Stars I Love: Ryan Gosling

Art Streiber New York Magazine

How do you describe Ryan Gosling? I've unceremoniously given him the nickname Canadian Sugarcube, but that's just my massive crush talking. (The Twelve Days of Ryan Gosling is up to two threads on twitter and has only just begun...) But critics have called him one of the best actors of his generation, while almost anyone familiar with The Gos calls him charming, talented, smart, personable - to say the least. Settle into your onesie, in celebration of his birthday, we're digging into the charisma of his career and what makes him so lovable. Or, all of the reasons why he's one of my favorite stars - if not my TOP favorite.

The Walking Dead 8X03 Monsters

Gene Page / AMC

After amping up the ante of The Walking Dead's opening episodes Mercy and The Damned, it's third installation aims to take us even further with its action-packed momentum. The groups are in the midst of attacking the Sanctuary but face a crossroads on whether or not they're becoming the monsters they despise so much.

Below includes spoilers of the show and comic book. You've been warned, but hope you enjoy!

The Walking Dead 8X02 The Damned

Jackson Lee Davis /AMC

The Walking Dead's season premiere was just the start of a long war waged against Negan. Alexandria, The Hilltop Colony and the Kingdom took their trained civilians straight to the Sanctuary to fight, upping their game with an explosive zombie hoard. As Father Gabriel finds himself stranded in a shed with Negan, the community's plans are far from over.

Below includes spoilers of the show and comic book, as well as theories of future character deaths. You've been warned, but hope you enjoy!

My Cousin Rachel (2017) is the Victorian-horror-romance we need

Fox Searchlight Pictures

Based on the novel by Daphne DuMaurier, director Roger Michell creates a spellbinding Gothic horror that fits our every period-drama need. In the beginning, the story seems like an open-and-close of murder, but languidly turns into a tale between an unreliable narrator and a Victorian femme-fatale.

Observing from afar, a young man Phillip (Sam Claflin) becomes suspicious about the torrid affair between his cousin Ambrose and companion Rachel (Rachel Weisz). When his revered fatherly figure dies rather quickly and under mysterious circumstances, Phillip declares justice for his loss but instead finds himself down a path Ambrose took: falling under her spell.

So rarely does a Gothic horror movie plant a very simple idea in our heads, but My Cousin Rachel sparks us to ask did she or didn't she, and then makes us question our choice every step of the way.

From the beginning, Phillip's beliefs about her guilt and wanting to make her pay for his relative's death is easy to side with. What he knows or assumes about Rachel from his loved one's letters about her as a "torment" and his worsening his health is all we need to believe she may be guilty too. When she shows up on his doorstep, her compelling presence, only wanting the best of everything for him, makes it difficult to gauge whether she's working his emotions to her own benefit or if she's as innocent as she could be. Lacking in any romantic relationships himself, he's overwhelmed by her femininity and prowess, easily squashing the vengeance he held so firmly. But as Phillip grows increasingly obsessed with his newfound love, nearly vying for ownership over her, it becomes harder to see Rachel as a murderess casting revenge, and more of a free spirit not wanting to be possessed by anyone; unfortunately, caged in by societal rules.

One thing is almost certain: their love affair will end in catastrophe, but along the way, the story asks who the culprit is. The story starts out concerned if Rachel murdered Ambrose, and slowly begins mirroring a possibility of how their relationship grew troublesome. At once Phillip and Rachel can be hopeful, joyous, and splendidly over the moon about each other, but then on a dime turns extraordinarily spiteful and malicious. At every turn, Rachel never escapes the unyielding paranoia Phillip has cast on her, or she cast on herself. For both of them, the question we started out with of who killed Ambrose turns into who is the victim and the manipulator.

To make this work, the leads had to be very special. From big adaptations The Hunger Games and Me Before You to smaller productions like Their Finest, Sam Claflin rarely does no-wrong. Phillip required someone who was dashing and broken, skeptical and selfish, and Claflin offers everything his character needs to believe in his convictions whether they're wrong or right. To build his downfalls, by the same token, Rachel Weisz captures an enigmatic spirit for Rachel. In no time at all, one can't help but be warmed by her spirits, sympathetic of the quickly forgotten notion that she too lost Ambrose, guilty for casting her innocence aside too soon, but also left questioning her intentions. Throughout her career Weisz's managed a myriad of complex roles, slipping under the radar as one of the best actresses in Meryl Streep's league. Together, they make an hypnotic, complicated duo.

Melding the story and performances with the direction and stunning cinematography, My Cousin Rachel adequately fills every gothic-romance fanatics's needs. If a scene is cast in a meadow, one can't help but feel the breeze and freedom the outdoor gives. When set inside the house, it's quaint by claustrophobic. Every frame evokes that moody, unrequited stay in a haunted house waiting for the skeletons to come out of the closet. As an author DuMaurier has always been ample material for Hitchcockian-like films, and Roger Mitchell rekindling one of her stories delivers the ambiguity she delved into to make a visually and emotionally pleasing puzzle.

My Cousin Rachel proves to be a compelling mystery, a rare chameleon as a whirlwind love affair, and an identity crises for its leads. Thriving on paranoia, the who-dun-it elements work seamlessly for a first viewing, and subsequently inspire you to seek what you might've missed before. Aided by fascinating actors, a capable script, and beautiful cinematography, the movie dispenses a daunting ballad of horror and romance.

Rating: ★★★

Have you seen My Cousin Rachel?

What did you think?

The Walking Dead 08x1 Mercy

Gene Page / AMC

The Walking Dead has crossed a monumental finishing line in television, hitting 100 episodes for the series so far. Mercy kicks off the starting point, not only for the next era of the series after eight compelling years, but the war holding strong between territories. Last season, a beloved character's sacrifice for the greater good catapulted the battle from Alexandria, The Hilltop and The Kingdom, all the way to the Sanctuary.

Below includes spoilers of the show and comic book, as well as theories of future character deaths. You've been warned, but hope you enjoy!

20 Favorite Episodes of The Walking Dead

One of my all-time favorite shows The Walking Dead has hit its monumental 100th episode! For eight years, we've seen epic walker kills, learned how not to be walker bait, and witnessed beloved characters' deadly fates, surviving some of the worst a zombie apocalypse could deliver. After ranking my favorite seasons, quotes by the cast and Rick Grimes, Glenn Rhee moments, I thought it'd be a perfect time to cover myself in walker guts and go down a brutal memory lane.

In an effort to not repeat myself, some episodes are reserved for my favorite Rick-Grimes centered episodes, and there's probably a lot more I could give honorable mentions. But these are my top twenty favorites (so far). P.S. Reviews of the new season will be returning as a weekly feature on Wednesdays!

Happy 100th Episode The Walking Dead! (SPOILERS BELOW) What are your favorites? Let me know in the comments!

Wonder Women: Lisa Freemont in Rear Window (1964)

When one thinks about the intriguing elements of Alfred Hitchcock's filmography, the abundance of "icy blondes" he utilized throughout his career is hard to ignore. He worked with a myriad of starlets like Tippi Hedren, Janet Leigh, and Kim Novak, establishing them as femme fatales and victims on-screen. In celebrating Halloween by watching Rear Window, Grace Kelly's role as Lisa Freemont felt like a great character to highlight for my Wonder Women series.

Elegant and tenacious Grace Kelly dazzles in the classic thriller about an injured photographer L.B "Jeff" Jeffries (played by James Stewart) who's cocooned in his apartment and starts spying on his neighbors. Getting caught up in their own imaginations and theories, they suspect a grizzly murdered took place just across the street and try to prove their accusations to the authorities.

Throughout his career Hitchcock examined the themes of a seemingly perfect crime, and the morals that came along with the act in question. Like similar suspenseful films Marnie, Vertigo and Dial M for Murder, he also dabbled in the complications of marriage, singlehood, and the sexual tension between men and women. More prominently Rear Window, a tale of voyeurism and murder, offers a switch of gender roles where its independent and undaunted leading lady becomes the hero.

Star Wars: The Last Jedi (2017) Trailer Reaction

Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures

The time has finally arrived young Padawans! After months of the first teaser release, the Star Wars: The Last Jedi trailer dropped. As expected excitement for the eighth film, which will return to the Resistance's fight against the First Order, and Rey's ascent/descent with the force, was absolutely insane as we get a bigger idea of what's going to happen next.

Let's get straight into the new trailer! SPOILERS BEYOND THIS POINT