dangermousie | Everything indeed: BWood, French films & books, Roswell, anime, Dr Who, Chinese Hamlet & Hayden

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Everything indeed: BWood, French films & books, Roswell, anime, Dr Who, Chinese Hamlet & Hayden

I am watching Hameshaa, the Bolly movie about reincarnated lovers that proves that bad hair, like love, lasts forever. Saif looks adorable despite the most mulleted mullet I've ever seen (the mullet should have had a separate billing). Kajol is fresh and gorgeous, and they have great chemistry. The story is a cheesy romantic melodrama that is equal parts DDLJ and Karan Arjun. (Love is dead? No problem, reincarnate). Perfect. The body count is high (not even the comic sidekick is safe), the choreography is done by a spastic, and the composer steals music from Phantom of the Opera. the phrase "Kal Ho Na Ho" is scarily eminent. The matter of fact attitude to 'oh, I am reincarnated' is a bit off: the villain does not pause in front of what seems to be a divine hint but merrily continues with the evilness. It does make me wonder how Saif would have been like as the lead for DDLJ, which Aditya was considering if he couldn't have gotten SRK, as the role is of a fun-loving college boy. Of course, Raja's character is a huge doofus.

Also, Saif and his evil friend seem a little too concerned with each other's love life :P

On the other end of the spectrum, there is Creezy, a seventies movie with the icy and gorgeous Alain Delon. It's the very opposite of Hameshaa. It's small and feels painstakingly and cooly real. It basically is a day in the life of a politician intercut with his memories of affair with a gorgeous model. It's quite romantic and I can't wait to watch more. It also makes me wonder if there has ever been a good adaptation of Stendhal's The Red and the Black? Because young Delon would have made a great protagonist.

Also watched more Chobits Chobits is beginning to annoy me with its cuteness. Also, Chi is mentally retarded equivalent which is annoying and why would Hideki want to hang around with her. Ick. But watching Fushigi Yuugi takes the badness away. That is totally my comfort anime. Miaka coming back and finding Tamahome in the woods? Awwwwww. Also, realized new volume of Genbu Kaiden is out and can't wait to read it.

In completely unrelated news (my brain jumps around like a magpie), the book rec for the week is something I have no idea how hard it is to find. It's Erve Bazen's And the flames consume (I have no idea what the name in English (or the original French) would be. I read it in Russian). It's a French novel and I read it in Russian translation, but I have no idea if an English translation exists. It's worth seeking out though. The novel deals with the immediate aftermath of the Pinochet coup. It actually is tightly focused on two people, Miguel and Maria who, if I ever was compiling a literary OTP list, would be very highly placed on it. The book is passionate: politically passionate (about what people do to each other and how it outrages one's conscience) and romantically passionate, as well. Miguel is a rising young politician in Allende's cabinet. He is a labor leader, a rabble-rouser, and someone on Pinochet's 'most wanted' list. Maria is someone who is socially conservative, and maybe politically a bit conservative too. Ordinarily, she would be someone watching the news on the TV and not getting involved. But Maria is Miguel's fiancee. And after Miguel survives the first 'net' only because he is attending a wedding of Maria's step-sister (the image of the wedding party gunned down by soldiers who mistake them for rebels is one that stayed with me for a long time), Maria and Miguel go on the run, and end up hiding in the flat of a sympathetic Scandinavian diplomat couple.

The rest of the book becomes almost stiflingly intimate, because they are stuck in a very small place, and the book basically follows the relationship deal with something entirely new: take two people who love each other but who don't know each other as well as they would have after years together and who've never lived together and put them in a very small, very contained, inescapable situation where a wrong move means death. The book is as much (if not more) about Miguel and Maria's discovery of each other as it is about the grim events outside. Because the author never forgets the politics. It's not just in the fact that the protagonists are trapped because of them, but the echoes of events come through the house and they are more ominous for being indirect.

As to the end of the novel? I won't spoil it, so I'll just say that it's 'Gift of the Magi' times a hundred and that I've rarely been able to look at a flock of pigeons flying up from a square without thinking of the novel's end.

And in other star-crossed romantics news, I was rewatching "Destiny," my fave ep of Roswell. I've forgotten how amazing Max/Liz were. Any good Dreamer fanfic recs? Please?

keepaofthecheez, where is your stuff archived? And also, does anyone have caps of that scene of them hiding in the oveturned truck? For some reason what really gets me is the way she kisses his eyes, and the way her voice dies away on the word 'ended' when she says that his life ended when he saved her. And the way Max, half out of his head, utterly exhausted, fresh off the torture table, tells her that's when his life began and that what kept him alive during it all was the thought of her (and I love that he can't talk about what they did to him, it's too horrifying to him and he is indirect and he has to pause before he mentions it even in that fashion). If a man can say that to you after all that's happened, whoa. And in a way, being in such extremity, he has no control over his emotions much any more and you can feel love just pour off him. Max/Liz have never been more R&Jish than in that scene. Oh, and the bit where Max and Liz are surrounded and they are on the bridge and they look down at the water and you can tell they are terrified and they kiss each other and you can tell they think it might be their last, and then they jump, holding hands? OMG. My OTP. And that is why I ship Max/Liz (or John/Aeryn or Max/Logan from DA etc etc). Because TPTB keep showing me that they really really love each other. That is why I rarely ship UC couples or couples that are in the will-we-won't-we stage emotionally. If they aren't desperate about each other, neither am I. Basically, I need to see a lot of evidence that they adore each other before I get on the shipper train. Once I do, I can stay once hope is gone: Buffy/Angel was certainly a ship that outlived it being a mainstay of the show, but JW pulled out all the stops to show they were an OTP first. That is why I ship Helo/Boomer and not Kara/Lee on BSG. If Kara/Lee ever got together, there would be a lot of squeeing in my house and they could have a fascinating storyline. But unless they realize they are an OTP, I cannot OTP them. Whatever their potential, at the moment Kara is happy with Anders and Lee is (happily or not) together with Dee. They are not pining, so how can I? With Helo and Boomer, you might find the love story boring or improbable, but there is no doubt they love each other and they went through hell and high water for each other as lovers.

In related non-loverly news, I did see the finale of Doctor Who and forgot to post about it. So yeah, forgot to post that I saw the finale with Nine and the Daleks and Rose with vortex in her head and Jack being heroic and it was every bit as spectacular and wonderful as it was supposed to be and the Doctor sacrificed himself for Rose and Rose sacrificed herself for the Doctor and everyone sacrficed himself for everyone else (though why did Rose bring just Jack back to life and no one else?) and the God of the Daleks was freaky as hell and I loved Nine's choice between coward or killer "coward. Coward any day" because he can't do the seeing the world viped out thing again. And I felt horrible for him disappearing (to save Rose) even though of course he regenerates. His edge-of-insanity inspired babbling was apropos as always. He is Crichtonish that way. I loved the kiss, though I am afraid I am not a shipper. I see the OT3 between Doctor/Rose/Jack (OMG Jack kissing Nine AND Rose idenitically? Too cool) but the kiss between Nine and Rose really was to transfer energy, while of course pacifying fangirls. I do think Doctor loves her deeply and vice-versa, I just don't necessarily think it's a passionate romance type love. Just an excellent friend and someone who you think is attractive, but not necessarily the meshing of the two. Am I explaining myself. Which is just as well in light of the news going around the internets.

Also, David Tennant? Looks very British-stereotype. Please tell me he is more attractive in the new series because he kinda looks like a newt at the end of the last ep of season. I'll watch it anyway and hope I like, but I don't know. So much of my love was tied in with Christopher Eccleston's brilliant rendition of Nine, and with that whole character: fun and darkness and infectuous enthusiasm and a certain rough hard edge mixed in, that I don't know how I'll take to Ten.

Continuing this crazy, directionless ramble, the next item on the agenda is gorgeous pictures from The Banquet, a Chinese movie coming out in late 2006. The Banquet has been described as a loose adaptation of "Hamlet"; it is a tale of fate and revenge set in 10th century China. A new Emperor has usurped the throne through murder. Zhang Ziyi plays the widowed Empress, who marries the new Emperor (Ge You) only to protect herself, but also secretly plots his death with the help of the Crown Prince (Daniel Wu) and the Chief Minister (Ma Jingwu). Yet the Prince and Minister each have their own plans for the throne, and, of course, so does the Emperor. All these intrigues are brought to a climax when the Emperor calls for a lavish banquet, where the murderous plans are set in motion.

If you want to see more stills (there are over a hundred) and a trailer, go to: http://www.helloziyi.us/Movies/night-banquet.htm

And because it seems I cannot end a post without a Hayden Christensen picspam, here is the next batch:

katranna, this one's for you:

OK, I am all out of Hayden. Who should I picspam next? As long as they are reasonably attractive and someone I'd heard of, bring on the suggestions!

And thus ends the really long post. No wonder it took me days.

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I think a big trouble I have with shipping canon ships is precisely that they are supposed to be in love and I'm supposed to root for them. Which means that I expect them to *act* like they are in love. Which means that I'm allergic to characters treating each other insensitively. And therefore the reason why I'm allergic to most UST couplings (except Mulder and Scully). If the characters are kept apart I have to *believe* the reason. If the only thing keeping them apart is their own stupidity and immature misunderstandings (again, I was traumtatized by soap operas growing up in that regard), I'm just gonna assume that apparently their love isn't strong enough and they don't really care for/respect each other and why should I ship them then?

With characters who don't love each other (or not that deeply) at least I don't expect them to be nice to each other and understand each other.

That's why I always thought that Max/Liz were in many ways a carbon copy how to write a ship right. They hooked up quickly instead of drawing out the UST part forever, they weren't stale and did have obstacles but the obstacles were appropriately huge and therefore realistic, the kind you could buy into.

Actually my point feeds into your point. I don't like UST that is drawn out too long (which is why Kara/Lee lost me and Logan/Veronica came close, but recovered). I can buy John/Aeryn, who have sex in the middle of S1 and slowly grow closer and confess their love at the end of S2 (but even before that, they are good friends) because it's written believably and they have valid internal reasons for why relationships with anyone are a bit compicated for them. But when TPTB do the soapy seesaw, I just mentally check out of there.

Yeah it's really about having high standards and if characters are supposed to have this big grand love *on screen* then the standards are also the highest. It has to be there, in the writing. Too many couples are just thrown together and sold as awesome (Clark and Lana anyone?) but too little actual thought goes into the writing.

Exactly. I'll buy the couple if it's on screen/on page. Clark and Lana are as excting as grass, but I'll be OK with them working as a couple because the show says they do, but I don't see anything there myself so my interest is never engaged.

Clark/Lana kind of were the worst case scenario of couples, no chemistry, no good acting and exactly zero actual storyline. Personally, and probably unpopularly, good writing is the thing I care most about. If a couple has good writing and no chemistry at least I'll still accept them and ignore them, but not be offended by them. Now if the storyline is crap even just on paper (again "OMG, Taylor saw Ridge hugging Brooke and now she thinks he doesn't love her anymore." rinse and repeat 565 times) then I just want to stab it, every time they come on screen, even if the actors are trying their best (Grissom/Sara from CSI comes to mind).

I think too many shows (especially procedurals) treat romance as a preppy little sparkle on top. Something they throw in when they feel like it, not something they craft with care and actually write as an intentional storyline. Something that so often effectively ruins the couple and the characterisation of the characters involved.

I would take great chemistry over great writing, but I'd prefer to have both :)

It's OK to have romance as a tertiary thing in a story that is primarily something else, but when you make it an important part of the storyline, you should follow it through well or not do it at all.

It depends. Good chem can make average writing look pretty great, but to me it doesn't save really, really bad writing to me. I think they could have cast Max and Liz as Clark and Lana and I still would have thought it was a terrible storyline.

Now good writing without chemistry is at least unoffensive to me. Then again, I consider it the nature of good writing to compliment the actors and their type of chemistry. So even if there wasn't much chemistry, good writing should find a way to incorporate that. So even if I could never buy good writing/no chemistry as a big real shippy romance, maybe I could at least appreciate it as a good storyline. On the other hand truly bad writing will always be a waste of space to me.

It's OK to have romance as a tertiary thing in a story that is primarily something else

Agreed. But a romance is a storyline, even if it just pops up every three or five or ten episodes. It needs continuity and logic and progress just like every other storyline would. Sometimes I'm not sure if all writers realize that.

I think too many shows (especially procedurals) treat romance as a preppy little sparkle on top. Something they throw in when they feel like it, not something they craft with care and actually write as an intentional storyline.

And a big fat WORD to you. It's sometimes something tacked on to the show, not really integrated or evolving like the main plot of the show itself.

Roswell!!!! *squee* I love the series so much! Max/Liz are the best OTP! I love them!!! Their story is so lovely and dramatic... and they are so perfect for each other!!!

The Banquet looks really nice!!! Basically because Daniel Wu is there and I just posted about him the other day ;) Thanks for the pic spam and the info!

David Tennant as de doctor is okay. I like him but the thing is that I like David before he became the doctor, so I don't know if you'll like him. I have read a lot of people prefer Christopher Eccleston, though.

Btw, this morning I posted a Hayden Christensen pic for you at my LJ ;) Hope you like it.

Oh yes, Max/Liz are one of my all time favorites. I went crazy over the show last summer (august, I think) and every post was Roswell-related :)

You are welcome. Doesn't it look great!

I'll give Tennant a chance.

And I am off to check my flist and your lj!

Also, David Tennant? Looks very British-stereotype. Please tell me he is more attractive in the new series because he kinda looks like a newt at the end of the last ep of season. I'll watch it anyway and hope I like, but I don't know. So much of my love was tied in with Christopher Eccleston's brilliant rendition of Nine, and with that whole character: fun and darkness and infectuous enthusiasm and a certain rough hard edge mixed in, that I don't know how I'll take to Ten.

My feelings exactly. I've never seen anyone do quite such a mix of silly-looking and hot, goofy and fun, yet damaged and dark--and dangerous--all at the same time. A hard act to follow.

Though Tennant seems to be quite popular with fans who've seen him, so I'll do my best to stay open minded.

of silly-looking and hot, goofy and fun, yet damaged and dark--and dangerous--all at the same time. A hard act to follow.

Exactly. But I'll also keep an open mind and the time break in between should help. I hope.

Must see the Zhang Ziyi movie. It doesn't look much like the Hamlet I remember, but then Asian cinema is on crack a lot of the time. Very pretty crack.

I admit to liking Tennant a lot. The fans seem very pleased with him from what I see, so there's hope for you. He's played his share of psychopaths, so there is a certain darkness or sense of "crazy" he can attain. There's a certain dorktasticness to him that is rather pleasant, cute, goofy, and weird all at once.

then Asian cinema is on crack a lot of the time. Very pretty crack.

Which is why I like it :)

I do so hope I'll like Tennant.

And if you want a better CLAMP offering, go with Magic Knights Rayearth (which I've been going on about), since it's a bit more FY-esque. Their best work is X, but not sure you'd like that one.

I think the Doctor likes Rose an awful lot, but I think he knows that it just doesn't have a good chance of working since he's pretty much an immortal and she's not. He'll just lose her in the long run and he's lost so much. He's alone because he has to be. Why the heck do I always go for the tortured loners?

It also makes me wonder if there has ever been a good adaptation of Stendhal's The Red and the Black? Because young Delon would have made a great protagonist.

Well, Gérard Philippe was a good Julien Sorel in Autant-Lara's adaptation. And I much prefer him to Alain Delon. :)

Oooooh. Now I have to figure out if I can get my hands on this. I really like Gerard Philippe so it's win-win for me :)

Thank you.

(though why did Rose bring just Jack back to life and no one else?) because he is HOTT! ;)

There is that :P

The Banquet looks really interesting and the movie stills are gorgeous. I liked "Tiger and Dragon", "Hero" and "House of Flying Daggers". Have you seen "The Geisha" and if you have, would you recommend it?

Lol, and I finally came around to post my own mega Hayden pic spam. :)

I haven't seen the Geisha. What is it about?

Ooooh, off to check the picspam!

Ohhh, sorry, I meant "Memoirs of a Geisha" with Ziyi Zhang and the who is who of Asian actors, it was only called The Geisha over here.

I saw it. Very pretty but not involving at all, IMO.

I have some Post-Destiny recommends for you, so that you can get past that "Liz, STOP! Where are you GOING?" horror.

Pretty much anything here will make you happy:

http://www.geocities.com/kath453/classics.html

Particularly: EmilyLuvsRoswell's Homes (listed as Homebound) on this list;The Epiphanies Series by Carol and Ruins by Angel. But everything on here is must read.

Kath

I think I love you now.

"Liz, STOP! Where are you GOING?" horror

Oh yes. One of the few times I want to yell at TV.

I adore Eccleston and his Doctor. Tennant does nothing for me. Too scrawny and weaselish, I think.

Oh no. Eeeek.

Plenty of ladies adore Tennant, though, so maybe you will, too.

Oooooh, pretty red movie.

Thanks for the pic, dareling, though I think it's actually a bit more Anna's taste than mine. :-) But still very pretty!

I am all about prettiness.

These are two good sites I bookmarked awhile back for Roswell caps:
Striped Wall (http://www.stripedwall.com/category/roswell/)
Granolith (http://www.life-serial.org/roswellcaps/season1.htm)
I don't know if they have the specific parts of Destiny that you want because I didn't look through all the caps, but there you go. :)

Thank you SO MUCH! Yay! Now I am off to browse :)

I...totally meant to reply to this YESTERDAY, but I'm a moron.

ANYWAY. I'm still in the process of archiving most of my fic over at my fic journal

fics_by_lindsay. So if you check the memories there, you can see some of my stuff.

Are my Roswell fic recs still not linking for you? :(

Thank you so much for the link! And yes, your links are working now so I am super happy!

SO. HOT.
Seriously. I want to be his sex slave. His groupie. Fan-waver, whatever. I'm feeling excessive devotion right now.
And yay, Doctor Who!
Re: OTP, OT3...
I think the OT3 is really there in season one, with the way the trio work as a whole and the humor and general chemistry. Plus I love Jack so I want him to have everything he wants in life. :)
As for Rose and the Doctor, I was a firm shipper of Rose/Nine but not so much of Rose/Ten. Rose is a mercurial, selfish kind of person so the attraction of the ship didn't realy have much to do with her... more of the intensity of the Ninth Doctor's need for her to remain sane. For some time there I think the Doctor really, really loved Rose.
Tennant plays a more light hearted Doctor and the chemistry is different so now I'm more of the occasional shipper. As in they're good friends, cute together and occassionally I'll have an awww, Doctor/Rose moment but mostly it's just adorableness.
I really miss Christopher Eccleston. I mean, I like David Tennant, but wow, you can't really top Eccleston for general awesomeness.

I'm feeling excessive devotion right now.

ROFL. There is always writing him letters in your own blood :P

I really hope I like Tennant. So much of my love for Who (I am not a general Dr Who fan) was based on his performance. Well, we'll see.

But what if he doesn't like blood?
Anyway, I'm pretty sure I'd run out of blood around Things I want to do to Your Mouth, Vol. XVI.

Speaking of picspams and Tennant, I'm catching up on my flist after being gone, and I came across this. I don't know if it will help you, because I think Tennant's one of those guys that comes across better in action rather than in a still photo, but

bellanut has some lovely Tennant/Tenth Doctor picspam here, if you're interested.

I do love Tennant as Ten, which is occasionally a bit boggling considering how much I loved Eccleston as Nine. But it took me several episodes to really really appreciate him, although I liked him from the first. I still miss Nine, though.

The Banquet looks interesting. Any idea when it's supposed to be released?

Also, have any good Asian film recs? I'm searching for non-current American films and anything from other countries.

Hayden, drool. :)

What about Ewan McGregor?

First of all-- Hellooo, Hayden.

I sort of share your reaction to Doctor Who, the main draw for me for DW is Nine and Rose. And, I really do think that the Doctor was quite in love with her, she is his sanity for him, his conscience and I love the intensity Eccleston brings to the role.

But when S2 rolled on, I realized I wasn't as filled with the same gleeful anticipation as I had in the first season. The Old Who fans loved Tennant because he seems to harken back to the old Doctor of yore and he is loveable in his bouncy way, really lighter than Nine ever was. But I think, in order for us to fall in love with him the writers decided to write Rose as a wee bit more in love with him.

The writers just about threw the book out on subtext and made them as cutes-y as possible, which, no complaint here except I missed the sometimes prickly, bickering intense relationship they had before.

In fact there was quite a backlash against Rose as season 2 went on that I don't think she fairly deserved. And as the series went on I realized I was more a Rose fan than a Doctor fan.

She's quite capable in her own way, she may not be a genius or a fighter but she does know how to organize people to action, how to keep people focused on the mission and delegate jobs. And she loves adventures and danger and discovering new things, I don't think I've ever seen a character (except for Crichton in the first season) who's so giddy at seeing new things.

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Everything indeed: BWood, French films & books, Roswell, anime, Dr Who, Chinese Hamlet & Hayden

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