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bangtancentricsblog · 4 years

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the fallout

i wasn’t planning on taking forever to update this but i did sorry i hope you guys enjoy it. Thank you again to my lovely wife @boymeetsweevil 😍💜💖

WARNINGS: angst, mentions of: (emotional abuse, verbal abuse, manhandling, forced sex{?}), idk please tell me if anything is particularly triggering!

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Yoongi is buying weed from Jungkook when Jimin comes bursting into the apartment and manages to land a solid punch to his face. He’s not expecting it, hell at this very moment he can’t figure out what prompted it, but it's when he sees her come barreling after Jimin that he understands. Jimin pulls him up to continue his assault and Yoongi just takes it, Jungkook stands to the side alarmed and hesitates to intervene; it's the appearance of Taehyung that shocks the boy into action wrapping his arms around Jimin to pull him off Yoongi. Jimin’s face is an ugly shade of red as he screams his words at Yoongi, it’s been a month and a half since he’s been sleeping with ____ and so far it’s been a well kept secret. He doesn’t know how Jimin even found out, it’s not like she would willingly offer up the information.

“My sister? Are you fucking crazy, did you know she was in a relationship?!” he yells shoving Jungkook off of him.

“Jimin!” she screams eyes wide when Yoongi meets her stare. For the first time since they’ve met her expression is unreadable. She doesn’t deny it, and something in Yoongi doesn’t feel right. He should’ve known, a girl like her certainly wasn’t single, especially not when she was attending a school away from home. He’s blocked out Jimin’s voice, can only hear the way his thoughts grow louder and the tiny voice in the very back of his head reminds him that he deserves this. He chuckles and he can feel the way Jimin stiffens even when he can’t see him. Taehyung is burning holes in his head, so is Jungkook, both of his friends thoroughly confused by the sudden change in Yoongi. He shakes Taehyung off of him, rolls his shoulders, sniffling and wiping at the blood coming from his nose.

“That’s the first I’ve heard of it, at least she’ll have some nice memories to keep her warm when she leaves.” he laughs, smirking at her, he can taste the blood that's slipped between the seam of his lips. Her cheeks are flushed, the shade looks nice but he doesn’t know if it’s because she’s embarrassed by what he said or she’s thinking of all that they’ve done together. Either way he doesn’t care, he hopes she’s enjoyed herself, enjoyed messing with him and for no reason it seems. He’s quick to leave, yanking his coat off the coat rack and haphazardly sliding his shoes on. The blood hasn’t stopped and he’s wiping at it again when he hears her voice. She's closing the distance between them quickly but he doesn't want to see her.

“Yoongi,” she starts hesitantly and when he doesn't say anything she continues “I'm sorry, but please let me explain it's not what it seems. I know I should've told you from the beginning, but you have to understand I wasn't in the right state of mind. I, he, well it's complicated.” she trails off reaching out to and trying to take hold of his hand.

“Girls like you are so stupid,” he scoffs and she flinches, her arm falling back beside her. He’s glaring at her, eyes narrowed and teeth stained red from the blood. “I don’t care about your problems or your life. You don’t need to explain a thing because I don’t care. I don’t like girls like you, they’re desperate to try and get out that good girl mold so they fuck around with a guy like me. A guy who won’t make something of himself until his late thirties, while you’ve already married some jock with a stable income and popped out two to three kids. You’ll live in this house in the suburbs and dream about a life that isn’t boring and safe while you day drink. So please save your pathetic excuse for someone who cares, like Jimin.” he spits and he doesn’t want to admit that the hurt that flashes through her eyes affects him. She nods her head and turns on her heel leaving Yoongi alone at the top of the stairs and none of what he just said to her makes him feel any better.

It's been a week and a half since you last saw Yoongi, truth be told you missed him. Jimin had tried to get you to talk but you couldn’t, not when he’d looked so guilty for not having been successful at warding his friends off. It wasn’t that he’d failed, more so it was that you had sought out Yoongi. Not because you wanted to mess with him, you’d never planned on doing that, you just didn't think that he would’ve been interested in a somewhat emotionally stunted girl like you. It’s one of the things JB had called you whenever you got into fights, you don't like it but compared to other words it was the nicest.

You liked JB, had been dating for the better part of a year and a half; he was sweet, and handsome, he could be a little demanding and he manhandled you more often than naught but it was because he cared about you. When the semester had ended you and JB had been on a break, but you still wanted to be with him. He’d been the one to encourage your trip home, had told you to give each other some time away from one another and when you were ready to call him and he would be here, and you really wanted him, at least you did.

That had been before Yoongi, sweet, caring, funny Yoongi. Yoongi wasn’t like JB, he was attentive, he listened to you, but most of all he made you feel comfortable. Yoongi had not once forced you to do something you didn't want, had never spoken down to you, had happily gone with anything you asked of him. He didn't raise his voice but rather spoke to you in a tone so soft, so full of affection it was a wonder he was still single. You liked it, liked the way he treated you, liked Yoongi. His smile, his eyes, his laugh, the way he made you feel was nothing compared to the way JB made you feel. Something was different with Yoongi, something you couldn't quite understand but couldn't help but want to never end.

And then it had all come crashing down, it’s what you deserved you think as you lay in bed. Maybe broken people like you didn't deserve happiness and the world was just reminding you of it. You couldn’t really say you knew Yoongi well enough now, but you’re sure it was hurt that had flickered across his face when Jimin had told him the truth. Tears stung the back of your eyes and you blinked rapidly to try and keep them at bay. It didn't work, they slowly trailed across over your nose and onto the other cheek before falling into the softness of your pillow and soaking through.

There’s a knock at your bedroom door, and moments later Jimin opens it slowly. He peeks his head in gaze, taking you curled up in your comforter in the same place he’d seen you since the whole thing with Yoongi went down. “Hey Sweetpea, you feeling any better?” he asks his tone hopeful, he’s seen you through worse so he’s just waiting it out.

“Please go away.” you say a sob catching in your throat garbling the words as more tears fall. Jimin sighs heavily heart breaking at the sight of his baby sister hurting, he hopes you feel better soon. It's not like you and Yoongi were in love or anything, right?”

Yoongi finds himself at the convenience store, it’s late bordering on 2 AM and he can’t seem to make himself go home. He’s by himself, Namjoon is spending the weekend with Hoseok so he’s forced to relive the memories of you and all the places he’s fucked you. The couch, his bed, the kitchen, the hallway, every little nook and cranny taunts him of something he had that hadn't been real. Of a girl he was starting to really like, someone he thinks he could settle down with, someone who had just been looking for a fun time. He scoffs picking up a bottle of beer and two packs of peach rings, he guesses that’s all he’s good for.

He’s never been in a relationship, he thinks of all the girls he’s been with and his body count. But there had been a time where Yoongi had wanted more, had craved it so much he’d tried to find someone who wanted more than just a fun time. Tried to find someone who wanted more than an orgasm but had found none, had been severely disappointed when the one girl he’d met some years ago had told him in explicit detail how non boyfriend material he was. He hadn’t bothered looking after that, had convinced himself that he liked the fuckboy, booty call thing he had with more girls that he could keep track of.

Then there had been you, Jimin’s sweet baby sister. A girl he had never met before but had been drawn to, like a moth to a flame, he’d done more domestic shit with you in the month and half you were sleeping together than he had his entire life. You liked to talk when you weren’t fucking, soft whispered conversations. It was like you were afraid to ruin the calm that settled over you after your orgams. He’d learned of your tattoos, of you life as a child, of you major, your favorite pizza topping. So many things he would usually never care about, but had found him entranced. He’d even learned of a nickname your grandma had given you when you were a kid and has stuck even after her passing.

Had been given permission to call you by it behind closed doors, had tested it on his tongue after you had uttered it. Sweetpea. Sweet because of how you grew into such a sweet young woman and pea because of the green vegetable and how all other girls would be green with envy when you’d finally matured into a woman. He’d laughed before pulling you close as you cried over how much you missed her. Had wiped your tears and even then you were beautiful to him. He shakes his head, upset that he let himself fall back into these memories. That although still fresh in his mind had been happy ones, ones he cherished but now wished he could forget.

Yoongi puts his items on the counter pulling his wallet from his back pocket and paying with a scowl that the cashier shys away from. He takes his bag from her and just barely hears her soft, ‘have a nice night’ when he bumps into someone. That someone is a man, he’s barely an inch taller than Yoongi, with long hair and piercings, lots of them. He finds himself most drawn to the anti-eyebrow piercing, and he briefly wonders how painful it was. Yoongi’s ears are pierced but he doesn’t have any others, he doesn think he could bring himself to put any more holes on his body.

“Sorry man, didn't see you there.” the stranger says and yoongi wants to laugh because how could he miss a whole ass human. He’s not in the mood to fight though so he just shrugs it off.

“Don’t worry about it.” he mutters making his way out the convenience store. He’s halfway home when he remembers that you like peach rings and he bought them out of habit. He sighs and thinks that he’ll just give them to Jungkook in exchange for a blunt or two.

🌻(sent at 2:20 AM)

i have a surprise for you

JB smiles at his phone, before he shoves it in his pocket and grabs a bag of peach rings.

✧✧✧✧✧

taglist: @boymeetsweevil, @bussy-posts @peachymochimochi

#min yoongi x reader #min yoongi #College!AU #college boy yoongi #college girl mc #college boys bts #college au #im jaebeom #kim taehyung #kim namjoon #jeon jungkook #kim seokjin #Park Jimin #jung hoseok #emm writes #mine writings

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thesummerstorms · 4 years

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Rev Recaps Hard Contact (Chapter 20)

Final chapter at last!

CW: Violence & blood. Decapitation.

TL;DR Recap: Darman and Etain make it back to the gunship with the injured Atin and Uthan in tow, but Etain refuses to let Zey leave without Omega. Niner lures Hokan into a trap and Hokan is decapitated. Zey offers Etain a choice, but 12 years later the framework still makes no sense.

Beginning Kal Count: 39 Ending Kal Count: 42

This post includes my favorite scene in the book, and has probably double the expected word count because of that. Long-Ass Post.

We open with a Kal Quote. I am ignoring Kal Quotes this far into the game because I am already very informed on Traviss’s opinions, but that does raise the Kal Count to 40 already.

Instead, we focus on Darman writing poetry to a gunship.

:’) Dar has similes and metaphors down at least. Some unnamed clone troopers (white-armored) and a medic come running out and dismiss Darman when he tries to tell them everything that happened to Atin because he’s already adequately marked Atin’s armor. They’ve also taken Uthan, so with, finally, nothing left for Darman to do, he turns around to watch Zey and Etain.

So Etain doesn’t ask who Zey is at all anywhere in this scene, which even with the Force telling her he’s a Jedi and logical clues telling her she’s outranked, you would think that she’d want his name. She also uses his name in her narration later without being told it on screen at any point. So that makes me think they’ve met before this, at least briefly.

On the other hand their greeting is “formal”/ “etiquette” , not Etain being relieved that fucking finally, here is an adultier-adult whom she knows and trusts, so I don’t think they know one another well.

I’m sure the formal greeting vs “scene from a nightmare” thing is meant to be pointed, but whatever, we’re moving on. Well, except, I do have to point out:

The ARC, who I am calling Maze until I have evidence he’s not, takes off his helmet, doesn’t say shit to Darman, just stares at him. I don’t know why that makes me laugh.

Valaquil departs off the gunship, Darman praises Jinart, and Dar hopes the Republic will keep their word to the gurlanin because “they deserve it”, but we’ve long passed the point where I gave a shit about the gurlanin.

Zey’s priority --> mostly tactical, get this shit show of a mission over, but does try to reassure Etain

Etain --> where are my people???

I love how Dar expects Etain to “soften” because he knows that she longs to be confirmed as having worth and value, has learned this even after a very short mission, but Etain is also deeply loyal and her priorities have shifted.

Um, Maze, buddy? You want to chill?

OH OUCH MY HEART.

We as readers know that their helmets were shut down by the EMP, but here’s Darman, assuming that he’s just lost another half a squad and that just like Geonosis, he’ll never know for certain what happened to them. The flashback is heartbreaking.

Etain’s ability to use Force-sense is so weirdly inconsistent and plot-selective in this book, but I love her already being able to tell from a distance that Omega squad is okay, even to tell where they are. This is the precursor to her being able to feel Darman “across star systems”, but on some level she’s formed some version of this bond with all of them.

And you know, no one in this book ever explains why the Republic wants Uthan so bad, but knowing from Order 66 that Palps wanted to use her for his personal goals always pisses me off.

Darman has become familiar enough with Etain and her expressions that this expression immediately sets off his “oh shit” radar, and it’s not even the first time.

The one boot on the gunship and one on the soil is actually a nice tiny bit of symbolism- caught between what the Jedi expect of her and what she’s learned under fire from Omega- if you chose to interpret it that way. And I can actually sympathize with Zey’s annoyance here because Etain, tactically, is being pretty stupid here. If Uthan dies before they can get her proper care, if they can’t get off the planet, then it’s all for nothing.

But. I wouldn’t want her to react any other way. This is exactly my favorite moment of hers. (Which is why I have the entire damn thing highlighted before anyone calls me out for that lmao.)

Listen, Zey, you know ilu, but bringing up her dead Master in a less than complimentary way was supposed to... do what exactly for your argument? He also completely ignores Darman’s attempt to keep the peace, but we just upped our Kal Count to 41 with the talk of Etain’s loyalty being a mirror.

Again, tactically pretty dumb I’m sure but oh holy hell do I love it. Especially that underlined bit in red. “Darman thought she had changed her mind, but that wasn’t Etain at all.”

Darman desperately not wanting Etain to be targeted by whatever Jedi mind powers he thinks Zey is about to use on her. Darman thinking about how Zey doesn’t know Etain at all, that Zey is taking 100% the wrong approach, but if Darman was just allowed to talk to her-

That bit in red? That and the response Zey’s about to give are two of my favorite lines in the entire book.

Zey gives in. Darman tries to get Etain to stay anyway, I think because he’s worried about the fallout of this moment landing on her, although it’s kind of too little too late for that. But Zey, as tactically expensive as this could be, as annoyed as he has been, is still proud of Etain.

It’s just one little tiny moment that says so much about Dar and about Etain and even about Zey. That little moment of pride lets me think they were better suited to Master and Padawan that maybe either of them recognized or would later accept.

Unfortunately, we now have to leave my favorite scene ever and return to Hokan’s POV. Hokan is injured and doesn’t know where Fi has gotten to, but as expected, Niner’s screaming has caught his attention.

Hokan has this weird double consciousness, this deeply rooted aversion to mercy or anything he sees as weakness or softness. It’s still a really... delicate little moment?

Listen, I know that Niner’s not wounded and this still is upsetting.

Kal Count 42.

Hokan still is vacillating between thinking of Niner as an it more than a person, and “abomination” and thinking of him as a Mandalorian man who’s been unfairly used. Again, it’s this weird moment of double think, but it works in Niner’s favor, because nobody wants to know what would have happened if Hokan hadn’t taken the time to talk to him, or had decided to use the lightsaber.

The sheer irony of Hokan avoiding the lightsaber because it was too much like what happened to Jango on Geonosis... and then Etain decapitates him... with a lightsaber.

Niner says he doesn’t like to complain, but. Also, still very fair. And a much needed laugh after that last moment.

“Probably okay” Fi.

Also This raises SO MANY questions because Mando armor is supposed to hold off Jedi if it’s beskar, but this isn’t, which means Fi spends the rest of the series hoarding and or wearing armor that isn’t beskar.

Etain is trembling, we’ll find out from her POV, because she’s still reacting to hearing Niner scream like that, and it rattles her deeply. Which again, I sympathize with, because it makes me upset.

But I mean, even if Traviss forgets it... there has to be a lot of emotion to being handed Kast Fulier’s lightsaber. He was the only one who was kind to her in the Order, at least from her point of view, she failed him, he was tortured to death with that lightsaber, and now it’s being returned to her. This is the closest she’ll ever get to closure, because as with Omega’s original brothers, there are no bodies left for burial. KT completely ignores the weight of that... but I think about it a lot.

Darman being gentle with her and praying that Fi doesn’t open his mouth makes me feel soft, though. And Niner gives her a tiny bit of the acknowledgement/respect she's wanted.

We go to her POV next:

Same, Etain. Same. Again, as she points out... Niner’s heard that before. And none of the rest of the squad who was there for it even really seems fazed?

She’s also guilty about not being Jedi enough of course, but that’s nothing new at this point. And I’m sure Fi and Niner can appreciate her not-Jedi instincts. (Or does Zey’s tacit approval mean actually her stunt with the gunship is rooted in some Jedi ideals, even if it’s tactically stupid? idk.)

Maze & Zey take turns doing the pacing, confirmed. It’s just funny because earlier Zey was annoying the shit out of Niner by pacing and breaking up the holos at the briefing.

ZEY BACKSTORY! ZEY BACKSTORY! IDGAF ABOUT KAL; WHERE’S MY ZEY BACK STORY.

Ahem.

Anyway, the conversation turns to what actually happens to Etain now. She is, after all, an orphaned Padawan in the middle of war time.

“Etain could think of nothing worse than staying on Qiilura, with its terrible memories and uncertain future... She was alone again and scared.”

Okay, so we can debate what Etain’s duty is in this scenario. As Zey says, she knows better than anyone what Qiilura is like, and that’s info Zey can’t attempt to replicate, even if he reads Omega’s reports. It wouldn’t be the same as having Etain’s first hand experience.

But that... still leaves Etain “alone”, “scared”, stuck on a planet that is “full of terrible memories” and is associated deeply with at least three months of trauma. And she’s going to accept that, because she’s being guilted with the Jedi values of non-attachment and duty to the Republic. But I don’t know that this is the healthiest way for her to finish out her training. Like. Do the Jedi not have counselors or something, Zey?

It’s just... really sad to me.

a) Note to self about the body language here again. “dug her nails into her palms”, tried to compose herself.

b) oh shut up about what’s expected of soldiers; not everything has to be comparative

c) I had a conversation with samwichwilson about this scene that’s probably still in the tags somewhere.

But the framework of this choice makes absolutely ZERO sense to me.

Like, my kingdom for the AU where Etain chooses to go with Omega squad and spends the next nine months learning to blow shit up with them. I have no idea how that would work since she’s a Padawan and still technically needs a Master’s supervision, but I would enjoy it. She would definitely be happier than she’s gonna be on Qiilura.

But... while the narrative is presenting this as serious-ish options... like, there’s no way Zey would have actually go through with that last one, right? Point about working undercover aside, if he’s offering to let one clone stay, he might as well offer all 4, and he specifically narrows it down to one of the squad, not all of Omega.

So while Etain typically seems to believe an even lower opinion of her than KT actually writes (to match her low self-esteem) I have to assume that she’s right and she’s being tested here? But Zey, what the hell were you going to do if she said yes and asked to go with Omega? Much less if, when she accidentally caves here in a moment, Darman had said yes and agreed to stay with her.

She would have failed the test, and you can’t really let them start dating under your supervision... so what are you gonna do about that?

Anyway, it doesn’t matter. As unfair as it is, the choice is not really a choice, and Etain has been guilted into remaining in this place she hates. She’ll probably even end up working with Jinart again. Bleh.

Etain seems to be taking these options as if they’re really, truly serious here, but as a reader, it’s incredibly hard to see them that way. Because again. What’s Zey gonna do if she fails the attachment test.

(Unless you want to argue that the predilection with Jedi non-attachment and rules breaking is 100% in Etain’s head here and her guilt and mental conditioning just won’t let her see that Zey is 100% truthful and kindly letting Etain go off with these people she’s become so desperate to attach herself to. But that doesn’t fit like... any canon about the Jedi Order. Or ANY of Traviss’s writing tbh.)

I mean, at least Etain knows herself pretty well here. Her brain is going “abort abort, abort” but can’t actually stop her from doing the stupid thing. She’s also trying to communicate to Dar that this isn’t her abandoning him, this is her still caring.

Listen, you can point out Dar’s lack of experience and still miss all the “child” bullshit. And honestly, his response to her saying that she’ll miss him comes off... almost a little cold. “You’ll miss me. I’m going to die in ten years, but don’t worry about me because I’m going the closest I have to home.” Maybe he’s trying to reassure her / also not to admit to someone who is now an Officer again that he’ll miss her too. It just sounds weird, even if we get the line that he was “considering it seriously.”

Or I guess what really annoys me is that in this moment that should be really personal and painful for these two characters, this just sounds... weirdly preachy?

Also...like... again Etain had to know that it wasn’t an actual option, even if the rest of the series will pretend that it was, including when she looks back at it in Triple Zero. But I’m choosing to read it more as a mark of her desperation- being so desperate and lonely, and, yes, a little trapped that her emotion overrides what she knows to be true.

💔💔💔

There’s some lines about how she’s a better Jedi Forever now because of “a soldier faith in her” but I have mixed feelings about those because they’re followed up with a bunch of bullshit about how she should learn from him because he had accepted his fate and had no self pity, and I don’t have time for ANY of that. You are allowed to feel bad when bad things happen to you, even if you are a woman or a Jedi.. Fuck off, Traviss.

Sweetheart.

Listen, you know and I know that she’ll see them again, she and Darman will fall in love, she isn’t trapped on Qiilura, a place of her nightmares, forever.

But it still feels like a real fucking downer of an ending.

Still, we have now officially made it to the end of Hard Contact. I haven’t decided if I’ll make posts for Triple Zero or if they’ll follow this format if they do. (Your thoughts/comments/feedback are welcome, as always.)

Final Kal Count was 42, which is actually impressive for a 20 chapter novel in which he DOES NOT APPEAR.

#Rev Recaps RepComm #Republic Commando #Hard Contact #RepComm #Etain Tur-Mukan #Darman Skirata #Niner Skirata #Atin Skirata #Fi Skirata #Arligan Zey #Captain Maze #I think

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realfilmtalk · 5 years

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2018 IN FILM

Before we begin, my list is always compiled from films released in the calendar year. That means brilliant festival fare like If Beale Street Could Talk, Can You Ever Forgive Me, Burning and The Favourite are ineligible but will likely find their way onto next years list.

Best of lists are fairly stupid in general. Not only are they subjective, they also open the person who compiled it up to intense scrutiny. So it’s a good thing I neither care nor worry about what people think of my taste in films because I see enough to have a broad perspective. Did you see 20 films at LFF 2018?

This list probably has a few glaring omissions to some and welcome additions to others yet to me it perfectly represents cinemas quality in 2018. Consider some of the films that didn’t make my final ten.

The Shape Of Water was for many others and me the high point of Guillermo Del Toro’s Hollywood output. It was lush to look at and full of rich and playful strokes of horror, fantasy, romance and weighty themes. The Oscars don’t always get it right but they most definitely did this year. Perhaps the fact I saw it at LFF in 2017 and have yet to watch it again is the reason it didn’t figure heavily in my thoughts at this time of the year.

2018 felt like a real watershed for cinema from underrepresented filmmakers, particularly for cinema from people of colour. If real progress is to be made with representation and diversity of both storytelling and those who responsible for telling them then films with an urgent, authentic and unique voice such as the wildly enjoyable Blindspotting, the hilarious and tender Support The Girls, the powerful, potent and timely The Hate U Give, the wickedly funny Gook, the bravely bonkers Bodied and the independent British smash hit The Intent 2 mark the start of a new wave of films that have for so long been overlooked by audiences or just not made at all and nothing reinforced this better than Boots Riley’s Sorry To Bother You.

Blockbusters were a mixed bag this year for every necessary masterpiece like Avengers Infinity War there was an unnecessary stinker like Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, which offered nothing new to see or experience yet somehow made close to a billion dollars worldwide, meaning there will be another unnecessary one coming soon.

Yet whereas Jurassic World felt like a fossil of a dying franchise Mission Impossible: Fallout, the sixth in the series, felt like the best of the bunch and a welcome shot in the arm to action films in general. Watching Tom cruise leap from stunt to death defying stunt was like watching a true Hollywood star challenge his peers to stop using CGI and give their audiences something worth the admission price. It worked. Also shout out to Tom for telling people to turn motion smoothing off. He may be a little Cruisy but he cares about us.

I also really enjoyed the macho action, brawn and badass menace in Sicario 2: Day Of The Soldado. Whilst I thought this might be another unnecessary sequel, it was instead a riveting, intelligent and engaging thriller that reduced me to tears in one near breathtaking and almost silent scene.

Silence was also served in A Quiet Place, a horror that despite glaring plot holes had me removing my snacks from wrappers and breaking my chocolate into pieces so as not to diminish the cinematic experience. It was a gripping and original exercise in wound up tension and terror. The script is also worth a look at if you have any interest in screenwriting.

On the grittier side of cinema A Prayer Before Dawn was a gruelling yet thrilling watch and Joe Cole excelled in a star making turn.

Horror delivered too. Revenge and Hereditary were both refreshing and nasty little films that did lots with very little and stayed under my skin long after they finished. I’ll also throw Assassination Nation into that category. It seems it was criminally under seen, which is a shame because I enjoyed it immensely. It felt like a hybrid of Heathers and The Purge films, with an angry and urgent message weaved into its tapestry of trigger warnings and teenage hyper violence. Hopefully it’ll gain deserved cult status via home viewing. Gaspar Noe’s Climax was also a luridly terrifying trip into depravity that is best viewed on a big screen after plenty of Sangria. Not only is the camera work stunning it also had the years best opening sequence.

A couple of documentaries did great things with the format. American Animals was a playful spin on a heist film, whilst Three Identical Strangers was deeply emotive and thought provoking.

Animation also served up some treats. The Incredibles 2 was my most eagerly anticipated film of the year and it delivered but perhaps there had been too long a gap between the first and my expectations were too great. Whilst it was fun I felt it failed to offer anything new with the form. Isle Of Dogs was another master class in stop motion and The Breadwinner proved once again that animation takes audiences to places live action simply doesn’t dare.

Unfortunately I found no room in my final ten for well-known awards fare such as Ladybird, Three Billboards, Roma, A Star Is Born and Phantom Thread. Simply put, they didn’t connect with me in the way they clearly have with others but each have merits, which are too numerous to list here.

SPECIAL MENTIONS

YOU WERE NEVER REALLY HERE

THEY SHALL NOT GROW OLD

MI: FALLOUT

ASSASSINATION NATION

SEARCHING

THE RIDER

HEARTS BEAT LOUD

BUMBLEBEE

A QUIET PLACE

SHOPLIFTERS

THE NOT TEN