{"@attributes":{"version":"2.0"},"channel":{"title":"sibilant sounds (like this)","link":"https:\/\/sibilantly.livejournal.com\/","description":"sibilant sounds (like this) - LiveJournal.com","lastBuildDate":"Wed, 03 Aug 2016 15:30:49 GMT","generator":"LiveJournal \/ LiveJournal.com","copyright":"NOINDEX","image":{"url":"https:\/\/l-userpic.livejournal.com\/119670290\/57322788","title":"sibilant sounds (like this)","link":"https:\/\/sibilantly.livejournal.com\/","width":"100","height":"100"},"item":[{"guid":"https:\/\/sibilantly.livejournal.com\/7955.html","pubDate":"Wed, 03 Aug 2016 15:30:49 GMT","title":"Things are about to get all Icarus-y","author":"sibilantly","link":"https:\/\/sibilantly.livejournal.com\/7955.html","description":"So it's just past midnight, and I'm calling it quits on editing my bingo fic, because my editing decisions are questionable (at best) after midnight. They're a bit like gremlins, in that sense. At this rate, I am most definitely not<\/i> going to get bingo (which is a bit of a poor showing, considering the fact that I am... the mod for the challenge *cough*.)

It's been an interesting experience overall, though, because the mere fact I was trying<\/i> to get bingo meant I inadvertently maybe actually properly learned how to pump out a Shitty First Draft without doing any editing as I go. I've posted two (actually completed!) things in two weeks, and this bingo fic will (hopefully!) make it three things in three weeks. After several years of puzzling and wondering about how the everloving fuck Ray Bradbury managed to write one short story per week, I now can almost understand it.

Almost.

...but I also now cannot shake the strange, slightly uneasy feeling that things are about to get all Icarus-y.","comments":"https:\/\/sibilantly.livejournal.com\/7955.html?view=comments#comments","category":["editing is harder","writing is hard"]},{"guid":"https:\/\/sibilantly.livejournal.com\/7886.html","pubDate":"Fri, 01 Jul 2016 07:44:42 GMT","title":"Inceptiversary approacheth","author":"sibilantly","link":"https:\/\/sibilantly.livejournal.com\/7886.html","description":"Behold, my bingo card for Inception Bingo<\/a>!

\n\n\n\n\n\n
Exhibitionism<\/td>\nBodyguard scenarios\/AU<\/td>\nAdrenaline sex<\/td>\nHand fetish<\/td>\nMedical fetishisation<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Intoxication and altered states<\/td>\nMultiple orgasms<\/td>\nCrossdressing<\/td>\nFever dream<\/td>\nMasturbation<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Erotic dreams<\/td>\nAnti-heroes<\/td>\nScrewball comedy<\/td>\nIntercrural sex<\/td>\nFuck or die<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Body-painting<\/td>\nDouble penetration<\/td>\nRegency AU<\/td>\nBedsharing<\/td>\nTongue fucking<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Bodyswap<\/td>\nPhysical imperfections<\/td>\nFrottage<\/td>\nRescue from danger<\/td>\nDildos<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody><\/table>
Card sign ups will remain open through all of July, with a final posting date of August 5. Get in on it if you haven't already!

Artist and author sign-ups for <\/a>i_reversebang<\/b><\/a><\/span> are also still open! So if you've been on the fence and waiting for a sign as to whether you should sign up, consider this that sign ;D","comments":"https:\/\/sibilantly.livejournal.com\/7886.html?view=comments#comments","category":["inceptiversary","inception bingo","inception reverse bang","fandom things"]},{"guid":"https:\/\/sibilantly.livejournal.com\/7557.html","pubDate":"Wed, 28 Oct 2015 10:50:30 GMT","title":"Sheer Class, Pure Gangster","author":"sibilantly","link":"https:\/\/sibilantly.livejournal.com\/7557.html","description":"Saw Legend<\/i> today!

It feels like I've been waiting to see this film forever (my sympathies to my US peeps who will have to wait a while longer), and, for the most part, I was satisfied with what I got. Which feels weird to say, I have to admit, because plot\/narrative-wise, the film is a damn mess.

BUT

The film rides on Tom Hardy's two performances, and those performances were great. Like a lot of other people and reviewers said, there were long stretches where I forgot that it was Tom Hardy playing both roles, because his portrayals of Reggie and Ronnie were so distinct. Reggie's leading man swagger and smooth charm contrasted marvellously with Ronnie's dead-eyed menace - although Ron has a very odd, awkward charm all to himself. There's a great scene - after Reggie is packed off to prison, and Ron is the only man in charge of their club\/casino - where Ron jokes and banters with Teddy, before getting up on stage to insult and berate his casino clientele (and subject them to his awful trumpet playing and laughably bad stand-up). It's brilliant and hilarious, and endeared Ron to me (even though he's an objectively horrible person, as is Reggie).

Also! Speaking of hilarious, the film was very, very <\/span>funny<\/i>, which I hadn't expected. There was the borderline slapstick of the twins' slapfight (just as magnificent as I was hoping it would be), and a huge amount of dark humour arising from jokes about violence, torture, death, and other terrible things, and\/or comedy juxtaposed with said terrible things. The humour was a great compliment to the nastiness of the twins' gangster lifestyle.<\/span>

Everything speeds along at a rather fast pace, which is arguably necessary, since the film covers a rather long time frame. That being said, I would argue that there are other movies - other gangster movies, even - which cover even longer time frames, and don't need that breakneck pace or so much voiceover narration. Anyway, I digress. As the movie went on, I felt that the story started to suffer because it was speeding along so quickly. There were a lot of events (particularly in the last third of the film) that could have, and <\/span>should have<\/i>, had more emotional resonance, but didn't because things moved along so quickly. I actually grew slightly frustrated toward the end, because I wanted the film to go deeper into things, to slow down and explore something - <\/span>anything<\/i>! If I had to pick, I would've wanted a greater exploration of the twins' relationship, to see why Reggie was so loyal to Ronnie (and vice versa). The film didn't really cover it with sufficient depth, beyond 'they're twins' and Reggie saying he's been taking care of Ronnie for a long time. There were the neat soundbites we got from the trailers (e.g. "I can't do that, he's my brother," and "My loyalty to my brother is how I measure myself"), but things didn't get very much into the <\/span>why <\/i>of things.<\/span>

There was a good (if somewhat heavy handed) scene in the last third of the movie, following Ron's murder of George Cornell, in which it's made very clear that Ron is Mama Kray's favourite. She dotes on him, seemingly anticipates his wants and needs before he voices them, then... belatedly, off-handedly offers the same to Reg. Then, to top it off, she tells him that "whatever Ron did, you have to forgive him". And Reg does, looking (and sounding) tired and resigned and browbeaten. I wanted more of <\/span>that<\/i>. Not necessarily family moments, but a closer examinationof things. Less speed, more depth, captain!<\/span>

The third act of the movie is also structured rather oddly, and, as I said before, lacked that emotional resonance it really should've had. Rather than being utterly devastating and shattering, the events of the third act left me thinking, 'ah, yes, the movie is going to end soon'.<\/span>

(Also, I'm just going to say here: that rape scene was completely unnecessary and added nothing to the story. The filmmakers already set Reggie up as being controlling and emotionally\/verbally abusive. But apparently that wasn't enough! He had to rape her, too, to fill the abusive husband bingo card. Yergh. But, okay, fine, let's say, hypothetically speaking, it just had to be included. If it really did<\/i> have to be included, they undermined its impact by totally glossing over it for the rest of the film!)

Perhaps it's because I've read the book, so I'm seeing things with a sense of 'what could've been' rather than judging the movie as is. But, when reading the book, the central conflict was made <\/span>very <\/i>clear. The film needed that sort of clarity. There's a crippling co-dependency in the twins' relationship, in the book: Reggie, having structured his identity around being Ronnie's carer and protector, can never completely extricate himself from that relationship, and Ronnie, having this need to be first in Reggie's list of priorities, no matter what, can't do it either. And while there were definitely flashes of that in the film, the central, largely psychological conflict between the twins was slow to unfold, and was muddied by a lot of side events (some of which could've been cut, in my opinion).<\/span>

I know this is all seems like one part praise, two parts criticism, but I genuinely liked the movie. I liked it <\/span>a lot<\/i>, even with those deep flaws, because Tom Hardy was seriously <\/span>that<\/span> <\/span>amazing in it. And I'd watch it again, if only to savour the things I really enjoyed - namely Tom Hardy's amazing performance(s), and the darkly funny humour - and to further indulge my fondness for crime movies.<\/span>

Other things I enjoyed:<\/span>