Bodice Rippers: 2005 Archives

Don't you think she'd make a fantastic governess for my girls? They need a firm hand. Mädchen In Uniform... ah! I die!

"I rise almost every morning, and sit in my chamber without any clothes whatever... either reading or writing. This practice is not in the least painful, but, on the contrary, agreeable."

- Benjamin Franklin, 1760

Wowie zowie! October 2006. Harsh.

Sofia Coppola's eagerly awaited follow-up to 'Lost in Translation' is clearly no BBC yawner. Who else would set the trailer for an 18th-century biopic to New Order's 'Age of Consent'?

*snort!* We were listening to that album on the drive down to LA last month. Weeee! ♥ I love my BBC yawners though.

Dude. Look at this line-up!

Kirsten Dunst .... Marie-Antoinette

Jason Schwartzman .... Louis XVI

Rip Torn .... King Louis XV

Judy Davis .... Comtesse de Noailles

Asia Argento .... Madame du Barry

Marianne Faithfull .... Maria Theresia

Aurore Clément .... La duchesse de Chartres

Guillaume Gallienne .... Comte Vergennes

Clementine Poidatz .... Comtesse de Provence

Molly Shannon .... Anne Victoire

Steve Coogan .... Count Mercy d'Argenteau

Jamie Dornan .... Axel von Fersen

Rip Torn? Marianne Faithfull??? Oh boy!

I have a secret crush on Kirsten Dunst... So all ya'll just shut up. Virgin Suicides and Dick and Drop Dead Gorgeous are some of my favorites.

Can't wait to see Narnia and King Kong and Libertine, which has been pushed back for general release until JANUARY. Ugh! I need me some Wilmot!

Did I mention that I loved Pride & Prejudice? Hahhaa! So there! It was awesome. Keira Knightley's modern face bugs me, but she is very good and fluid and spunky. MacFadyen is quite the gent, and I'm a huge fan anyway. I snuck into see it on opening day. At 1pm the theater was full! Great crowd to see it with, lots of Berkeley Austen fans so they were all laughin' and cheerin' at all the right moments. We could have been seeing Lizzie & Jane's Excellent Adventure for all they cared! And then... at the end... when Mr. Bennet is coming to terms with giving away his Lizzie I noticed all the men in the audience were sniffling. YAY! So awesome. But really, brilliant film. Very vibrant and witty and gorgeous. Costumes were FAB. Hair was messy. Judi Dench was imperious. Fantastic.

The open shirt bit at the end with Darcy emerging from the dewy morning mist was a bit... Brontësque? Is that a word? But gave it more passion than Austen's "please sign on the dotted line" endings ^_^

This week! At the Lumiere... one week only.

Official Moobie Site. Oh geez. Maybe I'll have to bring one of the girls in one of the dresses, eh?

OMG. Weekends are so awesome. I've been singing happy saturday songs all morning (very off key, of course).

We went and saw Oliver Twist last night. And it was brilliant. BRILLIANT, I say...

The murder of Nancy is a pivotal moment in English literature. Gah, Dickens is a god. And Polanski surely does him justice.

And on that note, something I've been meaning to share: Mr. Kallisti loves me so much he mounted this old magazine cross-promotional bit on hotdogs and the Broadway production of Oliver! a few months ago. Two great tastes that taste great together!

Note the red & yellow thumbtacks. Aw!

And Biscuit caught sleeping in my MSD clothing box. My bad for leaving the lid off, I guess! But you get the picture about what a small kitty he is.

We're cleaning the house, getting ready for the Halloween decorations that will be going up tomorrow. The nephews are coming over to help, fun will be had by all! Oh boy.

Also, I've pre-ordered Liebchen. Eeeeeeeeeeeeeee! Diep, I can't wait to see her.

Oliver Twist, directed by Roman Polanski.

Must. See.

Review by Salon.

The Libertine apparently has been pushed back AGAIN for a December release. Sigh.

We're still looking forward to the BBC's Bleak House dramatized by acclaimed writer Andrew Davies. And we also discovered Gillian Anderson of all people will be amongst the cast. Oh boy! Oh boy!

The eagerly (really eagerly) awaited new series from BBC & HBO, starts tonight! And check out this ad from People magazine. NEEEEPLE! Mr. Kallisti wasn't very excited about it until he saw the ad, to which he exclaimed: "Nipple-dee-doo-da!"

ROME

Check out that crappy (ch)rome title. Dude, they need to hire me.

Flaubert Post!

And my old pulpy copies of Madame Bovary...

And a Happy Birthday to Madame Mordantia Bat!

I'm goint to go stick my face in a jar of arsenic now. Weeeeeeeeee!

Did I tell you? Liz has shipped? I can still hardly believe it. She's left Florida. She's on her way. OMG.

Still don't have tales or photos of the weekend sorted out. Too tired and lazy. Drove 238473487 miles in three days, all over Oregon. To buy bacon.

We bought $70 worth of bacon and sausage o_0 My vegetarian friends can be horrified now. But DANG, this sheet is GOOD.

My li'l beetle was a trooper! Boy does she dig those windy Cascades.

But our favorite of the trip was a leetle town called Oakland, Oregon. There are about seven buildings downtown, all built about 1890, and all of them antique shops. Got some cheap loot, yo. Suzy Homemaker oven that lights up and bakes cakes, woot!

Also, I've been to the Pacific Northwest twice. Both times it was 95 degrees +. All that rain and fog they're always talkin' about? They're lying.

Weetzie girl posted about dolly salon, you can see some hot blastmilk action here (nice cleavage shot, woo! Erin, I'm stealing this peekture, mwah!)

Oh, ah! And I have a corset pattern/article in the October issue of Haute Doll. Should be here sooooooon, I hope. Haven't seen it yet though. Eeep! You can subscribe or pick up a copy at Barnes & Noble when it hits shelves, which should be... some time. Thank you to my friends for love and suggestions and proof reading. Kisses!!! Will post more when I've seen the derned thing.

Um, also... Re: Six Feet Under. Spoilers...

Charlie and the Chocolate Factor = freaky goodness.

So much better than I expected. Chocolate has never been so sinister. Oh man.

Happy now.

Sometime this weekend. I'm working all weekend *sadface* but hope to gooooooo!

Chronicle gave it and Salon doesn't hate it ("'Charlie and the Chocolate Factory' is absinthe in movie form." teehee!). Though I can totally understand why some people wouldn't want to see it, as Willy Wonka remains a classic that will always stand on its own. Aside from that, we worshipped the thing as kids. omg.

-- Advisory: Bratty child behavior and mild mayhem.

Me wantssssssssss.

Howl's Moving Castle was fantastic! The english overdubs were sooooo much better than Princess Mononoke. I think that is because Jean Simmons is a goddess.

And we saw the preview for a movie I forgot to mention on my last uber movie list: Pride & Prejudice!

As sceptic as I am inclined to be (not a Keira Knightley fan) it looks gorgeous. Much more gritty than the 95 BBC series, the costumes looked fantastic with a much more late 18th century presence on the older characters than previously seen. I think Matthew MacFadyen is the only actor who could come up against the Mr. Darcy of Colin Firth. He's so brooding and tall and dark. And his voice is always so scrummy. Love him. Anyway, due to be released in September, we eagerly await it.

And lastly, we netflixed the first two discs of Last Exile and I am so in love. Seriously one of the most beautifully produced tv animes ever. All very pre-WWII styling. All making me very happy. And needing those darn azone flight caps/goggles.

To see Howl's Moving Castle! Yay.

And it is playing at the Kabuki Theater in JapanTown in San Francisco (or San Fransicko as Michael Savage calls it. Way to go to ingratiate yourself to your audience, dude. But I guess all of us commie urban perverts aren't your intended listeners. Nyah!). So fun. We will go and eat ass tons of sushi, putz and see movie. Best night ever.

Also, please all congratulate Mr. Kallisti for finally picking out a desk to replace the loaner from my brother that we returned to him TWO MONTHS AGO. Poor thing not only doesn't have a computer anymore (finally died so he's piggy backing on mine), but all of his desk/craft items were in a little pile in the corner of our computer porch for the past two months. He's very fussy so choosing something he'd be happy with was hard. Praise be to Urban Ore!

More clickies around BBC.co.uk and I find this:

The Other Boleyn Girl. While the book's speculative history doesn't interest me too much, I would LOVE to see the dramatization. One would hope that it would be better than the recent Henry VIII, which was downright awful. But it isn't even available on Amazon. Sigh... Jodhi May makes the perfect Anne. Loves her. Wants. *stamps little feet*

Also, apparently in the works:

Bleak House: Dickens' classic gets the soap opera style treatment, with a 16 part dramatisation by acclaimed writer Andrew Davies.

The Virgin Queen: Anne Marie-Duff stars in a lavish four-part drama, exploring the complex character and intimate relationships of Elizabeth I.

Rome: The BBC and US subscription channel HBO are to co-produce an epic and sweeping new drama series which chronicles the rise of the ancient Roman empire through the eyes of two foot-soldiers.

And I must have missed these:

Byron with Johnny Lee Miller also available from Amazon (yay!). Along with Gunpowder, Treason And Plot [BBC]. Both of which I will purchase shortly. Woo!

I must make a confession. I forgot to tell you something...

The new Miss Marple series on PBS' Mystery is fantastic! 3.5 episodes in and I'm just now getting around to telling you. So sorry. But I found myself last night jumping up and down on the couch squealing "Miss Marple! Miss Marple!" As I waited for the little TiVo red light to come on. S'lovely. And all our favorite people are in it. For instance just last night! Joanna Lumley! And then, the first episode had Derek Jacobi. Not to mention the effervescent Geraldine McEwan as the wee dame herself. She's scintillating!

Do forgive me and try to catch it in re-runs.

Also, finally received Casanova from Amazon.co.uk. It was scrummy! Very modern, liberties taken, and rather fast paced but it was all of a purpose and worked beautifully. Very witty and dynamic. Even the Mr. Kallisti made a point of sitting down and watching disc two with me. I was so delighted with the costumes that I made one in honor for my dolls. Very fanciful, reminded me a great deal of "Desperate Remedies." But the dress isn't done yet :p finishing touches is all and then you shall see.

So get yourself a region free player, or wait til Masterpiece Theater picks this up in two or three years.

In the mean time, here's an updated list of Films For Which I Await [FFWIA]!

July 15

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
There are so many reservations one could have with a remake of a flawless original. But you know what? It is Tim Burton. And sometimes one just has to learn to let go. To trust. To forget the original and enjoy a fresh new interpretation.

I could do without Veruka's track suit, however. And that is all I'm saying.

July 29

The Brothers Grimm
Grimm + Gilliam = Joy
+ Matt Damon + Heath Ledger = Huh?

Ok, ok. We'll give it the benefit. BUT IT BETTER BE GOOD! That is all.

September 16: Finally! But limited release

Libertine
Was released at the Toronto Film Fest LAST YEAR. Where is meh honeh!

The ultimate Bodice Ripper, a bio pic on John Wilmot, Earl of Rochester. Naughtiest poet to have ever lived and one of my absolute favorite historical characters. He epitomizes the term "rake." Johnny Depp as Rochester, and Shane McGowan makes an appearance as a "bard." No official site or information really. I am anxious. Depp site w/ lots o' pix.

September 23

The Corpse Bride
What is there not to love? Or have wiggle-pants for? AAAAAAAAAAAAGH!

December 9

The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe

While waiting for Episode III to start, Beth and I were both struck absolutely giddy by the preview for the first of the Narnia pictures. It looks fantastic! Really, really fantastic! Go. Watch the trailer now.

And marvel. Tilda Swinton. My not so secret long time girl crush. I die!

Thanks, as ever, to Ryan for having his finger up the wazoo of silly Brit entertainment. League of Gentlemen movie! League of Gentlemen movie! Opening this weekend in the UK

(click for official site nonsense)

Who knows when or if it will hit stateside. Let us pray...

If you don't know what the hell I am talking about, go rent the tv series, and then get a region free player so you can rent the Christmas Special. If you love me, you will do as I say.

Oh, and don't forget the wallpapers!

Is profound.

We tried to see Hitchhikers last night in Emeryville with the effervescent and lovely Cola. We got to the theater early, got the best seats, but half way through the Star Wars preview the lights went on and the fire alarm started sounding. We were ordered out of the theater. When let in a few minutes later (a false alarm, duh) we of course had lost our seats. There was a long line of others who had lost their seats waiting to get refunds. So we left, went home and pouted.

I know I'm the last person on the planet to see it, but we watched Napoleon Dynamite instead. Seemed like a cross between Square Pegs, Welcome to the Dollhouse, and Ghost World. Took a long time to figure out what decade they were in. Still not sure because of all the purposely anachronistic references. But refreshing, none the less.

SO. We woke up early this morning and headed to the city to attempt to see Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy AGAIN. This time at the Sony Metreon. Where we could geek out on the rest of the surroundings before and after the movie. The film was good in its own right, but lacked the sparkle and verve of the BBC radio recordings, books & tv series. I loved Stephen Fry's narration, he sounds very close to the original (though this is not a prerequisite) and I enjoyed the Marvin/Arthur Dent cameos from the TV series.

After the movie, and a spin at the Portal One arcade, we didn't feel like going home yet so we headed to Japan Town for books & sashimi & soba.

Also, just bought tickets to go see Hitchhikers Guide tomorrow night! Woo! This better be good. I have much love for Adams. The UK reviewers are tending to give it a "whoopee!" so I'm happy.

Just a note, because I didn't mention it before, we went to see Sin City a few weeks ago and were dreadfully thrilled with it. Mr. Kallisti is a big Miller fan but had never read Sin City so it was all very exciting. I remember thinking, while watching it, that if he wasn't loving it as much as I was I would simply die. He's the strong silent type so it is very difficult to gage his reactions without deep probing. When the lights went up I asked him what he thought and he said, very quietly, that he hadn't been so excited by a movie since seeing Star Wars for the first time when he was eight. Aw, yeah baby!

Finally saw Stage Beauty as it was just released on DVD. It only played in the theaters here for about thirty seconds and I was very sad to miss it. It is truly lovely, but if you know anything about Restoration theater and politics *whisper* it didn't really happen that way. However, like Shakespeare in Love (which it very closely resembles, with much more faggotry thrown in, yay!) it is a super story and film in its own right. So perhaps we can forgive the license taken with historical fact. Maybe.

Last night I rented Vera Drake. Sigh. I knew this one would just make me mad. But also knew the performances would be gorgeous and the subject dear. In short, it is about a little ole abortionist fairy who runs around 1950's London helping out poor girls in trouble. It is very dark, all the walls and alleys are painted and papered in dark greys. There are no high minded speeches, no courtroom drama. The police are gentle and even a bit sympathetic with her, and she sniffles into her hanky through the entire court scene. It is a little story, with huge implications. Watching it made me much more stressed than such a little film ought to. Because all I could think near the end was "this is where they want us. them. they. they want us back in the dark ages, the back alleys, with infected uteri and no hope." I soothe myself with the knowledge that "they" are an extreme minority, albeit a loud one, and "they" won't get their wish anytime soon. *shakes fist in the air*

See also The Magdalene Sisters for gut wrenching horribleness of our recent past.

Waiting in the wings for me to finish with all my rentals is the BBC's North & South. Big fan of Mrs. Gaskell as well as the BBC adaptation of Wives & Daughters. I ordered it from Amazon.co.uk along with Casanova, but this arrived first. It has seemed to garner many awards so will probably be here stateside sometime in the future, but I am notoriously impatient.

Casanova should be here in a few weeks. Whoop!

Still waiting for:

♥ The Libertine: where the heck is this? it played the Toronoto film fest last fall, for criminy!
♥ Charlie & The Chocolate Factory
♥ The Corpse Bride

Whole lotta Depp and Tim Burton. Yay!

The mother of them all: Casanova!

Currently showing on the BBC. We can only hope that we'll see it here across the pond. Meh. It is, however, being released on UK dvd the end of May, if'n you happen to have a region free player.

This version looks just scrummy with Peter O'Toole as the age'd libertine. I also love me some Laura Fraser (above pic on the right). Meow, meow.

Because I just nabbed this article off of the Tanith Lee mailing list. You must go read some LEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

I cannot begin to tell you how much her books mean to me. She's dreamy.

Favorites:
♥ The Flat Earth series, specifically Death's Master.
♥ Don't Bite the Sun & Drinking Sapphire Wine, recently re-released as Biting the Sun
♥ The Paradys series, specifically The Book of the Damned
♥ The Blood Opera series
♥ Red as Blood, or Tales from the Sisters Grimmer. Duh.

On my list of things to do:

♥ add an "All Tanith, All the time" page to Book Whores.
♥ buy new books. I'm woefully behind! Metallic Love, Fatal Women, & Death Of The Day. Meh.

What was your favorite show when you eight? Seriously. My leetle friends and I would fight over who was cuter: Shaun Cassidy or Parker Stevenson. I was firmly in the Shaun Cassidy camp. Really.

You can blame Mr. Kallisti for the picture, he sent it to me earlier today. So! Mz. Bat has been celebrating Edgar Allen Poe's birthday every year since she was about three. And since I've known her for 2384734 years, I've been celebrating it on and off with her ever since. Tonight is a little slapdash, our attentions were both focused elsewhere. But far be it from us to let Edgar's natal day go unnoticed. So we're celebrating at Original Joe's Restaurant in The City and engaging in a bloody meat fest with a few friends. There will probably be pictures later.

You can check out Suffering is Hip's POEFEST pages for offerings new and old.

Going to see Merchant of Venice tonight... don't know if I can take all the DOOM, but it looks delish. It also happens to be playing blocks from my house, across the street from my favorite restaurant. Time to celebrate the bonus I just got. And the fact I've been sick and in the house most of the week or working. Need. Play.

Mylaar, take note. SIXTEENTH CENTURY VENICE, YO!

Poor Ralph Fiennes. Perpetually stuck in the gloom of the 16th century... sigh.