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Sunday 28 January 2018

Gloom Girls Project portal


This is a portal of the Gloom Girls Project. These are powerful ladies of darkness, hate, beauty and grotesque blood thirsty traits. Women murderesses who broke ideas and killed many. Devolving the way people think of women.
I've written these posts recently and last year. They will be included with other similar subjects I've posted. It's the total opposite to the "Golden Girls Project".
Gloom Girls are villains of their day. They're also cursed and demonic. I made just some of these ladies but there are many others. Among the Gloom Girls are queens, empresses, ladies, monsters and slayers.
List:
Wu Zetian
Medusa
Countess Bathory
The fear of ghost girls in horror
Lizzie Borden
Bloody Mary
Saint Olga
Lucrezia Borgia
Zhao Feiyan
Julia Agrippina Minor
Irene of Athens

by Rayne

Saturday 27 January 2018

Red Riding Hood


Review of the horror film "Red Riding Hood" (2011) starring Julie Christie, Amanda Seyfried, Gary Oldman, Shiloh Fernandaz and Max Irons. It was directed by Catherine Hardwicke. Based on the Brothers Grimm fairytale "The Little Red Riding Hood".
I don't want to place too many spoilers and ruin it for those who haven't seen it. The film is set roughly during the Middle Ages, in a town right in the centre of an enormous forest. The scenery is breathtaking, and the sets, houses, costumes and props are absolutely impressive.
The threat of the wolf is ongoing for the people and so the priest requests outside help. Valerie is a local girl who's sister is killed by the wolf. This means that the deal made between the wolf and the people for many years was broken. Could it be because of the red moon?
Valerie is persuaded by her parents to marry the rich Henry, while she's in love with her childhood sweetheart, Peter, a wood cutter. This causes conflict between Valerie, Peter and Henry.
Meanwhile, help from outside comes in the form of Father Solomon and his knights. However, Solomon is a dangerous man, and it isn't only the wolf that he wants to kill. He wants revenge and to punish anyone who knows something about the wolf and will go as far as to kill innocent people.
Valerie is caught in the middle, while the wolf is always there ready to make itself known, and terrifies people as it appears. When hunters think they've killed the wolf, they were wrong. The wolf they killed was just a regular grey wolf. The real wolf is still alive and it's a werewolf!
This film is visually stunning. It's tense and there are scenes that are most shocking and will make you jump. It's definately the kind of film to watch late at night in the dark. I rate this 8/10.
Disappointments: None really. 
Howls ^^

Thursday 25 January 2018

Gloom Girls Project: Irene of Athens


This is a project about ladies, maidens and queens who are just pure evil. It's the opposite to my "Golden Girl Project" series that I made years ago on this blog. Golden Girls is all about ladies of light. As with the "Golden Girls", although I shall focus on real historical figures, some won't be. Each post will focus on one such gloomy girl.

Irene of Athens

A girl called Irene who entered a beauty contest and became a Byzantian empress. The life of Irene Sarantapechaina began with her birth in the year 732 CE. This orphan girl was raised by her uncle who was a noble in Athens, Greece. At the age of 17, Irene was invited to a beauty contest, or basically as it was really, a royal ceromony for Prince Leo to choose a bride. Many young women were attending with their families and during this wealthy beauty pageant, Leo found Irene of Athens to be the most beautiful of them all. He selected her to be his bride.
Irene was happy to be chosen by the prince. Leo and Irene were soon married. At the age of 19, Irene gave birth to a son, called Constantine VI. Soon after his father died, Leo became the emperor. Irene was his empress. Some rumours went around that the former emperor was poisoned. Some years later Leo died. To this day his death remains unknown.
The 8 year old boy Constantine VI became the new emperor.
His mother Irene was regent and ruled on his behalf. She was very harsh and brutal.
When Constantine grew to a young man, so many marriage proposals flooded in from everywhere. But Irene was threatened by any future daughter-in-law stealing her powers so she organised an end to any marriage proposals for her son.
Many officials wanted Constantine to gain independance from his controlling and tyrannical mother. Constantine was still always unable to rule without Irene. He needed his mother. Irene hated that people tried to remove her power as a regent and made her son swear an oath of allegiance to her alone.
Still upset by her son rebelling against her, she plotted to have him deposed for conspiracy. Once Constantine was arrested and tried for these false allegations of conspiracy, he was not able to defend himself or show proof otherwise. The judge found him guilty of conspiracy and Constantine was punished in the most severe way. His eyes were taken out and he soon died.
Irene was now the empress and she ruled terribly until her death.
End
Written by Rayne
(The picture used on this post is "Irene of Athens" made by Rayne.)

Tuesday 23 January 2018

Gloom Girls Project: Julia Agrippina Minor



This is a project about ladies, maidens and queens who are just pure evil. It's the opposite to my "Golden Girl Project" series that I made years ago on this blog. Golden Girls is all about ladies of light. As with the "Golden Girls", although I shall focus on real historical figures, some won't be. Each post will focus on one such gloomy girl.

Julia Agrippina Minor

A Roman empress named Agrippina Minor or Agrippina the Younger, born 6th November CE 15. Her first name was Julia and she many siblings including her brother Caligula. Daughter of Germanicus and Agrippina the Elder. She grew up near the river Rhine in a Roman military camp. During her early childhood she lived in the wilds of Germany with her family and as a little girl, she was eager to explore forests alone but wasn't allowed to. She was sent to live with her grandmother Antonia in Rome so that her parents could carry out State trips to other countries.
After the death of her father, her uncle Tiberius became Roman emperor. He arranged for the teenager Julia Agrippina to marry Gnaeus Domitius Ahenobarbus, who was not particularly who she wanted. An extravagant wedding in the city was held with a feast, music, dancing and celebration. She soon had a son called Lucius Dominitus Ahenobarbus. Her uncle Tiberius soon died and then her brother Caligula became emperor. Caligula gave his sisters the gift of certain powers that made them go places that were once restricted. Coins were made in their images and they were included in many official events. That didn't last.
In Rome there was a ravage of illness and disease that claimed one of Caligula's sisters, called Drusilla. After she died, Caligula went over the edge. Drusilla and Caligula had incest so her death caused him to go darker and darker. Agrippina, her other sister Luvilla, and Marcus Lepidus, the widower of Drusilla conspired to kill Caligula. It failed. Caligula had Marcus Lepidus executed, while he banished his sisters to the Pontine islands. Agripinna's husband died.
The Pontine islands are small and remote rocks and that was where Agrippina and Luvilla stayed in exile until Caligula died. The sisters came to live there and often wandered the islands during misty twilights and along the stony beaches. Agrippina's uncle Claudius became the emperor and the sisters were allowed to return to Rome.
Claudius was married to the seductress Valeria Messalina who was both beautiful and cruel. Messalina threatened to kill the son of Agrippina who regarded the boy as a threat to her own son's position in the seat of power. Agrippina remarried and when her second husband died, she became extremely wealthy. Some suspected that she poisoned her second husband.
Messalina was soon executed for plotting to overthrow Claudius and later Claudius married his niece Agrippina, to the shock of everyone in Rome. Agrippina wanted to marry her uncle only so that she and her son would be powerful. She had anyone killed who she regarded as a threat. She then killed Claudius. After the death of Claudius, he was given godlike status and Agrippina was the priestess. Her son grew up and eventually became the emperor Nero. He soon turned on his own mother. After Agrippina's death, Nero displayed her body in an open coffin because he regarded her as incredibly beautiful. The ghost of Agrippina haunted Nero and she frightened him to the death. 

By Rayne

Saturday 20 January 2018

Moon of the Wolf


This is a review of the 1972 low budget "Moon of the Wolf."
I shall attempt this film reviewing on werewolf movies beginning with this one. I'll try to be fair. This was a murder mystery when a woman was found dead in the woods. It was never clear if she died because of wild dogs or murdered by a human, so the viewer aims suspicion at the doctor. When the doctor admits that he was the victims' lover, it all became strange. Did he kill her? It took the word of a neighbour to say that the victim was pregnant. The doctor knew about it but wouldn't reveal this vital information to the town sheriff.
There are not many characters in the film. It stars David Janssen, Barbara Rush and Bradford Dillman. It was directed by Daniel Petrie. This is a mystery horror with no gore but definate scary moments. The most frightening scene was when the werewolf entered the jail.
Plenty of lovely scenes of the bayou, woods, the mansion and it's garden. Shocking moment when the werewolf appeared trapped in a burning barn. Major spoiler when the actual person who is the real werewolf suffers when entering a house with garlic and smoking sage.
My rating and opinion is 5/10.
Disappointments: It felt as though there could've been more to this. How did the werewolf come to be in the first place and why did no one else notice before? This is a pretty quiet and slow film, and looks quite old fashioned now but is charming as well as entertaining.       
Howls ^^

Thursday 18 January 2018

Gloom Girls Project: Zhao Feiyan

This is a project about ladies, maidens and queens who are just pure evil. It's the opposite to my "Golden Girl Project" series that I made years ago on this blog. Golden Girls is all about ladies of light. As with the "Golden Girls", although I shall focus on real historical figures, some won't be. Each post will focus on one such gloomy girl.

Zhao Feiyan

There were orphaned twin sisters who lived during the Han Dynasty. The sisters were called Zhao Feiyan and Zhao Hede. Emperor Cheng had a sister named Princess Yang'a who wanted to keep the twin girls and she employed them to work in her house. She gave them food, clothes and even school lessons in dancing. Both twins were talented at dancing and they were graceful as well as enchanting. They became beautiful as they approached womanhood. Princess Yang'a named the most slender, swiftest and enchanting sister "Flying Swallow". When Feiyan danced, she was so light that it seemed as if she was moving through air. One day, Princess Yang's invited her brother Cheng to visit the house. When he saw Zhao Feiyang the "flying swallow", he fell under a spell and wanted to keep her for himself. So this was how the teenaged girl Zhao Feiyan became the girlfriend and concubine of Emperor Cheng.
He loved Zhao so much that he awarded her the title of Jieyu (Lady of Handsome Fairness). In the Chinese harem, there was a ranking system for all of the concubines but the ranking system altered throughout the ages in different places. During the Han Dynasty, and all of the others, the Empress is alone at the very top of the rank. The others, including madames and other imperial concubines were given their own titles and positions.
Emperor Cheng had a crystal plate made for Zhao Feiyan to dance upon. When she did, her graceful moves impressed all those who watched her. She performed for everyone in the palace and gained popularity and fame as the Crystal Dancer. Much anger, resentment, jealousy and bitterness occurred amongst the other concubines who grew to hate Zhao Feiyan.
One day, Zhao Hede was invited to visit her sister and then she was made a concubine by Feiyan, to support her and help back her up against jealous rivals.
The Emperor found Feiyan's twin sister beautiful and fuller with curves. He loved both sisters so much that he lost touch with his own duties. Both sisters conspired to get rid of Cheng's wife, Xu, and they each created a malicious set up against the Empress Xu and accused her of witchcraft. The lies made by the twin sisters caused the downfall of Empress Xu and Consort Ban. Both Xu and Ban were deposed. Zhao Feiyang became empress.
The two sisters were both so beautiful that the Emperor forgot about the world, lost touch with reality and as a result of this, the country fell into chaos. The girls were not able to have children and they hypnotised this most powerful man into becoming selfish, who was only nterested in having fun and pleasure seeking. While both sisters continued to dance, they were stressing about not getting pregnant. Other concubines who became pregnant were met by "nasty little accidents" by the sisters. The fable "The swallow pecks at the emperor's offspring" comes from the time of the dancer and empress Zheo Freiyang who took her malice out on other concubines and their babies.
Emperor Cheng died and some believe it was caused by Hede who might've poisoned him. After his death, his oldest son Ai became the emperor and he made Zhao Feiyan the "queen mother". When the new emperor Ai died, his grandmother made her nephew Wang Mang the emperor. Emperor Wang Mang changed the status of Zhao to that of commoner.
At the age of 31, Zhao committed suicide.  
   
Written by Rayne

Thursday 11 January 2018

Gloom Girls Project: Lucrezia Borgia

This is a project about demonic ladies, iron maidens and evil queens. It's the opposite to my "Golden Girl Project" series that I made years ago on this blog. Golden Girls is all about ladies of light. The Gloom Girls Project is about ladies of darkness. Obsidiously evil and dangerous by nature, they're cold blooded as they're so vicious, tainted and cruel. Each post will focus on one such lady of gloom.

Lucrezia Borgia

One of the most beautiful yet infamous women in history is the character named Lucrezia Borgia. She looked physically angelic, innocent with a pretty smile and tumbling curls, her flowery laughter and elegant manner. Yet people actually feared this woman. Why?
First of all, she came from a powerful and notorious family. This made her untouchable as well as immune to any justice. Her own family had a dark and brutal reputation that put everyone in the public on caution of getting in their way.
Lucrezia had a streak that made servants afraid of her, not to mention her access to poisons, how she didn't care about using it. Not only did she threaten to kill people, she killed people, and this made her frightening as well as cold and deadly. People could tell that she was capable of anything. She bullied anyone who wasn't as rich and powerful as her. Lucrezia had an image of being cruel and promiscuous. Her antics were considered evil and she was involved in orgies and incest.
Daughter of the corrupt and sinister Pope Alexander VI, formerly named Cardinal Rodrigo Borgia. Lucrezia married Giovanni Sforza but her husband was targetted to be assassinated by the king of France who was allied with Giovanni's uncle, Ludovico the Duke of Milan. The marriage failed, was anulled and Lucrezia was sent off to a convent.
After three years she married Alfonso of Aragon. An attmpt was made on his life and this injured him, but Lucrezia nursed him. Alfonso was soon murdered, by Cesere, brother and lover of Lucrezia. It was rumoured that she had an illigitimate child with her brother. Their incestouous relationship was known. Later Lucrezia married a Duke of Ferrara. She later died of childbirth at the age of 39.
Although her life was only brief, it was filled with scandal and insanity. The feelings that this girl projected onto others, mostly to make people frightened of her, gave her a sordid and grim reputation. She's gone down in history as a girl that is both beautiful, young and from a sinister family. 

The above picture is of Lucrezia Borgia made by me Rayne  using Azalea's Dolls

Wednesday 10 January 2018

The name Snow White


Someone asked "What is Snow White's real name?" and my answer is:
That is her real name. Before Snow-White was born, her real mother was sewing a napkin by the window and she watched the snow falling. Then she pricked her finger with the needle and three drops of blood fell on the sewing. There were three colours: Black, red and white. Black is the ebony window frame, as well as the thread. White is the snow and the napkin. Red is blood. When the three drops of blood fell on the snow/napkin, she looked at the way the colour red on white made her wish for a daughter. She wanted a daughter with hair like ebony, skin like snow and lips as red as blood. She then famously called her daughter “Snow White”. The queen soon had a daughter and then she died. Snow White’s father remarried and his second wife is the evil queen.
The three colours black, red and white appear again later when Show White grows up. Snow White’s step mother wanted to kill her. She escaped from the queen’s hunter and she ran through a forest with ebony trees. We could find this colour red appear in the form of a poisonous apple later on. The crystal coffin where Snow White was placed in was the colour of ice, snow and therefore white.
Hair, lips and body appear again after the story shifts to when Snow White lived with the seven dwarfs. The hair aspect is when a poisonous comb in her hair made Snow White collapse as if dead. Her skin/body (like snow) when Snow White is displayed in the white crystal coffin. Then lips appear again when the prince woke her up with a kiss. By kissing her, he brought her back to life and some of the apple lodged in her throat came out. Snow White survived, married the prince and finally the last of the three colours appear at the end of the story: Black, red and white.
Snow White was a bride dressed all in white. Her black hair the same colour as the horses of the prince. And the evil queen turned red and dies of burning from coal fire.  

Thursday 4 January 2018

The Last Jedi


As I posted about "The Force Awakens" I might as well quickly post my review of "The Last Jedi". I've seen all of the Star Wars films including the brilliant "Rogue One". I understand loads of fans hate "The Last Jedi" but I didn't hate it, I just didn't like it. I will give my review. SPOILERS
The visuals, special effects, scenic views, are fantastic. I don’t think there was enough of Luke and I wasn’t too keen on the way he was in this, being so grumpy and reclusive like that.
I didn’t like the character Rose as she was too boring and I much preferred her heroic sister who died earlier on. 
I’ve lost interest in Poe in “The Last Jedi” as he was so fired up all of the time, eager to bombs things and shoot at things.
I didn’t like General Hux and they could’ve given him an evil alien look. There were far too many humans in this one and not enough aliens. 
Sorry but I don’t think Kylo Ren is a very good evil bad guy. He’s like a boy having tantrums and is just rebelling against his dad all the time. Even though he killed his dad, which was upsetting. He should never have taken his helmet off. As soon as he removed his helmet in “The Force Awakens” he stopped being scary. It could be because of his face and hair. He just looks like someone you would find in a University and working at MacDonalds to get by. 
Snoke... not sure what to say about this evil one. He died very easily.
Princess Leia now general Leia doesn’t come across as very strong in this. She’s more like a tired mum than a tough princess in charge as she used to be in the earlier Star Wars movies from the 80’s. It doesn’t make sense that she flew back to the spaceship after being blasted out into space. It looked so ridiculous and 1960’s fantasy thing like Mary Poppins. The film made a joke of Leia in this particular film, which is sad really because Princess Leia was once a golden girl and now she’s a laughing stock. It’s also pretty bad taste imho because the actress Carrie Fisher died. 
I still like Finn, BB8, C 3PO, Chewbacca and R2D2. 
I don’t believe that Rey’s parents were nobodies. Anakin Skywalker’s background was basically ordinary too, I’m not saying anything is wrong with a Jedi coming from just poor people and normal citizens but the film had her built up as if she was a goddess, but she’s only mortal. So disappointed that she's just too Jedi without training.
I just love the crystal foxes and when they move, you can hear them shimmer. They were only in this film for a small bit. The sweet horselike fathiers at the casino world are just cool. I love the very cute Porgs but they're something for the kids. There are many other creatures and aliens in the film that are worthy of looking into so I put some links to those at the end of this post. The casino world looked cool but the aliens and people all resembled the way Earthlings dress far too much. But it was amusing to see these aliens wearing tuxedos and cocktail dresses. The scene there with Finn and Rose was all about rescueing the fathiers. 
The fight scenes were anti-climatic and bland.
Overall I rate this film a 4 out of 10.

Links
Star Wars: The Last Jedi Creatures Guide 
Fish nuns
Aliens of Canto Bright

Monday 1 January 2018

The Force Awakens


HAPPY 2018!!!
Let's begin my first post of the new year with a film review.

I watched “Star Wars: Episode VII The Force Awakens” yesterday and feel impressed by the breathtaking scenes, the space ships, aliens. I was happy to see Han Solo, Chewbacca, C3P0 and Princess Leia. R2D2 was in it only briefly but I totally love the new little droid BB8 who is just so cute! I was surprised and also fascinated that one of the Storm Troopers had a conscience and refused to take part in slaughtering a whole village of innocent people. This is a cool key character because if one Storm Trooper can find his humanity then that means there might be hope for the rest of the other storm troopers finding their's too? I guess something might happen. This rebel Storm Trooper is named Finn.
The world of Jakku where we’re introduced to a “Scavanger” called Rey. She’s a tough girl in a grey dress who can understand droid and alien languages. She knows things, because she might be a future Jedi. This girl rescues BB8 and meets Finn. I won’t spoil it anymore to those who might not have seen it yet. But what I want to show now are some of my favourite things:

1. Rey's dinner that includes instant bread. 
2. BB8
3. Happabore
4. Luggabeast
5. Rathtars

Now I've not yet seen "Star Wars episode VII The Last Jedi", what with so many very negative feedback from fans I may just watch it on DVD release. I always think "You be the judge and not go by what other people think". So I shall not be put off by other fans who'se seen "The Last Jedi" and hated it and say don't watch it. I want to see it and I want to find out what happens next. Most of all I look forward to seeing those magnificent alien crystal foxes. 

Overall I rate "The Force Awakens" 6/10
"Rogue One" 7/10
"Star Wars" previous movies each rated 10/10

More info on The Force Awakens here at Wookieepedia. 
Star Wars beast creature pets