So. Um. The Good News Is We Found Your Boyfriend. The Bad News Is That, Well, We Sort Of…dug Him Up…in

sometimes you need dialogue tags and don't want to use the same four

Let's talk about The Mummy (1999)

Someone was talking at me yesterday about this movie and I was getting riled so I decided to go full rant. Specifically in regards to the feminist podcast that slammed it.

I don't even remember which podcast it was, but I am still rankled and baffled that any "feminism in movies" podcast could jump to anything but "this movie is phenomenal."

First of all, even just discussing the overall quality: sure, it might not have been groundbreaking with its cgi or plot twists. But back in the 90s, that wasn't the standard of measure like it is now (and even now is a shitty standard that needs to die). This movie was light and funny and yet hit all the right beats to maintain the dire stakes needed to make it a compelling action flick.

Its characters are fully realized and entirely distinct from each other. Even those treated with a broader brush, such as the Americans, were charismatic enough that we were fully invested in their fate. The entire cast of characters were real people with real impact and real agency.

The script is quotable and fucking hilarious. There are gems from literally every single character. Rick and Evie have actual chemistry, aided by Rachel Weisz's natural magnetism and Brendan Frasier's career-long knack for acting utterly charmed with his female costars.

Actually, let's talk about Rick O'Connell for a second. This is peak 90s Brendan Frasier. He is absolutely GORGEOUS, suave, and cool, rugged and handsome. He is the epitome of the 1920s adventure hero. Dear god I want to kiss those casting directors. But for all his general peak masculinity? He's feminist as fuck. He is equally dumbstruck by Evie as she is by him, and it's wholly evident that it's more than a "oh no she's hot" thing.

How do we know?

He steals her some tools to dig with. This gift demonstrates that he a) has identified her passion for archaeology, b) has recognized her proficiency in the field, despite it not being explicitly stated on screen, and c) sees a chance to restore her full and active participation in the discovery of Hamunaptra.

There is never a moment where Rick assumes to be the leader of the expedition. He is the weapons expert, the muscle--and he knows it. Better than that, he's totally okay with it. He follows Evie's lead in all things.

Another favorite moment of mine is when they're facing off with the American team on Day 1, and Evie realizes there's a chamber underneath Anubis they could use to excavate the statue. She puts her hand on Rick's arm, looks him in the eye, and says very deliberately "there are other places to dig." And he yields, instantly.

By comparison, see the way the Americans treat their workers and guide.

Does he groan about his work being made exponentially harder as a result? Nope. And that's a recurring theme in his behavior the entire goddamn movie. The only time he is in charge is when a situation is in his wheelhouse-- namely, combat and rescue. And it deserves mentioning that the majority of the time that he's in charge, Evie is not present.

Meanwhile, Evie-- her adventurer's spirit chafing in an academia that dismisses her for her gender-- is an absolute marvel. She is visually coded as being very feminine (she's in dresses and long hair most of the film), but that fact in no way detracts from her competence and agency.

She is consistently protrayed as a fully capable expert in egyptology and there is never a single moment where she waffles on what to do. Even when she's the damsel in distress, she actively makes the choice to be so because she weighs the potential outcomes and decides doing so provides their best chance of success.

Evie is never the passive victim. She is constantly brash, constantly scheming, and saves the lives of her would-be rescuers mid-abduction. And when her brother (who is the failure of the family, against type) needs help with translation, she correctly translates for him while being throttled by a mummified priestess.

When I first saw this film, I was too young to realize how novel it was. Back then, all I knew was that it was just a good time. But now as an adult-- an adult acutely aware of the treatment female characters have gotten in the twenty years since-- I marvel at the respect with which the writers and directors treated Evie.

I marvel at how tender Rick was allowed to be, despite his rugged adventurer archetype.

The Mummy (1999) is peak storytelling. It doesn't try to outsmart the audience, but rather lays out a consistent, coherent narrative that gives the characters and viewers room to breathe. It invests the audience enough to care whether the characters succeed in their goals.

The Mummy (1999) does it right. It's the reason that any talk of the Tom Cruise version gets an immediate eyeroll from me, because whatever modern grimdark grit they shove into a story about a mummy cannot compare to the reliable and timeless entertainment of the 1999 adaptation.

All modern media should aspire to be the kind of film that The Mummy (1999) is.

nick nelsons little curled up lopsided smile. you agree. reblog

“There is nothing on earth more beautiful to me than your smile . . . no sound sweeter than your laughter . . . no pleasure greater than holding you in my arms. I realized today that I could never live without you, stubborn little hellion that you are. In this life and the next, you’re my only hope of happiness.”

Lillian and Westcliff from It Happened One Autumn by Lisa Kleypas 🍂

Commissioned with margana_mgn 🧡

Cast Long Shadows:

"You do not know what he [Alastair] said to me the day we were expelled."

Tom shrugged. "Some nonsense, I expect. He always speaks the most shocking nonsense when he is overset. You shouldn't listen to him."

A couple of lines later: "Oh well," said Tom. "I like his nonsense." He looked wistful. "I think Alastair masks his pain with cleverly turned phrases."

Can we talk about how Thomas knew Alastair extremely well, even back then? And how Matthew could have saved himself (and Thomastair) a lot of drama if he had just listened to Thomas? Now I just want a novella with each conversation in which Thomas got to know Alastair so well.

I also hope that Tom will remember his own advice in CoT... Not that I want him to stop listening to Alastair

The fact that "Lucie" was the first thing Jesse said when he came back to life 😍😍😍😍

Also, was anyone else suprised that he woke up and after seven years of death instantly was strong enough to lift and carry Lucie? Maybe it's an indicator of how much power Lucie used on him. Which, in turn, would explain her fainting (and could assure us that she's quite alright and just needs rest to fill up her energy levels again)

If Chain of Thorns doesn’t end with:

Lucie and Jesse engagement

Cordelia and James honeymoon to Constantinople

Thomas kissing Alastair in front of everyone at a party

Ariadne and Anna finally dancing together

Grace and Christopher working on science-y stuff together

and Matthew drinking water

imma riot

anyone please ask your crush out like this

Just saw this pickup line "Are you a tower? Because Eiffel for you" and it just screamed Thomastair to me. Specifically, I think Alastair would say this to Thomas because

1) Thomas is a giant and towers over everyone

and 2) they were specifically talking about the Eiffel Tower in ChoG

And now I just headcanon that Alastair said this to Thomas at one point who just laughed himself to tears.

Also consider that Alastair has a very dry/sarcastic/cynic sense of humour and that he tends to be a little bit dramatic. I would not expect Thomas to say that he's dying when he is "only" heavily injured because that just doesn't match his personality, but Alastair?

When, however, did Cassie share the snippet? Could it be something that belonged to another book/trilogy and was cut out?

okay so, do y’all remember that one thing that cassie shared with us, that death scene of one of the members of a shadowhunter chronicles gay couple? i don’t remember it word for word, but it goes something like this:

“funny, all that trouble to convince me that you didn’t love me, and here i am, dying in your arms”

the person that is dying then proceeds to kiss each and every one of the others fingers, their last

here’s my theory: it’s thomastair. thomas lightwood dying specifically

now i’m sorry about this, but it makes sense.

hear me out:

1. thomastair still isn’t completely canon, and alastair is spending an awful lot of time trying to convince thomas he doesn’t love him, because he thinks that’s best for both of them

i know that’s flimsy evidence but keep reading

2. if you check the shadowhunters family tree, we see that the rest of the carstairs family are descendants of alastair. i’ve seen a theory similar to this that says alastair dies, but if he does, that’s the end of the other side of the carstairs line aside from jem, and we all know alastair has to have descendants, because emma exists. it could be baby carstairs, but we don’t know that for sure

3. if you also check the family tree, it shows that thomas doesn’t end up with anyone officially. which means either he stayed single or he’s dead. and considering alastair ended up with someone else, it is more likely that thomas is dead than with someone else.

4. finally, thomas’s name is sort of foreshadowing in itself. he’s named after thomas, the mundane that worked for the london institute during tessa will and jem’s story. our past thomas died, and i think this foreshadowing might hint to our thomas dying

so, yeah just had to get that off my chest because it was causing me major anxiety.

feel free to prove me wrong! actually please prove me wrong i don’t want thomas to die :(

but please reference this post if i’m right