fannish rundown; we be pimpin

[inmyriadbits]

EXCITING HAPPENINGS OF THE PAST THREE WEEKS:

Okay, so that's misleading. But here's what I've been watching, fannishly speaking:

1. Seasons 2, 3, and 4 of Ugly Betty
2. The delicious mindfuck of Inception
3. Trying to hook my family on Mad Men
4. Banlieue 13 (aka District B13) and its sequel!
5. BBC's Sherlock miniseries

Thoughts (no spoilers, just cut for length/interest):

- Ugly Betty, I don't know why I ever quit you! We watched 62 episodes in under 2 weeks (!), and I DON'T REGRET IT, because I spent the entire time either laughing my ass off or tearing up or going "AWWWWWWWWWWW!" at the screen (usually because of Betty and Daniel). *happy sigh*

- Oh, Inception. How so brilliant?

- Mad Men + martinis + live swing music last Monday = Lindsey is a very happy, thematically appropriate camper. (New York people: I wish you could've been there! We never did do a martinis-and-vintage-dresses night on the town, and that makes me sad) I apparently danced with a famous person who used to play swing music in company of Bob Wills and the Texas Playboys and the like. arielchan and I also ended up talking to an elderly gentleman at our table who used to play in the Army Band in WWII, and told us some fun stories, like about the night Frank Sinatra bought him and his friends drinks during the war.

- Sherlock is a completely awesome modern adaptation of Sherlock Holmes. I didn't think you could translate them quite so well out of the Victoriana, but it turns out you CAN, and this Watson and Holmes are most excellent. Largely, this is because they're early-canon Holmes and Watson, who I find the most interesting – there's no comfortable routine yet, and Watson is still all messed-up by the war, and everyone hates Holmes instead of being used to him, and Watson's not all married and domestic and moved out, and they don't know each others' ins and outs yet but are still determined to stick together because they each get something from the other they will never get anywhere else. It's fun, and exciting in the way the originals were in their day – it's the Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, after all (and now, adventures once again).

On a much shallower note, I am entranced by Sherlock's voice. It's all deep and urbane and precise and intellectual and arrogant and bossy, and when he goes off on the dense explanations of his deductions I am SO much more interested than when reading it in print. :D I can't wait for the third episode, and then I'm going to be VERY SAD that there isn't more immediately coming. I'm sad, but it weirdly works for me; it's oddly similar to the original publishing structure of Doyle's canon, and I like that. As long as there IS more; I don't think poor Steven Moffat realizes he just wrote himself into the same corner as ACD, who literally tried and failed to kill off Holmes so he wasn't always having to WRITE MORE to satisfy the fanbase.

Okay, so...I know I'm alone in this, but every time I see the blood drop in the credit sequence, I find myself saying "It reacts to hemoglobin and nothing else!", and then Katie looks at me like I'm the world's biggest nerd, which I admit in that moment is kind of true. :D

- Last but not least, those of you who have never seen or heard of Banlieue 13 or its sequel, you really don't know what you're missing. I was idly looking for something to watch when I read etben's recent pimp post, and I am SO GLAD THAT I DID. The premise is a bit silly/contrived, and the plots are all kinds of ridiculous, but they're terribly fun anyway, and the two main characters are awesome and hit a lot of my personal buttons.

One of them, Leïto, is played by David Belle, one of the founders of parkour, who did his own stunts. He's one of those athletic, graceful people who are sheer fascinating joy to see in motion on film – like Douglas Fairbanks or Bruce Lee or Fred Astaire. I think it's beautiful, in a very unironic way. Watch even the first thirty seconds of this video, tell me you're not impressed, and I will eat ALL of my hats. Honestly. The man makes things like "climbing into the front seat of a van" into effortlessly beautiful spectacles of grace and hotness, okay; the movie is worth watching just for that.

But it's not all that's worth watching for! Leïto is sort of like a French, dystopian-future Aladdin: all poor-but-roguish-street-rat/punk-with-a-heart-of-gold, complete with the penchant for running away from people in clever ways across rooftops and secretly being an idealist/fighting for the little people, despite a jaded exterior. He's a bit like Bat (as in, Batman/Robin/etc.) in that way; Leïto is all about the uphill fight to make his wrecked, gang-ridden neighborhood into a better place. Plus, you know, the leaping-from-the-rooftops thing. I LOVE this kind of character.

Leïto also appears to be highly allergic to shirts. This is a-okay with me, since David Belle has a fantastic body (see: everything he can do in previously-linked video, hell-o NURSE is he fit):





See? (You can find more pictures like this at this pimp post, or at this one, rrrowr. They're both ten times more attractive in motion, for the record; they're not as photogenic in the stills.)

Instead of a spirited young Arabian princess, B13 gives Leïto some insanely good buddy-cop slashiness with Damien, our other protagonist. He's an incorruptible, highly competent Parisian cop who Believes In The Law and Helps The Citizenry and Is Very Earnest and Unironically Quotes The National Motto of France. Bless him. Damien goes undercover a lot (haha JUST WAIT UNTIL THE SECOND MOVIE), and is capable of taking out like, thirty highly-armed people in five minutes – in a very believable fashion, too, because he's played by Cyril Raffaeli, who ALSO performed his own stunts, in addition to choreographing the fight sequences. The result is some very creative, very impressive fights, with that lovely touch of realism you only get when you know the person onscreen can actually do those things. I went into this movie expecting to love Leïto best, because I know I'm a sucker for his character type (I enjoyed Prince of Persia for that very reason). But the introductory scene with Damien is completely awesome, and he's such a do-gooding, casually-badass guy that I found myself immediately fond of him. And then he meets Leïto, and they are even more fun together than they are separately, with the banter and the mocking and the intense sociopolitical arguments with their faces held inches apart and the joint ass-kicking. They're both smart and capable and quick on their feet, and that makes for a great time.

So what I'm saying is, you should all see these movies! There's awesome fight sequences! Parkour through Paris! Manly eye candy! Dystopian future setting! Idealism! Buddy-cop-like saving of the day! Breaking people out of prison! Handcuffing each other to things! Hugging! Fighting back-to-back! Crossdressing! (no, really)

Seriously, just watch them. The first is on Netflix instant viewing, if you have it (and I'm willing to lend out my account if you don't, plus *cough* help you find the second if you like).

*cough* Okay, enough of that. /pimp

Comments

[etben.livejournal.com]

BANLIEUE 13 MOTHERFUCKING YES. I love both of those movies SO HARD, without any irony at all, because they are FUN and RIDICULOUS and yet somehow almost kind of compelling, in that weird way where, like - okay, yes, OBVIOUSLY the plot is terrible, but there's still something there, something about idealism and saving the day and making the world a better place, that is tremendously compelling to me.

...which is my way of saying that I want an epic about the two of them rebuilding after the second movie, and sharing Damien's (freaking SWEET) apartment and being awkward at each other and yet surprisingly good for each other, and if they could kick ass and then fuck that would be GREAT.

or, you know. porn about hot bendy french boys: also a valid option!

IN CONCLUSION I AM PLEASED THAT MY PIMPERY HAS PAID OFF. NOW WRITE ME FIC.

[inmyriadbits.livejournal.com]

I was totally just about to post a reply to your entry, actually! Because I realized I didn't thank you for the pimp post, which, ALL THE THANKS! I'd been idly intending to watch the first one for ages, and you got me to check it out on Netflix instant viewing. And then I immediately needed to download the sequel. And then I forced my sister to watch both of them right after each other, and basically I watched them both twice in one day (plus re-watching the good bits), it was AMAZING. My goodness is David Belle pretty in motion, and they are so slashy it almost hurts to look at them. ♥____♥

Pretty much the only bad thing about the experience is that my sister and I can't agree on how Leïto's name is pronounced. (I think it's more along the lines of "lee-too"; she insists it's "lay-toe", and it's driving me crazy.) I don't suppose you know, o great and powerful linguistics/French-speaking person? :D?

I love both of those movies SO HARD, without any irony at all, because they are FUN and RIDICULOUS and yet somehow almost kind of compelling, in that weird way where, like - okay, yes, OBVIOUSLY the plot is terrible, but there's still something there, something about idealism and saving the day and making the world a better place, that is tremendously compelling to me.

This is totally how I feel about it! Part of it is that I love action movies; they're just fun, and exciting, and compelling; spectacle has been a backbone of film since it began, and this particular action movie is brilliant at spectacle without losing the humanity. I think it's partly that despite the contrivances, the marginalization and poverty of the Parisian suburbs is actually really a serious problem (...I've been doing research, don't look at me like that!), so despite not being realistically relevant, it's still emotionally relevant, and that shows. And I think a lot of it for me is Damien and Leïto, who feel very real to me, from their psychology and motivation to the way they move and fight (because the actors really do that, which is amazing).

or, you know. porn about hot bendy french boys: also a valid option!

I got my sister to watch the first one basically by repeating the phrase "hot bendy athletic French guys doing parkour!" a lot and doing jazzhands. And then she made me watch the second one with her when we were done. *wins* :D

[WHOOPS I wrote too much! TO BE CONTINUED...]

[etben.livejournal.com]

:DDDDDDDDDDDDDDD

Pretty much the only bad thing about the experience is that my sister and I can't agree on how Leïto's name is pronounced. (I think it's more along the lines of "lee-too"; she insists it's "lay-toe", and it's driving me crazy.) I don't suppose you know, o great and powerful linguistics/French-speaking person? :D?

It should be somewhere in between, actually? The ¨ is a way of saying that the two vowels should be pronounced separately, so it should be "leh-i-toe"...but in practice it comes out more like "lee-toe", so. But...again, not exactly? because french vowels are weird. BUT MORE OR LESS, OKAY.

and YES YES YES on the whole thing feeling real - like, obviously the PLOT is a load of hooey, but the underlying idea is NOT, and the characters feel surprisingly genuine, for being, you know, the heroes of an action movie.

[inmyriadbits.livejournal.com]

...this is why I took Spanish in school. :)

It's sort of the way I feel about the fourth Die Hard movie. It's ridiculous! But I really loved Matt and John, and it was tons of fun. And there's LOADS of fic for that movie!

[inmyriadbits.livejournal.com]

...which is my way of saying that I want an epic about the two of them rebuilding after the second movie, and sharing Damien's (freaking SWEET) apartment and being awkward at each other and yet surprisingly good for each other, and if they could kick ass and then fuck that would be GREAT.

Banlieue 13 is already totally at the top of my fandoms list for Yuletide this year! And I have been tossing around post-movie ideas and maybe have a couple thousand words of notes, and thoughts about legit research, because I have this problem with taking the ridiculous sociopolitical premise seriously what is wrong with me. I want epic, slow-building fic with them, while they work to fix B13! Although, nitpick: I was trying to figure out where Leïto's apartment was, and it's not at all in one of the high-rises that blew up – look at the scene with the zipline, and also the picture of the target-marked high-rises from the hard drive Leïto steals – so he would probably be moving back to his place once they let the non-high-rise residents back in, which they would likely have to do unless they wanted to try to keep a million+ people in emergency housing forever. But I'm totally down with him visiting a lot and staying over for late night strategizing sessions and the like. :D Especially because Damien apparently has no life or close friends aside from Leïto: he forgot his girlfriend/girl-thing was sleeping over, and he forgot his door code, but he remembered Leïto's phone number FROM MEMORY, IN PRISON, despite apparently not seeing him for two-ish years. What a DORK, I love him. ♥ I also want to bring Lola back; she was awesome in the first movie, and has clearly moved out of B13, and that interests me.

Only, I am really really awful at actually following through on finishing stories, and I'm terribly afraid that this will languish into the same place as my post-war Avatar fic ideas. Although, I'm rather more invested in the pairing in this fandom, which helps, as does the fact that this is a tiny tiny fandom desperate for fic, so I feel needed. :D Basically, I work best if someone is going "HEY, wouldn't it be great if there was a scene where...?" and "WRITE THIS FOR ME, WOMAN" and being pushy and letting me flail at them in chat. Would you care to volunteer? :D?

I hope you are going to make/have already made Jai watch this, yes? Because she should know this joy, too. For her own good. I care about her well-being, you know. ;)

[etben.livejournal.com]

Although, nitpick: I was trying to figure out where Leïto's apartment was, and it's not at all in one of the high-rises that blew up – look at the scene with the zipline, and also the picture of the target-marked high-rises from the hard drive Leïto steals – so he would probably be moving back to his place once they let the non-high-rise residents back in, which they would likely have to do unless they wanted to try to keep a million+ people in emergency housing forever.

Oh, huh! I hadn't caught that - I'd kind of decided in my brain that they blew up all of B13, but of course that doesn't make sense with the evacuation plotline. Go figure! ...but at the same time, I can totally imagine Leïto giving up his apartment for other people and then being all "...well, MERDE."

Especially because Damien apparently has no life or close friends aside from Leïto: he forgot his girlfriend/girl-thing was sleeping over, and he forgot his door code, but he remembered Leïto's phone number FROM MEMORY, IN PRISON, despite apparently not seeing him for two-ish years.

RIGHT? I JUST. Be more stupidly OTP, please, OH WAIT YOU CAN'T.

Basically, I work best if someone is going "HEY, wouldn't it be great if there was a scene where...?" and "WRITE THIS FOR ME, WOMAN" and being pushy and letting me flail at them in chat. Would you care to volunteer? :D?

Ahahahahahahaha I totally understand that! It is the way I work as well. So: SEND ME EVERYTHING YOU HAVE AND I WILL MAKE YOU WRITE MORRRRRRRE. et.ben.non@gmail.com, it will be GREAT.

(and, yes, I totally made Jai watch the first one - she's refusing to watch the second one until we have more beer, which is fair, I suppose. BUT I WILL WIN HER OVER.)

[inmyriadbits.livejournal.com]

I'd kind of decided in my brain that they blew up all of B13, but of course that doesn't make sense with the evacuation plotline.

There's probably at least a little collateral damage, but...yeah. Five bombs wouldn't wipe out a whole neighborhood; it'd likely be more "London Blitz" than "Hiroshima."

...but at the same time, I can totally imagine Leïto giving up his apartment for other people and then being all "...well, MERDE."

HEE. I can totally see that, too! OH LEITO. :D But he's also so very "I have to stay in B13, to fix things!" so idk.

Be more stupidly OTP, please, OH WAIT YOU CAN'T.

I think my favorite little scene is the one where Damien's all "My bible is the law!" and Leïto laughs at him and Damien doesn't understand why what he said is so funny. The ONLY reason to have that scene is their banter; it starts with them running for cover, and then it just randomly ends when they decide to run for it. ♥

(and, yes, I totally made Jai watch the first one - she's refusing to watch the second one until we have more beer, which is fair, I suppose. BUT I WILL WIN HER OVER.)

LOL. I guess that's fair! You could maybe tell her there's crossdressing; it might help. :D

Email is on its way!

[spatz.livejournal.com]

As the pimp-adjacent innocent bystander here, I'd like to say: THANK YOU!

there's still something there, something about idealism and saving the day and making the world a better place, that is tremendously compelling to me.

The whole thing is so ripe for fic, I can't believe it! Like, the politics are ridiculous and exaggerated like any good allegorical dystopia, but there's just enough there that I want to sand off the rotten bits and go carving away at the unexplored ones. Especially when you can ground it all in these characters. ♥

I may be writing fic. But one of them requires sex and I have only written gen and omg what am I doooing? clearly the sexy overpowered me.

[etben.livejournal.com]

but there's just enough there that I want to sand off the rotten bits and go carving away at the unexplored ones.

EXACTLY. Like - of COURSE the canon is terrible, but the underlying idea has some really interesting bits to poke at! *wishes you well with the maybe-fic*

[inmyriadbits.livejournal.com]

You HAVE to write that five-things one you were telling me about. It would be so simple! DOOOOO EEEEIIIT....

[junebug-waltz.livejournal.com]

GOD, WHO TOLD YOU ABOUT THIS MOVIE?



YOU'RE ALSO WELCOME OMFG FRIDAY IS NOW. >:D

[inmyriadbits.livejournal.com]

You're right, I'm so sorry! You told me about it first! (Well, okay, I heard about it somewhere else but I don't/didn't really remember; you were the first person to personally recommend it to me!) etben's post was just the nice last push/reminder that I needed.

Clearly, you have ALL THE GOOD TASTE. :D

FRIDAY MOVIE PARTY WHOOOOOOOO! Do you know if Clare will be back? Can we drag her into this with us?

[junebug-waltz.livejournal.com]

hahaha i don't really care. i'm just saying, WE ALL HAVE GOOD TASTE AND YOU SHOULD MAYBE LISTEN MORE OFTEN??? <333


clare is sadly gone for 2 weeks, and i already forced her to sit down and watch the first one with me. :D

so. idk. <3

[inmyriadbits.livejournal.com]

I do listen! I just have ALL THE THINGS to watch. /o\

Well, did she like it? She might enjoy the second one. When she gets back, of course. :D

[spatz.livejournal.com]

then Katie looks at me like I'm the world's biggest nerd,

Not *biggest*, just most adorable. ;)

tell me you're not impressed, and I will eat ALL of my hats.

Wow, that is a dire threat!

[inmyriadbits.livejournal.com]

Aww, thanks. :)

Lo, they are numerous. And many are rather big, and one has feathers. But I mean it! Seriously, how could anyone not be impressed by that scene? It's AWESOME.

[spatz.livejournal.com]

I would be more worried about the beads on that one. And not because of any bead-related accidents that didn't happen in kindergarten, no sirree.

[inmyriadbits.livejournal.com]

Wait...I have beads on one of my hats? I think you're thinking of my purses, darlin.

[yahtzee63.livejournal.com]

UGLY BETTY IS LOVE.

[inmyriadbits.livejournal.com]

IT REALLY IS. And your fic was amazing, p.s.! I didn't comment because I suck and was kind of overwhelmed by the awesome, but it was so, so perfectly what I wanted. ♥!

And I now know what your icon is from, and OMG I LOVE THEM SO MUCH!

[ignipes.livejournal.com]

I am entranced by Sherlock's voice

GOD YES. That voice. I loves it.

[inmyriadbits.livejournal.com]

I know, right? *fans self*

[berserkide.livejournal.com]

Banlieue 13!!!!!!!!! best ever. I have the sequel on my netflix queue, but if a lady knew how to get her hands on it sooner, this lady would be interested....

[inmyriadbits.livejournal.com]

If this lady had a certain other lady's email address, this lady would be more than happy to oblige!

[berserkide.livejournal.com]

elleharrer@gmail.com

[inmyriadbits.livejournal.com]

Done and done! ♥

[berserkide.livejournal.com]

thanks bb!