The Stargazer

The Muiscal Success of Poor Things and Where it Came From

””Praise has been heaped ad nauseam on Poor Things. Lanthimos’ pristine direction, with his signature embellishments of morbid deadpan, has now taken to new heights with a whole world to play off of his usual tricks. With some of the best sense of pacing and mise-en-scène in modern cinema- provided by production designers James Price and Shona Heath. Stone's transformation into Bella Baxter, a career-high for one of Hollywood's best actresses– completely embodying the naivety, sexual agency, and sense of wonder and exploration of the character. The recognition is all deserved. It’s an ambitious odyssey to execute on screen, and every aspect of the production works in an oddball harmony to make one of the best films in a frankly stacked year for cinema. I’d argue what ties this all together is the music. Equally as weird but never veering to nonsense as the rest of the film, Jerskin Fendrix created his own marvel of an unconventional but enticing soundtrack– which when looking into his roots as an artist is no surprise.

Before Midnight; After Dreams

””Before Sunrise and Before Sunset feel like the most important things in the world for these two tender souls. Jesse and Celine’s two most pivotal moments in their lives. When they fell in love, and when they decided to spend the rest of their lives together. Fittingly, the trilogy ends in a naturalistic way; the ideal and dreamy atmosphere of the last two films is forfeited here for a vacation date for the couple that could have been anywhere, any day. With it being set on the backdrop of Greece, it is just a plus for the audience, despite most of the film taking place in a hotel room. The magic of the scenery that inspired their love in the first place has faded out. Their younger years are gone, they’ve settled into a rhythm, and they’ve built something together, a family, a marriage. Before Midnight asks earnestly if the love between the two as it exists in their middle age justifies their staying together in the absence of that idealized love that once existed so intensely.

Disabilities Representation in Reality TV

””The Bachelor and all the other shows in the franchise have become a part of my weekly routine in the last couple years. It’s one of my favorite things to do with my friends. I love watching and yelling at the TV when a contestant or the bachelor/bachelorette is making terrible decisions and admiring all the gorgeous outfits. The first episode of the most recent season introduced Daisy, a 25-year-old account executive from Becker, Minnesota. Right off the bat all my friends (and I) marked her as a favorite because she was so sweet and caring. Part of her introduction video told viewers about how, due to both Lyme and Meniere’s disease, she experienced a variety of medical issues, including a significant loss of hearing in her left ear. She made the choice to get a cochlear implant and is now living her life to the fullest and is now ready to find love. Daisy got me thinking about how I’d started seeing people with different disabilities entering the world of reality TV, at least in some of the shows I watch.

Justifying my Purchase

””We’re at a point right now where the then-niche nerd interests of the past are the driving elements of pop culture. Being a superfan of anime, comic media or fantasy and sci-fi worlds is normal. These things make billions of dollars off of the casual interests of millions. A foreign concept not even two decades ago. Then comes the issue of quality control for these things- these companies have an incentive to “give the people what they want,” too often at the expense of the creative direction of the end product. I’ve always subscribed to the idea that a good fan speaks wisely with their wallet. Not everything associated with the intellectual property you’ve fallen in love with deserves the money you earned. However, every fan can make a sore mistake and see past their own bias- and contribute to a cycle that enables more half-baked content to be made. More importantly, it enables the continued exploitation of talented artists to keep pumping out this product rather than letting them work their craft. Recently I’ve spoken very badly with my wallet and bought a product that is not emblematic of the best qualities of the thing I’m a fan of. This isn’t a traditional review of the quality of my mistaken purchase, but rather a tale of how a deep love of something inherently nerdy led to nearly one hundred of my own money, being more or less wasted due to my fandom blinders. This is that going back to the beginning:

Black Swan, Suspiria, and the Horrifically Feminine World of Ballet

””As a psychological thriller, Darren Aronofsky's Black Swan (2010) borrows heavily from the gendered tropes of the horror genre while also cultivating some of their own. With its sophisticated score and disorienting cinematography, the maddening beauty of the film defines the "feminine" canon of unsettling stories immersed in the world of ballet. These narratives spotlight its soul-crushing discipline, unnatural physical demands, and distinctly feminine grace to expose the anxiety of female perfection.

Scott Pilgrim V.S. The Romance Analysis: Pixelated Romance and Symbolic Battles

””If you think modern-day dating is complex, imagine going through the ultimate test of strength and commitment by having to defeat seven evil exes to get the girl. In the neon-colored, video-game-inspired, indie-rock band landscape of Scott Pilgrim vs. The World, love is as complex and enigmatic as the battles Scott faces throughout the story. Based on the graphic novel series by Bryan Lee O'Malley, Scott Pilgrim vs. The World (2010) combines action, comedy, and romance to create a whirlwind adventure of love and persistence that captured the hearts of readers and viewers alike. This article will dive into the intricacies of the romance portrayed in the film, exploring the themes and underlying messages that make this film a unique, captivating, and action-packed portrayal of romance.

My Thoughts on Palworld, Featuring Hatsune Mikey

””When it comes to gaming, 2024 shows much promise with upcoming releases such as Final Fantasy VII Rebirth and Paper Mario and the Thousand Year Door. January alone came out swinging with The Last of Us: Part 2 Remastered, Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth, and Tekken 8. However, none of these releases compare to the juggernaut that is Palworld. Developed by Pocket Pair, Palworld is an early access survival game where players can capture creatures called “pals” to help them along the way. The game launched on Xbox and PC on January 19, 2024 and proceeded to break the Internet. Within its first week, Palworld reached a peak of over 2.1 million players on Steam, sold over 8 million copies, and achieved over $5 million in sales. With its quick success, Palworld has also been the center of controversy due to some pal designs being criticized as for looking similar to designs from properties like Pokémon. Because of the strange place Palworld is in right now, I decided to give it a shot and see what the hype was about. I created my character, Hatsune Mikey, and started my Palworld journey.

To be a Foodie: Chef through a Latin Foodies' Lens

””Cuban bread, ham, roast pork—lechón— Swiss cheese. Contrary to popular belief, pickles and mustard are not optional. But what is the significance of a sandwich? To Carl Casper (Jon Favreau), the encouragement from his ex-wife (Sofia Vergara) that his Cubanos are better than the ones from Miami’s iconic Versailles Restaurant is all he needs to take his career from prestigious to portable. In opening his food truck, he breaks away from the tradition of caviar eggs and lava cakes to reconnect with his craft and community by making dishes he cares about.

“Level 135 unlocked!” : The History of Nintendo and Recap of the CDU x ASLC Super Nintendo World Event

””On January 31st, the Askew Student Life Cinema and Club Down Under teamed up to transport FSU students back to the golden era of gaming in celebration of Nintendo's 135th anniversary. The activity-packed event rekindled memories of the Super Nintendo era and left guests with a warm feeling of nostalgia. In honor of this company's tremendous milestone, let's dive deeper into how Nintendo became the gaming platform we know and love today and its continuous impact on our generation.

The Nightmare Technique of The Zone of Interest

””The 13th of October, 2023. The leads, sound designer, and director of the five-time Oscar-nominated film, The Zone of Interest, walk onto the stage of the Southbank cinema at the BFI London Film Festival, minutes after the credits are done rolling on the two-hour nightmare that the audience was subjected to. I was in that audience, and I was stunned. I was paralyzed in my seat after watching the most subtly effective drama film detailing the horrors of the holocaust I had ever seen, all done without a single drop of blood shown on screen. The sound of the film, paired with its precise and uncanny visuals, shook me. I felt a visceral sense of terror because I’m aware that just beyond the frame, but never beyond earshot, people are needlessly and systematically dying in sick, twisted daily slaughters. One of many things that have been ingrained in my memory in the short Q&A that followed was where lead actress Sandra Huller (nominated this year for her acting in Anatomy of a Fall) is asked about how she approached her character. The first part of her answer was a nuanced take on finding a way to honestly portray an evil of history without sympathizing or simplifying it, her character being the real wife of Auschwitz camp director Rudolph Hoss, but it's the second part I’m going to focus on here. That being the intricacies of the multi-camera system, as opposed to the much more conventional single camera.