I really don't think I'm ready for this, guys.
It's back! I haven't participated in 5FF since September (whoops!), but I couldn't pass this prompt up. I am all about my fandoms, guys. And there are so many more that I could have included in this list, but I'm nothing if not a sticker for the "rules."
Learn more about 5 Fandom Friday and check out the prompts for November.
HamletWARNING: Possible spoilers ahead.
All English majors at my university—UMass Amherst, in case you're curious—are required to take a Shakespeare course. Prior to that course, I'd read some of Shakespeare's plays and other works, but it wasn't until college that I really fell in love with the Bard. (Thanks in no small part to my chain-smoking professor's rapid-fire but extraordinarily informative presentation.) I've seen many adaptations of Shakespeare's plays, too, but there's something to be said about seeing "the real thing" on stage. Sometimes, though, it's hard to catch the more prominent productions, particularly if you're not in England. But thanks to National Theater Live (NTL), even us plebs who live in the middle of the U.S. can have a chance to see these productions, on the big screen.
NTL broadcasts British theatre productions to movie theaters across the world, and it's through one of these broadcasts (albeit an encore, so it wasn't live) that I had the chance to see Benedict Cumberbatch in Hamlet at The Barbican. (I've also seen Tom Hiddleston in Coriolanus thanks to this program.)
Although we didn't study Hamlet in that course, I'm not unfamiliar with the plot—the dark, emotion-filled, vengeance-riddled plot. For those of you who are unfamiliar, Hamlet is one of Shakespeare's most famous, and most quote-worthy, plays, but it's not an easy one. It's filled with family drama and mental illness and a looming war. No spoilers, but lets just say that many of the characters don't make it out of this one alive.
Benedict was a superb Hamlet, and the supporting cast were pretty great, too. It did take me a minute to warm up to Ciarán Hinds' Cladius—for the first few scenes, he was super dramatic and really wooden, but he eventually relaxed into the role. Sian Brooke was a little screechy as Ophelia, but it worked?
What really stole the show for me, however, was the staging. Such gorgeous set pieces, and a really ingenious use of light and dark to make it feel like many different sets, even they never really changed the main setup. The costumes were also fantastic, and, although I think we were supposed to understand that this version of the play was set in the 70s, gave an out-of-time feel to the production. (I really want Hamlet's totally punk-rock coat, which, sadly, I couldn't find a better picture of.)
I'm not sure if this will be airing again in the future, but I definitely recommend seeing this—and other NTL shows—if you're a Shakespeare fan.
Today, A Nerdy World turns one! And to celebrate, I'm holding a giveaway of a few of my favorite things.
SpectreFirst and foremost: I'm a fan of Daniel Craig as James Bond. As my mother mentioned the other day when we were talking about this movie, he's not the most attractive of Bonds—I'm not trying to be superficial, mind you, I'm merely stating a fact that Bond is typically played by a super handsome dude—but I think there's an undeniable swagger and charisma (to steal from my haiku) that Craig has more so than any Bond before him. This appeal is in full force in Spectre. Craig's James Bond is a man of few words, but so much action.
I'm not sure if this was Craig's last time playing Bond (he says it might be) but there was a finality to Spectre that surprised me a little. It tied all three previous films (Casino Royale, Quantum of Solace, and Skyfall) together nicely, in a way that was a little unexpected, but, admittely, I might not have been paying attention to all the clues dropped in the previous three movies, if they were there. The movie also payed homage to the earlier non-Craig Bond films more so than before, even going so far as to reuse a villain/give a villain an origin story. (I'm not sure if these latest movies are a reboot or prequels or what.)
The supporting cast, as is often the case often with Bond movies, is somewhat overshadowed, but they did have more integral roles than before, serving more as backup for Bond than people he sees only when he stops in to get new gadgets from Q. Although I miss Judi Dench, I think it's fun to have Ralph Fiennes play M. Ben Whishaw is an adorable Q. And could Naomie Harris (Moneypenny) be any more gorgeous? The new additions to the cast—Andrew Scott in the very Moriarty-like role of C, Dave Bautista as the strong and silent Mr. Hinx, and Christoph Waltz as the villain [REDACTED, even though IMDB totally spoils it]—were fantastic. Particularly Waltz, who I adore in pretty much everything he does, but especially when he's playing a villain.
The Bond girls, Léa Seydoux and Monica Belluci, were good. Nothing really special, but that's basically the Bond franchise's longest-running issue and largest fault.
If you're a Bond fan, you should definitely go see Spectre. And even if you're not, you might consider it, since it's a fun action movie with a little intrigue underneath all of the explosions and car chases, and it's hard for that to be a bad thing.
YOU GUYS.
CBS Television Studios announced today it will launch a totally new Star Trek television series in January 2017. The new series will blast off with a special preview broadcast on the CBS Television Network. The premiere episode and all subsequent first-run episodes will then be available exclusively in the United States on CBS All Access, the Network’s digital subscription video on demand and live streaming service. ...
The brand-new Star Trek will introduce new characters seeking imaginative new worlds and new civilizations, while exploring the dramatic contemporary themes that have been a signature of the franchise since its inception in 1966.
Alex Kurtzman will serve as executive producer for the new Star Trek TV series. Kurtzman co-wrote and produced the blockbuster films Star Trek (2009) with Roberto Orci, and Star Trek Into Darkness (2013) with Orci and Damon Lindelof. Both films were produced and directed by J.J. Abrams. (via)
The 2015 Man Calendar:
Mr. November: James McAvoy
Mr. October: Lee Pace
Mr. September: Idris Elba
Mr. August: Chris Hemsworth
Mr. July: Benedict Cumberbatch
Mr. June: Chris Evans
Mr. May: Henry Cavill
Mr. April: Michael Fassbender
Mr. March: Jensen Ackles
Mr. February: Tom Hiddleston
Mr. January: Eoin Macken
Download this page of the 2015 Man Calendar for personal use by clicking on the image; it will open in a new window. Right/control click to save it. Then print the page on letter-size cardstock, and trim it to 6"x9".
