GEORGIA

I'll preface this by saying that this is my subjective opinion. And sure, maybe technically Legally Blonde isn't THE best film ever. But we aren't talking about technical elements today! No, just its vibes, mostly. But let's get on. Legally Blonde is a 2001 rom-com/chick-flick if you want to place it in a box, directed by Robert Luketic and starring Reese Witherspoon.  As I literally just mentioned, Legally Blonde would probably fit into that absolutely delightful (and I'm being serious) genre of girly, cheesy, and incredibly pink 'chick flicks' that are actually a lot more influential than people like to pretend. In 2020, many of these films are still quoted today (and I personally don't remember a single quote from The Godfather) and even the current fashion trends are very much influenced by the styles worn by characters in chick-flick comedies. But given the sheer number of these films that were made, it's impressive that Legally Blonde remains o...

Ever since it's publication in 1897, Bram Stoker's iconic Gothic Vampire novel Dracula has been retold and repurposed hundreds of times. From classic- although unlicensed- horrors such as Nosferatu, to cartoon comedies like Hotel Transylvania, despite being staked through the heart, the aristocratic Count will live on forever in popular culture. Today, I will be comparing the 1992 Francis Ford Coppola directed film Bram Stoker's Dracula (original title, I know) to the 2020 BBC three-part adaptation Dracula (yet another ground-breaking title) and deciding which one I prefer. I can give you a hint now: it's the BBC version. Sorry to all the film bros out there, who would probably consider that as blasphemy. I will be exploring the reasons for this preference via three main areas: the storylines/aesthetics of the whole thing put together, the women (mainly Mina and Agatha, respectively), and the formidable Count himself. So, let's take a journey back through time, to t...

 Well, I certainly read more than I did in either September or October. November was a pretty successful month for reading and today we'll be discussing the five books I read during my birth month. Number one: Strange Case of Dr Jekyll & Mr Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson. It's a classic Gothic Victorian novella (which yes, I definitely only read in order to seem like I'm doing independent study for English Literature) set in London, which I would say was probably the founding father of Gothic tropes like the mad scientist and actual physical representations of the duality of man. I rated this 3/5 stars on goodreads but I'm actually starting to think it's more like 2/5. Chapter 10 of this novel seriously let this novella down. It had a cool and original concept with an interesting storyline and it's definitely very gothic. But it had many pitfalls. Mostly, chapter 10. It just entirely ruined the story by over-explaining it, using far too much science and maki...

Ever since I finally relented and realised that the same advice my mother has been giving me for literal years (you know, very obvious stuff- turn your phone off and read before bed so that you sleep better), I've been reading a lot more. Which will be more evident in my November post, because I only read four books in these two combined months, but I was busy! All four of these books were ones I picked up off the library shelf at random, but I thoroughly enjoyed all four. So, here are my thoughts: Number one: Magpie by Sophie Draper. Magpie is a solid psychological thriller with a big twist, the narrative of which darts between past and present- as our main character both hides from her slightly sinister husband, and recounts the events that lead her to do so. It is mainly told from Claire- the protagonist's- perspective, but we also see the lives of her husband and son unfold, as everything slowly leads up towards the surprise ending. It certainly kept me on the edge of my se...

Spoilers ahead. Although, this film is 25 years old, so don't blame me! The film study in French is possibly the one part of my A-Levels I've been looking forward to the most, and La Haine , which we finished just hours before I started writing this blog post, certainly lived up to my expectations. Only an hour and thirty minutes in length, it still manages to be one of the films that has had the most impact on me. In all the time since we started watching it at the start of the week, I've been consumed by it. It's become clear to me why exactly people raved about it 25 years ago, and why people on Letterboxd are still as enthralled by it today. La Haine is a masterpiece. Set mostly across the backdrop of the banlieus of Paris, Mathieu Kassovitz wrote the ending of his most famous film within days of the murder of a young man in Paris, at the hands of a police officer. The anger the director felt (and still feels now- when his film is more relevant than ever) is convey...