Death at a Funeral..

Yesterday I watched Death at a Funeral with maaseru and josanpq. We all laughed out loud - a lot. It's written rather like a stage farce: things go askew in the beginning and then one thing builds on another until chaos ensues - corpses to get rid of, suicides pending, and Uncle Alfy screaming on the toilet. And amidst all the craziness, it manages to have a rather good moral stance as well, beautiful delivered by Matthew Macfadyen.

And Alan Tudyk's performance had me in stitches.

The story? Father has died. The family (and friends) reunite at the funeral, held at the elegant, respectable family home. There's sibling rivalry between the sons (Robert being a successful novelist, Daniel an unsuccesful one). One attendee has brought a bottle of highly-potent hallucinogenic tablets in a vallium bottle, which keeps falling into the wrong hands. And then... Father's hitherto-unknown gay lover tries to blackmail the family. And they have to do something about it.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer (2x19) - I Only Have Eyes for You

Buffy (2x19) - I Only Have Eyes For You

~ ~ ~

Sadie Hawkin's Day. Do people still do that? I don't know, but it's a nice old-fashioned idea in keeping with ( a story about ghosts from 1955. )

Breakfast with Scot...

Watched Breakfast With Scot last night. A Canadian movie, and as such, it was like looking at my own back yard: a little bland, a little predictable, but easy to relate to and fun to watch.

The story: Eric McNally is a former hockey player - for the Toronto Maple Leafs. After being injured in practice, he has a job in Sports network TV. He lives with his boyfriend Sam, a lawyer, and he is generally closeted to all but close family and friends.

But one day Sam's prepubescent nephew Scot comes to live with them temporarily, on the death of his mother. Scot is lonely, depressed, and loves to wear pink feather boas, jewelry, and make-up. Scot's presence emphasizes how Eric and Sam have defined their lives to be respectable to the point of mundanity. He brings meaning to their lives because he brings chaos, and challenges.

There's also a nice (though subtle) challenge to the viewer to sort out what labels and definitions mean (or fail to mean) when applied to people.

The movie never entirely engaged my affections, but I did think Thomas Cavanagh was terrific (and gorgeous) as Eric. I would have liked it to be a little more sentimental - seems to me that a kid whose mother has just died needs more TLC than Scot was getting from anyone.

Best line:

Scot: When you were young, how did you defend yourself?
Eric: I didn't have to. I played hockey.

What Shakespeare character am I?

I got this from erastes. Though it isn't the result I expected, I am absurdly pleased by it: Antony and Cleopatra is a play I particularly like and I wish I had a chance to see it more.

( There's beggary in the love that can be reckon'd. )

FIC Torchwood (drabble) - The Man in Uniform

Title: The Man in Uniform
Fandom: Torchwood
Characters: Jack/Ianto, Jack/John
Challenge: tw100, challenge: kiss, kiss
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: Not mine, no claims, all property of the BBC.
Notes: Cross-posted to my LJ and to tw100.

( The Man in Uniform )