The Ugly Truth About Aunt Lydia in 'The Handmaid's Tale'
Warning: This article contains spoilers up to season 5 episode 3Many members of the 'The Handmaid's Tale' fandom can point to a specific scene that makes them cry every time they watch it. It's different for everyone. It could be Rita walking off the plane, or maybe it's Moira searching through a cloud of smoke in Chicago. Whatever it is, it's proof that the show is a masterpiece.For me it was the beginning of season 2. The handmaids were ripped from their homes, chased down by dogs, and lined up on a gallows with nooses wrapped around their necks. The horror and desperation became an unstoppable force, crashing down on millions of viewers. We didn't have a choice. We sobbed our eyes out as we watched the girls reaching to hold hands with one another. They were shaking so hard they could barely breathe. June looked up and we saw what looked like the light at the end of the tunnel. She was going to die.A guardian called out, 'By his hand!' A lever was pulled, and the world gasped. The girls did drop, but not far enough to be hung. Instead, Aunt Lydia's voice rang out from a loudspeaker. 'You will love the Lord thy God with all your heart.'Had they not been tied up, they probably would've salvaged her for that. It was impossible to imagine how anyone could be so ruthless. They didn't do anything wrong. They just refused to stone Janine. Aunt Lydia didn't stop there, either. She used a torture technique, forcing them to undergo propaganda sessions while holding a stone up in the middle of the rain. She handcuffed Alma's hand to a lit stove. She even cut out one of the handmaid's tongues. This all started because Janine was losing touch. She was convinced that Commander Putnam loved her and that he would come for her after she was transferred to another posting. He had been lying to her and abusing her, and she bought into it.When Janine realized what had happened, she kidnapped Angela, and threatened to jump off a bridge with the child in her arms. June was able to talk her into handing the child over. But she still jumped off, injuring herself in the fall. Strangely enough, this was one of the first times we saw Lydia show any sign of compassion. It wasn't much, just a remark when she visited Janine's bedside. But the woman was so cruel that it was like seeing Ann Down step out of character.
Who Is Nick in 'The Handmaid's Tale' and What Will Be His Downfall?
Warning: This article contains spoilers for season 5 episode 3 and The Testaments.There's no one more polarizing in 'The Handmaid's Tale' universe than Nick Blaine, and the reason for that is simple. We don't know him or anything that goes on inside his head. We have to glean clues from his actions and his words. This began with Margaret Atwood's initial novel. In it, Nick and Offred develop a relationship organically, starting with a moment in Serena's forbidden sitting room. Later, after Serena orders Offred to sleep with him, they develop feelings for one another. Offred doesn't understand him. People in her world kept to themselves. They didn't talk or get to know one another. That was too dangerous. But she thinks he is too casual. He's not stiff or scared like a Guardian. This leads her to believe that he is an Eye. She still opens up when they're together. She tells him about her life in the time before, Luke, and Hannah. There is intimacy, but he's still a closed book. He does seem saddened when he finds out that Offred is pregnant, especially since he won't be able to take part in the child's life. That showed us that he had compassion. When Offred is dragged away by the Eyes near the end of the novel, he comes to collect her in her room, which seems to confirm her suspicions that he is an Eye. He reassures her, telling her that he is part of Mayday and that these men have come to rescue her. Serena and the Commander ask to see a warrant. They want to know what her crimes were. They're told that Offred is being arrested for violating state secrets. It sounds made up, which also lends creedence to the claims that they are in fact Mayday. In the epilogue, it's revealed that an audio tape was found in an old home. It's the fictional source material for the novel. Historians think she recorded it in a safe house at the border.
'American Gigolo' Shows Us Shattered Lives and Uncertain Futures
Warning: This article contains spoilers for the first three episodes of Showtime's 'American Gigolo.'''American Gigolo' follows the life of Julian Kaye, a former male escort who was released from prison after serving fifteen years for a murder he didn't commit. In the premiere, we saw a man at the top of his game, strutting around in designer suits, rocking out in a sexy car. Julian could be anyone his clients wanted him to be. He was mysterious, cocky, and boyish--the perfect conversationalist and just the right kind of lover. There seemed to be no end to his charm. During a round of pillow talk, he spoke about how he could step outside himself and slip into a role. He didn't have to pretend. He transformed into the perfect man for the moment. He didn't enjoy his job. That was his coping skill. It helped him avoid the complex mess of emotions that come on as a result of sex work. We learned to accept that even though he was a heterosexual male engaging in heterosexual encounters, he still felt the same dread that we typically associate with women in his occupation. We saw it early on his life when he was being pressured to sleep with the lady next door. She stood out on her porch and announced that her pipes needed fixing. He went still, and the look in his eyes told us everything we needed to know. He was in pain.This role reversal defined the show's motif going forward. Women became the oppressors and men became the victims. Everything else was the same. He was sexualized and objectified, lit up for the female eye. His profile, his hair, his arms, back and butt, were all shown off in almost every single scene. It didn't matter if he was clothed of unclothed. He was pressured, punched, slapped, and groped--a commodity to be traded. Women rented him for the night, draining him of his emotional energy, trying to possess him and use him. As the story unfolded, we began to learn more about Julian's life and the burden he carried around. He was quiet and he had a moral compass, but he was troubled, riddled with anger and vice. We started to like him, but at times it was hard to ignore his flaws.We also got to know about his history and the people that he had known over the years. It wasn't a full picture, but like everything about 'American Gigolo' it was enough to intrigue us, charm us, and leave us wanting more.
Cameron Crowe’s Grunge movie ‘Singles’ 30 Years Later and What Happened to The Cast
It’s been 30 years since director Cameron Crowe’s romantic comedy movie ‘Singles’ made it to the big screen. Intended as a snapshot of the nascent grunge scene in Seattle, the film featured Matt Dillon, Bridget Fonda, Campbell Scott, and Kyra Sedgwick.The movie centers around a small group of 20-somethings who happen to live in the same apartment building in Seattle, Washington- the grunge music capital of the world. Although it only had moderate success at the box office, the film received mostly positive reviews and has become somewhat of a cult film among '90s music fans.Although the music scene it documented and championed had since degenerated into the same rock n’ roll clichés it set out to destroy, the movie remains a pleasant throwback of what it meant to have come of age in the turbulent '90s. In celebration of the film's 30th year, here's a brief rundown of facts about the film, its actors, and what they are up to today.
Where Are Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen Now?
Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen are Hollywood sweethearts who dominated the industry in the 90s. The sisters, who are identical twins, were born on June 13th, 1986.The now 36-year-old twins were introduced to the industry at nine months when they were babies. They appeared in the sitcom Full House, which aired on television from 1987-1995. On the set of that show, producers exchanged them between episodes due to work regulations. As they grew up, the twins starred in more TV shows and sitcoms, including All My Children, Sister Sister, and So Little Time, which earned Mary-Kate a Daytime Emmy Award nomination. They also appeared in films like New York Minute, Passport to Paris, and When in Rome. Between 2001 and 2002, they also had an ABC children’s animated show called Mary-Kate and Ashley in Action,
'The Jeffrey Dahmer Story' and the Moral Conundrum Facing the True Crime Genre
As a huge fan of horror, it was impossible for me to pass up 'Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story.' Like many people, I've spent years studying him, watching biopics and documentaries, reading about the history of his crimes. I asked myself about nature and nurture. I picked up on his dull stare and his hushed tone, and I wondered what twisted lesson could be learned from him--at least that's what I told myself. In truth, I didn't really care about the psychology behind any of it. People do freaky things. They just do. Instead, I was pushing past my gag reflex, training myself to digest the horror of it all, the drill, the skulls, that poor man who begged the police to help him. I wanted to know this monster's secrets. He was in a fishbowl, and it was just too intriguing to look away. It was hell's gossip. I wasn't alone in this. I was part of a trend that has dominated American media for decades. We cannot get enough of these icons. We grab a microscope, shove them onto a slide and stare, and we keep staring, hoping for a new angle, a new rendition, another piece of the puzzle to keep us salivating.
Cyberpunk 2077 Now Has Over 1 Million Players Daily
According to CD Projekt Red, the developer of the acclaimed action role-playing game Cyberpunk 2077, the game has now reached over one million players daily. The developer revealed this good news via Twitter.
Xbox Game Pass Subscribers, More Games Are Coming Your Way
Xbox Game Pass subscribers, rejoice! More new games are coming to you, including some of the most anticipated and long-awaited games by the community. Just a few days ago, Xbox Game Pass subscribers were excited with the arrival of five new games to the subscription service, which is in line with the previously announced plan of releasing multiple games during the last half of September.The first games that were released are the first-person shooter Deathloop and the space-based sci-fi Hardspace: Shipbreaker last 20th September and Beacon Pines, SpiderHeck, and a game preview of Slime Rancher 2 last 22nd September. However, since Slime Rancher 2 only featured a game preview, some other features are still not available to subscribers, such as achievements. But we should be expecting plenty of additional features in the next months.
Kevin Hart Net Worth: Wealth, Career, and Life Before Fame
Kevin Hart, along with Dwayne Johnson, has been in some of the most successful action and comedy movies, like Central Intelligence and Jumanji II. He is part of the cast that makes a movie a hit at the box office.Just like everyone else, Kevin Hart also had a tough time before he became a successful one. Dwelling in despair and hopelessness, Kevin Hart found hope in comedy. Today, he is already a very different man from what he was decades ago. He was successful and able to live a luxurious life because he worked hard and had talent from birth.Thus, it raises these questions: what is the exact sum of his wealth? And what are the specific hardships that he underwent before he entered the realm of accomplishments? As you keep reading this article, you will find the answers to your questions and learn from Kevin's experiences.
5 Predictions For 'The Handmaid's Tale' Season 5
Warning: This article contains spoilers for the first three episodes of season 5 and The Testaments.We wait. As the audience, that's all we can do. We spend a year desperate for the next season. When it finally does arrive, we get two episodes, then we twiddle our thumbs six days a week wondering what's going to happen next. It's not easy. Many of us find ourselves sifting through The Testaments, scrolling through forums and groups, obsessing over trailers, wondering, so anxious to find out that we can't stop. We won't. It's just too good. That's the sacrifice we make for fiction of the highest caliber, and that is definitely the category that The Handmaid's Tale falls into. Anyone who's been tuning in this long knows that. The writers are at the top of their game. They can toy with us, placate us, and walk a tightrope to please us--all techniques that few can master. True, some of us might fall into the cracks of despondency and detach from the series, but they still know how to keep most of us watching. Many of you have seen the trailers for the upcoming episode and the newly released look ahead for season 5, and you may have noticed something. It's all so different. The rules of The Handmaid's Tale have changed. We can finally say that anything could happen. We know some of what to expect, but there's no point of reference anymore, no Gilead rulebook to follow. There are a lot of gaps in our knowledge--gaping holes in fact. That's what this article is for. Let's fill in those gaps, speculate together, and see if we can't come up with some answers. Not all of these predictions will turn out to be true; some of you may scoff, but they're not shots in the dark, either. As you will see, they come from a firm understanding of the source material and the few glimpses we've already been given about what comes next.
A Portrait of Evil: Who is Serena Joy in 'The Handmaid's Tale' and What Drives Her?
Warning: This article does not go over events that occur in seasons 4 or 5, but it does touch on material found in previous seasons. The author of The Handmaid's Tale, Margaret Atwood, has the extraordinary ability to bring life to the abstract. She forces the audience to confront things that normally couldn't be put into words. We bask in the smell of genesis in Janine's birthing chamber. We learn what it feels like to be stuck in solitary confinement. We see the struggles of a high-ranking daughter growing up in Gilead, and we come face to face with true evil. That's one thing Atwood understands better than anything else: evil. She sticks it under a microscope, tells us to stare into the lens. Then she holds our heads down, forcing us to confront it until we simply cannot bear to keep watching. It's because she understands something most of us have yet to comprehend. Gilead is our fault. Our fault. The system was thought up by men and women who betray themselves and those around them. There's the complacency, the progressives who should've been standing in the marching line with Moira and Holly and the rest of the collective, and then there's those who betray their own kind. They devote everything that they are to fundamentalism and the patriarchal power structure. These are the women who are so self-deluded, so vicious that they can beat their slaves while calling themselves the righteous elect--God's chosen, held above the rest of humanity. Serena has always represented those women and their puzzling motivations. She's the embodiment of the mindset that causes us to justify burning a peaceful world to the ground. To many, she is an enigma. We can't fathom what could possibly turn a woman like her into the monster she's become. She's too despicable, too twisted. It doesn't seem realistic. But The Handmaid's Tale does an amazing job of showing us where she comes from and what she is. The show has everything we need to understand this beast and the forces she embodies, and it all makes perfect sense. We just have to grab a magnifying glass and go over the material.
Dwayne Johnson Net Worth: How Rich is "The Rock"?
Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson was born on May 2, 1972, in Hayward, California, United States. The Rock was a natural-born athlete because he was exposed to the world of wrestling even though he was still young. His grandfather, Peter Maivia, or known as 'High Chief,' was in the wrestling world from 1960-1970.His father, Rocky Johnson, also known as 'Soulman', worked in the American regional wrestling circuit. His fame and eagerness to connect with people have built him a name in both the sports and entertainment industries.This article will let you take a closer look at The Rock's wealth, wrestling and acting career, and more that you didn't know about Dwayne Johnson.
Ray Liotta's Life, Hollywood Career, and Cause of Death
Hollywood reeled at the news of Ray Liotta's unexpected death on May 26, 2022. Liotta, best known for his role as Shoeless Joe Jackson in the movie 'Field of Dreams' and as Henry Hill in the Martin Scorcese gangster film 'Goodfellas,' is survived by his daughter actress Karsen Liotta from his previous marriage to Michelle Grace.Liotta left behind a diverse body of work that ranged from playing nice-guy roles to psychopathic characters and everything in between. He would even provide the voice for a popular video game character. Let's take a quick peek at the talented actor's career and private life and discover why his demise is a huge loss to the entertainment industry.
Lead Hero Designer of Overwatch 2 Decides to Leave Blizzard
Just two weeks before the release of Overwatch 2 (and the inevitable shutdown of Overwatch), the gaming community is hit with sad news—the lead hero designer of Overwatch 2 decided to leave the well-known video game developer and publisher, Blizzard Entertainment.According to a Blizzard spokesperson via PC Gamer, Geoff Goodman, who was last seen publicly in an interview last June, decided to leave the company earlier this year.
Reboots, Remakes, Prequels, and Sequels: How Hollywood is Reviving the Classics
Investors aren't exactly known for taking risks, and Hollywood is no different. Earlier this year, when Netflix announced a sharp drop in subscribers, the world of streaming--and the industry as a whole--took note. If it could happen to them, it could happen to the rest. There was widespread panic. The unrivaled growth that audiences had come to depend on seemed to be coming to an end. But not everyone cut back. Some preferred to calculate their investments, leaning on old classics, titles sure to attract a massive following. It's a smart move, one that streamers had long relied on. Disney has their Star Wars fetish. HBO has a massive list of planned Game of Thrones spin-offs, and studios everywhere are preparing to revitalize old franchises--classics we would kill to see onscreen again. It's hard not to get excited, and it's somewhat admirable to see Hollywood finding new ways to keep us anxious and waiting, ready to delve into the next big thing, even during times of austerity. They know what they're doing. Let's hope that talent carries over into the execution. They're trampling on sacred ground now. There are some things they simply cannot screw up.
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