games

0927 – Thief (2014 video game)

timespace coordinates: ‘The City’, a dark fantasy world inspired by VictorianGothic, and steampunk aesthetics.

thief

Thief is a stealth video game developed by Eidos Montréal, published by Square Enix, and released in February 2014 for the PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, Xbox One and Microsoft Windows video gaming platforms. Feral Interactive brought the game to macOS in November 2015. It is a revival of the cult classic Thief video game series of which it is the fourth installment. Initially announced in 2009 as Thief 4, it was later announced in 2013 that the game is a reboot for the series. (wiki)

SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS (MINIMUM): OS: Windows Vista with Platform Update for Windows Vista / Processor: High-Performance Dual Core CPU or Quad Core CPU / Memory: 4 GB RAM / Graphics: AMD Radeon 4800 series / Nvidia GTS 250 / DirectX: Version 10 / Storage: 20 GB available space



steam   /    The Art of Thief

animation, movies, Uncategorized

0905 – Under the Silver Lake (2018)

timespace coordinates: 2011 Los Angeles

silver lake poster (2)

Under the Silver Lake is a 2018 American neo-noir mystery film written, produced and directed by David Robert Mitchell. Set in Los Angeles, it stars Andrew Garfield as a young man who sets out on a quest to investigate the sudden disappearance of his neighbour (Riley Keough), only to stumble upon an elusive and dangerous large-scale conspiracy.

Joshua Rothkopf of Time Out gave the film a perfect five rating, calling it “Hypnotic, spiraling and deliriously high” and stating “the ambition of Under the Silver Lake is worth cherishing. It will either evaporate into nothingness or cohere into something you’ll want to hug for being so wonderfully weird.” Eric Kohn of IndieWire gave a positive review, calling it “a bizarre and outrageous drama grounded in the consistency of Garfield’s astonishment at every turn. […] Aided by cinematographer Mike Gioloukas’ sunny visuals and a searching Disasterpiece score, the movie becomes a bittersweet ode to wanting answers from an indifferent world overwhelmed by superficial distractions. The homage can be irritating and some of the transitions work better than others across an unwieldy running time — but even the flaws speak to the movie’s beguiling raison d’être. It’s fascinating to watch Mitchell grasp for a bigger picture with the wild ambition of his scruffy protagonist.” 

Owen Gleiberman of Variety gave a positive review, calling it “a down-the-rabbit-hole movie, at once gripping and baffling, fueled by erotic passion and dread but also by the code-fixated opacity of conspiracy theory. The movie is impeccably shot and staged, with an insanely lush soundtrack that’s like Bernard Herrmann-meets-Angelo-Badalamenti-on-opioids. When it’s over, though, you feel like you’ve seen a meta-mystery made by someone who spent too much time scrawling notes in the margins of his frayed copy of Infinite Jest. (wiki)

silver lake poster

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games, movies

0896 – Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time (2010)

timespace coordinates: Persian Empire 6th century BC

PrinceOfPersiaPrince of Persia: The Sands of Time is a 2010 American action fantasy film directed by Mike Newell. The film stars Jake Gyllenhaal as Prince Dastan, Gemma Arterton as Princess Tamina, Ben Kingsley as Nizam, and Alfred Molina as Sheik Amar.

The film has the same title as the video game Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time developed and published by Ubisoft, and is primarily based on it. Elements from Warrior Within and The Two Thrones, the two other titles from the Sands of Time trilogy of the Prince of Persia video game franchise, are also incorporated.

The film seems to be set in ancient Persia, as the film starts with a map portending to show the expanse of the Persian Empire 2500 years ago. The film set design seems to be based on Islamic Persia. Islamic architecture with intricate use of geometric shapes and domes are shown. The cities in the film all appear to have minarets. The Allied Kingdom of Alamut, shown in the movie wasn’t established until 9th century (after Islamic Conquest of Persia). The Alamut castle was built by the Justanid ruler, Wahsudan b. Marzuban, a follower of zaydi Islam, around 865 AD. It was seized by Hassan-i Sabbah, who was the leader of the Nizārī Ismā‘īlītes and the founder of the secret order known as Assassins. (wiki)

PRINCE OF PERSIA THE SANDS OF TIME Gameplay Walkthrough FULL GAME No Commentary (1080p HD 60fps)


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quotes, series

0849 – The Haunting of Hill House (2018 TV series)

timespace coordinates: 1992 – 2018 Massachusetts

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The Haunting of Hill House is an American supernatural horror web television series created by Mike Flanagan for Netflix, produced by Amblin Television and Paramount Television. The series is based on the 1959 novel of the same name by Shirley Jackson. The plot alternates between two timelines, following five adult siblings whose paranormal experiences at Hill House continue to haunt them in present day. The series also features flashbacks to 1992, depicting the events in Hill House leading up to the eventful night the family departed. The ensemble cast features Michiel HuismanElizabeth ReaserOliver Jackson-CohenKate SiegelVictoria PedrettiLulu WilsonCarla GuginoHenry Thomas and Timothy Hutton. (wiki)

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“No live organism can continue for long to exist sanely under conditions of absolute reality; even larks and katydids are supposed, by some, to dream. Hill House, not sane, stood by itself against its hills, holding darkness within; it had stood so for eighty years and might stand for eighty more. Within, walls continued upright, bricks met neatly, floors were firm, and doors were sensibly shut; silence lay steadily against the wood and stone of Hill House, and whatever walked there, walked alone.”
― Shirley Jackson, The Haunting of Hill House

movies

0826 – Birdman (2014)

timespace coordinates: 2013 NYC

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Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance), commonly known simply as Birdman, is a 2014 American black comedy (a short list of the diverse forms of film genre associated with the film has included it being referred to alternatively as a black-humor film, a mental health film, a realism/surrealism/magical realism film, a dark-humor parody film, a film of psychological realism, a failed domestic reconciliation drama, or a film concerning theatrical realism and naturalism.) film directed by Alejandro G. Iñárritu. It was written by Iñárritu, Nicolás GiacoboneAlexander Dinelaris Jr., and Armando Bo. The film stars Michael Keaton with a supporting cast of Zach GalifianakisEdward NortonAndrea RiseboroughAmy RyanEmma Stone, and Naomi Watts. The story follows Riggan Thomson (Keaton), a faded Hollywood actor best known for playing the superhero “Birdman”, as he struggles to mount a Broadway adaptation of a short story by Raymond Carver.

The film covers the period of previews leading to the play’s opening, and with a brief exception appears as if filmed in a single shot, (wiki)

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by Diego Riselli

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