not a moose

Ashton Holmes is pretty

memoryfloodsin — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 22:06:54 GMT

situation normal, all fucked up

memoryfloodsin — Sun, 27 Mar 2011 22:13:57 GMT

So apparently I adore Rami Malek now. I love everything his face chooses to be, which is mainly beautiful. I spent today watching Band of Brothers and think I have to conclude that possibly I am starting to like The Pacific more. I'm still incredibly shocked that there were no actor nominations for anyone on The Pacific. I think Joe Mazzello and Rami Malek turned in incredible performances. Anyway I picspammed Sledge a while back and now it's Snafu's turn.

Also, if any of my US flist would help me out and buy this & ship it to me, I'd obviously paypal you the money but Amazon.com will not ship it outside the US. I'd be very, very grateful.

his face!

memoryfloodsin — Sun, 20 Mar 2011 22:04:23 GMT

I am rapidly becoming more enamoured with The Pacific. I think actually it's more comparable with Generation Kill than Band of Brothers. I know it got like, 24 Emmy nominations and won lots but I don't really understand how it didn't get any acting nominations. Joe Mazzello really deserved one, his transformation from naive boy to hardened killer is just so incredible. His face is so amazing, and pretty.

With supreme visions of lonely tunes.

memoryfloodsin — Sun, 18 Jul 2010 12:38:08 GMT

I have been meaning to do a massive Hair picspam mostly because the cast is insanely gorgeous. This consists mainly of the new Broadway cast and the London cast but there are bits of the Park cast as well. Pics are from google, tumblr and flickr.

Some general show pics first of all:

Allison Case. I've said it before and I'll say it again Allison is basically the personification of light and beauty and all that is good in the world. I'm so glad it's her on the posters because it really couldn't be anyone else, she's the literal representation of Hair.

She is just so pretty and I love her hair colour (even if it isn't natural), I wish I could go that ginger.

Do you see how adorable and dorky she is? Seriously I want Allison as my BFF.

Singing If I Fell in Love with You at the British Be-In, so beautiful.

Kacie Sheik. I love this woman's voice it is so different and stunning. Also, her hair is amazing!

Singing Daydreamer at Joe's Pub. I want this woman's style so badly!

Andrew Kober. I love this man so much. His blogs make me so happy. He's really funny and intelligent. He's gorgeous, and sooooo nice at the stage door. His voice is phenomenal, he is fierce! Plus he plays Don't Stop Believing on Rockband at his concert!

Singing Twentysomething at Koberet.

Just Choose Right by Bobby Cronin - his voice in this blows my mind!

Matt DeAngelis. I have MUCH love for Matt. He's just so pretty and watching him perform is a joy, he's so energetic and present. Plus his voice is gorgeous.

The Old Red Hills of Home from At This Performance.

He's so riffy and awesome. Lost in the Wilderness from Children of Eden.

All At Once - I love this song and his voice is so pretty on this.

Megan Reinking. I really wanted to see Megan!Sheila mostly because Caissie doesn't do anything for me as Sheila and I just wanted to see anyone else but Megan was so superior I am now in love with Megan!Sheila. I adore Megan, she's so cute and lovely and stunning, her hair is so marvellous!

She breaks my heart during this song, it's beautiful.

Pretty voice!

The Tribe. Oh my God this cast. The love they have for each other is ridiculous. I really didn't think I could adore a cast more than the In The Heights OBC but I think the Tribe have just inched ahead. They are so phenomenally talented and utterly gorgeous.

Anthony Hollock with Allison Case, Sasha and others at Summer of Love, Ato Blankson-Wood & Allison, Ato and John Moauro.

Allison & Maya Sharpe, the cast at Summer of Love, Allison & Andrew, Allison and Kaitlin Kiyan.

Matt & Allison, Sasha Allen, Steel Burkhardt, Hannah Shankman with Darius Nichols.

Yes ok these are included because Matt is shirtless! Gavin Creel in that last pic.

Allison, Caissie Levy and Anthony, Caissie & Gavin (such an adorable pic), Gavin & Steel, the Tribe at West End Live.

The Tribe at West End Live, all looking very hot!

Jonathan Groff was Claude in the Park, and Patina Miller was as well so now with them being over in London for Deathtrap and Sister Act is a HUGE Hair reunion.

So much love in this Tribe.

And again these are here because Matt is hot.

Hellooo Mr Creel.

the new gielgud?

memoryfloodsin — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 23:32:41 GMT

I've adored Alex Jennings for a very long time but hadn't ever managed to catch him on stage until I saw The Habit of Art recently and he was well worth the wait. I think he's just so adorable and witty and ridiculously attractive. You'll note there's a lot of caps in this picspam where he's leaning on things just because I think he does it so splendidly. He's so long and lanky looking, he's 6'2" so I approve of that immensely.

I give to you the first part of a long picspam. All images in this picspam are from Fairy Tales: Rapunzel.

in the best selling show

memoryfloodsin — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 19:56:40 GMT

I decided I was going to picspam some Party Animals and so I'm starting with episode one. This is more an Andrew Buchan, Shelley Conn and Matt Smith spam but whatever.

Fiercest bunch of researchers/interns ever y/y? I love Matt, I don't think Matt gets enough love.

Yes, there is going to be a lot of Danny in this picspam; he's so adorable and dorky and yet ruthless and cunning when he wants to be.

Awww Danny and Scott you are so dorky together. I love the chemistry between Andrew and Matt.

Oh Matt you're an evil one but I guess that's politics, right?

I love Shelley in that cap she just looks so pretty even with her mouth agape. I ship Danny/Jo by the way, there's so much sexual tension with them. Even though it's not in these caps I adore the high five between Matt and James.

Andrew Buchan has such a pretty cupid's bow. I appreciate the fact they made you care about Jake and Scott's friendship so that the end of the episode actually matters. Matt Smith working the glasses there.

Again not in these caps but I really like what Matt's doing with the glasses cloth in this scene; how he keeps wringing it between his fingers it's a really nice touch. I hate Sophie she's such a cow.

I love Andrew's little smirks and smiles, his entire face lights up - lovely!

I put that first cap in their because I love how his hand spans the bowl. SMILEY! I love that Danny gets depressed and watches TV upside down.

I adore Scott's little smirk in the last cap.

The Foster brothers' banter is so precious.

He's so happy when she sits down because she's so pretty and then when she leaves he's so happy cos she's sassy and smart. How gorgeous does Shelley look?

Oh James, I really like James despite him fucking up my OTP.

Kirsty is so conniving and sneaky at the start, I mean she's not much better at the end but she has grown a bit. Why yes Andrew Buchan you are gorgeous.

They're such an attractive couple both have great smiles.

Again it's not in these caps but I love Ashika's little hipcheck of Matt's shoulder, they're such awesome bffs.

I love how earnest Danny is about the bond. He genuinely thinks it's a great idea and that it can help everyone not just young people wanting to change their lives. That second cap is pure pornography: lips, fingers, bottle.

Love the shirt Scott is wearing, his collarbones are so pretty Yay for bi-partisan filth.

Poor Danny, Jo loves him really.

Oh poor Danny, Scott mocks you mercilessly.

Aww bless, look how sad he looks with his ready salted crisps. This scene is very much why I ship Jo/Danny. They have such fabulous chemistry.
Pretty Shelley!!! Pretty Shelley and Andrew, seriously Ashika and Scott are so lovely with each other.

That reaction shot breaks me. In fact this whole ending kills me. He breaks down so beautifully. I really like how he pushes he away and asks for Danny.

Danny crying and Scott crying and Ashika just so sad for them both and so sad for Scott especially thinking it's his fault. The parallels between the end of this episode and the end of the last are so perfect.

14 species of Galapagos Finch

memoryfloodsin — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 19:35:52 GMT

I've been going through a serious Andrew Buchan phase and so I've rewatched Party Animals which I adore. I love Matt Smith in it, I love Andrea Riseborough, Racquel Cassidy and Pip Carter but most of all I love Andrew Buchan and Shelley Conn. I love Ashika Chandiramani and Scott Foster, I wish there'd been a second season so they could've had some closure. So I've decided to picspam one of my favourite moments from them. They're so adorable together, they dance to A-ha, they mock each others politics, they give each other a heads up on dirty campaigns and they're just so perfect together. Shelley and Andrew have ridiculous amounts of chemistry and look stunning together.

Such an intense way to start them off. I think Buchan does breaking down crying so well and Shelley just looks so pretty in that picture. The third picture is there so you can admire Andrew's long, elegant fingers and the fourth because he just looks so cute and smiley.

The looks they share! They've got eye-fucking down to an art. This is one of my favourite moments, actually both my favourite Ashika/Scott moments are when they're dancing.

Shelley looks so stunning in this scene and they just fit perfectly and look gorgeous together. I love her hand on his chest, and how close they are and how inappropriate it is that they're that close together at that particular event. Ugh, your bi-partisan love is epic!

First one is in there because a) I love Shelley's hair and b) she looks so pretty in profile. Aww moping Scott, that's actually out of chronological order, I think but still Andrew Buchan's arms!!!
FINALLY!!! (only not really, alas) I adore the way he's resting his head on her and how happy he is in this scene. Look at them together in that last cap, how has this couple gone so far under the fandom radar?! I positively ache for fic and icons of them!

TV in 2009

memoryfloodsin — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 23:24:09 GMT

For picspammy. For a full list of the TV I've watched over this year see my listography and also my 2009 scrapbook

My previous 2009 roundups:

Books
Films
Theatre

And my end of the decade picspam:

British TV of the past decade

If I've got time tomorrow I'll try and do a 'these are the beautiful people of 2009' post but I don't know if I'll manage.

The TV I've loved this year.

Studio 60* ● Shakespeare Re:Told - Macbeth ● Shakespeare Re:Told - Much Ado About Nothing* ● State of Play* ● Shameless* ● Leverage ● Britannia High* ● Demons ● Party Animals* ● Criminal Minds* ● Spaced* ● Wonderfalls* ● Arrested Development* ● Green Wing* ● Jeeves and Wooster* ● Absolutely Fabulous* ● How I Met Your Mother* ● Robin Hood * ● The Big Bang Theory ● Slings and Arrows* ● Castle ● Ashes to Ashes* ● Whitechapel ● Cambridge Spies* ● All The Small Things ● Lewis* ● New Tricks* ● Criminal Justice - Ben ● PBS Great Performances: In The Heights, Chasing Broadway Dreams ● Kitchen Confidential* ● Veronica Mars* ● The Mentalist ● Mock the Week* ● The Black Donnellys ● Sports Night* ● Merlin* ● In Plain Sight** ● M*A*S*H** ● Band of Brothers* ● Primeval ● Jane Eyre ● Community ● Miranda

The best TV 3 current shows of the year**.

Friday Night Lights* ● This is one of the best, if not the best, dramas ever. It is so incredibly realistic. The characters all have their strengths and their flaws. They interact as if they were real human beings not just plot points, so sometimes there'll be a scene that in no way drives the story or contributes to events but just allows you to feel for these characters. It's a very brave show to do that. Season 4 has been incredible. It's taken a whole new bunch of kids and made you care about them the way you did with the Panthers. It has not made them Smash point 2 or Matt redux. It's made them new and fresh. I think The Son and Stay have got to be two of the most incredible episodes of TV ever. How this show hasn't won every award possible I do not know.
Beautiful People* ● This show makes me laugh and cry. It's so ridiculous at times and then so incredibly touching at others. The cast are fantastic and have such fabulous chemistry. I love all the little musical numbers. It's just so fresh, funny and sweet.
Generation Kill ● Gorgeous cinematography, phenomenal cast. I find it really hard to write about Gen Kill the TV show because you can't really say things like 'incredible story' or 'great characters' because it's real, they're not characters in the strictest sense. The adaptation of the book to TV though is superb, it makes you really care about all these men, even the ones who are arseholes 90% of the time. It breaks your heart one moment and then makes you laugh hysterically the next. It's sheer perfection.

** It was so hard to narrow down my favourite shows so I decide to list all the shows I've loved and then do the 3 top current shows, by current I mean they aired this year, so that helped me narrow it down. It meant that Jane Eyre was out etc etc, which was helpful. OMG I watch too much TV - although I was unemployed for most of this year.

Theatre is my crack.

memoryfloodsin — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 00:07:04 GMT

For picspammy. I'm planning on accompanying this with memorable performances/moments etc but I don't think I'll crosspost that to there so if anyone does want to see that just let me know and I'll make sure it's public and let you know when it's posted.

Plays I've seen in 2009

Every Good Boy Deserves Favour - 17/1 7.00pm ● Loot - 5/2 2pm ● 3 Days of Rain - 21/2 3pm ● Boeing Boeing - 26/2 7.30pm ● Tony and Twizzle - 5/3 7.30pm ● Where There's A Will - 12/3 7.30pm ● Lucky Sods - 19/3 7.30pm ● 3 Days of Rain - 18/4 3.00pm ● Dimetos - 18/4 7.30pm ● Waiting for Godot - 21/4 7.30pm ● Enjoy - 29/4 2.30pm ● 3 Days of Rain - 29/4 7.30pm ● A View from the Bridge - 2/5 7.30pm ● Madame de Sade - 13/5 2.30pm ● The Homecoming - 9/6 7.30pm ● As You Like It (Globe) - 26/6 2.00pm ● The Winter's Tale (Old Vic) - 4/7 2.30pm ● The Cherry Orchard - 4/7 7.30pm ● Arcadia - 17/7 7.30pm ● Phedre - 18/7 3.00pm ● Hamlet - 18/7 7.30pm ● Dorian Gray 25/7 3.00pm ● The Mountaintop 28/7 8.00pm ● Duet for One 31/7 7.30pm ● The Woman in Black 4/8 3.00pm ● The 39 Steps 5/8 8.00pm ● War Horse - 15/8 2.30pm ● The Railway Children - 3/9 7.00pm ● A Streetcar Named Desire - 12/9 2.30pm ● Mother Courage and Her Children - 12/9 7.30pm ● The Pitmen Painters - 13/9 3.00pm ● Fugitive Kind (Reading) - 15/9 7.30pm ● All's Well That Ends Well (as part of the NT Live cinema broadcast season) ● Julius Caesar - 2/10 7.30pm ● As You Like It (RSC) - 3/10 1.30pm ● A Winter's Tale (RSC) - 3/10 7.30pm ● As You Like It (Globe) - 10/10 2.00pm ● The 39 Steps - 10/10 8.00pm ● Prick Up Your Ears - 7/11 2.30pm ● An Inspector Calls - 7/11 7.30pm ● Endgame 13/11 7.30pm ● Life is a Dream - 14/11 2.30pm ● Inherit The Wind - 14/11 7.30pm ● Speaking in Tongues - 5/12 2.30pm ● Red - 5/12 7.30pm ● The Pitman Painters - 6/12 3.00pm

Top 5 Plays I've Seen in 2009

● As You Like It (Globe), Shakespeare Dir. Thea Sharrock This production was absolutely lush. I'm so excited that it's been recorded for a planned cinema/dvd/download release! The cast was perfect, they worked together so well that I found myself adoring characters I'd previously been a bit meh about. For me whether a production of AYLI is good or not lies almost entirely Celia, if Celia is a whiny pathetic girl then that reflects badly on Rosalind which then makes you think 'ummm why Orlando, why?!' etc etc. This Celia (Laura Rogers) was fantastic, absolutely fantastic, she was mocking and fierce, I loved her! I found Jamie Parker's Oliver just wonderful too, he brought so much to the role that I'd never seen before. He and Jack Laskey were brilliant together, I really enjoyed the way they played the lion attack at the end. I really, really enjoyed this production immensely - it's definitely one of my favourite productions of Shakespeare ever.
● Red (Donmar), John Logan Dir. Michael Grandage This was an amazing play. Eddie and Alfred were superb. Alfred was in complete command of the stage. Eddie was so understated and calm, even when he got emotional, it was such a beautiful measured performance. The scene where they prepared the canvas was epic, also the moment when Eddie switches on the workers was just soooooo incredible!
● Three Days of Rain (Apollo), Richard Greenberg Dir. Jamie Lloyd I love how layered this play is; you discover something new every time you read it. I thought McAvoy was brilliant, as was Nigel Harman. I saw it three times and could still easily sit through it another three times and feel like I'd not scratched the surface of its brilliance.
● The Mountaintop (Trafalgar Studios), Katori Hall Dir. James Dacre This play was incredible. So moving, it took my breath away at the end. It made me weep for joy. David Harewood was incredible as Martin Luther King Jr and Lorraine Burroughs was super as Camae. She brought such energy and lightness to the stage. I was completely enthralled by it. The last scene was probably one of the most exhilarating moments I've experienced in theatre. I desperately want it to transfer!
● The Pitmen Painters (National Theatre), Lee Hall Dir. Max Roberts I can't get over how brilliant this play is. I think it's far superior to Billy Elliot (also by Lee Hall, in case you were wondering where the comparison comes from). It's so funny at the start and so heartbreaking at the end. When the projection reads "In 1995, the call for the 'common ownership of the means of production, distribution and exchange' was excised from the Labour Party Constitution" it breaks my heart. Those men were so hopeful after the Second World War they were so ready for the post-War & Welfare State world and then it never really changed for them.

Honourable Mentions Prick Up Your Ears ● Every Good Boy Deserves Favour ● Madame De Sade ● The Winter's Tale (Old Vic) ● Fugitive Kind (Reading) ● War Horse ● Life is a Dream ● Inherit the Wind

counting down in film

memoryfloodsin — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 20:54:08 GMT

For picspammy this is my films of 2009.

Films I Saw At The Cinema

Twilight ● Bride Wars ● Underworld: Rise of the Lycans ● Seven Pounds ● The Pink Panther 2 ● Gran Torino ● The International ● Marley and Me ● Monsters vs Aliens ● 17 Again ● Crank: High Voltage ● I Love You, Man ● Terminator: Salvation ● The Hangover ● Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen ● (500) Days of Summer ● Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince ● Dorian Gray ● Inglorious Basterds ● Zombieland ● An Education ● New Moon

Top 20 Films I Saw At The Cinema

The Fall ● Gorgeous cinematography, fabulous storytelling and that little girl is so cute. I cried.
Frost Nixon ● I'm so sorry for Michael that all the acting nominations went to Frank. I love this film so much. It's so exciting - yes, I'm a huge nerd!
Slumdog Millionaire ● Even though it's unrelenting horror it somehow manages to be ridiculously uplifting and makes you feel really good. I think because Jamal endures so much and still maintains his dignity and hope. The score is amazing!
Milk ● I've always found Sean Penn a bit overrated but in this he was fantastic. It was such an uplifting movie and I cried so much at the end. Harvey Milk was an incredible man.
Confessions of a Shopaholic ● This was sooo good. I read the book a very long time ago and honestly couldn't tell you anything about the book but the film was fabulous. Hugh was charming and hot. Isla was fantastically funny and sweet. It was hilarious and actually rather touching.
The Young Victoria ● This was such a feast for the eyes. It was so pretty. I know it took a few liberties with the truth but it was such a romantic and understated story. Rupert was lovely.
The Boat That Rocked ● So funny. Great score. Amazing cast. I know Richard Curtis has written basically one film and keeps retooling it but I don't care it's a damn good film!
In The Loop ● Peter Capaldi is a genius. It saddens me he won't ever get any nominations for this. I (and the entire cinema) was in hysterics.
Star Trek ● This was perfection. The cast, the cinematography, the score. I loved how it made you cry from the first moment and didn't hold up until the very end.
Some Like It Hot ● I've seen this before obviously but our cinema shows old movies and I just had to see this one on the big screen. It was fabulous. I have such a crush on Jack Lemmon. I love the ending.
Sunshine Cleaning ● This is one of those great films where not a lot happens but it's such a beautiful character study. Amy and Emily were marvellous.
Moon ● Wow this was wonderful. Sam Rockwell was amazing - he should really be nominated for an Oscar but he won't be because it's a small indie film. I thought the actual storytelling for this was so compelling and kept me guessing till the end.
The Proposal ● I love Sandra Bullock. This was hilarious and sweet and Sandra and Ryan had tonnes of chemistry.
The Blues Brothers ● Again, I've obviously seen this before but it was an opportunity to see it on the big screen. It was even funnier than I remember it being. I find Dan Ackroyd ridiculously attractive.
District 9 ● Finally a film where aliens don't think America is all that. It couldn't really have worked anywhere better than South Africa. This was such an interesting look at the tired old alien premise. I thought the acting was marvellous and I got very sniffley at points.
Up ● OH MY GOD! This film actually lived up to it's hype. I cried soooo much from the first few moments. It was so uplifting and sweet and charming.
Taking Woodstock ● This is on my top 20 mostly because of how pretty it was. I mean the story and acting were great but really it was just a gorgeous film to watch.
Me and Orson Welles ● This is one of those films that's just so uplifting and enjoyable. I thought Christian was amazing, as was Zac and Ben Chaplin. Such a sweet, engaging story with some humour and a lot of heart.
Where the Wild Things Are ● Again another incredibly beautiful film. I think everyone should watch this film. It's such a beautiful story about what it means to grow up. The boy playing Max (I think his name is Max too?) was amazing. Oh, and the score?!?! Holy hell it's lovely!
Glorious 39 ● The cast is astonishingly good. Romola is gorgeous - nothing to do with the merits of the film but completely worth saying. This was such a great story - so interesting to see a different type of 'war' film. Awfully disturbing and creepy and yet completely gripping.

Films I'm Hoping To See Before 2010

● Nowhere Boy
● Sherlock Holmes
● Avatar

These aren't in my list because I don't know if I will get round to seeing them before the end of the year and I wanted to get this picspam done as I've still got masses more to catalogue for my year end posts!

The countdown to 2010 starts here!

memoryfloodsin — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 20:54:10 GMT

Ok so I'm starting my end of year round up. I'm starting with books. I love reading but after uni where you're just reading around the clock I kind of stopped reading a lot. This year I decided to change that and swore I'd try and read as often as I could. I've not managed a great deal of books but it's a huge amount compared to 2008. In 2010 I'm going to try and do that 50 books in a year thing.

The 39 Steps ● John Buchan, I've read it many times before and I just love this book. So much is packed into such a tiny packaging. I really love Richard Hannay as a precursor to James Bond. I also love this for the play it spawned - oh how it makes me laugh!
On The Road ● Jack Kerouac, I feel like maybe I missed the point with this one. I didn't not like it but I found myself pretty indifferent to it and quite annoyed by the main 'characters' - they were so irresponsible and hard to like. I dunno, it just never clicked for me.
American Gods ● Neil Gaiman, Love this man! I've been meaning to read American Gods for ages. It was every bit as good as I expected. I'm sure I've missed huge chunks of it because there's just so much going on. I really enjoyed how many layers there were and how it all linked up.
Tintin and the Crab with the Golden Claws ● Herge, Oh shut up! Tintin counts as a book. I think Tintin is the reason I'm pretty meh about Batman et al, cos when I was growing up my super hero was a Belgian, obnoxiously curious journalist with a crazy hair do. I'm very excited for the film but also terrified.
The Picture of Dorian Gray ● Oscar Wilde, I love this book, I love how it's still relatable for today. Although I still find the whole Sybil was the love of his life thing really tenuous.
Tintin and the Shooting Star ● Herge.
Tintin and the Secret of the Unicorn ● Herge.
State of the Nation: British Theatre Since 1945 ● Michael Billington, This book was so fascinating. It's so interesting to see the connections between the various theatres/producing houses and how they all came into being. It's very interesting to see how productions change with who's in power and what's happening in a societal context. Really really recommend this book for anyone who is interested in theatre.
Brideshead Revisited ● Evelyn Waugh, I love this book. I normally don't like first person narration but it really didn't bother me with this. It's one of those books that makes your heart ache after you finish reading.
Of Love and Other Demons ● Gabriel Garcia Marquez, He's one of my favourite authors. I find his writing style so exciting, I guess a little of that comes from the translation, it just reads really organically. I also love how he can write about something disturbing or slightly twisted and turn it into something beautiful.
Heart of Darkness ● Joseph Conrad, Again, I'm glad I've read it now and I understand how it caused uproar when it was first published but I wasn't as captured by it as I thought I would be.
The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie ● Muriel Spark, I really enjoyed this. It's very amusing but poignant at the same time. I did cry. I really need to rewatch the film now that I've read the book. I think Miss Jean Brodie is awesome, although at times it's very hard to like her.
Generation Kill ● Evan Wright, This book is so fascinating. It's great to see a different perspective of war in general and this specific war than you normally do, or at least I normally do because I tend to be more selective about my war books. These Marines are amazing.
One Bullet Away: The Making of a Marine ● Nathaniel Fick, Nate's writing style is so easy to read and I appreciate how candid and thoughtful he is in this.
The Eyre Affair ● Jasper Fforde, Oh my, I loved this! It was so amusing and I love the world he's created. Thursday Next is a fabulous female character, although I wish she hadn't ended up with whatshisface.
Dead Until Dark ● Charlaine Harris, This book is so offensive. I found it just so disgusting to read. I can't even explain it. I think in some ways it's worse than Twilight but it's certainly on a par. They both glamourise abuse of women. Bill is a rapist ok? That's an automatic character write off for me.
Never Have Your Dog Stuffed ● Alan Alda, Alan Alda is one of my favourite actors ever. He's tremendous and so funny and that really comes over in this book. It's so poignant and joyous. I find it fascinating to read about his early years and to learn how he wound up being an actor.
Educating Rita ● Willy Russell, Ok so it's not a book but this is one of my favourite plays. Willy Russell is one of my favourite playwrights. He writes women so well and so generously. This one always cracks me up but also gives me quite the throat lump. I think the reason I adore his plays is because there is always an element you can relate to almost entirely. He's a great observer of people.
Three Days of Rain ● Richard Greenberg, again it's a play. I hadn't read/seen this till this year and now it's one of my favourites. There is so much to notice you don't see it all the first time around. It's such a rich tapestry of words. It's also hilarious. I think it's a wonderful illustration of how a generation misunderstands the one that came before.

Currently reading:
The Hours ● Michael Cunningham, This is taking me a while. I'm enjoying it but his writing style doesn't really work for me.
Shooting History ● Jon Snow, Jon Snow is a legend. I'm only a short way into this one but I'm sure it's going to be intriguing to read.
National Service ● Richard Eyre, Again only a short way in but it's so exciting already. I really like the fact it's been published almost as is, no editing. It's a wonderfully candid and honest account of his time at the National. It also contains this gem: "8th June, Sponsors' lunch at the NT. Mary Soames pushes a note across the table to me. It read: 'who is Ian McKellen?'"

Finally, what books should be on my 'to read in 2010' list?

read less, more tv.

memoryfloodsin — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 22:52:48 GMT

For the end of the decade picspam at picspammy I've decided to do my favourite British TV of the past decade. Some of these may be co-produced with other countries but for the most part they are British.

The Thick of It (2005) | Peter Capaldi, Joanna Scanlan, James Smith, Chris Addison | Sheer genius. Malcolm Tucker is possibly the best bastard ever.
Outnumbered (2007) | Claire Skinner, Hugh Dennis, Tyger Drew-Honey, Daniel Roche, Ramona Marquez | Possibly the most realistic TV series ever! These children are real children. They say the utterly random shit that children do. I love that most of the improvs come from the kids. Plus, Hugh Dennis and Claire Skinner - love them!
New Tricks (2003) | Amanda Redman, Alun Armstrong, Dennis Waterman, James Bolam | I love how this show is basically a big two fingers up to the Beeb. They wanted to cancel it because it didn't fit their 'what we want our demographic to be' thing and now it's incredibly successful. Amanda Redman is brilliant. This show makes me cry, laugh and doesn't have to insult my intelligence to do so.
Merlin (2008) | Colin Morgan, Bradley James, Anthony Head, Richard Wilson, Angel Coulby, Katie McGrath | Ridiculous, shameless fun. I adore all the actors. The score is gorgeous and one day I believe they will get a new special effect for 'monster go boom'.

Foyle's War (2002) | Michael Kitchen, Anthony Howell, Honeysuckle Weeks, Julian Ovenden | One of my favourite crime dramas ever. Anthony Howell is just so lovely. Michael Kitchen is fabulous, he's so subtle and nuanced. Julian Ovenden and Honeysuckle Weeks provide a lot of eye candy. Oh and Honeysuckle kicks ass as a female character.
Doctor Who (2005) | Christopher Eccleston, David Tennant, Billie Piper, Freema Agyeman, Catherine Tate | Nine is still my Doctor and yes I am sick and tired of Rose now but Donna made me so happy, the whole of S4 did really.
Life On Mars (2006) | John Simm, Philip Glenister, Liz White, Dean Andrews, Marshall Lancaster Sheer brilliance. I loved how it kept you guessing till the last moment. Incredible soundtrack too.
Ashes to Ashes (2008) | Keeley Hawes, Philip Glenister, Dean Andrews, Marshall Lancaster, Montserrat Lombard | Haters to the left. I love Keeley so so much. I adored this show. S1 was better than S2 though, purely for the fact it had Stephen Campbell Moore. The photography in this show was just mouthwateringly good.

Beautiful People (2008) | Samuel Barnett, Olivia Colman, Luke Ward-Wilkinson, Layton Williams, Aidan McArdle | How is no-one else on my flist watching this?!?! It's wonderful. It's hilarious and I find myself going 'OMG I remember that' or 'Oh I used to do that!' and then I feel old.
Black Books (2000) | Dylan Moran, Bill Bailey, Tamsin Greig Oh c'mon, it's Black Books how could it not be on the list.
'Do you think I should wash my beard?'
'I think you should, yeah. You should wash your beard, then shave it off, nail it to a Frisbee and fling it over a rainbow.'
Tamsin is such a perfect complement to Dylan and Bill.
Cambridge Spies (2003) | Rupert Penry-Jones, Tom Hollander, Toby Stephens, Samuel West | Oh boys! This mini is epic. I find the real events/people fascinating anyway but with these boys playing them I just go to pieces.
Spooks (2002) | Keeley Hawes, Matthew MacFadyen, Peter Firth, Hermione Norris, Richard Armitage | From the moment this show put Lisa Faulkner's head in a deep fat fryer I've been hooked, even when it's been less than stellar and it's characterisation has made me bang my head against the nearest available surface. When it's good it's very very good. When it's bad, well... there's always Richard Armitage. (still haven't watched the last 2 eps though - don't spoil me)

Coupling (2000) | Gina Bellman, Jack Davenport, Ben Miles, Richard Coyle, Sarah Alexander, Kate Isitt | I'm so sick of people who say this show is misogynistic. It's unflattering to everyone but it's not untruthful. It's exaggerated for comedic effect - why is that so hard to understand?!?! Plus: giggle loop!
Green Wing (2004) | Julian Rhind-Tutt, Michelle Gomez, Mark Heap, Tamsin Greig, Oliver Chris, Stephen Mangan | It's like an acid trip, or something. Hilarious. An insanely amazing cast as well.
Lewis (2006) | Kevin Whately, Laurence Fox, Rebecca Front | I miss Morse. This helps though. Lewis/Hathaway is so shippable. I love the nods back to John and Morse. I just really enjoy a crime drama that isn't utterly mindless.
Criminal Justice (2008) | Ben Whishaw, Con O'Neill, Bill Paterson, Pete Postlethwaite, David Harewood | Soooo good. Really impressive - made me remember why I still give a shit about paying my TV license. Fantastic cast with Ben knocking it out of the park as per usual.

All The Small Things (2008) | Bryan Dick, Sarah Lancashire, Neil Pearson, Sarah Alexander, Richard Fleeshman, Annette Badland, Clive Rowe | WHY ARE YOU CANCELLED?!?! WHY?! I <3 Sarah so very much. I thought Esther/Jake was such an adorable pairing and it was refreshing to see an older woman/younger man scenario.
Jane Eyre (2006) | Ruth Wilson, Toby Stephens, Andrew Buchan, Tara Fitzgerald, Lorraine Ashbourne, Pam Ferris | *flails* This adaptation was perfection. It's up there with Pride and Prejudice (1995) and North and South. Rochester has never seemed worthy of Jane before but with Toby's flirty, gruff Edward he did. Ruth was so lovely. Rob Lane worked his magic with the score and the cinematography was gorgeous.
Whitechapel (2009) | Rupert Penry-Jones, Philip Davis, Alex Jennings, Steve Pemberton | This should not have been watched when I was by myself in a dark house. I was terrified. It genuinely kept me guessing till well, almost the end. Rupert and Philip were fab together.
Blackpool (2004) | David Tennant, Sarah Parrish, David Morrissey, Thomas Morrison, Bryan Dick | Such an enjoyable show. Really dark and yet funny and just ... enjoyable!

State of Play (2003) | John Simm, Bill Nighy, David Morrissey, James McAvoy, Amelia Bullmore, Kelly Macdonald, Philip Glenister | Do not even speak to me about the film version. Everyone is perfect. I know the ending is a tiny bit weak but it doesn't matter because it's just so utterly compelling.
The IT Crowd (2006) | Chris O'Dowd, Richard Ayoade, Katherine Parkinson | It's so funny and now I work opposite the IT department - very very true!
The Devil's Whore (2008) | Michael Fassbender, Dominic West, Andrew Riseborough, John Simm, Peter Capaldi, Tom Goodman-Hill | This was fabulous. The cast was incredible - Peter Capaldi was outstanding. It was so lush to watch as well.
Teachers (2001) | Andrew Lincoln, Navin Chowdhry, Raquel Cassidy, Nina Sosanya | I love Teachers. Simon and Susan forever!

Robin Hood (2006) | Jonas Armstrong, Joe Armstrong, Toby Stephens, David Harewood, Harry Lloyd, Sam Troughton, Richard Armitage | It's ridiculous, utterly stupid and most of the time it's painful to watch but it has the redeeming factors of: Joe Armstrong, Harry Lloyd, Sam Troughton with bonus Richard Armitage, Toby Stephens and David Harewood. I love Will/Allan - in my mind they eloped and lived happily ever after.
Miranda (2009) | Miranda Hart, Tom Ellis, Patricia Hodge, Sarah Hadland | Miranda Hart is awesome. Tom Ellis is awesome. Patricia Hodge is awesome. Do you see where I'm going with this? It's completely slapstick, obvious comedy but it's so funny and I do a lot of the things that Miranda does. Which is worrying I suppose.
Party Animals (2007) | Andrew Buchan, Shelley Conn, Andrea Riseborough, Matt Smith, Patrick Baladi, Raquel Cassidy | Politics + awesome actors = almost a British West Wing, only more depressing.
North and South (2004) | Daniela Denby-Ashe, Richard Armitage, Sinead Cusack, Tim Pigott-Smith, Brendan Coyle | Perfection. Richard's 'Look back, look back at me' breaks my heart and umm... makes me faint with lust. I want the score for this to be released soooo much!

try try try?

memoryfloodsin — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 21:45:44 GMT

Normally no-one ever responds to these but what the hell, throwing it out there.

ANON LOVE MEME

sleep now?!

memoryfloodsin — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 20:18:33 GMT

Ok so here it is:

Went down to London with thedreamygirl and then met up with karaadora and wandered around nattering because Kara had to leave. It was starting to rain so I headed to the Donmar to shelter there, it was about 6.25. The actors walked past and I flailed a little and then Stark went past and was stopped outside the door by two chaps who chatted to him and got him to sign things. I figured I could go outside and see if maybe I could catch him but wouldn't be surprised/bothered if I couldn't. He was sooo nice with these chaps though. They took 1 photo with him and then tried to take the next and the camera wouldn't work - like 4 times! Stark just stood there happily trying to help. He started to turn away and I put my hand out and mumbled 'excuse me'. He turned round, and he really is astonishingly pretty and tall. I forget how tall he is what with him standing next to the mountain of Skarsgard. Anyway the conversation went something like this:

Me - I actually don't have anything for you to sign (thrust my sharpie and ticket at him) because you can't sign this (aforementioned ticket) as it'll void it. (cue Stark looking a little bemused) But I just wanted to say that you were incredible in Generation Kill. (breaths sigh of relief)
Stark - Thank you. (I turn to go back inside) What's your name?
Me - Elsie? (starting to shake a little)
Stark - (puts out hand to shake mine and makes direct eye contact) Thank you so much Elsie, it means so much to hear that (words to that effect, the shaking and lack of breathing made things quite fuzzy now).
Me - I'm excited about tonight. Thank you.
Stark - Me too, it's been great talking to you.
Me - Me too. (Did I mention the lightheadedness?!) (I leave, he leaves)

I was shaking so badly. I don't stage door a whole lot, only if it's someone I seriously admire or a performer blew my mind but all my stage door experiences have been good and downright awesome in some cases, Damian Humbley! I've had great fan meet moments at Cons and panels etc but I swear I've never ever had a stage door/con experience like that. It was the fact he took the time to ask a name and make eye contact and seemed so genuine. It was wonderful.

Inside the theatre I had a great seat and it wound up being directly behind Stark's girlfriend, who is English btw. Anyway he comes back in and sits next to her, cue me suddenly finding the ceiling of the Donmar seriously interesting - I may be a fangirl but I have boundaries. She was objectively pretty I guess, but they seemed from the bits I couldn't help overhear and unfortunately saw in my peripheral vision, absolutely adorable together. He kept smiling at her during the show and she was telling the guy next to her that Stark was her bf and was just soooo cute about it.

Fugitive Kind and this production of Streetcar have totally convinced me of Tennesse Williams' awesome. Claire Foy and Stark were my favourites, they were both phenomenal and seemed to be the two who were acting most, not that everyone else wasn't but when they were on stage it felt like a 'real' play not a rehearsed reading. I have finally seen Con O'Neill on stage!

All in all a really good night.

Today I got back to York and then had a job interview - no idea how it went, was shockingly under prepared though. Then went to see District 9 with Jen. It was amazing. I liked it a lot.

ETA: I totally forgot to say, as I was coming out of the loo at the end of the night the woman who arranged it all was talking to Stark about definitely contacting him future again and he was sounding v. enthused about coming back to London.

Also, if anyone from the UK wants a freebie try of Graze, then here's a code for you: DLBWQTMN. I've got some seriously yummy things from them, Korean Chilli Rice Crackers, Dairy Free Chocolate Beans, Dried Apple.

Sgt Antonio 'Poke' Espera

memoryfloodsin — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 21:18:53 GMT

I don't think Poke gets enough love so I'm picspamming him now. This contains pics from Get Some to Combat Jack and there'll be a follow up with the rest of the episodes.

Some things:

→ I don't think Poke or Jon Huertas get enough love. Why is there not more BFF Colbert/Poke fic?! Where are the Jon picspams?! WHERE?!
→ It took me a while to warm to Poke but when I did he became a firm favourite.
→ I love that Brad pulled strings to get him into Recon Marines.
→ I love how upfront he is about everything.
→ I can't really say why I love him so much. He's not really the moral centre and yet he seems most aware of what they're doing and the consequences of it.
→ He breaks my heart so many times and cracks me up so many more.

Credits: screencaps by peopleareshapes & the_grynne, script from oxoniensis

Today, despite the fact I was going to try to contain it, I kept getting randomly excited over Fugitive Kind. STARK! NIGEL! CON!!!!

and for what? FOR WHAT?!

memoryfloodsin — Sun, 06 Sep 2009 11:43:24 GMT

Some things:

→ This episode is also one of my favourites and it's so epic this is pretty long.
→ I love Colbert's smile after Ray's 'I've written USA with my piss' moment. It's adorable.
→ I love the whole King of the Road segment, Pawel ♥
→ I'm so pleased that Ray's pimp glasses saw the end of the invasion.
→ Eric Ladin does the best WTF?! faces.
→ Without his Kevlar he does look like Mr Potatohead.
→ The shots of them outside before the helicopter goes over are wonderful, the dust and the gaps in the building behind them. I'm just very pleased by the aesthetic of it all.
→ I don't like Ray starting to withdraw, it's so sad. There's a quote from TWOP about how Ray is morale for the platoon and he gets Walt and Brad out of their funks and then when he's in his no-one can help because there's no Ray for Ray. It's so sad.
→ Oh Sixta! I adore him. It's amazing how one little moment can totally change your perception of a character.
→ Stark also gives good WTF!Face.
→ Jon Huertas has the most adorable smile. As does Stark. I just really enjoy seeing proper smiles on the boys' faces.
→ I love Brad and Evan sniggering away behind Ray in that scene.
→ Doc Bryan is so fierce.
→ I know I've said it before but I really do love this show's use of negative space, and how it makes such good use of the natural swathes of colour.
→ I'm very taken with Brad's hand resting on Poke's shoulder. I think there should be more BFF fic about them. I mean c'mon Brad pulled strings to get Poke assigned with First Recon.
→ Nate just looks so broken now. I've just finished reading One Bullet Away and it's even more depressing how he thought they'd be able to repair the damage they'd done and then they just kept being moved on. If anyone wants to console me with fic, ASkars, Stark or chocolate I wouldn't say no. *sniffs*
→ I freaking LOVE the blue. I don't know why I just utterly adore it.
→ I find it amusing that that is probably the most tame Billy Lush's hair has been in it's life. I <3 his curls.
→ The moment where Ray snaps just kills me. thelackoflight has a far far better picspam of it. James Ransone is just fantastic.
→ I also love the use of silhouettes.
→ Why isn't there more Q-Tip/Christeson fic? Either slashy or otherwise.
→ Yeah that's Brad and Nate eyefucking again don't act so surprised!
→ I love the fact that Brad and Ray 'make up' settle back into their momentum in a completely silent fashion. I could write paragraphs on the subject. Urgh they make me ache from adorableness, whether you see it slashily or not.
→ Walt!!!!!!! Pawel needs to do some sort of romantic comedy where he's the adorable best friend that you wind up liking more than the main guy and who has adorable scenes and gets to smile and be goofy in an adorable fashion. It's like the word adorable came into being purely so there was an appropriate word available to described Pawel.
→ And the creepy/depressing ending. It's so phenomenally good.

The following quotation is from Nate's book, it's the last words in the book so if you don't want to be spoiled stop reading now.

I took sixty-five men to war and brought sixty-five home. I gave them everything I had. Together, we passed the test. Fear didn't beat us. I hope life improves for the people of Afghanistan and Iraq, but that's not why we did it. We fought for each other.
I am proud.

Credits: screencaps by peopleareshapes & the_grynne, script from oxoniensis

...

memoryfloodsin — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 20:10:05 GMT

The penultimate part of my Generation Kill picspam. Episode 6 - Stay Frosty.

Some things:

→ I don't actually have a lot to say about this ep because so much happens and it's all amazing so picking things out is hard! Also some of the caps are missing and my viewer was playing up again and on top of that my Photoshop reset itself so I'm not sure about the colouring. So I may in future respam this ep as I don't feel I've done it justice.
→ I love Ray humping Walt's neck. I love Ray/Walt. Please let there be more fic for them!
→ That cap is there purely to show how ridiculously insanely long ASkars legs are!
→ I love Nate's 'WTF IS HE ON?' expression around Ray. (Yeah ok, I kind of ship Ray and Nate too)
→ 'More like Trombley?!?!?' has to be the most hilarious thing in the show.
→ Urgh Walt's abandoned gun kills me. As does the look on Brad's face, he knows he can't help him.
→ Horizon shot!
→ Love Nate's bitchface.
→ PFC(?) Nathan's face is so sad there. Crap this ep is sadder than I remembered.
→ Lots of Nate/Brad eyefucking going on. Ok ok, I ship them as much as Brad/Ray now.
→ Their little smirks. Stark and Alex were so pitch perfect all the way through, just perfect.
→ I really enjoy Wilson's arms.
→ I love that the real Colbert did that, that it's not just some screenwriter trick or invention.
→ Nate's response to Captain America's insanity speech is wonderful. He's wondering how you classify insanity when you realise that Captain America is making sense.
→ Bonus Walt! And that's where the caps end. So I'm just going to make a few more comments on the rest of the episode.
→ I love Brad's don't give me the baby bit. It's hilarious and adorable.
→ Also, I don't think Eric Nenninger gets enough love. He makes Captain America so sympathetic.
→ When they're taking off their MOPP suits the look on Lee's face is just priceless. I can't really explain why I love it so much but it's just this perfect combination of relief and dismay and horror.
→ Nate's whole 'Don't fuck with my men' bit, I'm not gonna lie it's a little bit hot!
→ When Alpha are shooting at Colbert's team in the field, Patterson running down the line just gets me for some reason, as does Ray driving like a lunatic and then getting out and having to be held back by Patterson.
→ Finally the quotation I've put, from over the credits. That's lifted from the book right? Only I found it familiar when I read the book but now I can't find it in the book so I'm not sure.

Also, this quotation is REALLY long and I can't split it into who says what - I'm lazy, but I think I have the line breaks right.

I don't give a fuckwhat you write. It's gonna come out all liberal media bullshit spin on it anyway.

Seriously, what am I supposed to do with all this bullshit you guys constantly talk?

You think I'm some sort of racist psycho redneck?

What, you ain't?

And you ain't some fucking militant taco-bender revolutionary?

See, reporter? No outsider can understand how we really are. We're all fucking brothers.

And we're all fucking alpha males.

We gotta constantly test each other.

All we do is fight for position in the pack, dawg. All that training we do, the martial arts, to grappling... is for practice, but it's also for real, to achieve dominance over a motherfucker. We do the same thing mentally. It's prison rules, dawg.

We probe for any fucking weakness we can find... family, race, brains, looks... anything you have on a motherfucker, you wear it the fuck out. Being a Marine isn't about words, anyways. It's about your fucking actions. In the civilian world, a fool slaps a "protect the planet" sticker on his car, suddenly he's all about the environment and shit. Don't matter that he drives that fucking car, fires up his computer and video games and cell phone every night with electricity made from nuclear power, coal and fucking melted baby seal oil. "nuh-uh, I got a dolphin sticker on my shit, "so I'm all about saving the fucking planet." In our fucking Marine corps civilization it don't matter what a motherfucker says. Only thing that matters is, dawg, when you charge that motherfucking machinegun when the motherfucker tells you to charge the motherfucking machinegun. Shit, everybody in this platoon is a hard charger. Marines bitch about everything, man... chow, fucking moron officers, no time for a combat jack...

You never hear a Marine in this platoon bitch that we could die at any second.

Hell no. That's what we signed up for. Hoorah that, motherfucker.

Fucking care if some latte-sipping bisexual college student reading about Justin Timberlake in "Rolling Stone" thinks I'm a psycho racist cracker? Fuck no. I'd give my life for any brother in here. I know any one of them would do the same for me. You think it matters if I call fucking T a nigger? Fucking love that big dark green marine and his big old beautiful nigger dick. Love all my dirty spic brothers here.

And I love this fucking cracker-ass inbred racist peckerwood fuck. I don't know why I do, dawg, but I do.

'Cause I'm pretty and I shave my balls. Want to touch 'em, reporter?

No. Thanks.

Look, man, I joined the Marine corps 10 days after I graduated high school. I went to school with all these rich kids at St. Tammany's parish, but I was an apartment kid. My mom worked. I worked summers digging footings on the weekends.I was a dishwasher at D'Angelo's pizzeria. I busted my ass. Became a recon Marine since I was 19. My shit is tight as fuck. I know that, my brothers in this platoon know that, so fuck all of you.

Damn, war scribe, you just spit on my fucking rack, dawg.

Where?

There.

You see that pile of dried camel dung? That's my fucking pillow, dawg. You fucking spit on it, fool. You're a heinous-asswhite boy.

I'm sorry.

Credits: screencaps by peopleareshapes, script from oxoniensis

Why are you in the potting shed?

memoryfloodsin — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 21:40:24 GMT

The fifth part of my Generation Kill picspam.

Some things:

→ This is my favourite episode. I'd love to picspam all of it but a) a lot of it is at night and b) well it'd be far too epic. Some of these caps might be out of order, my imageviewer scrambled some and I couldn't quite remember what went where - oops.
→ I love Ray trying to make cookies out of MREs, WTF?!
→ See, I don't think Rey is very pretty as Garza but when he's himself he's sooo pretty so this is probably as close to a Garza picspam as you'll get - 2 whole pics!
→ Colbert's dorky wave is adorable!
→ That cap right there of Jon/Poke breaks my heart. He just looks so broken and like he can't cry because he's not supposed to or just because if he starts he will never stop. I went back and rewatched Castle for Jon this week and damnit he needs more to do!
→ Josh Barrett is adorable, I'm just saying!
→ I really love that shot of Pappy, with the little bit of shaving cream left over.
→ Rudy and Pappy sitting in a tree... seriously those screencaps launched a thousand guilty fangirl thoughts, right?!
→ Love love love Nate's bitch face and how he just turns on Casey Kasem.
→ The whole of the ambush is just insane. Nate fucking leaves his vehicle - what the hell!? I love that Wright in the book talks about how Nate just works on the principle that he's already dead and this bit totally exemplifies that.
→ This is the episode where you find it really hard to believe it's actually real purely because of how amazing the narrative is and the pacing etc. I can't really explain it very well I'm afraid.
→ Am I the only one who finds Captain America far more attractive when he's actually got his kevlar on?
→ Q-Tip tourniquets himself and keeps shooting. I love how proud of him Christeson sounds when he explains it to LT.
→ Poke's disgusted expression/Lord of the Flies speech makes me happy.
→ Oh I forgot to say the bit where Brad tells Walt to get some sleep and then Walt says no it's ok he'll keep faffing about with the gun totally makes me ship Walt/Brad even harder than normal.
→ I just really enjoy the shots of them all relaxing or sitting around together. It's a combination of the mighty fine men and how photogenic camouflage is.
→ The shot where Walt is just looking up at Brad is so sad. He's like 'what did I do?' and it breaks my heart, especially after he says 'we keep making the same mistakes' at the start.
→ In conclusion this episode does a number on your heart and your mascara.

Person: I'm on the Nevada, Missouri Wal-Mart wall of heroes. Even got my dress blues on.

Colbert: If my mother ever distributed my likeness without written authorization, I would disown her.

Person: Technically speaking, Brad, but didn't your biological parents disown you when they put you up for adoption?

Colbert: Point, Ray. I was one of those unfortunates adopted by upper-middle-class professionals and nurtured in an environment of learning, art, and a socio-religious culture steeped in over two thousand years of Talmudic tradition. Not everyone is lucky enough to have been raised in a Whiskey Tango trailer park by a bowlegged female whose sole qualification for motherhood is a womb that happened to catch a sperm of a passing truck driver.

Person: At least my mom took me to Nascar.

Episode One - Get Some
Episode Two - The Cradle of Civilization
Episode Three - Screwby
Episode Four - Combat Jack

Credits: screencaps by peopleareshapes, script from oxoniensis

oh how she rocks/in keds and tube socks

memoryfloodsin — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 22:29:19 GMT

Part four of my Generation Kill picspam. This is episode four, Combat Jack.

Some things:

→ I love that Colbert falls apart so silently (I mean, obviously I don't love that the real Colbert felt like that but from a purely narrative p.o.v it's really great). Seeing the Iceman who is normally so there for his team just close himself off is a far better commentary on the cost of war and what the death of innocent civilians means to the Marines than any hyperbolic philosophic waxing that could've gone on here if it weren't that HBO were so committed to representing the book and these Marines so honestly.
→ Love that camouflage netting shadow on Poke. Why yes Mr Huertas you are looking mighty fine.
→ I love that it's Doc who tells Encino Man that he's incompetent. It means so much coming from him imo.
→ Stark Sands please stop having such gorgeous eyes you make picspamming incredibly distracting!
→ This scene with Captain America in the field broke my heart. He has no fucking clue what he's doing and he's terrified.
→ Love Alex's look here.
→ The real Eric Kocher's smile is so lovely.
→ I still can't make out the tattoo, even after reading the description of it in the book (I think it's the book?)
→ I love that cap/moment with Brad leaning into Trombley he's so fatherly with him.
→ I want some Walt/Brad fic please?! PLEASE?! I can't help it. That cap does things to me.
→ Oh Pawal how are you so adorable?!
→ I know I've mentioned this before but those humvees against the horizon are fucking beautiful!
→ The scene with the girl in the back of the car is probably what was the turning point for me for the series. I'm very anti-war but supportive of the men and women who are just doing their job without any real help from their governments and superiors. However normally when you read about some innocent child being killed in a roadblock like this you, well I did, you just 'blame' the people involved, rather than the people responsible. So this scene really made me think about that and re-evaluate my automatic response to those sorts of incidents. So yeah this was the moment when the show properly captured me because a truly good show should make you rethink things and provoke some sort of response within you. I feel weird speaking about it like this because this isn't some random scene they added and it's not a script as such it's a real event but I find with this show you sort of detach it a little? I can't really explain it.
→ The end of this episode with Teenage Dirtbag and Poke being totally stonyfaced is just so heartbreaking and perfect. On the commentary Simon(?) says he had this in mind for so long and wasn't sure if it would fit and then it worked perfectly and I would indeed agree with that.

Colbert:I liked Pocahontas. Wonderful music.

Episode One - Get Some
Episode Two - The Cradle of Civilization
Episode Three - Screwby

Credits: screencaps by peopleareshapes, script from oxoniensis

Part Three.

memoryfloodsin — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 13:36:05 GMT

Part Three of my Generation Kill picspam, episode three, Screwby.

Some things:

→ This is one of my favourite episodes. As such this picspam is long and some scenes are almost complete, as opposed to just pretty caps or awesome moments.
→ That opening shot is just gorgeous, the way the light just floods in and it makes it seem serene and hopeful in a way that is then totally shot to pieces by the events of the episode.
→ I love how many profile shots they use in this show. I also adore the use of negative space, just all this sky or sand. They make you very aware of how isolated these men are.
→ Again, loving the humvees. Oh and I love Nate smiling at Brad's lube description.
→ When I finished watching the whole series for the first time Ray was my humanising character, the one I connected with, whatever you want to call it but now I'm so much more aware of Poke, Jon imbues him with such humanity and emotion from early on and I can't believe I didn't notice it the first time around.
→ Whomever designed Marine/Army/Airforce camouflage/uniforms was clearly very concerned with how attractive they'd appear on film, because seriously the MOPP suits against the skyline and alongside the humvees just look so damn pretty.
→ I love Espera's little grin behind Evan.
→ Did I mention I love how the humvees look against the horizon?
→ Q-Tip! Wilson Bethel is so adorable and so pretty.
→ Oh Encino Man! I love how utterly dumb he looks here 'uh, danger close?, the what now?'
→ That's Lovell right? I feel so bad that I'm on rewatch 12 and there are still moments where I can't identify people! *facepalm*
→ This was the moment I loved Doc when he got all up in Encino Man's grill. He was saying exactly what I was thinking.
→ Started warming to Nate more as he became more active and started standing up to Encino Man and being all fierce.
→ The shot with the hula girl is one of my absolute favourites. I love the injection of colour, the blur of the Marines out the window, it's just perfect.
→ Those shots of Billy are just beautiful.
→ The moments after the camel incident, when you get everyone's reaction shots is just perfect. Doc's outrage, Nate's resignation, Q-Tip is pissed off and disgusted and then Colbert comes over and looks almost confused like he can't quite make the connection between the order he passed on (the change in the ROE) and the outcome.
→ I really enjoy the fact that Walt refers to Trombley as 'boy'.

Walt: But you know what's even more fucked up? Trombley only shot two bursts maybe seven rounds. I mean, we're bumping down a dirt road, his targets are like 200 meters out and he hits exactly what the fuck he's shooting at? I mean, fuck, man, the boy is a cold-on deadeye killer.
Person: Yeah, no shit. That's 'cause he's a psycho. But at least he's our psycho.

Episode One - Get Some
Episode Two - The Cradle of Civilization

Credits: screencaps by peopleareshapes, script from oxoniensis

wickedground is holding a Generation Kill friending meme over here so head on over.

Second Generation Kill Picspam.

memoryfloodsin — Sun, 16 Aug 2009 17:43:26 GMT

London was good. War Horse was freaking amazing. Oh my God, the technicality of it blows my mind. The lighting was incredible. I <3 blinders! I'll probably do a proper post about it later but for now I'm posting my second Generation Kill picspam. Second ep, The Cradle of Civilisation.

Some things:

→ I think this one might be my least favourite episode, I dunno. I apologise for all the humvee pictures but they were looking particularly photogenic this ep!
→ I keep thinking, "Kellan Lutz went from this to Twilight?!?! WTF?!"
→ A little more eye-fucking from Brad and Nate, although that's not why these caps are included, I really just love the outline of the helmet against the horizon with the colours in the background.
→ I don't know whether this was intentional from Billy Lush or if it's just the way the cap/camera caught him but I love how he does look in awe and excited for the possibility of killing but at the same time looks a little sad/scared.
→ This was the first scene where I started to warm to Nate, I can't really explain why but when he was sitting with Brad talking about getting their nuts blown off and then just went fuck it and went to help/get into the firefight just made me click more with him. I see now that this is how Nate Fick functions as a marine, I wish they'd put a bit in to match up with the bit of the book where Evan says Fick explained to him that he works on the premise that he's already dead and takes it from there. (most complicated and ungrammatical sentence ever!)
→ Chance Kelly is very pretty in this scene.
→ Billy Lush's eyes are very blue!
→ The directors are very brave to have so many up nostril shots. Also, the men in this show have extremely attractive nostrils which is not something a lot of people can lay claim to. Case in point: Star Trek when they pan back to Spock on the ice planet after the flashback - Nimoy (epic though he may be) has not got pretty nostrils. /tangent.
→ I love love love ASkars little smile there.
→ 3 reaction shots. Lee's just breaks me, he's disgusted, fascinated and horrified at the same time. Alex's is just sad but resigned and Stark's is holding it back so he doesn't affect his men's morale.
→ LOVE THE HUMVEES!!!! So pretty against the horizon.
→ Ok, I know that Rudy's arm over Pappy is to do with balance or some sniper shit like that but it makes it very very hard to not ship them. And whereas I can justify shipping Brad/Ray etc, I find it harder to justify shipping Rudy because that's really Rudy and it brings RPS to a whole new level!
→ Pappy's face after slays me. He's just so unassuming and he breaks my heart.
→ I love Ray's pimp glasses.
→ You get two Doc caps in a row because Jonah is a very attractive man.
→ This scene about Brad's ex-fiancee is why I started shipping/thinking about shipping Ray/Brad. Ray teases to a point and then he just backs off and lets Brad decide what to say about it.

Colbert: My sweetheart since junior high... left me... and married my best friend since junior high. We're all still friends. They're one of those happy couples that likes to take pictures of themselves and hang 'em up all over their goddamn house. Sometimes I go over there just to look at my ex-fiancee doing all the things I used to do with he with my best friend. Surfing and... jet skiing. It's nice having friends.

Episode One - Get Some

Credits: screencaps by peopleareshapes, script from oxoniensis

how copy?

memoryfloodsin — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 19:05:28 GMT

The West Wing is my favourite TV show of all time and I'd love to picspam every episode but it's 7 seasons long and that's just not practical. However Generation Kill is rapidly heading into my top 5 TV shows of all time and it's only 7 episodes long so I'm going to picspam that.
These are just a selection of shots I like, moments I love and people I find v. pretty. There aren't any spoilers. And we're starting with episode 1 because I'm so original.
Also, I only have a few people on my flist who watch GK so if anyone is interested in being flailed at about it, feel free to add me.

Some things:

→ There is so much cinematic pretty with this show. I love the colours, blues/greens and oranges/yellows.
→ I really love close up shots of Alex's eyes. Not only are they exceptionally pretty but they're so expressive.
→ I also really love Stark Sands and his lips, really love his lips.
→ I can't decide which are more awesome the close up shots or the really wide shots. Hmmm.
→ FRUITY RUDY! We love you!!
→ Wilson Bethel has the most adorable grin. He's so sweet. Side note: I watched his ep of Cold Case yesterday and cried sooo much.
→ I love Evan's look of 'WTF' whilst Espera and Chaffin are bitching at each other.
→ LOVE the close ups of Sixta. I do however find myself thinking about carrying watermelons when he's on screen. I can't help it! He's Johnny Castle's cousin!
→ James also has phenomenally expressive eyes. They're so sad. I guess a side product of the drugs?
→ LOVE LOVE LOVE the shadow of the camouflage net on Godfather's face.
→ Went a little overboard (is that possible?) with Stark here but I can't help it, his face is so sweet and adorable.
→ I do really love Godfather's sense of humour.
→ I'm a Ray/Brad girl really but the eyefucking between Nate and Brad in that scene is a little extreme.
→ Skarsgard's expressive eyes again and the end of this episode is so depressing, just because you can feel their disappointment that they're not shooting anything and then on top of that they're not even able to do the humanitarian part of their job.

Person: "Dear Frederick! Thank you for your nice letter. But I am actually a U.S. Marine who was born to kill, whereas clearly you have mistaken me for some sort of wine-sipping communist dick-suck. And although peace probably appeals to tree-loving bisexuals like you and your parents, I happen to be a death-dealing, blood-crazed warrior who wakes up every day just hoping for the chance to dismember my enemies and defile their civilizations. Peace sucks a hairy asshole, Freddie. War is the motherfucking answer. But thanks for writing anyway. Your pal, Ray."

Credits: screencaps by peopleareshapes, script from oxoniensis

God knows why you learned brief encounter.

memoryfloodsin — Mon, 13 Apr 2009 15:56:16 GMT

Another picspam for picspammy this time it's my favourite classroom scene from The History Boys.

Picspam: What's Truth Got To Do With It, The History Boys.

memoryfloodsin — Sun, 12 Apr 2009 22:51:24 GMT

For picspammy's current challenge Scenes and Sequences. I've been obsessing over The History Boys and I love this scene, it's probably my favourite scene where Irwin puts the boys down.

Irwin: So, let's summarise. The First World War. What points do we make?
Crowther: Trench warfare.
Lockwood: Mountains of dead.
Posner: On both sides.
Dakin: Generals stupid.
Posner: On both sides.
Akhtar: Armistice. Germany humiliated.
Irwin: Keep it coming.
Crowther: Mass unemployment.
Akhtar: Inflation.
Timms: Collapse of the Weimar Republic. Internal disorder and the rise of Hitler.
Irwin: So. Our overall conclusion is that the origins of the Second War lie in the unsatisfactory outcome of the First.
Timms: Yes. (Doubtfully.) Yes. (As the make to leave.)

Others nod.

Irwin: First class. Bristol welcomes you with open arms. Manchester longs to have you. You can walk into Leeds. But I am a fellow of Magdalen College, Oxford and I've just read seventy papers all saying the same thing and I'm asleep...
Scripps: But it's all true.
Irwin: What's truth got to do with it? What's truth got to do with anything?

Flist Cut.

memoryfloodsin — Sun, 29 Mar 2009 19:26:35 GMT

Ok the flist cut is done. I've cut anyone I don't feel I've connected with or who's connected with me. I've cut people that I no longer share interests with or people I've just drifted away from, or vice versa. No hard feelings are meant by this, and I wish everyone the best.