Captain America: Brave New World review

    CAPTAIN AMERICA: BRAVE NEW WORLD is the latest Marvel Cinematic Universe movie. A lot of people wondered if this would be the movie to restore it after a series of less than impressive entries. Others believed it would be another dud that would show that the series was finished after AVENGERS: ENDGAME. The answer is neither. Captain America: Brave New World is fine, above average even. It's no Thor: Dark World or Avengers: Ultron but I'd say it's probably the third best Captain America film, fourth if you count Falcon and the Winter Soldier. It's good but my highest praise is that it's a B+ movie. It's a fun superhero time that involves a lot of shooting, punching, and flying but not much to say about anything.

    The premise is that Captain America (Anthony Mackie) has been working with the US military, which causes some trouble with his mentor, Isaiah Bradley (Carl Lumbly). The United States has recently elected Thaddeus "Thunderbolt" Ross (Harrison Ford) to the Presidency and a lot of superheroes are less than pleased given his role in the Sokovia Accords. Interesting, Thaddeus' bad reputation as a General Ripper-type applies to even other nations. Thaddeus insists that he is a better man than he used to be, though, and wants to secure a legacy as a peacetime president rather than a wartime hero.

    What follows is a basic caper story with Sidewinder (Gincarlo Esposito) and the Serpent Society stealing a bunch of adamantium from Celestial Island. If you don't know what Celestial Island is, it's that thing created at the ending of the Eternals. Apparently, it's made of the substance that fans of Wolverine love and is even better than vibranium. Comic Nerd Rant: Which is ridiculous because vibranium has other properties than just being hard. In celebration of Captain America recovering it, President Ross invites him and his guests to the White House. There, he's almost assassinated and Isaiah Bradley is blamed.

    I won't get much more into the story because there's actually quite a few "mysteries" that were completely spoiled by the trailers for the film. I can understand why Disney did it: they wanted to get buts in seats. However, there's two big reveals in this film that are meant to make MCU fans go, "oooo!" These big reveals are something most MCU fans are going to go into the film already knowing. I'm not going to go into them but one of the biggest flaws of this film is that Bruce Banner has emotional ties to a lot of characters and plots from this story and the movie would have been improved tremendously if the Hulk had been a co-star.

    Anthony Mackie's Captain America is fantastic and the movie "gets" who Captain America is meant to be. He's meant to be a figure who uses his words with his fists (as well as his awesome power armor). Some people may object to the whole issue of a legacy hero but actors age, unlike comic book heroes, and the plot of trying to live up a legacy is interesting. It's just a shame that Steve Rogers never shows up to mention that he was just a kid from Brooklyn. It was everyone else who made him into a legend. We get the next best thing, though.

    Harrison Ford does a fantastic job with the character and brings a humanity to him. Thaddeus Ross has generally just been a one-dimensional but believable character. This Ross has done a huge amount of shady stuff and evil science projects but believes being President will allow him to redeem himself. There's much about whether redemption is possible and the movie also indicates that it's impossible unless you take responsibility for your actions. It's a good message that, sadly, runs into the larger political concerns.

    Basically, this movie has the mother of all bad timing for people to want to see it because of real-life politics. It's not the case of Red vs. Blue (which is actually part of the problem). It's the fact that politics are pissing off everyone in America right now. This is a movie about unity, reconciliation. and a story that doesn't really reflect anything but fictional world stories. Not taking a stand on anything and saying we're all the same may be admirable some times but just about everyone these days is saying pick a lane. Example: one of the main characters is an adaptation of Israeli special forces mutant, Sabra, who isn't a mutant or special forces here. She's also noticeably so short that in a movie with giant red monsters, I don't buy her able to take down grown men.

    In conclusion, this is a good movie. It's a fun movie. It's not a blow you away movie. However, this is a movie that I got out of my seat to go see in theaters rather than wait for it to show up on Disney+. I'm as stressed by the world as anyone else and this was a fun insight into a planet much much better off than our current one.

8/10

Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom review

    Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain is a not-so-old entry into the video game library of Konami games, coming out in 2015. Which is still ten years ago and worthy of giving a retrospective toward. It is mostly famous for being the supposed end of the Metal Gear franchise, the source of Konami’s break with Hideo Kojima, and several questionable decisions related to the franchise’s end like the replacing of David Hayter with Kiefer Sutherland as well as overly sexualized depiction of its female companion, Quiet.

    The game takes place in the early 1980s with the Soviet Invasion of Afghanistan and the Angola-Zaire conflict. It was preceded by the ultra-short game, Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes, which is included in Metal Gear Solid V: The Definitive Experience. For the sake of this review, I’m going to count that as part of Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain since the games really should have been one continuous story except for corporate shenanigans.

    The premise for The Phantom Pain is the complete destruction of everything that Naked Snake AKA Big Boss achieved in Metal Gear Solid: Peacewalker. The mercenary army that Snake assembled is slaughtered, Mother Base headquarters is destroyed, his child soldier companion Chico is killed, and beautiful (but traitorous) friend Paz is used to blow up the helicopter that Snake is riding on. Naked Snake is left in a nine-year coma and wakes up with a piece of shrapnel stuck in his head among other permanent injuries. He doesn’t get long to recover, though, because the hospital he’s staying in is attacked by the black ops forces of XOF (Fox spelled backward).

    What follows is a lengthy story of the rechristened “Venom Snake” seeking his former companions to rebuild his mercenary company, re-christened Diamond Dogs, to get revenge on the rogue intelligence agency of Cipher (theoretically XOF’s bosses). They must disable and kidnap soldiers from Soviet and mercenary forces before convincing them to join their cause. They must also carry out numerous missions to build up their resources that take them up against the real-life atrocities of this time period. They also must deal with XOF’s access to genetically enhanced zombie-like super soldiers, Metal Gear bipedal tanks, and a weapon they claim will surpass nuclear weapons (though they have plenty of those too).

    What makes The Phantom Pain interesting to grimdark fans is that it is a much more serious take on the sometimes-goofy Metal Gear universe than previous entries. Multiple characters from the previous games are killed, often in horrific ways, while others are left maimed or a shadow of their former selves. Master Miller, who was Snake’s goofy supporter, is now a broken man with missing limbs that wants nothing more than to kill as many Cipher supporters as possible. The subject of child soldiers, imperialism, and pandemic response all come up in this story. There’s some goofy moments like in previous Metal Gear Solid entries but, for the most part, The Phantom Pain plays it all very straight.

    The first half of the game is extremely well done with the slow build-up to face Skull Face and his super-weapon well-done from beginning to end. The story is a bit minimalist, and we lack the usual collection of mini bosses but the Man on Fire, Floating Boy, and Quiet are all memorable characters. Skull Face seems, in part, inspired by Freddy Kruger and is a memorable antagonist despite his short time on-screen. The gameplay is also fantastic and makes every mission worth repeating until you get that coveted “S-Ranking.” If they’d ended the game after its final mission, “Sahelanthropus”, I would have given it a 10 out of 10.

    Unfortunately, the second half of the game sucks and feels like it was where Konami cut off Kojima’s funding. Most of the second half consists of NG+ style missions with extra requirements while only a handful meaningfully advance the story. There are some good moments like the revelations regarding Huey Emmerich and the end to Quiet’s story but, infamously, Eli’s (Liquid Snake’s) story is just left unfinished with his final mission never completed. It’s a massive let down after so much build-up. Another flaw is the fact that the game’s story is primarily in cassette recordings that require a lot of sitting around and listening to.

    The game is gorgeous and there’s an endless amount of fun to be had sneaking up behind people, tranquilizing them, and then sending them up through balloons to be brainwashed into your followers. The game is hard but not overly so with Snake able to absorb more punishment than any human being other than the Master Chief but not so much that three people shooting him won’t put him down. I love D-Dog, D-Horse, and Quiet with each bringing something new when you bring them along missions. I also think the game has a fantastic soundtrack with “She Blinded Me With Science”, “Maneater”, “The Final Countdown”, and other classic tunes.

    However, I would be remiss if I didn’t bring up the fact that the game’s biggest twist is a controversial one. Without getting into it, a lot of fans felt that it renders most of the game’s character development for its lead pointless. For me, I didn’t mind it but The Phantom Pain is also a story about how legends are lies. Given that misinformation and propaganda are running themes in the franchise, I give it a pass, but others are still furious about it a decade later.

    Do I recommend the game? Yes. But once you complete the main campaign, I suggest doing the remaining story missions and nothing else. The Phantom Pain is a game that clearly exceeded its ambitions.

     9/10

 Available here

Creature Commandos review

    I love the Suicide Squad. I mean in general versus the movies specifically. The concept of a bunch of D-List characters and antiheroes mixed with villains being put on a mission to fight something worse than themselves is just catnip to me. I also loved the Thunderbolts, which was Marvel's more optimistic take on it. The first Suicide Squad movie was a bit of a trainwreck but I felt it had good bones. I had issues with the second one (perhaps because I'm one of the world's few Savant fans) but it was overall a major improvement. Creature Commandos and Peacemaker are even bigger improvements on the concept.

    Creature Commandos by James Gunn is the first new property of the new DC Cinematic Universe after the dissolution of the previous one for a variety of reasons. What does this have to do with grimdark? Well, James Gunn is a man who can do both silly as well as incredibly dark if you’re familiar with his previous work. The Suicide Squad was a story of antiheroes, black comedy, moral ambiguity, and an utterly corrupt US government among its gleefully madcap use of DC continuity. DC used to be famous for its moral paragons and colorful worlds, but it has been the darker of the two comic companies for decades now. So, yes, I’m going to say Creature Commandos is something worth watching for grimdark fans. It is the “fun” sort of grimdark where tragedy is hilarious. 

    The premise for this HBO Max exclusive cartoon is simple: after the events of Peacemaker, Amanda Waller has been banned as using superpowered criminals as cannon fodder for government black ops and wet work. Undeterred by ethics or the spirit of the law, she decides that instead of using criminals, she will use “nonhumans” that do not technically have rights according to US law. These include the Bride (Indira Varma), Doctor Phosphorus (Alan Tudyk), the Weasel (John Gunn), GI Robot (John Gunn again), and fish-woman Nina Mazursky (Zoe Chao). They will be led by Rick Flagg Senior (Frank Grillo), who is basically there to substitute for his dead son.

    This is basically the latest installment of the Suicide Squad collection along with the original Suicide Squad, The Suicide Squad, Peacemaker, Suicide Squad: Assault on Arkham, Suicide Squad Isekai, and Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League. Frankly, it is a huge push for a niche corner of the DC universe. The world seems front loaded with morally ambiguous antiheroes forced to work for the government versus, well, Superman and even Batman projects by comparison. Let alone other heroes like Green Lantern, Flash, or Wonder Woman. Still, I have to say that this is probably the best of the Suicide Squad adaptations despite being a cast from an entirely different comic.

    Creature Commandos functions a bit like Lost of all things. Each episode gets into the backstory of one of the commandos and how they got to be in the position they did. All of them are compelling with most of the “monsters” having reasons for what they did before society drove them to the brink. The most compelling of them was Doctor Phosphorous’ story despite the fact he has the most “traditional” villain origin of them all. I also felt GI Robot and Weasel’s stories were ones that reflected how society is generally scummy and incapable of accommodating anyone different. I don’t exaggerate when I say that the tales are easily the darkest and most messed up thing I’ve seen outside of The Penguin in years.

    The actual story is needlessly complicated with the Creature Commandos being sent to an Eastern block monarchy called Pokolistan to stop Wonder Woman villain Circe from overthrowing its government with an army of online incels. No, seriously. To be honest, the “metaplot” that binds all the personal stories together doesn’t hang together in the slightest and ends as abruptly as it began. Still, I loved Princess Ilana (Maria Bakalova) and wish we’d gotten more of her. We also get glimpses of Batman and other elements of how the “new” DCU functions, which seem a lot denser and wackier than is typical for cinematic superhero universes.

    James Gunn clearly had complete freedom for Creature Commandos and his fingerprints are all over the work from beginning to end. Everything from its over-the-top action, wacky humor, personal tragedies, extensive jukebox soundtrack, and oddball misfits trying to save the day. This is not for kids and there’s a couple of sex scenes (mostly off screen but clear as to what’s happened). The violence is also incredibly graphic as can be done when you’re animating something. Creature Commandos feels a bit like Heavy Metal from the Eighties crossed with Guardians of the Galaxy. I recommend it for people who love more obscure portions of the DCU and what the Suicide Squad should be like.

8/10

Book Sale - The first six volumes of The Supervillainy Saga are 99c

BOOK SALE: The first six volumes of THE SUPERVILLAINY SAGA are available from Bookbub and Amazon for 99c. The hilarious adventures of Gary Karkofsky AKA Merciless: The Supervillain without MercyTM are available for less than the price of anything.

“Why save the world when you can rule it?”

Gary Karkofsky always wanted to be a supervillain. He gets his chance when a mysterious package is left on his front doorstep with the magical cloak of the Nightwalker, recently deceased protector of Falconcrest City. This allows him to become MERCILESS: THE SUPERVILLAIN WITHOUT MERCY.

However, Gary soon finds that he’s not quite evil enough to be the city’s Big Bad. Assembling a crew consisting of his ex-girlfriend, his wife, a once terrifying supervillain), Gary sets off on a series of mad and exciting adventures. Gary will fight extremist superheroes from the Nineties, hordes of zombies, evil cults, a time-traveling President from the future, and himself.

The Supervillainy Saga, Books 1-6 contains The Rules of Supervillainy, The Games of Supervillainy, The Secrets of Supervillainy, The Science of Supervillainy, The Tournament of Supervillainy, and The Future of Supervillainy. It is the tale of humanity’s best hero and worse villain, or is the other way around! Read and find out!

Available from February 8th to February 30th

Amazon

Vampire: The Masquerade: Los Angeles by Night 5th Edition

V5 Chronicle Tips

1. The Social Satire of Vampire: The Masquerade

2.  An analysis of Anarchs in Vampire: The Masquerade

3. Ten Tips to Running the Anarchs in V5 

4. Ten Tips to Running the Second Inquisition in V5 

5. Ten Tips to Running the Sabbat in V5 

6. Ten Chronicles for Sabbat PCs in V5 

7. Ten Tips to Running the Camarilla in V5 

8. Ten Tips to Running the Thin-Bloods in V5 

9. Ten Tips to Running the Tremere in V5  

10. Ten Real Life-Inspired Chronicles for V5
11. V5 NPC Update: Sullivan Dane
12. 101 Mundane Details for V:TM Games 
13. 101 Street Crime and Personal Horror Scenarios
14. The Judas Compact or "How the Sabbat got their groove stolen"
15. How much should Vampire PCs and NPCs know?
16. Ten Tips to using Touchstones in V5

17. Why metaplot matters in the World of Darkness

    I wrote a novel for submission to 5th Edition as a pitch for reviving the book spin offs of VAMPIRE: THE MASQUERADE last year called KNIGHT OF FREEDOM that was one of two I completed. The project was rejected but the other one would have starred Lucita. Knight of Freedom had the premise that Theo Bell has been hiding in the Anarch Free States for the past decade or so since his assassination of Hardelstadt and kept expecting the hammer to fall down. The joke was that Theo Bell was living a comparative life of luxury being passed around between the Barons and the Camarilla had no real interest in assassinating him for reasons that were revealed in the novel. But also because Theo Bell worked much better as an unliving Non-Red List symbol of Anarch perfidy than someone they wanted to martyr.

    Among the things I established in the book was the following:

Kindred of Note

1. Baron Louis Fortier: The ruler of Bel-Air and one of the most powerful Barons around as well as the richest, he's also someone all of the Anarchs are generally embarrassed about. Mostly because he's a Ventrue French potentate who rule exactly like a Prince except perhaps an unusually generous one. Louis is notably someone who is aware of the fact that as ruler of a huge chunk of LA, he's more powerful than most Princes in America and has the mind that if he allied with the Camarilla, they'd swiftly replace him with someone else. Ergo, he's quite happy to be like Napoleon and claim he's all for the Revolution while wielding immense power. All of his wives have left him but he continually ends up finding new young Kindred mistresses since he has a most- Un-Elder obsession with Sex.

2. The MacNeils: This is not actually a Barony but a Clan of Brujah descended from the Beckoned or dead Jeremy. They constantly feud for power and routinely end up staking each other but never kill one another. The current leader is his youngest progeny who helped steal the Stone of Scone in 1950. Annie MacDougal is a pain in the ass for all Anarchs because she insists anyone not like Jeremy is failing to be Anarch enough. Many think he bloodbound her before he went away because no Kindred could be that stupidly loyal.

3. The Undisputed Baron of the Valley, Victor Temple: Yet another Ventrue who has weasaled his way to the top, he's a lot more accepted by Baron Fortier but only because he's younger and hipper with a reputation roughly akin to Suge Knight's. His affable demeanor conceals as much violence and ruthlessness as any other Ventrue ruler, though. He is also somewhat careless with the Masquerade and this is likely to get him killed well before his other stunts. He recently has begun feuding with longtime ally Nelli-G.

4. Hesha Ruhadze: The Ministry archaeologist and Theopidian joining with the breakaway sect was something few expected but he's taken over the Church of Set and become heavily involved in counter-culture Satanism as a trick to lure in vessels as well as attack traditional religion. He lives in Pasadena and generally leaves most of the regular Anarch business to lesser childer as he focuses on Clan business. Generally, Hesha's opinion of the Anarchs can be summarized as, "same blood, different vessels." He is a cynical old snake who thinks there is no difference between the Camarilla and Anarchs than the former smell better but he's dealt with plenty of peasant revolutions and rabble rousers before. It'll all come together eventually around an elite he's already a member of.

5. Nelli G: The beautiful Toreador descendant of the Griffith family, Nelli G is a habitual traitor to the Kindred race and has allied with the Second Inquisition to eliminate her enemies in Hollywood. She's also surrendered Griffith Park to the Garou, causing a small war with the local Gangrel (led by Ramona). Her humanity has gone down rapidly since the murder of her sire and doesn't seem to be stopping as the power has gotten to her. She is the Lady of Hollywood and its strip, controlling kindred who want fame, money, drugs, and blood. Her second in command is Vivi and she is already plotting against her, which Nelli approves of as it keeps her sharp.

6. Nines Rodriguez: Nines is pissed and is unlikely to stop being so any time soon. He's been essentially given a role to help protect the Masquerade in the city by all of the Barons allowing him free passage as well as to that of his gang. It's a role that Nines notes is suspiciously similar to that of a Sheriff even though he considers himself a Cleaner. He also feels like some people want him to have even more power that would make him, you guessed it, a Baron of Barons. One, of course, with lots of powerful Barons as a Council behind him. Nines is disgusted and is wondering if they should put Theo in charge just as a F-U to the system. He HATES Hesha.

7. Theresa/Jeanette: The very much disputed Baron of Santa Monica and several other territories, Theresa and Jeanette are direly opposed to one another but between them control everything but the Pier. They are surprisingly accepting of Thin Bloods and other immigrants. She's also one of the most ruthless in destroying them or playing them off against her "sister." Theresa is notable in that she also controls a large chunk of Las Vegas from the Asylum franchise there and is debating giving up one territory for the other. Basically, Sin City is ripe for picking and the Hecata have made her an offer to be their figurehead.

8. Smiling Jack and Jenna Cross: Smiling Jack was, unsurprisingly, Beckoned given his age and obsession with Noddism. What's weird is he claims he's back from the Middle East and with greater insight than ever. His adopted childe, Jenna Cross, has also become head of one of the largest Duskborn groups in America with over forty members. While based in Santa Monica, they are spread all through California and on the web. It is here they are working on using Thin Blooded Alchemy to try to win a place in the Anarchs equal to a Clan.

9. Wei: : An invasion of the Tzimisce from China briefly disrupted the life of many Asian American Kindred in California. Wei was embraced by one of them and helped lead a revolt after their leader was assassinated by the LA Ripper. Wei is now in control of Chinatown and generally has the view that they're Americans and weird clan abilities shouldn't mean much. Still, he's as power hungry and ruthless as any other Kindred leader. Ironically, Wei has a big secret he's keeping from his former Anarchs that will destroy him. The irony is that it's not a typical Kindred secret: it's that he was a former undercover LA detective.

10. Ramona:​ Ramona is weirded out by the fact that as an anti-social Gangrel who never was close to her clan, she's become a celebrity for her part in the defection to the Anarchs. Ironically, her aloofness means that people take her "fuck off and figure it out for yourself" attitude as wisdom. Reluctantly, she's become a den mother for other Gangrel in the city and many Dustborn and Caitiff. She has also claimed Griffith Park for her territory and the expected massacre by the Garou Nelli G counted on didn't happen. They apparently are having their own issues and the caern there is temporarily abandoned. Ramona rarely spends time there anyway and mostly uses her "dominion" there as a title to scare people away.

11. The Los Angeles Ripper: A mysterious Kindred embraced during the short-lived reign of Prince La Croix. Not much is known about them, even their clan, though many believe them to be a Malkavian who uses Obfuscate to impersonate other Clans or even genders. The Los Angeles Ripper is believed to have been a very Low Generation Cainite who also had unusual strength for a Neonate and destroyed several Elders despite being only a few weeks old. He/she is considered something of an unofficial Scourge, working against troublemakers. Ironically, they're well-liked among the Dustborn and believed to be involved somehow with Jenna Cross. They are also partial to redheads.

12. Vannevar Thomas:  The third Prince of LA, he's actually close to being the Prince of Glendale. Ironically, that's actually better than most princes and since recovering his sanity after being tortured by Theresa/Jeanette, he's become somewhat tolerated among the Anarchs. Vannevar is aware that he was sent to LA to die and is now plotting his own long-term strategy: to regain San Fransisco. While few Anarchs would willingly ally with Cammie scum, he's very persuasive and very rich. As such, he's gradually built up a cadre of allies. Ironically, his brief insanity also seems to have knocked the Beckoning from his system and he notes he has outlived a lot of his former enemies. He is accompanied by his consort, Susan, who is as typical a Toreador as exists.

Guardians of Dragon Keep (Dark Undermaster #2) is now available

The sequel to my humorous LitRPG isekai is now available for those who want to pick up a copy! On Kindle, Kindle Unlimited, and in paperback!

“So, what you’re saying is the Dragon Queen is dead.”

“No, what I’m saying is the Dragon Queen is dead and there’s an imposter carrying on in her place. Possibly someone you know. Your girlfriend’s ex is back from the dead. Your brother is evil. A dead god is trying to take over your body. We’re running out of time until it becomes impossible to save the world. Also, I’m pretty sure the giant blind redheaded swordswoman chick wants to bang you to death.”

“So, normal Tuesday.”

    Aragorn “Aaron” Bartkowski and his merry band of miscreants are back! Having successfully slain the demon god Chernabog, they’ve managed to buy a little more time for the planet Mokosh. However, a hero’s work is never done, especially when a hero is underleveled and with low WIS. From a mission to a haunted vampire-filled castle to rescue the little girl Pope to the deeps of elven territory to the heart of Ledziana’s civil war, Aaron must now engage with the complicated politic underlying the dark fantasy setting he’s found himself in. It’s win or die when playing the games of kings and queens, though, and our hero is absolutely terrible at them.

    GUARDIANS OF DRAGON KEEP is the second volume of the Dark Undermaster Saga, a humorous send up of dark fantasy like Game of Thrones, The Witcher, and Dark Souls. It is a progression fantasy LitRPG that follows the adventures of video game computer programmer, Aaron Bartkowski as he is hurled bodily into the world of his favorite author, Larry C.C. Weis. Unfortunately, Weis turns out to have been much better at stealing from other, better, authors than he was in giving his heroes a break.

Available here

Nosferatu (2024) review

    NOSFERATU (2024) is a movie that I was initially somewhat ambivalent about seeing. This is because Nosferatu is basically Dracula but for the genius of FW Murnau that made it a visually astonishing work of art. I love Dracula and should be all over this but I'm not sure that you can remake Nosferatu and capture the original essence. Basically, it's not an adaptation of a movie, it's an adaptation of an adaptation. So, what did I think? Eh, it's okay I guess.

    There's a lot going for Nosferatu. Lily Rose Depp does a fantastic job as Ellen Hutter, Aaron Taylor Johnson is good as Friedrich, and Bill Skarsgard has some fantastic makeup effects. The atmosphere as well as visuals are fantastic. You really do feel like you have been transported to a Gothic world akin to Gotham City or Ravenloft's Barvoia. It's a place that feels far removed from Earth but decidedly Burton-esque in its environment.

    Unfortunately, the movie also suffers from the fact that it can't quite manage the tone between Gothic tragedy, sexual horror, and ridiculous homage. Count Orlock, for example, is absolutely terrifying at some points but other times comes off as an incredibly silly cariacture of a vampire. The choice of adding Squidward's mustache, for example, is something that can very easily take you out of the movie.

    One element that the movie has somewhat mixed expressions on is its handling of sex. Basically, there is a lot of it with young Ellen being attacked as a child after she did a ritual to send her a lover. Since that time, Orlock has stalked her dreams and intends to make her his bride whether she wants to or not. She gets victim blamed, ignored, and put through some gaslighting to convince her that this is all her fault. Fine, that's a decidedly feminist message of sorts. Yet, the movie also has difficulty framing her resistance as heroic.

    It reminds me a bit of Promising Young Woman of all things where, essentially, the plot is that a woman is willing to utterly blow her up life to get justice for her friend. The movie is meant to be a triumph but ends on such a depressing note that any sense of triumph is utterly absent. The fact it is the Van Helsing analog (played by William Dafoe) who keeps goading her into making sacrifices doesn't help the message's confused feeling.

    The movie attempts to sell Ellen as deeply in love with her husband but he's so dismissive of her and eager to find any solution that doesn't involve listening to her that it doesn't feel like he's worth all the effort that Ellen goes to on his behalf. That's another mark against the movie that is meant to be empowering. There's a lot of Ellen being talked down to and it really gets tiresome. Yeah, yeah, it's the Victorian times but that doesn't matter it better.

    Still, there's some genuinely great moments spread throughout the film. The Romani killing a vampire with an old fashioned ritual, Orlock tricking Fredrich into selling his marriage for gold, Ellen's periods of possession, and the fact that Orlock is more book-accurate than any other Dracula I can remember. This Dracula is an evil wizard who became a vampire rather than just a vampire. That's my kind of handling of the subject.

7/10