But don’t worry - he actually finds it really funny and endearing that you can be a bit oblivious.
-> [ Fat Nuggets completely adores you and you end up becoming his secondary caretaker. ] Whenever you and Angel Dust would hang out in his room, the little demonic pig would always snuggle right up to you. He warmed up to you quite quickly! Angel wasn’t sure if he wanted to be impressed or jealous considering his pig would snub him off just to run right up to you. Admittedly, despite the fact that he knows how much you care about animals (and Fat Nuggets in particular), it still took Angel Dust quite a while before he felt comfortable letting you keep an eye on the little guy while he was out. He can be a bit overprotective of his pet. But the arrangement ends up working out quite well, and Angel is glad that you’re willing to watch (and pamper) Fat Nuggets when he has to work long hours. It really puts him at ease.
-> [ He is so much taller than you it’s almost ridiculous. ] Angel (unfortunately) does tease you about it, often ruffling your soft, fluffy hair as he practically drapes himself over you. He is definitely the type of menace that will use you as an armrest if the two of you are standing next to each other for a while (probably listening to one of Charlie’s spiels as she tries to get everyone to warm up to each other). If it bothers you, just swat him off - he won’t do it again for a while. Angel doesn’t mean to upset you when he does things like this - teasing is part of his own personal love language. But if there’s ever anything he does that genuinely upsets you, he has no qualms about backing off. (A side consideration… you may dislike spiders and other insects, but perhaps you could tolerate a humanoid one? He’s got soft fur, and no creepy mandibles!)
-> [ Even if you struggle with comforting others and dealing with their emotional outbursts, Angel appreciates the effort. ] Everyone has their flaws - he knows that all too well himself - and interpersonal relationships can really highlight one’s imperfections. Angel Dust can be a bit reactive at times, there’s a lot of shit that he’s dealing with and he knows that he doesn’t always process things in the healthiest ways. He might lash out or shut down, turn to self-destructive tendencies on occasion. He’s not the easiest to deal with it at times, and you find it difficult to truly comfort him and calm him down. But honestly? Angel doesn’t need some pity party, and he doesn’t really need you to completely understand and empathize with him. As long as he knows you’re still there for him in the end… that’s all he can really ask for.
-> [ Despite his line of work, Angel Dust still enjoys physical touch with those he genuinely likes. ] Some may think that the sheer amount of physical intimacy that he has to engage in on a regular basis would turn him off of such affection out of work, but that’s not exactly the case. Sure, he may not want to be super touchy-feely right after work, but once he’s had a bit of time to freshen up and unwind he’s happy to snuggle up to you. It’s simply different when it comes to people he genuinely cares about. Cuddling is one of his favorite things to do - he enjoys wrapping a set of arms or two around you while you two are watching a movie of your choosing. The extra arms are nice because he can hold you while he idly scrolls on his phone, something he often does if you’re engrossed in a book.
honorable mention…
✦ Vox
Seriously considered this match mostly because of the idea of you catching his attention and angering him when you accidentally fuck up his networks, but there is a lot of good potential for you two! Regardless, that being your introduction to each other is hilarious and would make for some interesting first interactions as he tries to figure out how the heck you even managed to cause so many problems for him. It’s definitely a different dynamic compared to the one you’d have with Angel Dust - one that is entertaining, but ultimately a bit more volatile in a way that you find exhausting. Vox can get a bit overbearing, clingy, and obnoxious, and his emotional highs may be difficult for you to navigate at times. He’s got a bit of a temper (no matter how much he tries to play it off) and may become frustrated with your forgetfulness and obliviousness. Still, the banter you could have with him would be amazing, and he’d be an interesting one to talk to if you wanted to pick his brain about a variety of topics.
#user matchup#exchange#i had a hard time picking someone for you!! i kept tossing around different ideas!! but i liked this dynamic most#hazbin hotel
2 notes
·
View notes
Text
WIP Wednesday
Tagged by @dujour13!! Thanks so much--I have been focusing more on drawing than writing lately but unlike my writing drawings don't look good till they're done so here's a bit from chapter 3 of Daeran fic (which at this rate is going to get finished before chapter 2 lol).
----
It's the movement from the guards stiffening to attention that alerts Daeran to the figure walking his way. She is still in the armor that she wore at Iz, when she threw herself into the maw of Deskari's trap and emerged alive. Then, she'd looked regal and triumphant and only half as contrite to Sparrow as she should have been. She'd graced Daeran with a nod as cold and remote as he'd ever seen from her, as if he'd just successfully pulled off yet another grand statement snubbing the Mendevian old guard, and not just miraculously come back from the dead and the horrors of the Abyss.
She does not look cold or regal now. Her armor is stained from the battle in Iz, and her pinned hair and her face is spattered with crusted blood. She looks tired, like the sun orchard elixir is only wallpaper over her century and more of living. The expression she wears when staring at him, sitting right outside the war room waiting for Sparrow, is complicated.
"Hello," the queen of Mendev says. Her voice is low, and slightly hoarse. "Do you mind if I sit next to you?"
She doesn't wait for a response, for Daeran's refusal--and it would have been a refusal, as if he wants to sit next to his honored cousin--but when she does settle next to him, he doesn't rise. He's waiting for Sparrow after all. If the lauded queen wishes to endure his presence until the Knight Commander arrives, he is not going to flee from her presence.
It is several minutes of silence thick enough to cut a dagger through before Galfrey sighs. "I'm sorry."
It takes a second for the words to register as real--but Daeran would never even dare to imagine Galfrey apologizing. It's enough for his self-control to break and to stop pretending she isn't there; when he looks over, Galfrey is already turned slightly toward him, her lips tight.
He finally recognizes the expression on her face: guilt. He doesn't even think he's seen her show something as mortal as guilt before.
"For what, exactly?" His voice is hard. "Sending us to the abyss to what was, in retrospect, almost certainly our deaths? Or something else? I never did forgive you for how you made me cut short my little sorcerer's contest in '14."
Galfrey ignores the barb. "Stopping the Nahyndrian crystals by any means was necessary for the war efforts as a whole. If anyone could have survived it, it was the Commander--and she did. But. I should not have let you go with her. I should not have forced you to stay in the Crusade in the first place. It was...rash. And it ultimately put you in more danger than you should have ever been placed in."
Half a dozen responses form in Daeran's mind--how if he'd really wanted to leave the Crusade, he would have found a way. How Galfrey's petty little revenge had become the best thing that had ever happened to him. How he didn't need her, or anyone, to baby him, and that he was capable of making his own decisions--and had made them already, when it came to so many things about the Crusade and its Knight Commander.
He gives a graceful half-shrug, turning his attention away from Galfrey in a cutting end to the conversation. "I rather imagined you'd be glad to see the back of me. I can hardly tarnish my family's good name and my mother's legacy if I was already where everyone assumed I belonged anyway."
To his surprise, Galfrey lets out a small chuckle. "You're hardly beyond recall. Your mother was a hellion in her younger years as well, you know," she comments.
It's rare for Daeran to be rendered speechless, but he opens his mouth and for several seconds, no words come out. Not once in his life has his mother's memory ever been anything than that of a paragon of virtue. Finally, he says, "Excuse me?"
"Oh yes." Galfrey straightens, some life returning to her expression as she recalls the distant past. "She even ran away from home, tried to renounce her title. Your grandparents were far more traditional in their upbringing, and Silaena apparently chafed under the expectations of her role. She went off when she was--maybe a few years younger than you at the time, really. Joined a traveling theater troupe."
#cassy writes#cassy wips#i should make like a general statement but--if i ever post a WIP i welcome constructive criticism for it!#if something looks good awesome love hearing it. if it DOESN'T also feel free to let me know if it's still in progress#wotr#this scene is my self indulgent “giving Silaena a life” part of the story#also just obviously galfrey and daeran should have had a convo after iz lol
11 notes
·
View notes
Text
'Andrew Haigh's All of Us Strangers is finally available to watch widely after a very slow theatrical release. While this film has been snubbed for many awards, it is still spectacular, complimented by fantastic performances from Andrew Scott and Paul Mescal. Based on the novel Strangers by Taichi Yamada, All of Us Strangers provides its own interpretation of the story by changing not only the setting but the romance as well. Its introduction of queer themes enhances the emotional journey of its central character, which concludes with a devastating revelation. At its core, All of Us Strangers is more about the experience of grief, reconciliation, and moving on than it is about a conclusive, straightforward narrative. The film naturally leaves a lot up to interpretation for the audience, delivering a heartbreaking ending that feels earned.
What Is 'All of Us Strangers' About?
All of Us Strangers focuses on Adam (Scott), a lonely screenwriter based in London who is attempting to write about his long-dead parents. The film begins with a fire alarm in his apartment building. Adam evacuates, seemingly the only tenant to do so, and looks up at the empty building to see a man, Harry (Mescal), looking down at him from the window. After Adam returns to his apartment, there's a knock at the door. Harry, a bottle of whiskey in hand, leaning on the door frame. Through their short conversation, it's understood that Harry, above all else, doesn't want to be alone. Adam rejects Harry's offer to spend the night together, and he solemnly returns to his apartment. As the days go on, Adam comes to regret this decision and eventually invites Harry in, beginning a romantic relationship with him.
As this relationship blossoms, Adam is attempting to write about his parents, who both died in a car crash when Adam was a young child. Struck with writer's block, he starts looking over mementos from his childhood, finding an old photo of his former home. It's then that he decides to go back and visit for the first time in his adult life. There, he finds his parents, the same age as when they died, a few years younger than Adam is now and aware of the fact that they have been dead for decades. They invite him like an old friend they haven't seen in a long time, eager to hear what their son has been up to for the past 30 years.
‘All of Us Strangers’ Is Just as Much About Romance as It Is About Grief
The entirety of the film is a back-and-forth battle in Adams' life between living happily with Harry and going back to have time and important conversations with his parents that he never got to have. It's not all pretty, and that's what makes it feel all the more real. These visits change him in good and bad ways. His life is suddenly revolving around the ghosts of his parents like an addiction, yet Adam is opening up more to Harry because of them, with Harry only coming to Adam's apartment. He even tells Harry of his parents' death, a car crash that killed his father instantly, but left his mother in the hospital for some time before she died, showing how intimate their relationship has become.
Still, as he visits them more and more, his parents realize that he will waste the rest of his life there with them instead of trying to find some semblance of happiness with Harry, especially after Harry has an adverse reaction to what Adam is doing in his childhood home. It also seems that the more he visits his parents, the more Adam gets sick and weak. Both his parents and Harry mention his high temperature, and he coughs more and more throughout the runtime. When they tell him that this situation is preventing him from moving on, Adam says "It hasn't been long enough." To which his mother (Claire Foy) replies "It never could be, could it?" The film already sets up the idea that despite this situation providing more time, he's still going to lose them, and nothing can stop that. He is clinging to the past, abandoning a possible future for himself.
He journeys with his parents to a restaurant that they frequented when he was a child, and even orders "the family special," despite appearing alone to other diners. In the end, the most interesting part of this culmination between a child and his parents is that he ends up comforting them just as much as they do him. Despite protest from his mother, Adam's father (Jamie Bell) asks him if both of their deaths were quick. Adam lies and tells them yes, despite the contradictory story he tells Harry earlier on in the film about the car crash, just to give them a final bit of solace before they move on. In their final moments, they tell Adam that they are proud that he is just still here, living. They have nothing else left to say except their love for each other. In the end, they horrifyingly relive their deaths in front of Adam's eyes, and just before they both disappear, his mother makes him promise to try with Harry, to try and make each other's lives a bit happier.
Paul Mescal's Harry Has Been Dead the Entire Time
After losing his parents yet again, he follows the words of his mother and seeks out Harry, whose relationship with him has gotten rocky as Adam has spent more time with the ghosts of his parents. But this time he goes to Harry's apartment instead. Immediately after entering Harry's apartment, he discovers Harry's dead body in his bed. We see a glimpse of his body, with the same whiskey bottle he had when Adam turned him away that first night. It's safe to assume between the bottle being the same, and the discoloration of his hand, that Harry has been dead since the first night they met, and we already know Adam can see ghosts.
After spending a few moments with Harry's body, someone walks into the apartment: Harry himself, again in the same clothes as his body, bottle in hand. Adam confesses that he was too scared to let Harry into his apartment, also serving as a confession that he was too scared for anything to happen between them romantically. Between the loneliness of the two of them, it's clear Harry understands. Yet again, Adam comforts the dead, reassuring Harry that he is not in the bedroom, but instead here in front of him. Adam takes Harry back to his apartment, where they lie in bed together for the final moments of the film. Their conversation wraps up the themes of the film beautifully. Harry asks Adam if he got to say everything he wanted to his parents before they moved on. Adam, unsure, says "I don't know, but I got to be with them." There is constant pressure to get everything you need to say out for closure, but All of Us Strangers proposes that simply being together is enough. The film ends with exactly that, the two of them embracing in bed (if you look closely enough, Harry is in the same position as his corpse is in his apartment), the camera pulls out, their bodies forming a singular star in a vast universe.
Is Adam Dead in 'All of Us Strangers'?
All of Us Strangers intentionally leaves a lot for the viewer to entertain while watching. From the exact moment Harry dies to whether the ghosts Adam is haunted by are even real or a figment of his imagination. That brings the biggest question the film suggests: Is Adam dead like his loved ones around him? While this film can be read as a straightforward ghost story about the reality of grief and loneliness, the oddness of the film suggests there is more at play here. Many scenes in this film feel like a dream. This was even commented on by Andrew Scott, saying "I feel very strongly that the film is like a dream [...] [Andrew Haigh's] achievement is that he directs us towards the feeling, rather than the logic of what the feeling might be." Haigh pushes the audience to understand the feelings Adam is experiencing, rather than presenting something that is more logical plot-wise.
From the distorted, almost scary subway sequence, to the disorienting club sequence where we first get a glimpse that there may be something more going on with Harry, this film is not afraid to push into the fantastical. For this theory, the beginning of the film is the most important, as it starts with a fire alarm. In a bit of awkward conversation following that alarm, Harry quips "One day it'll be for real, that alarm." Throughout the film, Adam coughs and gets increasingly hotter, something noted by his parents. It's possible that Adam is dying, or already dead, due to a fire in his apartment. The entirety of this film could be a flash before his death, or limbo for his spirit to wander until he has enough closure to move on. It would certainly explain the more interpretive sides of the movie. The only scene that could discredit it is where he interacts with the waitress. But the beauty of this film is that it doesn't matter, the message stays the same, and it wouldn't mean any less if Adam were alive or dead. Haigh sums it up perfectly in an interview with Entertainment Weekly, "In many ways, the whole film to me was a love letter saying, it's okay. It's quite hard. You've all been through some stuff, but you can move on from this and you can find love." Sometimes, time spent together is all you need, even if it may never be enough.'
#Andrew Haigh#Andrew Scott#All of Us Strangers#Claire Foy#Jamie Bell#Paul Mescal#Taichi Yamada#Strangers
4 notes
·
View notes
Text
Messi didn’t snub Barca or reject them
He’s always been so clear. He could’ve left Barca at any point of his career for money, he never did. He was willing to take a 50% pay cut for Barca, they barely gave him the decency of a head’s up but spent an entire season promising that they’d keep him and then switched up within 48 hours. He could’ve accepted the Miami offer or the Saudi offer MUCH earlier, his dad has been reportedly speaking with Laporta for over a month now.
How is that Barca are still struggling with management over two years after letting Messi go? Wasn’t him leaving supposed to solve things? Pique even said it himself recently, he left his contract early to give Barca breathing room financially yet they are still struggling. Jordi and Busi just left and yet they are still struggling. They only RECENTLY registered Gavi as a player with La Liga and he’s literally a teenager. Imagine how much more difficult it would’ve been for Messi, if they did sign him. They couldn’t even guarantee him that much.
Laporta is two years into his term as President and he still hasn’t formed a solid financial agenda and while they keep buddying up with Madrid in this weird anti-Tebas campaign, Madrid are spending money loosely and freely.
Messi is completely right in putting him and his family first and making his decision instead of wasting an entire summer on a board that has proven to still be mismanaged.
#now barca fans can find someone else to blame since Messi is COMPLETELY out of the picture now#Messi talks about how hard his leave was on Antonella and how the kids found out through the media#why would he want to waste more time worrying about where he'll go next#I do not have confidence in Laporta but im just glad he cant mess with Messi anymore#the fact that he was even giving them the time of day was miraculous#my post
9 notes
·
View notes
Text
mak’s 95th oscar picks
i have somehow managed to watch all 54 films nominated for an academy award this year (!!!), so here’s my #1 pick for each category and my runner up! this isn’t what i think the academy will choose, but what i think personally deserves it
(note: these don’t necessarily represent my favorite film in each category, for example my runner up in best picture is not what i enjoyed second most, but what i think is second most deserving of the oscar)
some categories will also have a “i will be actively angry if this wins” pick and also some major snubs (only of films i’ve seen though. for example, many agree danielle deadwyler was snubbed for Till but i have not seen it so that snub will not be listed)
to find my review out of 5 stars for all these films, and also a list of 2022 feature length films (non-documentaries) ranked in my personal favorite order, check out my letterboxd!
best picture:
winner: everything everywhere all at once
runner up: the banshees of inisherin
second runner up (bc this category is huge): all quiet on the western front
will be actively angry if it wins: tr*angle of sadness, t*r, avatar: the way of water
snubs: the woman king, NOPE
best director:
winner: steven spielberg, the fabelmans
runner up: the daniels, everything everywhere all at once
will be actively angry if they win: t*dd field, t*r; ruben ostl*nd, tr*angle of sadness
snubs: park chan-wook, decision to leave; jordan peele, NOPE; gina prince-bythewood, the woman king
best actor:
winner: colin farrell, the banshees of inisherin
runner up: austin butler, elvis
will be actively angry if he wins: br*ndan fr*ser, the wh*le (do NOT @ me for this if you haven’t actually seen the movie. i love him as a person and an actor too but that movie was a dehumanizing spectacle that shouldn’t have been nominated for anything, and his performance wasn’t great bc the script wasn’t anything that lent itself to a good performance)
best actress:
winner: michelle yeoh, everything everywhere all at once
runner up: cate blanchett, t*r (blocking this out bc i’m otherwise really negative about the movie)
will be actively angry if she wins: an* de arm*s, bl*nde
snub: viola davis, the woman king
extra note: whatever the FYC said, michelle williams was not a lead in fabelmans. her performance was fantastic, but she deserved a best supporting nom, bc the solo lead was gabriel labelle, but we don’t appreciate young actors enough to acknowledge that
best supporting actor:
winner: ke huy quan, everything everywhere all at once
runner up: barry keoghan, the banshees of inisherin (though a very close runner up race with brian tyree henry for causeway)
snub: paul dano, the fabelmans
best supporting actress:
winner: angela bassett, black panther: wakanda forever
runner up: stephanie hsu, everything everywhere all at once
will be actively angry if she wins: jam*e lee c*rtis, everything everywhere all at once (if she wins over both bassett and hsu i swear to GOD)
snubs: keke palmer, NOPE; lashana lynch, the woman king
best original screenplay:
winner: everything everywhere all at once
runner up: the banshees of inisherin
will be actively angry if it wins: tr*angle of sadness
best adapted screenplay:
winner: women talking
runner up: all quiet on the western front
best animated feature film:
winner: puss in boots: the last wish
runner up: marcel the shell with shoes on
best international feature film:
winner: argentina, 1985
runner up: all quiet on the western front
snub: decision to leave (dir. park chan-wook)
best documentary feature:
winner: all the beauty and the bloodshed
runner up: fire of love
will be actively angry if it wins: nav*lny (which will most likely actually win)
best documentary short subject:
winner: the elephant whisperers
runner up: haulout
will be actively angry if they win: stranger at the gate, how do you measure a year? (not bothering to block these out bc stranger is actively infuriating, and how do you measure barely anyone saw)
extra note: i didn’t super care for any of these, but i found the elephant whisperers cute and heartwarming, so it definitely gets my vote
best live action short film:
winner: the red suitcase
runner up: an irish goodbye
will be actively angry if it wins: night ride (please don’t watch this. the vast majority of the film is just a bunch of transphobia couched in a “happy” ending to make it apparently okay)
best animated short film:
winner: ice merchants
runner up: an ostrich told me the world was fake, and i think i believe it
will be actively angry if it wins: honestly anything in this category that isn’t ice merchants bc it deserves it that much, but particularly the flying sailor and the boy, the mole, the fox, and the horse
best original score:
winner: justin hurwitz, babylon
runner up: volker bertelmann, all quiet on the western front
snubs: michael giacchino, the batman; harold faltermeyer, hans zimmer, lady gaga, and lorne balfe, top gun: maverick
best original song:
winner: “naatu naatu,” RRR
runner up: “lift me up,” black panther: wakanda forever
will be actively angry if it wins: “applause,” tell it like a woman
snub: “i ain’t worried,” top gun: maverick
best sound:
winner: top gun: maverick
runner up: the batman
extra note: the academy needs to split this one back up into best sound mixing and best sound editing
best production design:
winner: elvis
runner up: all quiet on the western front
best cinematography:
winner: all quiet on the western front
runner up: bardo, false chronicle of a handful of truths
will be actively angry if it wins: t*r, emp*re of light (this category SUCKS this year)
snubs: decision to leave; NOPE; top gun: maverick; the batman (this category SUCKS this year!!!! the only one of the nominees that should be there is all quiet and these four should’ve gotten the other spots)
best makeup and hairstyling:
winner: all quiet on the western front
runner up: black panther: wakanda forever
will be actively angry if it wins: the wh*le
best costume design:
winner: black panther: wakanda forever
runner up: mrs. harris goes to paris
will be actively angry if it wins: babylon (those costumes are NOT period accurate!!!!)
best film editing:
winner: everything everywhere all at once
runner up: elvis
will be actively angry if it wins: t*r, the banshees of inisherin, top gun: maverick
extra notes: literally the other three don’t come anywhere near fucking close to the top two. i switched back and forth between my winner and runner up a decent amount tbh, they’re both fantastic editing wise)
best visual effects:
winner: avatar: the way of water
runner up: top gun: maverick
will be actively angry if it wins: anything but avatar. the movie sucked but it’s the obvious winner here. the special effects are insane
7 notes
·
View notes
Text
WASHINGTON — The son of an elderly US citizen recently handed a 16-year, three-month prison sentence by Saudi Arabia for tweeting told The Post he’s outraged at how President Biden and his deputies bungled the case.
“He sold my father for oil, that’s clear to us. Especially when we saw the news last week about how they requested to delay the OPEC [oil production cuts] decision a month [until after the election],” Ibrahim Almadi told The Post on Tuesday.
Biden visited the oil-rich kingdom in July without winning the release of 72-year-old Saad Almadi or even publicly mentioning the case. The elder Almadi was convicted and sentenced Oct. 3 — after the State Department failed to send a representative to observe proceedings.
“Biden just cares about votes. He doesn’t care about my father, he doesn’t care about American citizens,” Ibrahim added. “He got sold for oil, but they didn’t receive the oil. So there is no father, no oil. There’s nothing — there is only shame, that is what the White House has got now.”
Ibrahim Almadi told The Post he was encouraged by the US government to avoid seeking publicity — only to have officials do little to help. His father lived in the US since the 1970s and was detained in November 2021 during a visit to Saudi Arabia to sell property.
Saad Almadi’s lengthy prison sentence, linked to 14 tweets, was first reported Monday night by the Washington Post and follows similarly harsh penalties given to Saudi residents who lack US citizenship — often for criticizing Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman, the country’s de facto ruler.
“This is outrageous. A 72-year-old U.S. citizen was sentenced to 16 years in prison and subject to torture in *Saudi Arabia* for years-old tweets he posted while in the United States,” tweeted Sarah McLaughlin of the pro-free speech group the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression.
A State Department official confirmed to Washington Post columnist Josh Rogin that the department failed to alert the US Embassy in Riyadh when the hearing date was changed to Oct. 3 and that “unfortunately, that information wasn’t passed [to the embassy]. That is something we deeply regret.”
The mixup was the latest in a series of stinging snubs experienced by US-based relatives of Almadi and at least three other US citizens, who are not imprisoned currently but are banned from leaving Saudi Arabia.
Biden visited the kingdom in the summer to smooth over relations with bin Salman after US gasoline prices hit all-time average highs of more than $5 per gallon in June.
Biden previously tried to sideline bin Salman over the US intelligence community’s conclusion that he ordered the 2018 operation that killed another Washington Post columnist, Jamal Khashoggi. Although the president exchanged a fist bump with bin Salman, who is widely known by his initials, MBS, Saudi Arabia led the OPEC+ cartel in moving to cut oil production weeks later, embarrassing Biden.
“MBS is just challenging,” Ibrahim Almadi told The Post. “He wants to see how far he can get with Biden. Let’s be honest: If I do something to you and you don’t put boundaries or react, guess what I’m going to do? I’m going to move forward with my abusive actions toward you.”
Before Biden’s trip, the younger Almadi said he called the White House switchboard almost every day from late May to try to speak with Stephanie Hallett, the National Security Council’s acting senior director for the Middle East and North Africa. At one point, a White House phone operator allegedly asked, “Why do you want to talk to someone who doesn’t want to talk to you?”
In August, after Biden’s visit, a State Department official allegedly laughed at Almadi’s complaint that his father, a registered Republican in Florida, would be unable to vote in the Nov. 8 midterm elections.
“I am Democratic myself. I voted for Biden, which is a stupid mistake I did,” Ibrahim said. “My father’s a Republican registered voter. He wants to participate in the coming election. They laughed and said that your father should request a paper ballot.”
If Biden doesn’t consider it his job to help free US citizens held abroad like his father, Almadi added, he should “get the f–k out of the White House.”
Saad Almadi visited his homeland without thinking of his relatively benign tweets commenting on Saudi affairs, his son said.
The offending messages included remarks that officials were unable to protect national borders amid rocket fire from Iran-allied Houthi rebels in Yemen, encouragement of acquiring Lebanese citizenship and agreement with naming a street after Khashoggi.
In contrast with Biden’s handling of Almadi’s case, the president has publicly advocated repeatedly for Russia to release professional basketball player Brittney Griner, who pleaded guilty in July to possessing a small amount of cannabis oil when she was detained at a Moscow airport in February. The administration also recently won the negotiated released of dual US-Venezuelan citizens from Caracas.
Ali al-Ahmed, whose cousin, Dr. Bader al-Ibrahim, is not allowed to leave Saudi Arabia despite facing no criminal charges, also told The Post he’s frustrated with the Biden administration.
“They should not discriminate between Brittney Griner or Saad Almadi or others. If this man was in Russia or Iran or Venezuela, I think [Biden] would have spoken strongly and acted strongly,” said al-Ahmed, a longtime US-based analyst of Saudi affairs and president of the Committee for American Hostages in Saudi Arabia.
“If they can get seven Americans out of Venezuela and raise hell about Griner, this was the easy case,” al-Ahmed said.
The Saudi Embassy in Washington and the White House did not immediately respond to The Post’s requests for comment.
A White House official in July defended the Biden administration’s performance and insisted that Biden privately raised detainee cases during his visit to the kingdom.
“President Biden is aware of the cases of four US citizens subject to travel bans in Saudi Arabia. Members of his team met recently with representatives and family members of individuals in this status,” the official said. “The president also raised their cases with the Saudi government during his recent visit. We will continue to press at the highest levels for these travel bans to be lifted.”
15 notes
·
View notes
Last Seen Blogs
appl3cookieswriting
appl3cookies writing
0straghttumbler0
Untitled
memesnotwelcome
Suggested Reading
finniqans
lie there, my art.
higherpich
pich ♡