“You guys can’t envision the final collapse of capitalism? Incredible!”
I am the Pretty Thing That Lives in the House (2016) is one of the films exclusive to Netflix that I re-watch any time I re-subscribe. It tells the story of a live-in nurse/caregiver who moves in with an aged author of horror stories. The author is clearly meant to be a not-too-subtle reference to Shirley Jackson, who wrote some creepy tales like The Lottery (1948) and The Haunting of Hill House (1959).
The film feels like an experiment in atmosphere, mood, and sound design. It’s light on plot to the point of feeling more like a dream or basic ghost story told around a campfire. Out of all of Perkins’ films, this one is the most difficult to recommend due to its vibes-based approach to filmmaking. If the recent success of the even more experimental and surreal Skinamarink (2022) is anything to go by, however, there is an audience hungry for films like this one.
I am the Pretty Thing That Lives in the House takes a lot of inspiration from Shirley Jackson’s writing. Although I haven’t read it in years, The Haunting of Hill House is an excellent gothic ghost story. The 1963 film adaptation remains one of my absolute favorites. I can re-watch it again and again and find new things to like about it. Osgood Perkins’ filmography is just as rewatchable.
The Blackcoat’s Daughter (2015) has more of a plot and traditional story structure than I am the Pretty Thing That Lives in the House. We follow some Catholic school girls as the boarding school closes down for the Christmas break. The film takes its time to build tension. Like all good horror, it features themes and subtext. In particular, The Blackcoat’s Daughter focuses on loss and grief.
Gretel and Hansel (2020) is a re-telling of the classic Brothers Grimm fairy tale. I remember enjoying it, but unlike Perkins’ other films I have only watched it once. It would likely pair well with Robert Eggers’ The Witch (2015) as a double-feature.
Recently, I finally caved and rented Longlegs (2024); I missed it in theaters. Renting a movie reminded me of all the countless times going to the video rental stores over two decades ago. It’s remarkable that no online service has leaned into the video rental store aesthetic. A missed opportunity.
Longlegs is Perkins’ first film with a straightforward procedural structure. It wouldn’t feel out of place as a monster-of-the-week episode of The X-Files. I enjoyed it quite a bit. Not sure yet where I’d place it in Perkins’ overall filmography, but my knee-jerk reaction says it ranks among his best.
I hope Perkins continues to make films for many years to come.
2024-11-11
There are spoilers for Elden Ring below.
My first character was a strength and faith build. I don’t remember why I chose faith in particular, but it was a smart choice for a first playthrough. Incantations are handy for the numerous healing spells, including some that cure nasty status ailments that are difficult to deal with otherwise.
Stubbornness saw me stick with a regular old broadsword for most of the game. It’s not a bad weapon, but I should’ve been a bit more willing to experiment with all of the different options. I didn’t engage much with Ashes of War either, another mistake. Ashes of War allow for a lot of weapon customization free of cost.
I tried to go through the most of the game without referencing a guide as much as possible. Occasionally I would take a peek if I was really stuck or wanted to know how to get more of a particular smithing stone. Once I neared the final boss fights, I looked up how to get specific endings. I completed Ranni’s quest since it opens up a lot more of the game world, including Nokron, Eternal City; the Lake of Rot; and the Moon Altar, to name just a few.
Trying to see and do everything on a first playthrough was probably a bad idea since it made the game feel like a slog. There’s just a lot of game – maybe even too much.
Upon reaching the Haligtree, which is full of tough enemies, I finally caved and looked up a guide to find some better weapons for strength and faith characters. I settled on the Blasphemous Blade and was blown away by how powerful it is. It’s so strong that one can’t help but wonder if it’ll eventually be toned down a little.
As difficult as the game is, I think that the inclusion of Spirit Ashes – NPC summons that can aid players in boss fights and other encounters – balances out the difficulty somewhat. It’s still a shame that we don’t have difficulty sliders. Sometimes it’d be nice to explore the Lands Between without fear of being crushed like an insect. Or to recommend the game to friends who don’t like or play tough-as-nails games.
For my recent second playthrough, I went for a dexterity and intelligence character. Sorceries appear to be more powerful in terms of raw damage numbers, but maybe that’s just because there are so many different damage-dealing sorceries compared to incantations. (That could also just be my poor memory: I remember using the lightning bolt incantation way too much.) I picked up the Moon Veil katana early on and have used it through most of the game. I’ve also completed Ranni’s quest again simply to get her Dark Moon Greatsword.
Some bosses that gave me a lot of trouble the first time weren’t so bad this time around. I beat both Queen Renalla and General Radahn on my first attempts despite not practicing on either for nearly two years. I don’t think I knew that you can re-summon the NPCs for Radahn’s fight, which makes him a lot more manageable. In general, I prefer a casual approach to the boss fights rather than trying to tackle them all on my own.
A memorable moment: I brazenly went into the boss room for the Sage’s Cave, forgetting that the enemy is an invisible assassin. I managed to barely survive thanks to the Raya Lucaria Soldier Ashes. The NPC helpers could see the boss and helped me aim my sword swings.
I really like Elden Ring, especially the setting and environments. There are still some parts that I wish were different. The Draconic Tree Sentinel fight is a pain, for one example. There’s also a noticeable dearth of Rune Arcs for those playing offline. I think it’d be better if they were purchasable in unlimited quantities at a high price. As it is, I avoid using any of them, too worried that I’ll die stupidly (not an unreasonable concern) and feel like I wasted an extremely rare item. Comparatively, I never felt too worried about using the occasional Ember in Dark Souls III or Human Effigy in Dark Souls II. Maybe it’s the fact that players don’t receive a free Rune Arc upon defeating a boss?
As vague as the story can be at times, I still admire this sort of story-telling. It’s just enough to get the imagination working. It reminds me of a blog post on W. F. Smith’s blog, Prismatic Wasteland, which discusses lore in the context of tabletop role-playing games. Leaving ambiguity in the story allows for discussion among the playerbase as well.
Elden Ring shines at embracing the weird. I remember wondering what the “Two Fingers” could possibly be when playing my first character. Was it an organization? The name of a creature with two fingers on each hand? I was genuinely delighted to enter the Two Fingers’ chamber in the Round Table Hold and be greeted by a giant hand with two fingers.
2024-02-11
South Scrimshaw: Part One is a visual novel written and illustrated by Nathan O. Marsh. It’s structured as a documentary film about “brillo whales,” a fictional species that inhabit an alien world. It’s available for free on Steam. It’s a relatively short read, taking about 90 minutes to complete.
The game appears to have been made using RenPy. It’s nice to see RenPy continue to be used.
The writing is quite good. Marsh is clearly passionate about the world and has put a significant amount of thought into crafting a convincing alien planet. The documentary framework is consistent and believable.
Marsh’s illustrations have a water colour quality to them. There are a great number of illustrations in such a short work.
My only issue with the game is the use of “AI” synthesized voices for the voice-overs. I understand that there was likely no budget to hire voice actors. Nevertheless, I think artists and game designers should resist the temptation to use “AI” in their projects. Making use of these tools is fraught with dangers, including copyright questions and ethical implications. For instance, if synthesized voices become accepted, what happens to working voice actors?
“Part one” implies that there will be more. After such a strong start, it’ll be interesting to see where this project goes. Even if part one is all we get, it’s a self-contained story in its own right.
2024-01-22
I’ve followed Stephen Gill-Murphy online over many years. He has maintained a web presence in a variety of locations.
The sands of time have worn grooves into my brain – bad ones that have left me unable to remember precisely how I stumbled upon Gill-Murphy’s stuff. Space Funeral was probably the first of his games that I played. It was inspiring to see someone have so much fun with RPG Maker. Gill-Murphy has written at length about his experiences in the community that formed around RPG Maker. Space Funeral appears to be a small protest against many of the established tropes common to that community.
Gill-Murphy has in recent years moved onto Unity. Again we find him playing with the possibilities allowed by the tools. Most of the gameplay in his works involves exploring environments and reading snippets of text. While there’s always a wry sense of humour at work here, one can’t help but appreciate the quirky characters that populate his works.
Keep in mind that he has explicitly stated that he makes games “out of hatred and scorn” back in a 2017 talk given at an indie developer conference (folks who wish to hear him say this line can hop to 38 minutes and 30 seconds). He walks it back a little in the same video by saying that it usually comes down to a feeling of “affable incomprehension.” Gill-Murphy manages to pull it off by injecting genuineness into everything. His art is honest. Gill-Murphy isn’t presenting us with doodles because he’s making a comment about the art world. He embraces doodles because they’re fun. He has cultivated an aesthetic and voice. I love his little worlds that I get to explore.
His latest project is a series of games that feel like interactive comics (or zines). Their titles all follow the pattern: [A Body Part] of the Killer. Their protagonist is BB, a yellow bunny person with pink hair that covers one of her eyes. She is a zine-maker and the plots follow her as she finds herself the target of one killer or another.
Gill-Murphy collaborated with Alex Degen on this series. Degen designed cover art for each game and some art assets used in each title. The cover artwork does a great job at capturing the mood and happenings of each entry – just like good movie posters do.
There are already eight of these games to play. Each one is unique in its specific plot as well as some of the mechanics employed to tell the story. I frequently found myself wanting to inhabit these places. There’s a comforting beauty in the games. The pacing for each instalment is brisk. The writing is genuinely funny. I especially like BB’s reaction to finding out the identity of the killer in Blood of the Killer: as BB is being chased, she keeps shouting “WAIT” in a frantic effort to placate the killer’s thirst for blood.
A ninth entry is apparently in development. Gill-Murphy has said that he intends to put all of the titles together in a launcher application once the series is complete.
Gill-Murphy’s work is most effective at encouraging others to take a crack at creative outlets. After finishing his games, I’m usually left with the thought, “Hey, I could make simple little games like these.” That’s worth a lot.
2024-01-19