Good Cinema and Bad Playhouse

[captainsblog]

Last night brought the latest entry to our collection of Awesome Movies Randomly Found Wot We'd Never Heard Of Before:

Millions

An amazing little film about a not-quite Britain where the euro finally takes over the pound, with more than one bang and some whimpers at the end. Amazingly cast, creatively filmed, and a soundtrack including a long-forgotten Clash song that is now earworming its way to the center of my brain.

Neither of us had ever heard of it. Eleanor found it among the M's in the slushpile of title cards at the library- the same bin where I found Maldonado Miracle, Salma Hayek's directorial debut, a few weeks back. Both are worth your time very much yes.

----

As opposed to, say, this.

Yesterday's f-list brought this frightening news:

Tennant Stalker Writes Sci-Fi Hamlet

Doctor Who star David Tennant has a stalker that writes sci-fi versions of Shakespeare plays.

Tennant, who is currently working on a production of Hamlet, has been followed to Stratford-upon-Avon by the mystery woman, claims the Daily Star.

The stalker has reportedly bought tickets for the show every weekend until November and has started sending Tennant sci-fi versions of the play, featuring him and her in the lead roles.

My wheels immediately started to turn, and took me quickly to the part of the text I know the best. Back in The Best Damn English Class (Sixth) Period, circa 1976, we studied Hamlet, and had to memorize and perform one of the soliloquies. I picked the first one because, hey, it's so much more uplifting than the second.  I got about eight lines in before the sci-fi hook for the piece became painfully obvious.

This, you will recall, is right in the second scene of the play, where Hamboy's uncle, now also his wicked stepfather, reports a variety of troubles being brought on by the military advances of their Norwegian neighbor Fortinbras. Claudius and Gertrude tell the boy, in essence, to STFU N00B, and then, rather unfortunately, exit the stage:



::Manet Hamlet::

Oh that this too too solid Flesh, would melt,
Thaw, and resolve itself into a Dew:
Or that the Everlasting had not fix't His Canon 'gainst Self-slaughter.
O God, God!
How weary, stale, flat, and unprofitable Seem to me all the uses of this world!
Fie on't! ah fie! 'tis an unweeded garden,
That grows to seed; things rank and gross in nature possess it merely.

That it should come to this!

::Stops, contemplates, then suddenly smiles, breaking into song....::

So long and thanks for all the flesh
So sad that it should come to this
You couldn't wait two months, now, oh dear?

You may not be, like me, a male,
That's why your gender seems so frail.
One day all tears then in Uncle's bed?!

So long, so long and thanks
for all the flesh!

My sanity you've just destroyed,
There's no point getting all annoyed
Lie back and let the plot unfold

Despite your marital faux pas,
We've got this shite with Fortinbras
And Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are soon dead

So long, so long, so long, so long, so long
So long, so long, so long, so long, so long

So long, so long and thanks
for all the flesh



I suppose suicide wouldn't be an option for the Doctor, anyway: he'd have to kill all ten of him, wouldn't he?

Comments

[thanatos-kalos.livejournal.com]

Doctor Who star David Tennant has a stalker that writes sci-fi versions of Shakespeare plays.

*headdesk* I wish I could say I'm surprised by this, but given the sheer level of lack-of-awareness-of-stalker-fen that seems rampant over here... *sigh*

I suppose suicide wouldn't be an option for the Doctor, anyway: he'd have to kill all ten of him, wouldn't he?

No, actually-- one can choose not to regenerate (cf. 'Last of the Time Lords'). Also, Time Lords can die without regenerating even if it's not their last regeneration (cf. 'Five Doctors,' 'Caves of Androzani').

[captainsblog.livejournal.com]

What, you didn't like the interesting rhythmic devices which seemed to counterpoint the surrealism of the underlying metaphor?

[thanatos-kalos.livejournal.com]

No, I'm annoyed that a stalker has acquired a target. Now go hitch a lift on the Heart of Gold. :P

Off topic

[bellavaruka.livejournal.com]

I had a dream that I met you and your family last night. o.o I think our car was broke or somehow we'd gotten stranded and I was so helpful in pointing out that "Hey! Captainsblog lives right here, though, maybe he'll help us out!" Your family was afraid, I think, when I knew their names and some other details you've posted about. ^_^; Weird, huh? /random

Re: Off topic

[captainsblog.livejournal.com]

I don't know any of them would be skeered by lil' ole you.

Well, unless you were wearing the outfit in that icon;)

(Do they even make those in maternity sizes?)

You're in your last month, yes?

Re: Off topic

[bellavaruka.livejournal.com]

Alas, I haven't found the outfit in maternity sizes. *snap* And yesss, as of tomorrow or Wednesday I will officially be in my last month. *passes out*