David O Russell has had a very interesting career, and it has been a great deal of fun to watch it develop. Intriguing films like Three Kings (1999) and I Heart Huckabees (2004) gave way to Oscar contenders like The Fighter (2010) and Silver Linings Playbook (2012). Hustle lands somewhere in between all of his work. Like his early work, it is unapologetic in its ambition, yet it has the polish of his recent work at the same time. In tone, it resembles the Coen brothers, and in story it is not dissimilar to a younger Tarantino.
The casting is interesting - not perfect, but still great. Christian Bale is Irving, a low-stakes New York conman who meets Sydney (Amy Adams), whose fiery intelligence and insatiable ambition intrigues him but ultimately lands the pair with Richie Di Maso (Bradley Cooper), an FBI agent who hopes to parlay the duo's skill into a bigger political catch that will catapult his career into the stratosphere. It should be mentioned that the film is a loose play on the ABSCAM fiasco of the late '70s.
Story: 3/5 - It's a fun story, to be sure, and I really like the role that ambition plays. Everybody has their own checks, and it is the characters without restraint that drive the plot. When Irving can't control his wife (Jennifer Lawrence), she gets entangled with the mob. When the FBI can't reign in Richie, he continually escalates the situation. The amount of twists made me think of Tarantino (Pulp Fiction), but I still found it relatively predictable. I wasn't a fan of the narrator, either. It wasn't really necessary and kind of dumbed the movie down.
Writing: 5/5 - The writing was thrilling, and really made me think of the Coens. You get to meet all of these characters, and somehow to like them all. Every scene is well written, and some are absolutely hilarious. The tension doesn't always work. It's not perfect, but it's close.
Acting: 5/5 - Where to begin? Christian Bale and Amy Adams as leads aren't going to disappoint, you know that when you buy your ticket. Bradley Cooper swings for the fences as the maniacal sometimes-antagonist FBI agent (think of Gary Oldman's Norman Stansfield from Leon, but with more incompetence and less evil). Jennifer Lawrence is sultry, reckless, and impossible to ignore, like a train about to go off the rails. That I want to bang. Louis CK is hilarious in a bit part as Cooper's commanding officer, and I continue to be impressed by Robert De Niro's latest work in a cameo as a mob boss. Jeremy Renner is solid as a New Jersey mayor committed to doing the right thing for his people, by any means necessary. This is a Best Cast contender.
Aesthetics: 4/5 - The music is a blast. The costumes and sets are awesome. It's really just a good-looking film.
Final Score: 85% - Not the Best Picture contender I envisioned, but its still one of the most entertaining pictures of the year.
Look, maybe I'm a sucker. I love a well-done fight movie. I love Rocky, all of them (except V, fuck Rocky V), even the one where he goes to Russia and ends the Cold War. I thought that Rocky Balboa (2006) was a very good movie and a deserving entrant in the franchise when a lot of people hated it.
On the other hand (De Niro's), Raging Bull is quite possibly the greatest bit of American cinema ever, and almost undoubtedly the finest film of the last 35 years. The title sequence gives me chills every time.
Hell, I liked Warrior.
So when I heard about Grudge Match, I didn't know how to feel. Did we really need to dust off what are essentially mimicrys of Rocky Balboa and Jake Lamotta? How much story is left to tell there? At the same time, didn't Rocky Balboa show us that this kind of movie is possible to make? Where do we set expectations for this?
Grudge Match is the story of two boxers who split a pair of enormous fights in the 1980s, only for Stallone's 'Razor' Sharp to walk away from De Niro's Billy 'The Kid' McDonnen, the rematch, and millions of dollars, for reasons he never tries to explain. After a present-day altercation drums up media attention, the son of their late promoter (Kevin Hart) encourages the two to do a rubber match.
Story: 2/5 - It's just ok. The story is fairly predictable, but it's still fun. The relationship between the two fighters is interesting, and it was entertaining to watch them air each other's dirty old laundry over the course of the movie.
Writing: 3/5 - Maybe I bumped my head the night before the movie, but I thought the movie was funny enough. Nobody's going to win an award here, but there's enough emotion to make you care and just enough comedy to make the 113 minute runtime bearable.
Acting: 3/5 - Say what you want about De Niro (and most are appalled that he's still acting), but with his appearances in David O Russell's films, I would hazard to say his last 12 months have been his best work in the last 15 years. He at lease looks like he put on and lost a good deal of weight as part of this role. Sly Stallone is what he is. If anybody can play a run-down former boxer, it's him. I love Alan Arkin, and he's fine as Stallone's old trainer, 'Lightning.' Kevin Hart is just comedic relief, but he does a decent job. I was impressed with Jon Bernthal as Kid's son, BJ, mostly because I hate The Walking Dead. I liked some of the cameos, like Tyson and Holyfield, and Chael Sonnen.
Aesthetics: 2/5 - These guys are too old to be pretend fighting, let's just be honest. It doesn't look good, it doesn't look believable. Stallone did alright in Balboa, but 67 is a lot older than 60. The production values were good - they captured the downtrodden Pittsburgh as well as the glitz of Las Vegas.
Final Score: 50% - Grudge Match currently has a 21% rating on RottenTomatoes, so maybe I'm missing something, but though it ran a bit long for me, it was worth a watch.
There's nothing to discuss here, really. You've seen the trailers, you've probably read the books. This is about the second installment in Peter Jackson's inexplicable Hobbit trilogy, The Desolation of Smaug.
Story: 2/5 - The book is fun, and is well-loved. As a result, the movies can't help but be a pretty good time. That being said, the constant 'out of the frying pan' type of trouble the dwarves get into gets old after almost 6 hours now. There just isn't enough story here to make three three-hour movies. There's no real drama because you know there's a third movie, and the pacing suffers pretty badly as well.
Writing: 4/5 - Yeah, it's brash, dopey fantasy writing, but screenwriters Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens (a veteran of Jackson's efforts), Jackson, and briefly-signed director Benicio del Toro do a good job of making these believable, immersive characters through the writing. Critics like to throw around the word 'charming' for children's movie characters, and while I don't think that word applies, these are fun, but darker, multi-layered people.
Acting: 3/5 - The cast is pretty top-heavy. I love Martin Freeman as Bilbo, and Richard Armitage always does a great job. Ian McKellen isn't at his best, but he's probably one of the best living English-language actors, so he's probably OK mailing this one in. Benedict Cumberpatch was a fantastic cast as Smaug the dragon; his voice work and mocap (maybe Jackson's greatest filmmaking legacy) were fantastic. I liked Ken Stott as Balin, and Evangeline Lily as some elf chick made up for the movie. Stephen Fry is fun as the Master of the Men of the Lake. There are some lacking performances, though. Orlando Bloom was just there for fun, and a lot of the orcs were straight-up shoddy compared to the original trilogy.
(Note) A lot of people complained about the prequel Star Wars trilogy because of iffy acting, and something people have pointed to is Lucas basically punting on-location shooting and using greenscreen. This makes it harder for the actors to interact with the set and cast a believable performance. I think The Hobbit trilogy is another great example of this. Everything is CG. McKellan is a legend of the Royal Shakespeare Company. He has six Laurence Olivier Awards. How is he supposed to be at his best with nothing but a bright green wall as his accompaniment?
Aesthetics: 4/5 - Smaug is awesome, and is more or less worth the price of admission. Some of the sets are cool.
Final Score: 65% - The character and presentation of Smaug is enough to make this movie worth watching. As an art piece, though, it is far from Jackson's best work.
Starbomb is something quite special. And not for everybody. It's a band that consists of two of my personal favorite internet personalities, cartoonist Arin "Egoraptor" Hanson and Ninja Sex Party. Ninja Sex Party is a two-man band, with Danny Sexbang (or Leigh Daniel Avidan for you sophisticated folk) and Ninja Brian (or
Brian Wecht, a theoretical physicist working at Queen Mary, University of London, studying string theory and supersymmetry). Arin and Danny co-host Game Grumps on Youtube together, so you can already tell even on the album's intro track that they have incredible chemistry. Arin is usually the rapper on these tracks, while Danny delivers the hooks with his incredibly unique voice and Ninja Brian does an amazing job on the production of each track.
The album itself contains 11 video game themed songs, featuring tons of popular Nintendo characters. This is obviously a comedy album, but it is put together extremely well. The tracks are usually parodying a specific
part of a game, placing the characters in strangely adult situations with a crazy amount of dick jokes. But it works. Oh boy, does it work.
I Choose You to Die (9/10)-Arin's rapping is a little bit clunky on this, but that's mostly due to the awesome Pokemon puns in this song. The track tells the story of how Ash Ketchum had nothing in life after beating the Elite Four, so he turned to beating his Pokemon and got arrested for domestic violence. The song is good enough, but is made fantastic by Danny's hooks. His ability to make jokes while keeping with beat and tune of the song really stands out here.
Luigi's Ballad (8/10)-Danny plays the part of Luigi on this song, with Arin as Mario and Rachel Bloom guest appearing as Princess Peach. This is essentially a fight between the Mario Bros. about which one of them Peach should love more. Danny plays a sincere Luigi, trying to make Peach fall for him, while Mario is much more aggressive an obnoxious. Again, Danny's vocals top Arin's rapping, but there's not enough of Danny on this song, in my opinion. Arin also did an animated music video for the song, which you can check out here:
It's Dangerous to Go Alone (7/10)-This one is about that old man in the cave in the original Zelda games that gives Link his first sword. But in Starbomb's version, the old man (Danny) is trying to give Link (Arin) a penis sword. It's such a strange song, with a few too many dick jokes, but I liked how Liberty City and Raccoon City were tossed into the song, just for more references. Dan's vocals are great again, Arin's rapping is actually better than the previous songs, and the "chilled out groove" on this song is one of Ninja Brian's best.
Meet Arin
Mega Marital Problems (8/10)-Mega Man (Arin) and his wife (Dan) are arguing about their monotonous sex life on this one, with Dr. Wily (Dan again) is acting as their therapist. The premise seems weird, but it actually ends up being pretty funny, especially when Zero (more Danny) shows up at the end, trying to steal Mega Man's wife. As Zero, Danny shows off his crazy vocal range and it's amazing. The song flows great and the majority of it is about Mega Man fighting robot masters to gain better sex skills, which is silly enough to work.
Rap Battle: Ryu vs. Ken (10/10)-This song is a quick one, but it features Ryu and Ken from Street Fighter duking it out with rhymes rather than fists. Ryu (Arin) tries really hard and Arin does it really well, while Ken (Danny) can't rhyme on beat and doesn't care as much about it as Ryu. Obviously Ryu wins with some ridiculous rhymes and kicks Ken in "his scrotums".
Crasher-Vania (10/10)-This is probably my favorite song on the album. It's extremely catchy and Danny's hooks are incredible. His hooks are accompanied with harmonies done by himself, which makes them even better. This is also the song with the lowest amount of dick jokes, which was refreshing after being bombarded by them early on. Arin does a great Dracula accent and tells the true story of Castlevania: Simon is mad that Dracula never invites him to his monster mashes. Here's a clip from the song (also Arin kisses Ninja Brian):
The Book of Nook (7/10)-Arin is Tom Nook on this track, portraying him as the ruthless mayor of Animal Crossing. He cleverly works in the other non-residents in the game, but this track only features a short hook from Danny, which is not enough.
Sonic's Best Pal (9/10)-Another great job by Ninja Brian, as Danny raps over a high-tempo beat, telling the story of Sonic and his pals having a good time and enjoying life. The beat then transitions to a heavy metal track, as Arin screams as a PCP-addicted Tails the Fox. The song is hilarious, the beats and transitions are great, and Danny's happiness works so well with Arin and Tails' rage and craziness.
Regretroid (9/10)-Arin tells the story of Samus Aran on this track and how enemies get a lot softer when they find out she's a girl. Danny does a great job as Kraid, with a great mixture of rapping and singing. Emily
And meet Danny
Valentine guests as Samus and works really well off of Danny's reluctant Kraid.
Kirby's Adventure in Reamland (2/10)-This song is terrible. Plain and simple. Kirby is probably my favorite video game character (and my main in Smash Bros), but this song was just plain disturbing. I couldn't enjoy it, it didn't make me laugh, it just gave me an uncomfortable feeling. Danny's vocals are the only redeeming quality.
The Simple Plot of Final Fantasy 7 (10/10)-Arin plays Cloud Strife in this song, which takes place during a talk show interview. Other characters such as Donkey Kong and Pac-Man state the plots of their games, which are never more than a few words, while Cloud constantly interrupts host Danny to relay the "simple" plot of his game. It's a really funny song, with a lot of classic video game references and Arin's verses flow really well.
Overall, this album gets a 8.5/10. I love these two acts and they're great when combined. They teased a next album, which they then confirmed, on the outro track of the album and I cannot wait for it. Maybe a few less dick jokes next time. Just a few. Please.
This post contains spoilers for both The Walking Dead and The Walking Dead: Season 2 games.
Telltale has done it again. After making us all feel like the vulnerable human beings we are in last year's masterpiece of a game, The Walking Dead, the geniuses at Telltale provide us with the next chapter of the epic game series. Season 2 begins a few months after where the first game left off. Clementine is now the playable character, replacing Lee Everett, who met an unfortunate end at the end of the first game. A post-credits scene in that game showed Clem finding two figures in a large field, after abandoning Lee to begin her journey alone. These two figures ended up being Omid and Christa, the only two KNOWN survivors of the season 1 group, other than Clem. Clem, Omid, and Christa appear to wander for a few months, which brings us to where Season 2 begins. And where I started going crazy. And where the spoilers for the new game start.
Right off the bat, you can tell this game is going to be darker than the last. First off, you're playing as a little girl who knows how to kill. Also, the theories about Christa being pregnant are confirmed, as she has a huge stomach and the opening scene contains an argument over whether or not to name the baby Omid. Clem and her two companions stop at an abandoned rest stop, which is actually the one that appears several times in the 400 Days DLC for the first game. Clem heads into the bathroom (which has a nice TV show reference in it; "TBone is da illest" is carved into a stall) to clean up and hides in a stall when another teenage girl walks in. The girl finds Clem and begins to interrogate her at gun point, at which point Omid tries to sneak in, fails, and is shot and killed. This was pretty jarring for me, as it came before the opening credits even rolled and Omid was advertised as a kinda "look who's back" character. Christa comes in, shoots the girl, and her and Clem travel north together for 16 months. When we flash forward, Christa's baby bump is gone obviously, but there is no baby. Hm. Some men then try to attack the two ladies and Clem escapes and floats down a river. She wakes up and walks down a forest trail and meets a dog.The dog and Clem search for food and everything seems fine, until she finds some and the dog attacks her. Clem kicks the dog back and it gets impaled on spikes. This is where you can REALLY tell that this is a darker game. Your first major decision is whether or not you want this little girl to kill the suffering animal. I needed to take a break after this part.
The next part of the game is where you meet your new companions. Pete and Luke find Clem, suffering from hunger and blood loss, about to be got by the getters. They carry her back to their group, but not before Luke freaks out about the dog bite on the way. Pete believes that it was a dog, while Luke is more hesitant and upset that Clem killed the dog. Pete seems to be more understanding so far, but Clem sees a more
Meet Pete!
welcoming friendliness in Luke. Some assholes want to kill Clem, one asshole (Nick) almost shoots her when she wakes up, and then Carlos, the doctor, comes to take a look at her. The group decides to wait until morning to make sure it really is a dog bite, then they'll clean it. So far, the only non-complete assholes in the group are Luke, Pete, and Alvin. The group of jerks lock Clem in a shed, which she promptly breaks out of. She then breaks into the house and you have to find peroxide, a needle, and bandages so she can fix her arm. Clem gets all this stuff, meets Carlos' daughter Sarah, runs back to the shed, and you then have to stitch up the dog bite, step-by-step. I could barely get through this part. The only blood I can deal with is Game of Thrones quick cuts with a sword, but having to look at Clem's cut while she stitches it up, screaming in agony, made me have to take another break.
After this, Clem is attacked by a walker and the group appreciates her toughness. They decide that she's lasted long enough without a fever, so they FINALLY treat her dog bite. Clem then has the choice to accept Nick's apology (Nick being the guy who almost shot her when she woke up originally). You can also choose to tell Luke all about Lee and the old group and then choose to make friends with Rebecca or confront her about who her baby belongs to. She's really mean and I hope she dies soon. Anyway, the next day, Clem, Pete and Nick go out to hunt and find a bunch of corpses, one being Roman from 400 Days. Clem then finds a survivor, who also has her backpack, who she recognizes as someone from the woods at the start of the game. Pete is then attacked and visibly bitten, then attacked again, and you have to choose whether to go with Nick or Pete during the attack. The episode ends with Clem running off with whoever you choose.
I really enjoyed this first episode and believe that this series has the potential to be better than the first game. It's much more difficult to play as a child, when you want people to like you and help you because you know you can't live with no friends, but you also don't want to be nice to some people. It was much easier with Lee because you knew you would always have Clementine and SOMEBODY would be on your side, but with Clem, you need to pick your sides carefully. I loved this new challenge and can't wait for the next episode, which hopefully comes out sometime next month.
My Choices:
I chose to distract the men in the woods to help Christa
I don't know how to describe this movie. You have to watch it to appreciate... whatever it is. Make no mistake, it is not good. It is not the world's worst movie, but I would not recommend it either.
There were a lot of good names attached to the movie, Ashton Kutcher and Josh Gad among them, and it was selected to close the Sundance Film Festival. But it was not developed by a major studio and had just a $12 million budget. Ultimately it feels cheap and, while ambitious, incomplete.
Story: 2/5 - Look, it's the story of Steve Jobs's life as he drops out of university and founds Apple Computer, gaining clients and investors and turning it into a major industry powerhouse. Unfortunately, the film does not do a good job of telling the story. I hope you didn't want to care when Jobs throws his pregnant girlfriend out of his house and his life, because you don't have any reason to. When he snaps at a friend and the friend tells another character that Jobs has 'changed,' we don't ever really know why. The pacing is awful.
Writing: 1/5 - This scene actually happens: Steve Jobs presents the Apple II at a computer fair, but which I mean he shows the case, says it will revolutionize the industry, then basks in a standing ovation as an actual, I swear to God, electric guitar solo cuts into the overlay. It's that kind of movie.
Acting: 2.5/5 - I don't hate Kutcher. I actually kind of like him. But he's not right for this role. He's game, you can tell he is passionate about his character, but it just doesn't work. The guy who played Kelso can't be the same guy who dumps his pregnant girlfriend and tears a swath of destruction through silicon valley - it's a level of intensity that doesn't make sense for him. There are some other decent performances in the movie: Josh Gas as inventor/co-founder Steve Wozniak, JK Simmons as tech investor Arthur Rock.
Aesthetics - 2/5 - Cinematographer Russell Carpenter won an Oscar in 1997 for Titanic. He's alright, and the movie is shot fairly well. The sets are pretty good, too. What really hurts the movie is the soundtrack. It sounds cheap, and a lot of the editing is poor as well (both audio and visual).
Total Score: 38% - Walter Isaac wrote a fantastic biography of Jobs. Read that. Or wait for the Sony Pictures movie version of it. Just don't watch Jobs.
I guess it’s not-so-monthly now...but still, I will be providing my thoughts and predictions for one storyline every month until the show’s return. Since I have read the books, I know what should happen, but several plots seem to be taking turns away from the original material, while others are almost spot on. I will examine these apparent changes/accuracy, and do my best to avoid spoilers in “A Monthly Dose of Westeros”.
Sansa Stark is probably one of the most show's most hated characters. Not because she's a monster like Joffrey Baratheon or because she burned down Winterfell like Theon Greyjoy or because she orchestrated a mass murder/wedding like Walder Frey and Roose Bolton. Sansa is hated because she's a princess. A lot of people think she's a bitchy little girl who only wants to be princess and get what she wants. But, that's what girls were in medieval times. Noble girls were groomed to be noble women when they grew up. Sansa is a product of her upbringing and that should be a reason to hate her. Sure, she's dumb sometimes, but she has gotten smarter as her situation has gotten worse and worse. Remember, she's being held captive by one of the most evil people in the realm. She's watched her father die, her direwolf lasted a single episode, her sister ran away without her, and her oldest brother and mother are dead, and she was forced to marry a drunken dwarf after being freed from Joffrey. I don't fault her for being stupid sometimes. Actually, she's one of my favorite characters. I love defending her and I do everything in my power to make people understand that Sansa is not that bad. It gets better. It's difficult to say what's coming up for Sansa without giving too much away, so instead I'll just give a quick recap of season three Sansa and hopefully make this post long enough to allow me to include a bunch of pretty pictures of Sophie Turner. Anyway, Sansa's betrothal to Joffrey was broken off as Margaery Tyrell was brought into the picture. Sansa is still a captive in King's Landing, but Littlefinger has promised that when he leaves the
What a wedding!
city, he would bring her along with him. Sansa then meets up with Loras Tyrell, who she has a major crush on, and the two get along swimmingly. Unfortunately for Sansa, Loras is gay and also about to be forced to marry Cersei. This is when things get weird. Tyrion Lannister is now being forced to marry Sansa and has to break the news to her in front of Shae. On top of this, Littlefinger departs for the Vale without Sansa and she starts to cry. Then Tyrion and Sansa have a nice wedding, he chooses not to bed her until she's ready, and Shae appreciates that. Sansa and Tyrion begin to understand one another better and actually get along pretty well. Sansa doesn't realize it yet, but Tyrion is the only Lannister who truly cares about her well-being and this marriage makes her pretty damn safe. Just when things are beginning to go well, the Red Wedding happens. Tyrion is sent to break the news to Sansa, but she has already found out, and any good feelings they were starting to get towards each other disappear with one sad look:
She ain't forgivin' him
Sansa's story does improve. Just trust me. She's older and smarter than she has been in previous seasons. She's been forced to adapt to being a captive and she knows that she can't be a princess. For non-book readers, there are several points where you would think this story has hit a dead end and there's no more they can do with this character. Then Blackwater and the Tyrells happened. Then Tyrion happened. In this next season, there will be another major shakeup to Sansa's story that I'm hoping will cause the Sansa-hate to decrease.
Sansa is one of the biggest pawns in the game of thrones, but in a few seasons, I feel she will be a major player. If you take a minute to rethink Sansa Stark, she might become one of your favorite characters as well.
Now, technically Mud may be considered a 2012 release - it debuted at Cannes in May of 2012, but was not widely released until the beginning of 2013. It was a smart choice to hold it off for this year, as 2012 offered much stiffer competition where critical acclaim is concerned -- and critics have loved Mud, which currently has the year's 11-th best score (98%) on RottenTomatoes. In fact, the Mud screener was the first DVD sent out to Academy Award voters.
The film is virtually flawless, and cements Jeff Nichols among the best young directors in Hollywood. His other films (Shotgun Stories, Take Shelter) have some of the same tone, and he reminds me of a visual Cormac McCarthy. The abrupt violence, the pacing, and the gritty tone of his movies reeks of high literature, and Mud is his best film so far - a fine director operating at the very pinnacle of the art.
Unlike McCarthy, the film operates on more than a depressingly real level - as frustrating and close as the story is, there is a higher purpose - the story is about love. Ellis (a brilliant Tye Sheridan) and his friend Neckbone discover a man (McConaughey) who calls himself Mud on the shores of rural Deep South, USA. As Mud strains to reunite with his own forbidden love, Ellis, 14, is coming to terms with girls in his own right while watching his parents grow distant.
The film doubles as a Bildungsroman ('coming-of-age') story for Ellis, as he discovers what love is, what the point of love is, and what it means to be a man.
--
Story: 5/5 - The plot does its best to remain subtle while presenting very clear, classic themes. Love. Redemption. Maturation. Much like a McCarthy novel, the story is very plain, very real, and very, for lack of a better word, American.
Writing: 5/5 - This is how people talk in real life. There was not a single instance of a character saying something to explain something to the audience or further the plot. Again, McCarthy - these people are defined by their actions, and the story being told is the story of what they do - what they say is academic. That being said, there is some absolutely thrilling dialogue, and McConaughey is given some terrific moments to shine:
Acting: 5/5 - Matthew McConaughey deserves Oscar buzz for his performance, and I think he will get it. From the movies I have seen in 2013, it is he and Tom Hanks (Captain Phillips) against the field. Tye Sheridan, all of 15 at the time of filming, deserves talk as well (and not just for MTV 'best kiss' awards). The supporting cast all stands out: Michael Shannon (Boardwalk Empire, Man of Steel), Sam Shepard (The Assassination of Jesse James), and Ray McKinnon (Deadwood) were all perfect casting choices and all do their jobs perfectly.
Aesthetics: 5/5 - Adam Stone as cinematographer is good, not great, as he has been in Nichols's past work. The reason I thought the aesthetic of the film was perfect was how everything came together to create a flawless atmosphere. The sets, the costumes, the photography, the soundtrack - when combined with the characters and the actors' abilities it creates a flawlessly real time and place. I've never been anywhere in the States between Raleigh and Orlando (not counting Hartsfield), but I grew up in a similarly rural, economically-depressed, fuck-you-government area, and I have to say that the film triggered some kind of perverse nostalgia. It's Norman Rockwell, it's John Updike, it's Nelson Algren - the film is a Polaroid of a culture, and it accomplishes this with authority.
Final Score: 100% - I couldn't find a flaw in this movie. It's a drama, of course, so it's not for everyone - but if you like and/or appreciate film, this is the must-see movie of the year so far.
I guess it’s not-so-monthly now...but still, I will be providing my thoughts and predictions for one storyline every month until the show’s return. Since I have read the books, I know what should happen, but several plots seem to be taking turns away from the original material, while others are almost spot on. I will examine these apparent changes/accuracy, and do my best to avoid spoilers in “A Monthly Dose of Westeros”.
It's been awhile. This post will be a little later than previous ones, thanks to college, so it'll be a bigger one. This time, we'll take a look at everybody's favorite bastard, Jon Snow and the characters he'll interact with next season. Last we saw Jon, he had arrived at Castle Black after an escape from his wildling "friends" and his lover, Ygritte. On his way home ,Jon and Ygritte went through a messy breakup that left Jon full of arrows and many viewers misty-eyed. In one single heartbreaking scene, both characters' worlds were turned upside down.
I mean, look at these two. They're young kids in love, who can't be together because they're supposed to be fighting a war against each other. Jon has that Stark sense of duty and honor and Ygritte thought she had
shaken that out of him. The look on her face at the end of this scene says it all: you know nothing, Jon Snow, but you are a Stark. Anyway, here's what we know involving the other characters surrounding Jon's arc. The Night's Watch is badly bloodied and now lacking in numbers. There was a garrison left at Castle Black, but the strength of the Watch was either killed during the Battle of the Fist of the First Men or remains beyond the Wall after the Mutiny at Craster's Keep. Lord Commander Mormont has been murdered by sworn brothers, with Rast and Karl leading the assault. The two now lead the remains of the Watch at Craster's. We don't know the locations of Grenn, Pyp, and Dolorous Edd (hopefully they're all alive). Samwell Tarly escaped Craster's with Gilly and her baby, killed a White Walker, sent Bran Stark and friends beyond the Wall, and returned to Castle Black. Sam was then instructed by Maester Aemon to send ravens to the great lords of Westeros requesting aid against the coming force of the Walkers. This is the same time that Jon returns, arrow-filled and barely conscious. Meanwhile, Tormund Giantsbane is leading an army of
wildlings, which includes Ygritte, towards Castle Black. Thanks to Jon, the group knows where and when to strike. That's a lot of information to process. We also learned that Stannis Baratheon is preparing to head north, being the only one to answer the call from the Wall. With Stannis coming from the south, Tormund sneaking in the back, and Mance Rayder marching towards the Wall, it looks like we're in for one hell of a fight. Next season will be Jon Snow's season. No doubt about it. Jon's storyline in the second half of A Storm of Swords has a ton in it and, if everything works out perfectly, we should get a couple battles, a few sad moments, and a few moments of triumph all in a span of ten weeks. Clearly we have at least one huge battle to look forward to, since a bunch of huge forces are coming to Castle Black. The ninth episode of the next season is actually (at least tentatively) titled "Castle Black", and is being directed by Neil Marshall. Marshall was the man behind season two's "Blackwater", so take that as you may.
Many of the characters that are usually surrounding Jon might have a much lesser role to play next season. Sam should fade into the background fro the majority of the season and the rest of the crows we're familiar with are still lost in the woods. Ygritte will obviously still play a huge part in Jon's story, as her and the wildlings are quickly closing in on the remaining crows. For fans of the Stark family, this season could bring some retribution to make up for last year's Red Wedding, but there's still plenty of action left to happen for Jon and his sworn brothers.
I won't waste your time with preamble or plot overview. If you live in the Western world and are capable of reading this, you've seen a commercial.
Story: 5/5 - Honestly, I found the story very compelling. The first one was a bit lacking in this regard - it's virtually just Takami's Battle Royale. But this one was so much bigger than the game, with lot of clear motives and compelling emotional impact. It also totally avoided the stupid things that really tugged at the story of the first one (Peeta makes himself up like a log and just lies there until Katniss find him!), which was a big plus. It runs to 146 minutes, but it uses all of that time to tell a much grander story.
Writing: 4/5 - I had no problems with the script, either, which is shocking for a young adult film like this. The producers brought in some heavy hitters to pen the screenplay: Michael Arndt (Oscar win for Little Miss Sunshine, Oscar nom for Toy Story 3, Brave) and Simon Beaufoy (Slumdog Millionaire, 127 Hours) are two of the best in the business, and while this script doesn't deserve Academy Award discussion, it has everything (realism, humour, opportunities for Jennifer Lawrence to speak) and for a film in this genre, is frankly outstanding. I really wish I'd read the book to see if the way the dialogue keeps the viewer up-to-date (perfectly) is something that Collins did in the novel, or something the screenwriters had to add.
Acting: 4/5 - I bet Josh Hutcherson is a really nice guy, but I hate his stupid face and I don't like his acting. That being said, everybody else is great. Donald Sutherland is perfectly arrogant, Woody Harrelson is equal parts frustrating and warm. Jennifer Lawrence is Jennifer Lawrence. Even Elizabeth Banks gets to open up a bit as Effie sees her victors forced into another awful situation.
Aesthetics: 4/5 - Jo Willems is a solid cinematographer, and I look forward to watching his career unfold. 30 Days of Night was pretty dynamic. With a budget of this size ($130 million), of course the effects and editing are going to be great.
Final Score: 85% Grittier and darker than the first one, this film has something for everyone. Just a fun movie.
Rotten Tomatoes is a wonderful website. It exists as the ultimate collection of film reviews and critical assessments. The link to Marvel's "Thor: The Dark World" shows a film with a modest rating that is praised for its wit and mocked for its inability to contribute anything new to the film industry. In fact, many of the same criticisms of the second tour of Asgard are seen in film reviews for "Iron Man 3." It's easy to see that film critics are growing tired of superhero movies, and perhaps those individuals have a point. However, it is every bit as likely that these individuals are utilizing the wrong scope to view the film.
Try as they might, film critics have a very hard time leaving "The Avengers" out of their film reviews. It is well understood that Marvel's crown jewel helped to set the standard for comic book films--along with "The Dark Knight" from DC Comics. No disrespect to Marvel, but it is slightly absurd to compare the post-Avengers films to this high standard. The movies carry a different goal and should be judged independently of "The Avengers"--no matter how much their stories tie in.
In the post-Avengers world of Marvel, it is clear what Stan Lee's goal is: he wants to see the action-packed moments tie into moments of real emotion. Whether that emotion comes from laughter, happiness, anger, or sorrow is irrelevant when it comes to the delivery that has been seen in "Iron Man 3" and "Thor: The Dark World." One of the truly memorable parts of this film is how easily the film can draw out emotions. The transitions from laughter to anger to sorrow are swift, frequent, and sometimes very bold--while also carrying more subtle moments. One of the qualms many critics seem to have of the film is that it does go back and forth so swiftly--at times, it feels like the movie doesn't exactly know what it wants to do.
The transition between these moments is what makes this film so unique within the Marvel universe. Something "Thor: The Dark World" does better than any other Marvel film is make the audience feel as if they are reading a comic book. The film has many moments that feel as if it is jumping from frame to frame within a graphic novel, which is something that Stan Lee has hinted at wanting to accomplish.
Now, do not be fooled by the praise set forth to this point--there are several flaws in this film. While jumping from frame to frame is a unique trait that is hard to pull off, there are certainly moments where it shouldn't have happened in the film. One of the great moments in "The Avengers" occurs when The Incredible Hulk tosses Loki around as if he were a rag doll. The moment occurs within the film's major battle scene and provides a true comic-book quality moment. In "Thor: The Dark World" battle scenes are often interrupted by such moments--certainly not always for the better of the film.
***SPOILER WARNING***
There is also an issue in lack of plot. Over the arc of the story, audiences learn about the tale of the Dark Elves. From that point, the plot proceeds very slowly. Ultimately the plot follows the same kind of frame as that of the original Thor--minus the fact that this time around Jane Foster spends much more of her time in Asgard as opposed to Earth. In fact, that trailer for the film is rather misleading. While Earth is certainly in danger at points, there is no kind of widespread panic that audiences are exposed to--despite a huge alien ship landing just outside of London, England.
***END SPOILER***
"Thor: The Dark World" should be celebrated for what it has accomplished. It may not be the greatest of films, but it certainly sets itself apart in that it truly feels as if the audience has been thrown into one of Stan Lee's classic Marvel comic books. On a scale of "Iron Man 2" to "The Avengers", this film scores much like Marvel's most recent release: "Iron Man 3." In the end, the film lacks the classic moments to make it a great movie, but it is certainly an entertaining flick that audiences should flock to.
When I picked up a copy of Beyond: Two Souls I believed I was picking up a GOTY candidate. Based on the concepts, graphics, and celebrity personalities involved in the game I figured the resources spent on the project would result in one of the better games of the past ten years. What I got was a game that failed to find its identity and took on a bipolar personality. Parts of the game feel like classic video game moments whereas other moments feel bland, boring, or even worthless. What this creates is a game that is impossible to put down, yet impossible to feel satisfied with.
Story
Over the course of video game history, the industry has produced a wide range of stories. Some games capture their stories well as they properly utilize themes to draw users in emotionally. Creating emotional attachment to video game characters is something that is very hard to pull off--and few games do it well. When this attachment is successful, we are introduced to characters like Tidus from Final Fantasy X. When it isn't, games fall apart at the seams. In Beyond: Two Souls, it is nearly impossible to not feel an emotional attachment to Jodie and her counterpart Aiden--a paranormal being who has been attached to her since birth. Jodie's life is defined by her personal struggle of being "different" as many of us often feel. Due to Aiden's presence in Jodie's life, Jodie is mocked, ridiculed, and even used for scientific experiments and military operations. The struggle in Jodie's life is constant in every scene as she struggles to build relationships and control her emotions throughout the game. She is often distant, angry, and even confused by why she can never be like other "normal" girls.
Without spoiling the story too much, I'll say that the game is often defined by its darker moments. For example, Jodie--based on the decisions you make in the game--is sexually assaulted multiple times only to be saved by Aiden. Most of these dark moments occur when Jodie attempts to take control of her own life and separate herself from Aiden--though sometimes they occur when she attempts to take revenge on the individuals that have betrayed or used her. The story does carry its positive moments, but the deepest connections are made in the moments where Jodie is at her breaking point--which she reaches multiple times. We all feel lost and alone at times in life, and Jodie provides an avenue that we can connect with.
Game play
The game play in Beyond: Two Souls is what gives the game its bipolar feel. The structure of the game follows that of games like Fable and Mass Effect. Decisions can be made by the user to create or guide Jodie's personality--and in this game the decisions are DARK. This model is great for games with a great story, so the pairing of the game play and the story is great. However, the model for in-scene decisions and actions is pretty terrible. Buttons appear on the screen that lead to actions. The consequence for failing these actions is "oh well, try again immediately." This model--at least in my experience--created a situation where the user could never fail. No matter how good or bad your decisions were--or how good or bad your reaction time is--the game and story press on.
A form of media where you follow a story with characters and your actions don't matter is called a movie, not a video game. While the story was enough to keep pressing on, the game play was boring and incredibly frustrating, because there is never a sense of being challenged. The environment interaction--especially on CIA missions--is fun and makes for a good time, but without the possibility for failure there is little sense of enjoyment in actually beating the game. Completing the game feels like the end of a really good movie rather than beating a classic video game. This is enough of a flaw to automatically take the game out of Game of the Year running on its own.
Conclusion
While the story and graphics in this game are stellar, the lack of any difficulty in game play really puts a damper on the experience. I wanted so badly for this to be a GOTY candidate--and at the beginning of 2013 I pegged this as my GOTY pick--but it just wasn't. The connection that is made between the user and Jodie/Aiden is very strong, and it's hard not to be touched by many of the moments in the game. However, video games need to come with a sense of difficulty to be good, let alone great.
We had a good stretch there, with Prisoner, Rush, and Captain Phillips, but I'm afraid the ride is over. Ender's Game is not good. The book is fantastic, and I would highly recommend it (buy a used copy, Orson Scott Card doesn't deserve your money), but the movie isn't just a poor adaptation; it sucks.
Ender is a genius child who is selected to attend military school with the hope of him developing into the next Caesar, humanity's greatest commander and best hope against the Formics (you'll know them as 'buggers' in the books), an alien race that was previously defeated in an assault on earth, and that could return at any time. Presumably.
Story: 2/5 - I can't support this adaptation based on the pacing. Having to condense a novel is not an excuse; if it can't be done, don't do the movie. Alternatively, Peter Jackson seems to be doing just fine. We absolutely fly through the book, hitting a few highlights, and hey, Ender is at the climax of the film. Also, don't expect to find out why we call him Ender or the significance of the nickname, he's just Andrew Ender Wiggin. Worse, a number of the scenes that were adapted from the novel were turned on their head and stripped of significance. In one fight scene, where Ender reveals part of his character by being particularly violent in the novel, in the movie the opponent just kind of falls and dies, so Ender's emotional turmoil is kind of meaningless.
Writing: 1/5 - You can't just take portions of the dialogue from the book, there have to be changes; especially because the book is so sparse on dialogue. Nothing is original or creative, there are no jokes, and everything is so ham-handed. Don't have each character tell me what they're feeling.
Acting: 3/5 - I really wanted to give this a 1/5. Asa Butterfield (Ender) is hot and cold, and Harrison Ford (mentor Colonel Graff (by the way, the relationship between Ender and Graff is totally ignored)) is bordering on senility. Does he need the money this badly? Still, both Butterfield and Ford showed their chops at some points in the movie, and I look forward to Butterfield's career, and hope that Ford can get one more decent role. Hailee Standield (True Grit) is only a minor character, but we already know how good she is.
Aesthetics: 2/5 - There are a few neat shots, but everything is brief, with insufficient setup. These scenes are sprawling and confusing, and the way they are shot makes them impossibly devoid of connection or suspense.
The highlight of the movie, by the way, is a confrontation between Graff and Ender in which you can clearly see a large crumb or smudge of something on Harrison Ford's lip. I can't believe a film gets made with this little attention.
To start, I will put it plainly: Captain Phillips is a very good movie; but not a great one. The film has generated Oscar buzz, not entirely undeserved, and it has something close to a 100% rating on RottenTomatoes, but the film is quite one-dimensional and if it weren't for one actor and a couple of scenes, the movie would be entirely forgettable.
Tom Hanks is merchant Captain Richard Phillips, the real-life hero of the 2009 Maersk Alabama hijaking. That's really all you need to know about the plot.
Story: 4/5 - The story was good, and according to Richard Phillips himself, very accurate. The film suffers a couple of drawbacks: due to the nature of the tale, we have to jump right in, with very little setup. Director Paul Greengrass (Bourne series, United 93) does a good job of giving us everything we need (here's Captain Phillips wiping his shoes before entering the ship, here he is inspecting the boarding cages, here he is accosting his crew for taking too long on coffee break, here are some Somali pirate headlines) before jumping in head first. The other drawback is that we know how the story ends. I won't take that away from the filmmakers, but this is where we can get creative with the narrative, and writer Billy Ray (The Hunger Games) doesn't even really try.
Writing: 5/5 - The writing was entirely natural, and really serves to put you in the movie. This is what these people would say. This is a movie that leans hard on one actor, but nobody in the cast is left out to dry with this script. Even when Hanks is daring enough to talk to the pirates (and when you think, 'Why would anybody be talking?!'), he does so cautiously, with believable comments. It's very immersive, and frankly refreshing.
Acting: 5/5 - Tom Hanks absolutely deserves an Academy Award for this role. As the film wound down, I found myself underwhelmed and disappointed after all of the reviews. The payoff comes after Hanks is rescued and is being evaluated by doctors. I don't think I've ever seen utter shock conveyed so well on-screen. The last movie I saw before this was Escape Plan, in which approximately 2000 men were killed. As a result, it can be difficult to make us care when a couple of pirates are shot. In this day and age of cinema, you almost expect Hanks to do a fist pump and utter a quip. But his reaction in the last ten minutes of the movie really makes you believe that he has been through a harrowing ordeal that should not be made light. Some of the pirates are generating Oscar talk, but I didn't consider anybody but Hanks deserving of mention.
Aesthetics: 3/5 - Where was Oliver Wood? Cinematographer Barry Ackroyd had a few shining moments, but I felt oddly free and un-claustrophobic for a movie that takes place either in the halls of a ship or in an enclosed lifeboat.
Aegon Targaryen landed on a hill in -2 AL. He came with his two sister-wives, Rhaenys and Visenya, their three dragons, Balerion, Meraxes, and Vhagar, and less than 1600 men to the mouth of Blackwater Rush. Aegon had chosen to come to Westeros rather than answer a call from the Free Cities of Essos. After the Doom of Valyria, the Free Cities fell into years of blood and war, and Aegon rejected their plea for his help in uniting them into a new freehold. At the time of Aegon’s landing, Westeros was still divided into the Seven Kingdoms. The rulers of each kingdom were:
Torrhen Stark, King in the North
Ronnel Arryn, King of the Vale, a boy of six
Harren Hoare, King of the Iron Islands and Riverlands
Loren I Lannister, King of the Westerlands
Mern IX Gardner, King of the Reach
Argilac Durrendon, King of the Stormlands
Mariya Martell, Princess of Dorne
Rhaenys, Aegon, and Visenya
Argilac Durrendon was the first to attempt peace with Aegon. Before the war even began, Harren Hoare finished construction on his huge keep, Harrenhal. Argilac had heard of Harren’s hopes of bigger conquests, so he sent an alliance offer to Aegon in order to create a buffer zone between himself and Harren. Argilac offered his daughter Argella’s hand in marriage and dowry lands, which actually belonged to Harren. Aegon declined Argilac’s offer, but made a counter-offer: Argella would marry Aegon’s best friend and rumored bastard brother, Orys Baratheon. Argilac was insulted and cut off the hands of Aegon’s messenger. The hands were sent back with a note, informing Aegon that these hands were the only ones he would be receiving. This act prompted Aegon to move quicker than expected; he called his banners and his sisters and sent ravens to all the great kings of Westeros. These ravens bore the message, “There will only be one king.” If they bent the knee, they would get to keep their lands and titles. If they did not, they would be destroyed.
Since Ronnel Arryn was only 6 years old, his mother Sharra Arryn acted as Queen Regent. Sharra was the next to attempt to negotiate with Aegon, offering her own hand in marriage and an alliance if Aegon made Ronnel his heir. Mariya Martell offered an alliance against Argilac, but she would not swear fealty to Aegon. Both offers were rejected. Before invading, Aegon allegedly visited the largest keeps of Westeros, investigating their strengths and their lords and kings. He then built the Painted Table, a table cut in the shape of Westeros. He considered the Seven Kingdoms to be one land split into different regions, rather than seven regions on the same land.
Beachhead
The Targaryens landed on three hills at the mouth of Blackwater Rush. On the highest point of the highest hill, Aegon built a wooden fort, to act as his first claim to Westeros. Visenya gave him as crown and Rhaenys hailed him as the true king. The two sisters were then sent on their dragons to subdue the local lords. Rhaenys took Rosby without any bloodshed, as did Visenya with Stokeworth. Duskendale and Maidenpool attempted to fight back, but were easily beaten. Aegon had conquered the area where King’s Landing now stands.
Battle of Gulltown
Daemon Velaryon took Aegon’s fleet to Gulltown, quickly followed by Visenya, riding upon Vhagar. The Arryn fleet came out from Gulltown and defeated the Targaryen fleet, killing Lord Daemon in the process. Vhagar then burned the Arryn fleet in response, so although the Targaryens lost the battle, they were able to destroy a part of the Vale’s strength. The Sistermen of the Three Sisters, a group of small isles at the top of the Vale, revolted against the Eyrie out of anger of the destroyed fleet.
Conquest of the Riverlands and Iron Islands
Harren Hoare ruled both the Iron Islands and Riverlands from Harrenhal, on the mainland of Westeros, slightly south of the Vale. Harrenhal was the greatest keep that Westeros had ever known,
Fall of Harrenhal
considered impregnable to siege or storm. But not to dragons. Harren refused to surrender to Aegon and he and his sons hid inside Kingspyre Tower. Aegon rode Balerion through Harrenhal’s defenses and burned Harren and his sons alive inside the tower, earning it it’s name. The remaining ironborn fled the burned castle and raced back to the Iron Islands, with Aegon trailing them. The Riverlords had sworn fealty to Aegon when Harrenhal was ruined and helped him trail the ironborn. Lord Vickon Greyjoy of Pyke was elected as their leader and Aegon demanded their fealty. This made the Tullys and Greyjoys the first major houses to bend the knee to Aegon. The Tullys were made overlords of the Riverlands because of this and the rest of the Riverlords had to swear fealty to them.
The Submission of Crackclaw Point
Visenya Targaryen was sent to Crackclaw Point after Harren Hoare’s death to demand fealty from their lords. The lords knew they had no chance, so they yielded upon VIsenya’s arrival. She took them as their own men and promised they would not owe any fealty but to the Iron Throne. Crackclaw Point became a direct vassal of the Targaryens without any fighting and have been known as some of the biggest Targaryen loyalists since.
The Last Storm
Aegon sent Orys Baratheon and Rhaenys riding Meraxes to attack Storm’s End. Argilac’s men were still loyal despite the stories they had heard about what Aegon did at Harrenhal. Argilac brought his army forth to meet Orys’, refusing to meet the same fate as Harren Hoare. Rhaenys tracked Argilac’s movements through a huge storm, the storm that gave the battle its name. The mud created by the storm slowed Argilac’s men and broke out only to come face to face with Rhaenys and Meraxes. In
Orys and Argella
the confusion and terror, Argilac fell from his horse and met Orys in single combat. Both men came out wounded, but only Orys survived. Argilac’s death ended the battle and his daughter Argella barred Storm’s End, declaring herself Storm Queen. Her army revolted, afraid of facing the same fate of the men at Harrenhal. Argella was delivered to Orys, chained and naked. Orys gave her food and his cloak, removing the chains gently. Orys then married Argella and took House Durrendon’s sigil and words as his own. House Baratheon was then formed and made Lord Paramount of the Storm Lands.
Field of Fire
King Loren of the Westerlands and King Mern of the Reach decided that their best chance against Aegon was to join forces. The two kings had a total of around 55,000 men, 5000 of them mounted knights, while Aegon had only a fifth of that number. The two armies met in a dry field in the Reach, with Jon Mooton of Maidenpool commanding the Targaryen host. The Reachmen and Westermen charged and began to break the Targaryen lines. For the first and only time, all three Targaryen dragons battled together. Balerion, Meraxes, and Vhagar all took to the air and set the field on fire. Jon Mooton moved upwind and the fires raged downwind. The Targaryens only lost 100 men, but Visenya took an arrow the shoulder. Mooton directed the Targaryen host away from the flaming field while the allied forces burned alive. Four thousand allied men died, including King Mern. House Gardner was ended and Aegon won another victory. Loren gave up his claim and became Warden of the West under Aegon. Harlen Tyrell surrendered Mern’s host to Aegon and was rewarded by becoming Lord of Highgarden and Warden of the South, as House Tyrell now had dominion over the Reach.
Conquest of the North
Torrhen Stark marched a host south toward the Riverlands, meeting Aegon along the Trident. All of Aegon’s force was there, as well as the three dragons. Originally, Torrhen had intended to fight Aegon, but realized that would be a huge mistake upon seeing what Aegon had brought with him. Torrhen bent the knee and Aegon named him Warden of the North and Lord of Winterfell. An inn was built on the site of Torrhen’s submission, named the Inn of the Kneeling Man.
Conquest of the Vale
Sharra Arryn sent a huge army to the Bloody Gate in her Son, Ronnel’s, name. Visenya simply rode Vhagar into the courtyard of the Eyrie. Ronnel begged her for a ride on the dragon and his mother found him outside on Vhagar’s back. Sharra acknowledged Aegon as king and Ronnel got his ride. So basically, the Vale wimped out and submitted with no fighting.
Battle with Dorne
Dorne was not one of the Seven Kingdoms, but Aegon sent Rhaenys to invade them anyway, in hopes of uniting everyone. The Dornishmen had learned of the mistakes on the Field of Fire and at Harrenhal, so instead of giving Aegon open battle, they cut and engaged in guerilla warfare while Rhaenys came through the Red Mountains. The Dornishmen stayed on the move so the dragons could not find them. Rhaenys could only capture empty castles, so she flew straight to Sunspear, the Dornish capital. Princess Mariya refused to surrender and told Rhaenys that she was not wanted in Dorne and should return at her peril. Rhaenys replied that she would return with fire and blood. Mariya then recited her house’s words: “Unbowed. Unbent. Unbroken.” Rhaenys returned to Aegon, who decided that the country could not be taken and Dorne should remain an independent nation.
Conquest of Oldtown
The High Septon in Oldtown prayed for seven days and seven nights in the Starry Sept upon hearing of Aegon’s landing. The Crone showed him that opposition to the Targaryens would end with Oldtown aflame in dragon fire. Lord Hightower of Oldtown left his force in the city when Aegon came and the gates were opened freely. The High Septon anointed Aegon as the King of Westeros.
Aegon began to build a new castle near his landing spot, the Red Keep. It was built in the new capital city of King’s Landing. Aegon melted all the swords of his opposers into an throne, the Iron Throne. Aegon devoted the rest of his life and reign to the consolidation of the realm.
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