dhampyresa

To be clear: The movie is simply titled "Fanon". It's just that that's also a word and I wanted this entry title to be not confusing.

I just saw this 2025 movie by Jean-Claude Barny. It's only come out in very few French theaters (for... some... reason...) but I hope it ends up getting a wider/international release.

It's really good! It covers Fanon's life from 1953 to his death in 1961. It's mostly about his work as part of the pro-Algerian independance resistance and anticolonialism/antiracism activism rather than his work as a psychiatrist. I didn't know he was so hands-on with the resistance.

Fanon's social status as a Black French citizen is really interesting, because the film makes the very deliberate to only show scenes in North Africa. Fanon is a Black man, which makes him a victim of anti-Black racism, but the main form of racism he lives within is racism directed towards people of Maghrebi/North African origin[1]. He's a Black man but he is also a French citizen, which gives him rights and protections many of his friends don't have -- he doesn't have to obey a curfew and can't get arrested by the army, for two relevant examples.

[1] Tbh this is the main form I see racism in France take -- this isn't to say there are no other forms of racism in France, simply that the biggest racialised minority in France is people of North African descent.

I was wary of Josie, his wife, taking a completely passive role in the story. She never becomes an active character but she is still a person in her own right. I liked the scene where she quotes back more of the poem he was quoting back at Ramdane while Fanon is like ._.

One thing that really stuck out to be was how the French army was filmed. They were filmed like... Well, like Germans. As in, like how the German army is filmed in WW2 films. I don't know how else to put it? Maybe it's the thudding of the boots or the crispness of the uniforms or something but it was noticeable.


Besides the obvious warning for racism, both anti-Black and anti-North African (including one use of a slur directed at each), I should also point out that there is a somewhat graphic surgery scene at one point, an onscreen strangulation and at least two occasions of people being shot, as well as implied/offscreen torture, murder and bombings.

I went to see Villeneuve's Dune pt2 (VOstFR -- original sound, French subtitles) with a friend. My friend summed both of our feelings as "That was a movie that we saw". Because it was a movie that we saw. The first one was better.

The pacing in this one is really weird and also it was SUPER LOUD at some points. Really liked Chani's friend, but it was never explained why she did what the thing at sietch Tabr.

I was most disappointed in how the cisterns were portrayed. They had inspired such awe in me at 7 year old that I doubt anything wouldn't have been though.

I was also disappointed in how similar all the architecture was -- this might be because I've been thinking about environmental storytelling lately, but having all three main factions of Empire, Atreides and Harkonnen all have the same-but-a-different-colour architectural and clothing style was such a missed opportunity. Especially since in place a piece of Harkonnen architecture reminded me of H R Giger. Both pseudo-brutalism and psychosexual Giger-esque techno-organic would work for the Harkonnens. But like. Pick one.

Big Jodorowski's La caste des Méta-Barons vives in places which like, duh. But still a bit disappointing -- my own dislike of Jodorowski aside, it's a wee bit played out, innit.

The Fremen Reverend Mothers' tatoos and clothing were extremely reminiscient of Amazigh ones. Which makes the dearth of Maghrebi cast members more blatant/sad.

I feel so bad for the sandworms. Everyone keeps shoving things into their nostrils :(

The Muad-dib mouse was only in it for ten or so seconds but it was very cute.

PLEASE WATCH IT IT'S REALLY GOOD

I feel like I should do a life update of some sort or explain why I haven't been around lately, but tbh it boils down to me being a terrible person deserving nothing good so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

HOLY FUCK CAPTAIN MARVEL WAS SO GREAT

Technically the movie only comes out tomorrow and the cinema was very very insistent on No Spoilers. Having seen the movie, I can definitely see why. There were several points that caught the audience, me included, completely by surprise in the best way.

Saw the movie in 2D, VOSTFR. Good thing there subtitles too because the crowd went so wild sometimes the dialogue was covered.

Assorted nonspoilery comments follow.

I love Carol so much <3<3<3<3<3

Brie Larson was SO GOOD. Such range! And Carol is so "fuck you and you and fuck you -- you're cool -- fuck you and fuck you and you".

Loved the fight scenes and space battles!

The movie had a very pointed political statement to make I did not expect. I expected a statement (which is also there) but not this one. It is a good statement.

MONICA IS THE CUTEST OMG yes I love her. I'm not usually big on kids but she was great.

Carol and Maria ate so shippable and the emotional core of the movie.

Loved Minn-Erva. She looked great.

Goose? Best cat. (Also female, according to the subtitles.)

Carol and Fury's friendship is SO GOOD. More please.

The beginning credits? ;_;

( Jude Law spoilers )

There is so much I want to talk about but spoilers!

Okay okay, I am pretty sure this isn't a spoiler because Skrulls are in the trailers. Carol explains the Skrulls are "shapeshifters". Subtitles: "métamorphes". Accurate translation, cool. Person she's talking to, mockingly: "shapeshifters". Subtitles: "transformiste", which translates, pretty much, to "drag queen". What a wild way for that subtitle to go, damn.

Two credit scenes, btw.

Loved the shades of body horror, especially in the Skrull shapeshifting.

This was way funnier than I expected!

Excellent soundtrack use.

Overall, I had pretty high expectations, despite my best efforts, and HOT DAMN I WAS NOT DISSAPPPOINTED. I am not kidding when I say I need to cool down, like daaaaaaaaaaaaaaamn

Word to the wise: If you invite a goth to a party, maybe give more than 12h warning that the party is themed "pink". I have literally not owned anything pink since age 5, but pale purple was deemed acceptable, yay. Great party, though! Even if I did end up having a dream best described as "Lovecraftian necromancy arms race" after.


Went swimming. Twas nice, mostly. Won a chocolate.
Today: 800m.
Past total: 49 300. Current total: 50 100 / 585 689.


I also saw the newest Astérix movie (Le Secret de la potion magique) and it was awesome! Really funny and I loved all the new characters introduced and how the old were handled. Pectine is the best kind-of-druid and the cutest and she is so so smart, I love her. Really like the character designs, too. Also, Roman Voltron.

I am pretty sick. Think it's some sort of spring flu or whatever. They should really make those med label say "Don't drive, operate heavy machinery or run ao3 exchanges". (Morbane is the best co-mod ever! <3)

Also I am in that weird state where I was waiting for an answer on a thing and didn't know how I'd feel about a "yes" or a "no" and now the answer I have is "please come back for another round of tests" so eeeeeeeeeeeeeh? eh.

Oh and someone pointed out to me that hey maybe my unhealthily morbid fascination with lovecraftian cosmic horror has some sort of connection to the weird "chestbuster from Alien" intrusive thoughts. Which... motherFUCKER.

So basically anything that might demand anything of me is met with "*hisssssss* no :| *turns around and burrows under covers*". Sorry.

I managed to do one (1) non-paperwork or exchange related thing this week-end. (I was awake like 6h saturday, lol.) I watched Chronicles of Riddick -- took, idk, 5h? Couldn't focus for shit. It's an enjoyable but weird movie -- or movies? It's basically a dark space fantasy tale with a prison break movie right slam in the middle. Also outrunning the sun is the stupidest action movie cliché but it's my favourite action movie cliché. It's the stupidest, most ridiculous thing and I love it. Also also Riddick is trans because that's the only reason I can think of that explains how he escaped the massacre of male babies on his planet when he was a baby. Anyway all told it was fun and the aesthetic was nice.

Okay, that's a bit overly dramatic. It's not broken, I've just somehow managed to tear off part of the skin at the tip which, yes, does make scrolling annoying. And typing (I stick my finger in the air!). It's been ongoing since last Sunday and I think the cold is hampering recovery. In conclusion, :(

In light of this, have some very undetailed account of stuff:

- I have acquired from my mom a comic that is like 99% French and 1% Breton. No lie the Breton is taking ten times as long as all the French combined. Thankfully there are translations at the end because I get about half the meaning on my own. Y'all, they have a bit in there that's a quote from a mid-19th text (ie a text that predates unified orthography by a full century) I keep having to (try to) sound out the words ;_; I suck at this

- The Critical role musical is out. I've only listened to parts of it for now, but it sounds really good so far. So if you want to listen to a DnD party fighting a bunch of dragons to the tune(s) of Miranda's Hamilton, give it a listen!

- BLACK PANTHER IS GREAT AND SHURI IS THE BEST go see the movie and write me all the fic please and thank you (I am also going to write fic but it might take a while) Honestly idk that I can articulate more detailed feelings than that, "I miss Busan" and SHURI IS THE BEST AND SHE SHOULD BE BLACK PANTHER fight me T'Challa right now

I need to change my bandage and go to bed.

I enjoyed it A LOT. I'm always a sucker for women fighting stuff, people being kind and righteously angry in the face of evil and fishes out of water situation; this movie delivers on all of this!

I saw it in VOSTFR. Only things I remember about the subtitling was that (a) we didn't get subtitles for whatever was said in French and (b) Steve called Diana 'vous' for a majority, if not all, the movie. I'll be using the names as they appeared in the subtitles.

I did not expect the framing device to have Diana living in France and working at the Louvre. Kind of really want a Diana vs recent French history fic, now.

( Here be spoilers )

I reccomend it and would happily watch several movies of Diana kicking ass all over history.

I saw the 1963 Cleopatra (the one with Liz Taylor) on the big screen recently and I gotta say...

HOT. DAMN.

My experience with live action adaptations of this period of history is limited to this movie, HBO's Rome and Astérix: Mission Cléopatre, all of which are excellent in their various ways.

Cleopatra cost about 42 millions to make and every single cent is on the screen. It's, to put it simply, gorgeous. Not just because Liz Taylor is Liz Taylor or because the costumes are fabulous -- although she is and they are -- but because the cinematography of every single shot is a thing of beauty.

Liz Taylor is AMAZING as Cleopatra and hands down my favourite Cleopatra. (Monica Bellucci is a close second, Rome's a very distant third.)

She carries the entire four hours with a fantastic performance of a woman who is ambitious, a keen politician, proud, strong, kind and aware at all times of her image and how she can use it. I loved every single time she laid a verbal smackdown on Romans, which was often. She's also gorgeous and dressed in fabulous -- if with disctintive 50s/60s body shape -- costumes.

All the other actors were also really good! Rufio was my second favourite (after Cleopatra), Charmian and Eirnas broke my heart at the end, I really liked Flavius and Apollodore too.

Their Caesar was not my favourite, because that's the one from Mission Cléopatre (I don't like Caesar, so the one where he's made fun of is obviously my favourite), but he's much better than Rome's Caesar. [That's not all that hard, but this is still a damn good Caesar. ] Quite frankly Rome's Caesar doesn't even place.

I preferred Rome's Mark Antony because he was funnier, but it's honestly a very close call. This is a damn good Mark Antony. I still liked Rufio better though.

I wasn't convinced by their Octavian when the intermission rolled around (PRAISE BE TO THE INTERMISSION -- I really needed to stretch my legs) but he won me over by the end. He got the delicate balance of Augustus being both a shrewd political mind and A Weird. I think the HBO crack team of SIMON WOODS and Max Pirkis were better, but they got two whole seasons while this guy got two whole hours.

Despite knowing every beat of the story, I still got caught up in it. This is quality tragedy.

The way the movie was shot -- the kind of shots, etc -- was very interesting for how it contrasted with modern cinematography. More wide shots, less close-ups.

There was a moment when someone said the words "civil war" and I thought back on the old MCU Civil War memes -- tbh, I think I enjoyed this movie better than CACW as CACW was far too fast-paced for me to process emotionally. This movie is much slower but that gives room for the emotions to breath and be felt.

(Cleopatra also claims Hannibal had epilepsy, which was the first I'd heard of this.)

Also, this movie reminded me how much I would love to read/watch/etc an alternate history in which Cleopatra allies with Augustus, be that after Actium or instead of Mark Antony or whatever. (Cleopatra/Augustus optional, but welcome.)

Also also, for all we know Cleopatra gave birth to a daughter and Cesarion is someone else's son.

Also also also, I really like Roman armour.

IN CONCLUSION: WATCH THIS AND WATCH IT ON A BIG SCREEN IF YOU CAN.

Non-spoilery version: I saw the movie in 2D VOSTFR. I enjoyed it greatly.

Anything else I have to says goes under a cut.

( Spoiler-y version )

And if you're wondering whether I'm going to write fic for it in the style of a Norse saga (like I did for The Force Awakens)? The answer is yes. I might need to see it again first, but it's happening.