The White Queen
@whitequeennv.bsky.social
The 2023 adaptation to me is a solid watch, but holy shit it's so dour and self-serious and piss-drenched compared to 2011. This is a silly story. It's a very silly book. Always was. Why are you so try-hard about this? Building interiors were lit by natural light, goddammit.
January 16, 2026 at 9:55 AM
The 2023 adaptation to me is a solid watch, but holy shit it's so dour and self-serious and piss-drenched compared to 2011. This is a silly story. It's a very silly book. Always was. Why are you so try-hard about this? Building interiors were lit by natural light, goddammit.
"The wonderful thing about fighting an imaginary opponent, Captain Rochefort, is that he's always greatly skilled yet easily defeated. The pride of victory without the risk of loss."
This fascinating line was cannibalized from the screenplay of the 1993 version. It never appears in that film.
This fascinating line was cannibalized from the screenplay of the 1993 version. It never appears in that film.
January 16, 2026 at 9:44 AM
"The wonderful thing about fighting an imaginary opponent, Captain Rochefort, is that he's always greatly skilled yet easily defeated. The pride of victory without the risk of loss."
This fascinating line was cannibalized from the screenplay of the 1993 version. It never appears in that film.
This fascinating line was cannibalized from the screenplay of the 1993 version. It never appears in that film.
Anderson's RE films are hyperfixated on clones with disposable personalities.
It's a glimpse into Anderson's conceptualization of film characters. They are just actors, they are putting on a performance, the camera stops rolling and they become someone else.
Most of his characters are like this.
It's a glimpse into Anderson's conceptualization of film characters. They are just actors, they are putting on a performance, the camera stops rolling and they become someone else.
Most of his characters are like this.
January 1, 2026 at 2:12 PM
Anderson's RE films are hyperfixated on clones with disposable personalities.
It's a glimpse into Anderson's conceptualization of film characters. They are just actors, they are putting on a performance, the camera stops rolling and they become someone else.
Most of his characters are like this.
It's a glimpse into Anderson's conceptualization of film characters. They are just actors, they are putting on a performance, the camera stops rolling and they become someone else.
Most of his characters are like this.
There is leaked dev footage from a late 2019 build that is... interesting. You know what doesn't show up a single time? Working RPG mechanics. Skill checks. Alternate paths. Any of that stuff. A 100% linear game with the worst action you've seen in your life.
IMO, the 2019 E3/Gamescom demo is fake.
IMO, the 2019 E3/Gamescom demo is fake.
October 27, 2025 at 11:59 AM
There is leaked dev footage from a late 2019 build that is... interesting. You know what doesn't show up a single time? Working RPG mechanics. Skill checks. Alternate paths. Any of that stuff. A 100% linear game with the worst action you've seen in your life.
IMO, the 2019 E3/Gamescom demo is fake.
IMO, the 2019 E3/Gamescom demo is fake.
Allegations about VTMB2 under HSL go back quite a while.
Back in 2021, one source claimed that HSL had gone completely off the rails and their game was "a fucking disaster" and "not fun" and "a boring mess".
More recent sources have claimed they didn't really have a game.
Back in 2021, one source claimed that HSL had gone completely off the rails and their game was "a fucking disaster" and "not fun" and "a boring mess".
More recent sources have claimed they didn't really have a game.
October 27, 2025 at 11:52 AM
Allegations about VTMB2 under HSL go back quite a while.
Back in 2021, one source claimed that HSL had gone completely off the rails and their game was "a fucking disaster" and "not fun" and "a boring mess".
More recent sources have claimed they didn't really have a game.
Back in 2021, one source claimed that HSL had gone completely off the rails and their game was "a fucking disaster" and "not fun" and "a boring mess".
More recent sources have claimed they didn't really have a game.
It's far more of a System Shock 2 -> BioShock situation. Although Prey 2017 was also attempting to be a System Shock 2 spiritual successor, so...
I mean, it's fairly explicitly trying to BioShock-ify Bloodlines.
That said, I don't know where this perception of "linearity" is coming from...
I mean, it's fairly explicitly trying to BioShock-ify Bloodlines.
That said, I don't know where this perception of "linearity" is coming from...
October 4, 2025 at 3:09 AM
It's far more of a System Shock 2 -> BioShock situation. Although Prey 2017 was also attempting to be a System Shock 2 spiritual successor, so...
I mean, it's fairly explicitly trying to BioShock-ify Bloodlines.
That said, I don't know where this perception of "linearity" is coming from...
I mean, it's fairly explicitly trying to BioShock-ify Bloodlines.
That said, I don't know where this perception of "linearity" is coming from...
It's also possible to draw connections to The Machine from A Machine for Pigs and its fixation on fire/flame/burning. Particularly in the cut "bad" ending.
Pinchbeck left the studio in 2023, but he wrote the initial version of VTMB2's story, so it's safe to assume thematic throughlines.
Pinchbeck left the studio in 2023, but he wrote the initial version of VTMB2's story, so it's safe to assume thematic throughlines.
September 28, 2025 at 12:18 PM
It's also possible to draw connections to The Machine from A Machine for Pigs and its fixation on fire/flame/burning. Particularly in the cut "bad" ending.
Pinchbeck left the studio in 2023, but he wrote the initial version of VTMB2's story, so it's safe to assume thematic throughlines.
Pinchbeck left the studio in 2023, but he wrote the initial version of VTMB2's story, so it's safe to assume thematic throughlines.
IMO that's almost certainly misdirection. Characters like Lou and Ysabella find any excuse to mention their "fireplace" or call you "little flame".
In the trailer, The Gardener says, "The city flowered in fire, and in fire she will end. It bought you here, my Phyre. My fire."
In the trailer, The Gardener says, "The city flowered in fire, and in fire she will end. It bought you here, my Phyre. My fire."
September 28, 2025 at 12:11 PM
IMO that's almost certainly misdirection. Characters like Lou and Ysabella find any excuse to mention their "fireplace" or call you "little flame".
In the trailer, The Gardener says, "The city flowered in fire, and in fire she will end. It bought you here, my Phyre. My fire."
In the trailer, The Gardener says, "The city flowered in fire, and in fire she will end. It bought you here, my Phyre. My fire."
Oh, granted, I shouldn't have said everyone. But I meant in the broad sense that VTMB1 wrote most of its cast as selfish, self-serving, and, for lack of a better term, "annoying".
I mean, Bloodlines 2 has those kind of characters, too. But it purposefully writes most of its cast as annoying.
I mean, Bloodlines 2 has those kind of characters, too. But it purposefully writes most of its cast as annoying.
August 19, 2025 at 12:04 PM
Oh, granted, I shouldn't have said everyone. But I meant in the broad sense that VTMB1 wrote most of its cast as selfish, self-serving, and, for lack of a better term, "annoying".
I mean, Bloodlines 2 has those kind of characters, too. But it purposefully writes most of its cast as annoying.
I mean, Bloodlines 2 has those kind of characters, too. But it purposefully writes most of its cast as annoying.
Huh. So apparently George R.R. Martin loved the film, and told Paul W.S. Anderson that it had captured his voice better than previous adaptations of his work.
This could go so many ways. There are cases of adaptations that book authors love, but that don't resonate with the audience.
This could go so many ways. There are cases of adaptations that book authors love, but that don't resonate with the audience.
February 26, 2025 at 12:38 PM
Huh. So apparently George R.R. Martin loved the film, and told Paul W.S. Anderson that it had captured his voice better than previous adaptations of his work.
This could go so many ways. There are cases of adaptations that book authors love, but that don't resonate with the audience.
This could go so many ways. There are cases of adaptations that book authors love, but that don't resonate with the audience.
Apparently George R.R. Martin "loved" Paul W.S. Anderson's In the Lost Lands, and told him that of all the adaptations of his work, it had captured his voice the best.
February 26, 2025 at 12:35 PM
Apparently George R.R. Martin "loved" Paul W.S. Anderson's In the Lost Lands, and told him that of all the adaptations of his work, it had captured his voice the best.
The American distribution is downplaying the fact it's a dark fantasy film. They omitted the premise of the story (the whole queen wants to be a werewolf thing) from the trailer, changed the logo to a generic one, and even downplay the doomed romance -- the thing that the entire movie pivots upon.
February 26, 2025 at 8:43 AM
The American distribution is downplaying the fact it's a dark fantasy film. They omitted the premise of the story (the whole queen wants to be a werewolf thing) from the trailer, changed the logo to a generic one, and even downplay the doomed romance -- the thing that the entire movie pivots upon.
It's a gothic western, full of lingering gazes and wide landscape shots. It's the kind of film that was intended to be seen theatrically.
The weird part is how the trailer almost frantically tries to hide the film's slow, brooding, melancholic nature by presenting it like an RE film.
The weird part is how the trailer almost frantically tries to hide the film's slow, brooding, melancholic nature by presenting it like an RE film.
February 26, 2025 at 8:35 AM
It's a gothic western, full of lingering gazes and wide landscape shots. It's the kind of film that was intended to be seen theatrically.
The weird part is how the trailer almost frantically tries to hide the film's slow, brooding, melancholic nature by presenting it like an RE film.
The weird part is how the trailer almost frantically tries to hide the film's slow, brooding, melancholic nature by presenting it like an RE film.
I feel the marketing should have focused on the The Keep-inspired elements -- the atmosphere and mystique, instead of trying to sell it as Resident Evil meets Mad Max.
"Be careful what you wish for..." is a more interesting hook than "Let's take a trip, here's a montage of action scenes."
"Be careful what you wish for..." is a more interesting hook than "Let's take a trip, here's a montage of action scenes."
February 8, 2025 at 2:54 AM
I feel the marketing should have focused on the The Keep-inspired elements -- the atmosphere and mystique, instead of trying to sell it as Resident Evil meets Mad Max.
"Be careful what you wish for..." is a more interesting hook than "Let's take a trip, here's a montage of action scenes."
"Be careful what you wish for..." is a more interesting hook than "Let's take a trip, here's a montage of action scenes."
Marketing the film as an action road trip film while omitting the premise of the film is a wild choice.
The queen wants to be a werewolf because she's in love with a certain character who is secretly a werewolf. The queen and her trusted knight pay the witch with contradictory requests.
The queen wants to be a werewolf because she's in love with a certain character who is secretly a werewolf. The queen and her trusted knight pay the witch with contradictory requests.
February 8, 2025 at 2:45 AM
Marketing the film as an action road trip film while omitting the premise of the film is a wild choice.
The queen wants to be a werewolf because she's in love with a certain character who is secretly a werewolf. The queen and her trusted knight pay the witch with contradictory requests.
The queen wants to be a werewolf because she's in love with a certain character who is secretly a werewolf. The queen and her trusted knight pay the witch with contradictory requests.
Russian poster for In the Lost Lands.
January 25, 2025 at 10:34 AM
Russian poster for In the Lost Lands.
The French poster for In the Lost Lands is very nice.
January 24, 2025 at 12:22 PM
The French poster for In the Lost Lands is very nice.
Teaser for Paul W.S. Anderson's In the Lost Lands. Full trailer coming next week. I like what I'm seeing so far, but it is very, very reminiscent of Resident Evil: The Final Chapter visually in ways that give me complicated feelings.
January 3, 2025 at 7:10 AM
Teaser for Paul W.S. Anderson's In the Lost Lands. Full trailer coming next week. I like what I'm seeing so far, but it is very, very reminiscent of Resident Evil: The Final Chapter visually in ways that give me complicated feelings.
Higher resolution version.
December 14, 2024 at 10:03 AM
Higher resolution version.
Dave Bautista as Boyce from In the Lost Lands.
December 14, 2024 at 8:07 AM
Dave Bautista as Boyce from In the Lost Lands.
The problem I feel is that all the classic Turok games felt very distinct. Distinct from each other, sure, but also distinct from other games.
The 2008 reboot and Origins feel like a generic late 2000s military shooter and a Warframe-like TPS respectively.
The 2008 reboot and Origins feel like a generic late 2000s military shooter and a Warframe-like TPS respectively.
December 13, 2024 at 10:18 AM
The problem I feel is that all the classic Turok games felt very distinct. Distinct from each other, sure, but also distinct from other games.
The 2008 reboot and Origins feel like a generic late 2000s military shooter and a Warframe-like TPS respectively.
The 2008 reboot and Origins feel like a generic late 2000s military shooter and a Warframe-like TPS respectively.