Spoilers...
Well, I'm not sure what Benioff and Weiss have had with their porridge, but similarly to last week this episode shot by. Obviously the focus was on Jon Snow - who to be fair is pretty hot for one of the undead - but the wheels are definitely in motion across Westeros.
Only a short glimpse of Dany this week, with an introduction to the widows of the Great Khals, who were all seemingly promised glory alongside their Moon and Stars (although presumably none of them had dragons), while in Mereen, Varys talked business with a conspirator of the Sons of the Harpy, with a wonderfully creepy performance from Conleth Hill. Meanwhile, in King's Landing his little birds (children) were being transferred to Qyburn's books, with the small council vacating their seats as soon as Cersei, Jaime, and Ser Gregor (no Robert the Strong) came to visit. I'm a little bored of Cersei now, she's no fun and her threats seem as empty as the Lannister's coffers. And then there's poor Tommen, who went in fierce against the High Sparrow for about a minute before he was convinced everything is hunky dory because his mother loves him. Oh dear. However, Jonathan Pryce is a joy to watch in this role.
We finally had some satisfaction in Braavos, where Arya kicked that smug girl's backside and won her eyesight back, and finally got a glimpse of Samwell and Gilly on their way to homestead Hornhill, although I doubt Randall Tarly will be hugely pleased to see his son. But all of this is small fry compared to more of Max Von Sydow's guided tour of the history of the Starks, where Bran saw his father go up against Ser Arthur of Dayne at the Tower of Joy. Ned was on a rescue mission to save sister Lyanna, and while he had always told Bran that he defeated Arthur bravely, the actual truth of the matter is that Arthur was a wiz with steel who brandished two swords like a medieval Chow Yun Fat and massacred his way through the Stark party, only to be stabbed in the back by Howland Reed (father of Meera and Jojen).
What's interesting is Bran's shocked and slightly disgusted reaction to this, with how we tell stories as parents to our children and what really happens. But while Ned shot off to find Lyanna, Bran shouted out to him, and he seemed to hear him. Is this a clue to some more special powers Bran may possess? And of course the Raven stops the vision as Ned disappears, meaning we have to wait to find out about the tower (I'm pretty confident Ned will reappear with a baby in tow). Talking of Starks, we finally caught sight of Rickon but it wasn't in the happiest of places after he was unveiled to Ramsay Bolton as a gift by Smalljon "fuck oaths" Umber along with Osha. But the most horrific thing was the "proof" that he was Rickon Stark - the severed head of Shaggydog.
BUT WAS IT?!
I'm going with no. That head was way too small to be a direwolf, and I can see this being a double-cross, with the Umbers being incredibly loyal to the Starks previously. Then again, this is Game of Thrones and George RR Martin can be a right bastard. But this is likely to be setting it up for Jon who, after a bit of an understandable shock at no longer being dead, got back to his duties and hung his stabees, including Ser Alliser (yay!) and Olly (aww). However, it was pretty obvious from that act that this Jon Snow is taking no shit, and he proved that by immediately leaving the Night's Watch, leaving Dolorous Edd in charge (he's not deserting - his oath was "until my death"). If he's going to unite everyone against the White Walkers he'll have to unite the North first, and the best way to do that is to fuck up Ramsay Bolton. GAME ON.
Another fine episode, and this season is rollicking along. I'm a bit bored by Cersei and Dany at the moment, but everyone else is stepping up to the plate, and it feels like it's becoming a real worldwide conflict again. So much time was spent with the Starks and the Lannisters, but the pieces seem to be moving in a more satisfying way, and the pace is just tremendous. Let's hope it stays that way, although I know I'll be howling at the skies when the episode ten cliffhanger rolls around.
- Charlie
Read Charlie's review of the previous episode, Home, here.
Spoilers...
Well, he's back. Of course he is, there was never any doubt, even before the stills emerged of him fighting fit. Game of Thrones has thrown us some serious curveballs over the years from Ned Stark onwards, but you always had the feeling that Jon Snow was destined to pull through, no matter what. So a dozen stab wounds from his "brothers" of the Night's Watch are nothing really, especially after a special sponge bath from everyone's favourite nutty religious redhead, albeit going to a crisis of faith.
But while Melisandre had doubts, Davos was convinced she could knock up some sort of spell to bring Jon back. She shouldn't have been that worried, considering her previous run-in with resurrection specialists Thoros of Myr and Beric Dondarrion, but all it took was a simple please to the lord o'light. You'd think the men of House Bolton might want to have a chat with her after Roose, the most likeable evil bastard since Tywin Lannister, was dispatched by his own bastard Ramsay, who might as well have a dunce cap stapled to his head. He may be a vicious mad dog, but he's also a moron - at least Joffery surrounded himself with advisors, while all Ramsay really had was his dad. It's getting a bit boring now with Ramsay, and I suspect Benioff and Weiss understand that, hence showing him feeding his mother-in-law (together with her newborn son) to his hungry dogs.
With Ramsay probably not long for this world (I doubt he'll last long with the rest of the North around him), this leaves a bit of a space for the Lannisters to get back in it, provided they can get around the High Sparrow, who has gone from wanting to purify everyone to world domination in a couple of steps. What a brilliant ending that would be, to see a religious bigot on the iron throne, right as a real life one gets ready to fight for America's crown. Cersei and Jaime are both pissed that their children have been slowly ebbed away, and I don't imagine Tommen will be around for much longer either, so I can imagine the pair getting behind Ser Frank of Stein aka the Mountain 2.0 and going for it. But would they get very far without Tywin?
There's also the question of the other other Lannister, Tyrion, who took a step towards being able to confront his enemies with flaming death after making pals with the two remaining dragons. Amazingly, Dany was nowhere to be seen this episode, although if last week was any indication she's en route to Vaes Dothrak, where she'll live out the rest of her years with the other widows of Khals. Oops. And then there's Pyke and the Ironborn. Oh Pyke. Here another head fell as Balon Greyjoy was chucked off a bridge by his mad brother Euron, and at the funeral Yara was told she was no longer a dead cert to take over, and that it would be decided at the Kingsmoot. I hope it's shorter than an Entmoot. And finally, an ever-growing Bran returned alongside the human form of the three-eyed raven (Max Von Sydow yay!), with a curious vision to a youthful Ned Stark and family.
So all in all, Home actually sped through things in a surprising way, maybe now realising that we are not too far from the end - twenty-seven episodes may sound like a lot, but you can never be sure with the propensity Thrones has to take things slowwwwly to the point where you think of the Cadbury's caramel bunny. But it's all good; not only the usual points for surprise deaths and gore (although I can't remember any tits in this one) but the gears moving like they've been freshly oiled, like people are actually starting to take notice that winter is coming (it's only taken six years!).
And with that, Jon Snow. What was also interesting was that Bran's vision with the raven not only showed young Benjen and Ned but also Lyanna. The focus here is curious, considering the long-held rumour that Jon Snow is actually Lyanna's son after she was raped by Rhaegar Targaryen (what a lovely world!), so perhaps this is leading up to that. But it does feel like this is ramping up - which either means it's going to crazy or we're going to get a bunch of slightly meandering episodes until eight or nine. Also, how many bloody daughters does Walder Frey have?
- Charlie
Over the course of October, I shall be watching one horror movie a day and reviewing it right here for your reading pleasure. I haven't seen any of the films I'll be watching before and you can find the full list here.
There's always a danger when watching truly iconic horror films for the first time, or indeed iconic films of any genre. The weight of expectation can sometimes be too much or the ubiquitousness of the film's imagery can prevent any of its scares from carrying the same weight as they would unseen. It's part of the reason why it took me so long to get to The Exorcist; from the instantly recognisable use of Tubular Bells to Linda Blair's battered face via pea soup vomit and liberal use of foul language, I felt I knew too much. I like films to be a surprise, an unknown quantity that is allowed to unfold as its creators intended, but in some cases, it's just not possible. I needn't have worried here though. It turns out I didn't really know anything about The Exorcist at all.
The biggest surprise? The exorcism itself takes up very little of the narrative. Instead, it's a melancholic exploration of faith in its various forms and the horror that arises when this faith is called into question. Naturally, religious faith is at the forefront, captured in the contradictory, troubled figure of Father Damian Karras. The embodiment of the clash between modern science and old Catholicism, Karras is the brain of the film, questioning everything around him through the lens of his psychological learning yet unable to reconcile that with his faith. It's also coloured by his own still raw grief at the death of his mother, something which he was neither there for nor had the ability to prevent. His work with Regan becomes an act of redemption almost, a seizing of control at a time in which he feels he's lost it entirely.
This lack of control is a running theme throughout the film, most obviously in the possession itself, but also in the circumstances that surround it as Chris tries to help her daughter. The MacNeils' most horrific experiences aren't necessarily the possession scenes, but the medical procedures she is forced to undergo as a world of science attempts to apply a rational diagnosis on an irrational occurrence. Anyone who has been through the illness of a loved one instantly understands the frustration felt by Regan's mother, Chris, unable to protect her family and surrounded by people who don't appear to know what they're dealing with. It's a form of emotional torture, a visceral pain that the film continues to capture in various ways.
Weaving these two stories together, a mother trying not to lose her child and a man mourning the death of his own mother, gives The Exorcist an emotional core that so many quickfire horrors tend to forget. In order to truly feel the scares and empathise with their plight, we need to care about these characters and Friedkin takes his time to slowly build their world and their relationships. It helps that this lack of control is something every one of us has experienced, but dialled up to such heightened proportions that it taps into our worst fears without us ever really realising it. Karras' grief or Chris' frustration are entirely within the realms of human experience, but dealing with something inhuman and unknowable as a result.
Perhaps the other big surprise was how well the representations of that inhumanity in the film's special effects have held up over the years. The practical effects are still pretty much seamless; unlike say, the staircase fall in Psycho, nothing works to remove you from the proceedings, only enhance that raw quality the film possesses. Mercedes McCambridge's vocal work as the demon Pazuzu is excellent, often feeling like the human voice equivalent of nails scraping down a chalkboard and even those iconic moments carry a certain power that I never expected to experience. The tension is mounted so expertly throughout these scenes that the exorcism's final moments feel like huge, emotional release.
It's such a great feeling when you finally get to a film like The Exorcist and it still manages to defy your already high expectations. With an intense exploration of faith at its heart and some wickedly effective make-up, the film still has the power to shock.
- Becky
You can find my other Shocktober '15 reviews here.
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