As I promised, here's the first random thought record. All future ones will be longer as those will cover the entire month.
17th - The fight between Kyubimon and Dokugumon in Digimon Tamers reminds me of the fight between Amaterasu and and the Spider Queen in Okami.
18th - What would hell be like for a sadist?
19th - What if black holes evaporate and disappear over time because the black hole is slowly absorbing itself?
20th - What would happen if you shot a sachet of ketchup out of a gun?
21st - Why do people use the terms 'myth' and 'mythology' interchangeably? Mythology refers to the study of myths, not the story itself.
22nd - Voldemort's eyes are red, the signature color of Gryffindor house. Harry's eyes are green, the signature color of Slytherin.
23rd - I don't think anime developers plan especially far ahead unless they have pre-existing material to work off. After all, some anime series' just find some new, and sometimes repetitive, way to make the characters stronger every time they face a new villain. Think the levels of super saiyan in Dragonball Z and the multiple digivolution levels in Digimon.
24th - It's hard to let your mind wander when you're focused on a task.
25th - On November 23rd fans of Doctor Who and My Little Pony are going to have one crazy day.
26th - Perhaps the dæmons in Phillip Pullman's 'His Dark Materials' series relate to the metaphorical demons we sometimes refer to in conjunction with our emotions.
27th - In Twilight Princess, five out of the seven howling stone songs are from Ocarina of Time or Majora's Mask. So the Hero of Time's spirit recognises the melodies from when he was alive and that's why he's called by the howling stones.
28th - If you think about where certain words come from too much, the words often start sounding ridiculous.
29th - Sunset is probably my favourite time of day. The colors you see in the sky at that time are amazing.
30th - So clown fish apparently change gender naturally. That'd make an interesting sequel to Finding Nemo.
31st - It's surprising how often Fridge Horror makes sense once you read it.
Thursday, 1 August 2013
Wednesday, 31 July 2013
Random Thoughts
This short post is purely for update purposes. You see, sometimes I find that random thoughts that pop into my head for no apparent reason can actually be quite interesting to dwell on. And sometimes, those ideas linger for quite a while.
That's why I've decided to do something with them.
In what I'm hoping will become a continuing monthly post, I'll be posting a list of one random thought I come up with each day throughout the month. Sometimes they will be ones that are interesting to think about, other times they might just be random nonsense, but that's the nature of the game.
Because I only decided to start this project in the middle of the month, this month's post will be shorter than normal but all future ones should cover every single day.
The hard thing about doing this is that random thoughts are just that... random. I can't actually try to think of them otherwise that'll defeat the purpose, which is way some will make less sense than others. Of course, if I come up with a few in the span of one day, then I'll just stick with what I think is the most interesting one, or maybe hold onto others as backups for boring days.
The first of the monthly posts will be up later today. Of course, doing this doesn't mean this will be all that appears on my blog from now on. I'll be putting out a new opinionated post and a movie review in the next few days.
That's about all I have to say.
That's why I've decided to do something with them.
In what I'm hoping will become a continuing monthly post, I'll be posting a list of one random thought I come up with each day throughout the month. Sometimes they will be ones that are interesting to think about, other times they might just be random nonsense, but that's the nature of the game.
Because I only decided to start this project in the middle of the month, this month's post will be shorter than normal but all future ones should cover every single day.
The hard thing about doing this is that random thoughts are just that... random. I can't actually try to think of them otherwise that'll defeat the purpose, which is way some will make less sense than others. Of course, if I come up with a few in the span of one day, then I'll just stick with what I think is the most interesting one, or maybe hold onto others as backups for boring days.
The first of the monthly posts will be up later today. Of course, doing this doesn't mean this will be all that appears on my blog from now on. I'll be putting out a new opinionated post and a movie review in the next few days.
That's about all I have to say.
Tuesday, 23 April 2013
Television Review: The Great British Sewing Bee
As my new-found addiction to cross-stitch gets more and more intense (seriously, I pretty much can't look at a cross-stitch kit on the Hobbycraft website without wanting to buy it), The Great British Sewing Bee seemed like a good program to watch over my last experience of an Easter holiday. And as much as sewing clothes and cross stitching are two very different things, I've found it to be an enjoyable way to kill an hour.
A good deal of the reviews I've been reading for the show liken Sewing Bee to nothing more than a rip-off of The Great British Bake Off. While the two certainly follow the same formula and the newer program may even be filler to tide us over until Bake Off starts up again, that's not a valid reason to instantly dismiss the new show on the block.
A lot of those same reviews said that Sewing Bee was indeed less worthwhile than Bake Off and frankly, I disagree. Let me explain why. The argument of those other reviewers was that the clothing judges could only inspect the items that the contestants painstakingly put under their sewing machines, whereas the confectionery reviewers can taste, touch, smell and do whatever else they want with a measly little biscuit. Their main argument is that you can't eat an item of clothing. No duh. But allow me to point out something that those people might have missed. You can't wear a slice of cake either.
Something else that I feel I must call into question before moving on. Answer me this, people. How long does a cake last? On average, I would say a few hours. Maybe even a day or two if nobody's that hungry. Now, on the other hand, how long does an item of clothing last? Years! Now, which product is more worthy again?
Before I move on, I feel like I should clarify my position on both shows. I have watched both. In fact, I've watched more episodes of Bake Off than I have of Sewing Bee, not that that's a difficult task right now. But I find no hesitation in saying that, personally, I find Sewing Bee, to be considerably more entertaining. Bake Off is purely factual but as well as enjoying the subject matter, I find genuine enjoyment in watching eight amateur sewers duke it out. So please people, don't jump down my throat thinking that I'm making assumptions about my less-liked show. That is not the case.
In the past, specifically in watching Strictly Come Dancing, I've found Claudia Winkleman to be somewhat of an annoyance, but here, her air of wackiness is quite fitting. As for the two hosts of Bake Off, I find them to be extremely un-emotive. They are very much background personalities, barely even reacting when one of the contestants accidentally ended up with a chocolate upside down cake on the rocks. Sorry, that should read on the floor.
Now, onto what I think of the judges. Neither pair are perfect, but Patrick Grant and May Martin are certainly preferable in my opinion. One of the sillier comments I've seen about the show criticizes the fact that both sets of judges have the same (first) initial. Patrick and May versus Paul and Mary. Ever hear of the word coincidence? I don't doubt that all four of them truly are experts in their respective crafts and know their stuff inside and out. But, in all honesty, I found Paul Hollywood to be insufferably harsh. This is not to say that Patrick and May don't point it out when the sewers screw something up, there's no doubt they do. But if they find something to be 'unwearable' they generally keep that little nugget to themselves. Don't think of this as naive, I know that you have to receive criticism to improve, but there's limits to it, and I think that Hollywood crosses that line and then some.
Next, the contestants. Since I'm starting to think this review is becoming too much like a comparison to Bake Off, I'm sticking to the contestants of Sewing Bee this time. The group of people they found to participate are enjoyably varied, my favourite in that regard being Mark, the steampunk pirate mechanic. And even though, like most viewers, I've had favourites that I've rooted for and usually had a good guess at who would be eliminated each week, I was never really happy to see any of the contestants go. Especially Tilly, Jane and Stuart. Even though I know that Jane has made a full recovery thanks to Tilly's blog, I keep wondering what illness was so bad, that it caused her to leave so suddenly. The banter between the contestants and the insight into what they do normally was interesting to me and bumped up the entertainment value, especially Sandra's little witticism's.
As for the clothing, even though little of it is something I would like to wear, since I practically have to be bribed into wearing a dress or skirt, I can still appreciate the craftsmanship that went into every piece and why the participants chose to do what they did. Example, Ann is the oldest contestant, so her materials are rather plain or old-fashioned. And speaking of Ann, how does she manage to hang upside down in yoga? And as for Lauren, who is rather waify, chose fittingly floral fabrics for her pieces. But without a doubt, my favourite piece of clothing to come off the sewing machines, at least without having watched the final yet, is this:
I have yet to see the final that aired tonight but I look forward to finding out who will win, although I have a good idea. One of my few criticisms for The Great British Sewing Bee is that it's just too short. Only four episodes? I need more! But with over 1,000 original applicants and having read somewhere that a second series of the competition will take place, I hope to see it return.
Again, this is just my opinion so if you disagree, don't let it get to you and don't flay me for thinking something different, please? And that's about all I have to say.
 |
| The eight contestants, plus hosts Patrick Grant, Claudia Winkleman and May Martin in the middle. |
A lot of those same reviews said that Sewing Bee was indeed less worthwhile than Bake Off and frankly, I disagree. Let me explain why. The argument of those other reviewers was that the clothing judges could only inspect the items that the contestants painstakingly put under their sewing machines, whereas the confectionery reviewers can taste, touch, smell and do whatever else they want with a measly little biscuit. Their main argument is that you can't eat an item of clothing. No duh. But allow me to point out something that those people might have missed. You can't wear a slice of cake either.
Something else that I feel I must call into question before moving on. Answer me this, people. How long does a cake last? On average, I would say a few hours. Maybe even a day or two if nobody's that hungry. Now, on the other hand, how long does an item of clothing last? Years! Now, which product is more worthy again?
Before I move on, I feel like I should clarify my position on both shows. I have watched both. In fact, I've watched more episodes of Bake Off than I have of Sewing Bee, not that that's a difficult task right now. But I find no hesitation in saying that, personally, I find Sewing Bee, to be considerably more entertaining. Bake Off is purely factual but as well as enjoying the subject matter, I find genuine enjoyment in watching eight amateur sewers duke it out. So please people, don't jump down my throat thinking that I'm making assumptions about my less-liked show. That is not the case.
In the past, specifically in watching Strictly Come Dancing, I've found Claudia Winkleman to be somewhat of an annoyance, but here, her air of wackiness is quite fitting. As for the two hosts of Bake Off, I find them to be extremely un-emotive. They are very much background personalities, barely even reacting when one of the contestants accidentally ended up with a chocolate upside down cake on the rocks. Sorry, that should read on the floor.
Now, onto what I think of the judges. Neither pair are perfect, but Patrick Grant and May Martin are certainly preferable in my opinion. One of the sillier comments I've seen about the show criticizes the fact that both sets of judges have the same (first) initial. Patrick and May versus Paul and Mary. Ever hear of the word coincidence? I don't doubt that all four of them truly are experts in their respective crafts and know their stuff inside and out. But, in all honesty, I found Paul Hollywood to be insufferably harsh. This is not to say that Patrick and May don't point it out when the sewers screw something up, there's no doubt they do. But if they find something to be 'unwearable' they generally keep that little nugget to themselves. Don't think of this as naive, I know that you have to receive criticism to improve, but there's limits to it, and I think that Hollywood crosses that line and then some.
Next, the contestants. Since I'm starting to think this review is becoming too much like a comparison to Bake Off, I'm sticking to the contestants of Sewing Bee this time. The group of people they found to participate are enjoyably varied, my favourite in that regard being Mark, the steampunk pirate mechanic. And even though, like most viewers, I've had favourites that I've rooted for and usually had a good guess at who would be eliminated each week, I was never really happy to see any of the contestants go. Especially Tilly, Jane and Stuart. Even though I know that Jane has made a full recovery thanks to Tilly's blog, I keep wondering what illness was so bad, that it caused her to leave so suddenly. The banter between the contestants and the insight into what they do normally was interesting to me and bumped up the entertainment value, especially Sandra's little witticism's.
As for the clothing, even though little of it is something I would like to wear, since I practically have to be bribed into wearing a dress or skirt, I can still appreciate the craftsmanship that went into every piece and why the participants chose to do what they did. Example, Ann is the oldest contestant, so her materials are rather plain or old-fashioned. And speaking of Ann, how does she manage to hang upside down in yoga? And as for Lauren, who is rather waify, chose fittingly floral fabrics for her pieces. But without a doubt, my favourite piece of clothing to come off the sewing machines, at least without having watched the final yet, is this:
 |
| I could never have thought of something that creative to do with a pocket if I thought for three hours. Thanks Stuart. |
Again, this is just my opinion so if you disagree, don't let it get to you and don't flay me for thinking something different, please? And that's about all I have to say.
Monday, 11 March 2013
Unnecessary Complications
Quick Update Before I Get Started on the Real Post: That super long post I promised in my Pokemon X and Y analysis is still in the works. Something went wrong with it which meant I had to start all over again, but I promise it is coming.
Now for the real rant:
So, I'm in the final few weeks of university, with my dissertation due next week, and although it's very nearly finished, I'm panicking. Over the next few months, I'll be handing in my final assignments, applying for jobs and GRADUATING. But now, just as the most important deadline of my whole, entire degree is getting scarily close and I'm stressed to the point of breaking, other things start to go wrong...
First off, it's time to pay my bills again, which is probably going to sap a decent chunk of money from my bank account. Although since it's nearly the end of the semester, that won't be too bad.
But the second thing, which is what made me want to vent now, is the fact that our boiler has decided to break. On the day that the snow has made a comeback. So I have no heating, and no hot water until the gas company hopefully turns up tomorrow. Plus I spent half an hour on the phone with my landlord trying to find out every possible way to fix it on my own. So, this could be a cold night involving me being curled up on the sofa with my double duvet.
Hope all you folks out there in internet land are enjoying March, and if you need cheering up, I recommend listening to the Bremen Mask march from Majora's Mask. See you next time.
That, is about all I have to say...
Now for the real rant:
So, I'm in the final few weeks of university, with my dissertation due next week, and although it's very nearly finished, I'm panicking. Over the next few months, I'll be handing in my final assignments, applying for jobs and GRADUATING. But now, just as the most important deadline of my whole, entire degree is getting scarily close and I'm stressed to the point of breaking, other things start to go wrong...
First off, it's time to pay my bills again, which is probably going to sap a decent chunk of money from my bank account. Although since it's nearly the end of the semester, that won't be too bad.
But the second thing, which is what made me want to vent now, is the fact that our boiler has decided to break. On the day that the snow has made a comeback. So I have no heating, and no hot water until the gas company hopefully turns up tomorrow. Plus I spent half an hour on the phone with my landlord trying to find out every possible way to fix it on my own. So, this could be a cold night involving me being curled up on the sofa with my double duvet.
Hope all you folks out there in internet land are enjoying March, and if you need cheering up, I recommend listening to the Bremen Mask march from Majora's Mask. See you next time.
That, is about all I have to say...
Tuesday, 8 January 2013
Pokemon X and Y Announced
Hey there everyone. There's another new blog post in the works but it's by far my longest yet so it's going to take a while. Let's just say if you like this post, you'll like my next one. And with this morning's announcement which I watched live online, I decided I had to say something about it.
I must admit, I wasn't expecting the new generation so soon. But holy crap does it look amazing! Let's start off with the names. Admittedly the announcement hasn't had that much time to circulate completely yet but I think the names are going to get a lot of criticism. Why is that? They couldn't keep going with colors forever. I tried to think of myself and I came up with pink and purple. That's not likely to sell to the male market.
Next up, I'll talk about the starters. First though, a generalization, if any genwunners try to whine that they've gone too far from relatable animals now, I'm going to freak. I don't care if they're like real animals, they're still cool, and the developers can be even more creative that way!
First up, is this little critter, Chespin. Obviously he's some kind of grass type chipmunk, and his design reminds me of something from Happy Tree Friends, except less psychotic. He's pretty cute and I imagine his evolutions will fall somewhere between cool and tough. I'm not seeing evidence of a secondary type for this one quite yet but if I had to pick something it'd be Flying. Why? Those things on his hat remind me a bit of leafy wings.
Next up is Fennekin, the cutest and my favourite of the lot. She's a fiery fox/dog probably based off kitsune along the same lines as Vulpix and Ninetales. Honestly, I love this one so much I don't even care if it's final evolution is a carbon copy of Ninetales. And I imagine they're going to look beautiful. Odd as it sounds, this is the first starter Pokemon I could imagine having a high female-male gender ratio rather than the other way around. Given the likely basis in kitsune, I'm going to predict it's possible second type being Psychic, Ghost or Dark.
Last of the starters is Froakie, the water type. Even though he's quite cute, fluffy and that mark between his eyes reminds me of a blue rainbow, this is my least favourite of the bunch. That's just cos I'm not a big fan of frogs though. His evolutions are most likely going to look like big, tough frogs but given how those white bits on him look a bit like clouds, it'd be nice if I was proved wrong. Even though I already called this type for Chespin, that cloud-like design definitely makes me think this one could be Water/Flying.
Next up, I'll talk about the player characters. The boy looks pretty cool although quite similar to Hilbert from Black. The way he's looking in that mirror makes me think that character customisation might finally be an option, although I'm fully open to being wrong, and I don't mind if I am. And you can already tell the graphics are a vast improvement. I'm shocked they were able to refine them so much inside just one generation, even if it is for a whole different console.
 |
| This could look awesome in 3D. And the way he's moving, is he skating instead of running? That's cool. |
The first new legendary and my favourite. Something which I only just thought of even though first saw it 12 hours ago, if there wasn't Keldeo, this could very well be a master of the Legendary Musketeers from Gen V. Everything about this Pokemon looks cool to me, especially those four pairs of glowing antlers.
The second of the new legendaries and the first thought that comes to mind is: 'Oh, it's another bird.' Not that I think it looks bad, I'm just more of a cool blue type than a menacing red. Those black lines running through it's wings and tail remind me of some relation with electricity or plasma. That's pretty cool.
This is probably the game screenshot that intrigued me the most. I don't know if this will be a huge gym puzzle or in the overworld. Personally I hope it's the latter. Swinging on those vines every time I visit the area looks like a lot of fun.
Dear God, did they ever ramp up the attack graphics for this game. It's hard to show just how incredible they look without video but there seems to be even more motion than was added to fifth gen. From the few scenes in the video, it looks like the Pokemon might be moving around while they attack and the camera will follow the path of the attack until it collides with your opponent. Seriously guys, go watch the video. It's amazing.
For the first time, the international countries will be getting the new games at the same exact time as Japan. Thank you Mr Iwata, thank you. The games are set to be released in October of this year so write that on your new 2013 calendars Poke Fans!!
Monday, 17 December 2012
Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It -
I'm starting to understand why my older friends and family dislike winter. A couple of weeks ago I turned 22 and, in the 2 years since I've seen snow up north, I've developed a dislike for it. I still like looking at it, that stuff is pretty, but it's very dangerous. I guess it's not so much the snow that I've developed a dislike for, as the ice that inevitably accompanies it.
Why do I dislike it so much now, I hear you ask? Because last Tuesday morning, I slipped on the ice as I was leaving my flat. Normally when you slip, your legs shoot forwards and your butt cushions the fall. But that day, my right leg (the one that had landed on the ice) shot out to one side and the momentum sent the rest of me spinning, eventually landing left-side first on the ice. For the next couple of hours, the pain in my arm just got worse, resulting in me spending four hours in A&E (not that long if I'm honest) and coming out with a sling and a fractured elbow. There were a whole lot of people in the A&E that day, presumably injured the same way I was.
*sigh*
I'm even starting to lose enjoyment in putting up the faithful old christmas tree. But in my defence, I was paranoid that it was going to fall over for quite a while because of the unsteady old base. But I was happy with the finished result.
Maybe all hope is not lost...
To all those injured people I saw in A&E, condolences and I hope you all feel better soon.
Once again, that's all I have to say...
The Horror, The Horror!
WARNING: This post may contain spoilers.
Because of the fact that I'm currently finishing up a module on horror film and the fact that I haven't made a blog post in nearly 6 months, I decided to do an analysis of the horror villains that I've come across during the course. Even though some of the films kept me up at night, allow me to present... the 2012 Horror Movie Antagonist awards.
*cue fanfare*
Ahem...
First off, oddly enough, is the Award for Most Civilised Killer:
Gold - Carrie White (Carrie): Heck, she's just a normal girl with an odd power. Her mother is ten times more psychotic than she is.The only time she's remotely scary is at the end of the film, and the sequence where her bloody hand breaks out of the ground was enough to make me jump but just for the simple reason that I didn't expect it. For the rest of the film, it feels more like a teen drama.
Silver - Daniel Robitaille (Candyman): Yeah, I know he's not referred to by his real name until the second film but I already put in an award where the killer's name is the same as the name of the film. Anyway, why is Candyman on this list? Put simply, I don't think Daniel is that bad a guy. Even though his undead appearance is unsettling to say the least, if you can look beyond that, his clothing actually makes him come across as a pretty classy gent. And if I'm being brutally honest, he only kills people if they tell him to.
Bronze - Hannibal Lecter (Silence of the Lambs): I'll admit it feels a little strange to place a cannibal on a list about civilised people but hey, they're all killers in one way or another, and Hannibal Lecter is certainly more civilised than some other horror villains I could mention. But if you look beyond that psychosis, Lecter had a pretty high-class job as a psychiatrist, and was pretty dang good at it (ironic when you think about it). Not to mention Anthony Hopkins manages to bring a touch of class to almost every character he plays - especially Don Diego de la Vega - and Hannibal is downright normal when you compare him to the other serial killer in that movie.
NB: Now that I think about it, Anthony Hopkins may well be my second favourite aged media personality, after Bruce Forsyth.
Getting back on track, next up is the Award for Funniest Antagonist:
Gold: Zombie Horde (Dawn of the Dead) I'll be blunt about this. The zombies in the original Dawn of the Dead are barely even a threat! Seriously the asshole biker gang that shows up near the end of the film were pretty much put there for the sake of letting the zombies back in. They were the real bad guys of the film. The zombies are uncoordinated, single-minded and slow. Normal people could hold their own against them as long as they were fast enough...
P.S. Night of the Living Dead is racist.
Silver: Jason Voorhees (Friday the 13th Part 2) Admittedly, this is one of the many films I haven't seen but just the briefest description of Jason in the second film was enough to crack me up. I know enough to be sure that this film took place before Jason got his infamous hockey mask (if I remember rightly that was the third film). All I know about this film was that Jason spent it with a paper bag covering his face. Let me tell you... I can't take that visual image seriously, even when it's applied to a mass-murdering psychopath.
Bronze: Freddy Krueger (Nightmare on Elm Street 3 onwards) Once again, I'm no expert on the Nightmare on Elm Street films as a whole, but I've seen Dream Warriors and read all the plot synopses. Even though Freddy is half the reason for my sleepless nights (seriously, I was up til 3 the day I watched the film) the wisecracks he comes out with are pure gold, if creepy.
Finally, we're getting to what really makes a villain. Third, is the award for Most Gruesome Kills:
Gold: Nightmare on Elm Street I'm not going to lie, I loved watching Dream Warriors, purely for how creative the kills were. But to keep this speech short, I know a lot of kills in the earlier films were accompanied by fountains of blood and it took weeks to get the mental image of Phillip as a human marionette out of my head. Primarily because the tutor kept showing it every lesson. Aw crap, there it goes again.
Silver: Dawn of the Dead I can tell this is making me sound horrible, but Dawn of the Dead was another one of my favourites. My definition of 'Grusome Kill' pretty much boils down to a lot of blood or raw flesh on display, and Dawn of the Dead certainly provides in the latter category. The sight of one of those jerk-ass bikers having his torso torn open and eaten made me want to throw up.
Bronze: Candyman Texas Chainsaw Massacre was a contender for this spot but it lacks in the two things that, for me, define gruesome. But in Candyman, the blood is plentiful. As with Dawn of the Dead, there is one single shot that sticks out in my mind and that put the film on this list. After Helen's first meeting with the real Candyman, when she wakes up in the flat covered in blood and ventures out into the hall. That shot where we see the disembodied dog's head on the ground? That's the one.
Honourable Mention: Texas Chainsaw Massacre Kicked off the top 3 for most of it's main kills being censored and all the corpses being dried out.
Second from last award for this year is the Award for Creepiest Looking Villain:
Gold: Jigsaw (Saw) Clowns. Creepy. Clown dolls. Very creepy. Talking clown dolls controlled by psychopathic but creative killers? I'm sleeping with the light on. That is all.
Silver: Regan (The Exorcist) The best way I can think of to describe this one is just the sight of a little girl possessed by a powerful demon, either spasming uncontrollably or with her skin split wide open and evil eyes or just with her eyes rolled all the way back into her head. There's just something very much not right about it.
Bronze: Daniel Robitaille (Candyman) Again, this one is a little hard to explain. As I said way back up top, Daniel actually looks pretty civilised, but when you notice the hook sticking out of the open wound, his coat sleeve matted with blood and especially when you see his chest cavity full of bees, that's yet more nightmare fuel, guaranteed to have you throwing out every mirror you own.
Honourable Mention: Samara (The Ring) Do I even need to explain this one?
Last up (I ran out of ideas, sue me) is the Scariest Looking Villain Award:
Yes, this is somewhat different to Creepiest Looking, but I made it separate for the Gold Spot.
Gold: Leather Face (Texas Chainsaw Massacre) If there was ever a look that just screams deranged psychopath, I'd say this is it. I don't want to know who he got that mask from and for quite a while, I thought part of the female look he took on near the end incorporated the face of the girl he'd already killed. His grandpa is pretty scary too.
Silver: Regan (The Exorcist) In this case, the application of 'scary looking' also applies to the demonic idols that we see near the start of the film. And the appearance of possessed Regan can also be pretty deranged. The occasional shots where she wiggles that tongue of hers all over the place is just scarily disgusting.
Bronze: Freddy Krueger (Nightmare on Elm Street 3) You guys already know that I haven't seen most of the films in the franchise, but that doesn't matter too much because, as far as the synopses go, it seems like this film has the most alternate forms. Whether you want to take his normal humanoid form, the penis snake (that's not just a stupid innuendo, the film makers thought it looked too phallic at first), the sexy nurse with tongue-spitting powers or the living but obviously CGI-ed skeleton, they're all scary in their own little way.
I hope all of you enjoyed this year's awards. To be honest, there probably won't be another one next year a) because I'll forget and b) because I have every intention of staying away from horror films for quite a while.
Expect another post very soon (I need to catch up) but for this time, that's all I have to say...
Because of the fact that I'm currently finishing up a module on horror film and the fact that I haven't made a blog post in nearly 6 months, I decided to do an analysis of the horror villains that I've come across during the course. Even though some of the films kept me up at night, allow me to present... the 2012 Horror Movie Antagonist awards.
*cue fanfare*
Ahem...
First off, oddly enough, is the Award for Most Civilised Killer:
Gold - Carrie White (Carrie): Heck, she's just a normal girl with an odd power. Her mother is ten times more psychotic than she is.The only time she's remotely scary is at the end of the film, and the sequence where her bloody hand breaks out of the ground was enough to make me jump but just for the simple reason that I didn't expect it. For the rest of the film, it feels more like a teen drama.
Silver - Daniel Robitaille (Candyman): Yeah, I know he's not referred to by his real name until the second film but I already put in an award where the killer's name is the same as the name of the film. Anyway, why is Candyman on this list? Put simply, I don't think Daniel is that bad a guy. Even though his undead appearance is unsettling to say the least, if you can look beyond that, his clothing actually makes him come across as a pretty classy gent. And if I'm being brutally honest, he only kills people if they tell him to.
Bronze - Hannibal Lecter (Silence of the Lambs): I'll admit it feels a little strange to place a cannibal on a list about civilised people but hey, they're all killers in one way or another, and Hannibal Lecter is certainly more civilised than some other horror villains I could mention. But if you look beyond that psychosis, Lecter had a pretty high-class job as a psychiatrist, and was pretty dang good at it (ironic when you think about it). Not to mention Anthony Hopkins manages to bring a touch of class to almost every character he plays - especially Don Diego de la Vega - and Hannibal is downright normal when you compare him to the other serial killer in that movie.
NB: Now that I think about it, Anthony Hopkins may well be my second favourite aged media personality, after Bruce Forsyth.
Getting back on track, next up is the Award for Funniest Antagonist:
Gold: Zombie Horde (Dawn of the Dead) I'll be blunt about this. The zombies in the original Dawn of the Dead are barely even a threat! Seriously the asshole biker gang that shows up near the end of the film were pretty much put there for the sake of letting the zombies back in. They were the real bad guys of the film. The zombies are uncoordinated, single-minded and slow. Normal people could hold their own against them as long as they were fast enough...
P.S. Night of the Living Dead is racist.
Silver: Jason Voorhees (Friday the 13th Part 2) Admittedly, this is one of the many films I haven't seen but just the briefest description of Jason in the second film was enough to crack me up. I know enough to be sure that this film took place before Jason got his infamous hockey mask (if I remember rightly that was the third film). All I know about this film was that Jason spent it with a paper bag covering his face. Let me tell you... I can't take that visual image seriously, even when it's applied to a mass-murdering psychopath.
Bronze: Freddy Krueger (Nightmare on Elm Street 3 onwards) Once again, I'm no expert on the Nightmare on Elm Street films as a whole, but I've seen Dream Warriors and read all the plot synopses. Even though Freddy is half the reason for my sleepless nights (seriously, I was up til 3 the day I watched the film) the wisecracks he comes out with are pure gold, if creepy.
Finally, we're getting to what really makes a villain. Third, is the award for Most Gruesome Kills:
Gold: Nightmare on Elm Street I'm not going to lie, I loved watching Dream Warriors, purely for how creative the kills were. But to keep this speech short, I know a lot of kills in the earlier films were accompanied by fountains of blood and it took weeks to get the mental image of Phillip as a human marionette out of my head. Primarily because the tutor kept showing it every lesson. Aw crap, there it goes again.
Silver: Dawn of the Dead I can tell this is making me sound horrible, but Dawn of the Dead was another one of my favourites. My definition of 'Grusome Kill' pretty much boils down to a lot of blood or raw flesh on display, and Dawn of the Dead certainly provides in the latter category. The sight of one of those jerk-ass bikers having his torso torn open and eaten made me want to throw up.
Bronze: Candyman Texas Chainsaw Massacre was a contender for this spot but it lacks in the two things that, for me, define gruesome. But in Candyman, the blood is plentiful. As with Dawn of the Dead, there is one single shot that sticks out in my mind and that put the film on this list. After Helen's first meeting with the real Candyman, when she wakes up in the flat covered in blood and ventures out into the hall. That shot where we see the disembodied dog's head on the ground? That's the one.
Honourable Mention: Texas Chainsaw Massacre Kicked off the top 3 for most of it's main kills being censored and all the corpses being dried out.
Second from last award for this year is the Award for Creepiest Looking Villain:
Gold: Jigsaw (Saw) Clowns. Creepy. Clown dolls. Very creepy. Talking clown dolls controlled by psychopathic but creative killers? I'm sleeping with the light on. That is all.
Silver: Regan (The Exorcist) The best way I can think of to describe this one is just the sight of a little girl possessed by a powerful demon, either spasming uncontrollably or with her skin split wide open and evil eyes or just with her eyes rolled all the way back into her head. There's just something very much not right about it.
Bronze: Daniel Robitaille (Candyman) Again, this one is a little hard to explain. As I said way back up top, Daniel actually looks pretty civilised, but when you notice the hook sticking out of the open wound, his coat sleeve matted with blood and especially when you see his chest cavity full of bees, that's yet more nightmare fuel, guaranteed to have you throwing out every mirror you own.
Honourable Mention: Samara (The Ring) Do I even need to explain this one?
Last up (I ran out of ideas, sue me) is the Scariest Looking Villain Award:
Yes, this is somewhat different to Creepiest Looking, but I made it separate for the Gold Spot.
Gold: Leather Face (Texas Chainsaw Massacre) If there was ever a look that just screams deranged psychopath, I'd say this is it. I don't want to know who he got that mask from and for quite a while, I thought part of the female look he took on near the end incorporated the face of the girl he'd already killed. His grandpa is pretty scary too.
Silver: Regan (The Exorcist) In this case, the application of 'scary looking' also applies to the demonic idols that we see near the start of the film. And the appearance of possessed Regan can also be pretty deranged. The occasional shots where she wiggles that tongue of hers all over the place is just scarily disgusting.
Bronze: Freddy Krueger (Nightmare on Elm Street 3) You guys already know that I haven't seen most of the films in the franchise, but that doesn't matter too much because, as far as the synopses go, it seems like this film has the most alternate forms. Whether you want to take his normal humanoid form, the penis snake (that's not just a stupid innuendo, the film makers thought it looked too phallic at first), the sexy nurse with tongue-spitting powers or the living but obviously CGI-ed skeleton, they're all scary in their own little way.
I hope all of you enjoyed this year's awards. To be honest, there probably won't be another one next year a) because I'll forget and b) because I have every intention of staying away from horror films for quite a while.
Expect another post very soon (I need to catch up) but for this time, that's all I have to say...
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