Peacock // Cillian Murphy {Movie}

Why I'm watching
Cillian Murphy is one of my favorite actors, so I’m slowly working through his filmography.

Where I got the movie
Amazon Prime (I think?)

Expectations
Cillian Murphy being ridiculously convincing in a dress; a more ‘traditional’ transexual/transvestite role (plus a healthy dose of crazy) since Kitten was closer to gender fluid. The synopsis and trailer don’t give a lot away about the plot, but it does suggest that he’s either hiding his cross-dressing or has split personalities.

So how was it?

John Skillpa (Cillian Murphy) is a bank teller in a small town -- and he’s got a secret (dun dun dun!). After a freak train accident in his backyard, his secret life -- Emma Skillpa -- is exposed to his gossipy small-town community.

Recommendation
It’s easy to boil this movie down to keywords (psychological drama, gender identity, multiple personalities) but it actually felt very accessible, like any mainstream serious drama.

Feels
Not a ‘fun’ movie in any sense of the word, but it was a lot more… playful? psychological? than I was expecting.

Favorites
Putting brown contact lenses on Cillian Murphy was a booooold move, but it allowed him to create a more inward and earthy character; his blue eyes are just too WOAH for someone like John Skillpa. I like that they put that much thought into the character.

Also, the breakfast scene.

Least favorites
I can’t separate out the parts that I didn’t like from the parts where Murphy’s super awkward insecure character (rightly) makes me uncomfortable.

The Importance of Being Earnest // Oscar Wilde

I’m pretty sure I read most, if not all, of this on a train -- going to see Hedwig when I finished it up, but I can’t for the life of me remember where I was going when I started it.  

Why I'm reading
Honestly? It was free, and it’s pretty famous. Ironically, in retrospect, the name Ernst was also pretty intriguing.

Where I got the book
Project Gutenberg, read on my phone using Google Books. Get it here.

Expectations
I have no idea what it’s about.

So how was it?

Okay, so this was both shorter and dumber than I thought it would be, as well as being a play instead of prose. It starts with a conversation between two friends, both of whom are guilty of bunburying -- having two identities, one in the country and one in the city, as an excuse to get out of things they don’t want to do. And of course, romantic hijinks ensue.

I’m actually very happy I read this after a few books like Pride and Prejudice… it’s an absurd take on all those little misunderstandings, complicated family relations, and forbidden love triangles.

Recommendation
Fans of absurdities and romantic comedies.

Feels
Lighthearted, trivial, exaggerated.

Favorites
The word “bunburying,” and the cucumber sandwiches.

Least favorites
It’s too stupid for me to love it, but nothing really sucked. What did suck was the opera version I listened to -- or tried to listen to. Awful. And not your typical boring opera sort of awful.

Writing style
Flippant, fast, complex.

The Queen's Necklace // Alexandre Dumas

Why I'm reading
After Monte Cristo, I wanted to check out the author’s other works. I picked The Queen’s Necklace at random.

Where I got the book
Project Gutenberg (again!)

Expectations
I’m going into this blind, for once. I'm expecting something like Monte Cristo, maybe a little more mystery - robbery? - and less action. But I must say, the first line… "Our old acquaintance, the Marshal de Richelieu, having with his own hands colored his eyebrows with a perfumed dye." What have I gotten myself into?!

So how was it?

I found out after the fact that this is the second book in a series, so... yeah. I might look into reading Memoirs of a Physician and The Marie Antoinette Romances.

The story has three plots intertwined - and when I say “plots” I do mean “plots”. One, enterprising young Jeanne maneuvers herself into the high life she believes she deserves; two, the mysterious Monsieur de Cagliostro takes interest in a doppelganger to the queen; and three, Beausire, the doppelganger’s seedy boyfriend, plans the elaborate theft of a necklace made for the queen.

Recommendation
For readers who enjoy court intrigue, historical dramas, and mistaken identity. Not for fans of action and adventure. If the slow parts of The Count of Monte Cristo were too slow for you, avoid The Queen’s Necklace.

Feels
Sedate, with sparks of mystery and surprise. Lacks closure.

Favorites
The introduction is extremely engaging; unfortunately, it doesn’t have much to do with the story. M. de Cagliostro was my favorite character - almost like the Count, but we’re not told much about his motivations.

Least favorites
The story was slow, and lacked a lot of the tension that made Monte Cristo such a good read. I’m not a huge fan of the whole doppelganger trope - and, even though the queen figures it out fairly early, she does nothing to avoid the typical doppelganger shenanigans. At least everything falls apart quickly and realistically (if not intelligently) instead of building an improbably web of assumptions and mistakes.

Writing style
This is episodic, just like Monte Cristo. Once again the different perspectives are used to create dramatic irony.

So what did I really think?

Click "read more"... massive spoilers ahead!