I'll Put A Spell On You ♥

Happy Halloween ♥

Wishing everyone a Happy Halloween here from The Midnight Picture Show!! And also apologies for lack of posts lately, my Macbook charger failed on me and I am too much of an Apple snob to manage posts on the PC...

Here are a few Halloween inspired images from films/tv shows (nothing too scary) I have been watching over the last few weeks that got me in the mood for Autumn and Halloween:

Hocus Pocus - an obvious choice but my sister and I watch it every Halloween

Interview with a Vampire/Queen of the Damned - The perfect Vampire films to watch this time of year! I understand that not many people appreciate QotD but I love Stuart Townsend and Aaliyah and it has one of my favourite film soundtracks

Sleepy Hollow - Johnny Depp and Christina Ricci trying to put an end to the Headless Horseman's reign of terror!

Underworld - More Vampire drama with Kate Beckinsale as they war against the Lycans

Halloweentown - cheesy and fun, Halloweentown is always on this time of year on the Disney Channel I believe.

Mean Girls - not really a Halloween film but worth the watch just for the party where Lindsay Lohan doesn't quite get the concept of what is 'halloween' according to popular girls, and Amanda Seyfried dressed as a mouse - duh!

True Blood - I'm actually reading the series (The Southern Vampire Mysteries) on my Kindle at the moment, and I absolutely LOVE them, but I wanted to include the series on here because it is definitely worth a mention as it includes all things supernatural and is a good Halloween watch

The Brothers Grimm - Matt Damon, Heath Ledger, spooky fairy tale goings on with amazing sets and beautiful costumes (and it's not too scary)

Sabrina - everyone's favourite witch and her adorable black cat Salem. I really want to re-watch the entire series and the films as it was my favourite show as a kid and it makes me think about coming home from school when the weather was starting to get chilly, getting wrapped up in my duvet on the settee and watching Sabrina on Nickelodeon!

JANE EYRE

So for my birthday the boy and I went to see Jane Eyre. I'd been anticipating it for a while after seeing the lovely film posters for it. I was excited to see a Brontë classic being adapted once again for the screen- I am so in love with Wuthering Heights, written by Emily Brontë and wished for it to be as beautiful and as captivating.

Charlotte Brontë's classic is timeless, the grand rooms of Thornfield in all their glory and austerity and the beauty of the pastel rose gardens, the early morning sunlight catching the intricate lace that adorn the windows and the delicate embroidered dresses gently sweep the polished floors. Its themes of love, religion, morality are still of consequence today, but here we see the struggle of one girl's journey through life as she tries to escape the tangled clutches of her evil Aunt and the religious infused school she attends which punishes her for just being herself and then her eventual arrival into adulthood where she

Jane is captured so beautifully by Mia Wasikowska- gentle, graceful, intelligent and intriguing. Her effortless charms soon intrigue the austere Mr Rochester (wonderfully portrayed by Michael Fassbender), owner of Thornfield and they become entangled in a will-they/won't-they? love story. 

I urge you to go and see it, it is such a gorgeous piece of cinema. Fans of Wasikowska and Fassbender will not be disappointed ♥

NEVER LET ME GO

This film is fresh in my mind and all the flickering beauty of it is still there but also the melancholy and the tragic undertones. Carey Mulligan as Kathy H is an enchanting, sweet and quite often lonely character as she finds herself growing up quite cut off from society at the boarding establishment Hailsham. There is nostalgia there, wooden floor board, acrylic paint, milk bottles, school dinners, old tapes, grey cardigans and mousey hair as well as mild jealousy and the boy with the rosy cheeks and kind smile who Kathy has a definite fondness for. But Hailsham isn't just a school, it's a place where its students are reared into a very carefully thought out life, a short one, one that leads to being an involuntary organ donor. The secrets are gently unravelled, little parts of the mystery told in matter of fact but still very familiar school assemblies 'students at Hailsham must keep themselves well' after discarded cigarettes are found on the school grounds.

The film is delicate and sympathetic in its cinematography, the slightest look from Kathy towards Tommy is captured as though you were travelling in the small car with them. The jealous eyes of Ruth framed behind lace curtains at the Cottages and the familiar whistle of the kettle on the stove. The warm tears shed by Kathy in the autumn clad forest and her dimples of sincerity when she finds Ruth in hospital.

It follows Cathy's bittersweet story of how she carries on with her life to be a carer after drifting apart from her two best friends Ruth and Tommy (who she happens to be in love with). The deeper story is tragic and I had so much empathy for Kathy and her unconditional love for Tommy, her constant struggle of knowing her purpose and yet showing no angst or hate.

It is a sad film, one that is reminiscent of the tragic undertones of relationships and short lives found in Atonement. It has modest beauty though, nostalgic beauty. It's one to watch.

CLASH OF THE TITANS

I had to see this epic mythological motion picture as Kimberley would not give me peace unless I did. She was, as always, right in doing so- we quite often urge each other to see films the other hasn't and we always do and end up feeling happy that we didn't miss out! We have an ongoing joke about seeing films like 3:10 to Yuma, mostly Russell Crowe films that Kimberley hasn't seen (have you watched it yet Kimberley?)

Ahem... Clash of the Titans was something I'd avoided if I'm being honest, I'm not really that fussed about greek mythology, unless it's pretty and the focus is on princesses and beautiful mythological creatures- I'd given Troy a miss, much to the disappointment of my boyfriend who has told me numerous times how good it is. I surprise myself because I absolutely loved greek mythology when I was younger, I adore Hercules by Disney, I find it all fascinating. So I got the dvd and I thought it was actually quite good.

Set in Ancient Greek, Perseus (SWorth) is struck by tragedy, losing everything he loved and then finds out he is a demigod, son of Zeus (LNees). He finds himself in the middle of a war between the gods of Mount Olympus and the people on earth who Hades (RFiennes) threatens to unleash hell upon unless they are willing to sacrifice the Princess Andromeda to the Kracken. As a mere mortal, Perseus must persue the mission to save the city of of Argos from the bubbling armeggedon with the help of ageless beauty Io (Gemma Arterton), a few soldiers and two Persian monster hunters. The group set out on their quest to find the fates who will tell them the only way to defeat the monstrous Kracken is to decapitate the Gorgon Medusa (Natalia Vodianova), whose face cannot be looked upon or else the viewer would turn to stone.

There's monsters, sword fighting, winged horses, shiny gods, all in the fight against man and the immortals. It's definitely worth a watch, even if you just like Sam Worthington or are a fan of the very lovely Gemma Arterton. Liam Neeson is always great but I disliked this version of Zeus, he's a bit of a liar and a cheater and just not very god-like, well apart from his hazy, glittering appearance.

They're also apparently making a Clash of the Titans 2 so fans of the first one will get so see more of Sam and perhaps Neeson in action, I hear Ralph Fiennes is making a reappearance as god of the underworld Hades. This time Zeus is in need of Perseus' help when Hades makes a deal with their powerful father Kronos to overthrow Zeus and unleash hell upon the world.

TRON: LEGACY

TRON: Legacy is a neon, futuristic and super cool journey into the deepest digital realm of the Grid forged by Sam Flynn's dad, Kevin Flynn who went missing back in 1989. Sam finds a portal to the world his dad is lost within, only to find creations that are so far advanced it's unbelievable they aren't real. He's flung into a world where no one can be trusted, including white haired club owner Castor (Michael Sheen). Will he find his dad? Will he make it out of the world where super sleek black suits, perfect hair and electric blue glasses of drink exist? I don't want to spoil it all, but I love that it's Disney and super grown up while still staying true to its childhood routes.

Disney have released it on triple play, which I also love you can take the dvd copy anywhere, put it on your ipod but the best way is definitely to watch it in blu ray high definition to best appreciate the amazing special effects in this movie.

Natasha ♥