I did my best, it wasn't much
Jul. 22nd, 2019 06:45 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
purplefringeguys, I...I made another Good Omens vid? A third one? I don't know what has happened, I don't understand anything any more, apparently Good Omens is my whole life now. (Which is good, I guess, because I have well and truly noped out of engaging with the Real World in quite a serious way, so it's nice to have something else to think about.)
This one has...Feelings in it. Many Feelings, which I absolutely did not know I had. But there we are. It's also to a piece of music about which I (along with approx. half the world) have Many Feelings, although I did know about those, because I once wrote a 2,000 word email-essay containing some of them. (it's NOT Queen, I promise)
I think I had a lot more to say, but it has temporarily escaped the chronicler's mind. Er. Have a vid, I guess.
Thank you to the wonderfulsoupytwist, such_heights & raven, who are lovely and thoughtful (and patient, and long-suffering) betas. If you haven't already, you should watch the Good Omens vids such_heights and raven have made recently, which are both breathtaking in very different ways.
Hallelujah
edited bypurplefringe
fandom: Good Omens
music: Hallelujah by Leonard Cohen, covered by Pentatonix
summary: there's a blaze of light in every word / it doesn't matter which you heard / the holy or the broken hallelujah. On faith, and falling, and freedom.
content notes: a shot of a snake at 00:18; a brief shot of a nail being driven into someone's wrist at 2:08. (I also have a version without the snake, if anyone would like that one)
ETA: I strongly recommend you go and readelisi's extraordinary Good Omens meta - the first section is a wonderful commentary on Aziraphale's journey as presented through this glorious vid by promethia-tenk, and the second section (about two thirds down the page) is about Crowley, and ties into this vid! YAY, INTER-TEXTUAL FANWORKS \o/
download: 169MB @ mediafire
Also on tumblr and the AO3
stream:
Lyrics
This one has...Feelings in it. Many Feelings, which I absolutely did not know I had. But there we are. It's also to a piece of music about which I (along with approx. half the world) have Many Feelings, although I did know about those, because I once wrote a 2,000 word email-essay containing some of them. (it's NOT Queen, I promise)
I think I had a lot more to say, but it has temporarily escaped the chronicler's mind. Er. Have a vid, I guess.
Thank you to the wonderful
soupytwist, such_heights & raven, who are lovely and thoughtful (and patient, and long-suffering) betas. If you haven't already, you should watch the Good Omens vids such_heights and raven have made recently, which are both breathtaking in very different ways.Hallelujah
edited by
purplefringefandom: Good Omens
music: Hallelujah by Leonard Cohen, covered by Pentatonix
summary: there's a blaze of light in every word / it doesn't matter which you heard / the holy or the broken hallelujah. On faith, and falling, and freedom.
content notes: a shot of a snake at 00:18; a brief shot of a nail being driven into someone's wrist at 2:08. (I also have a version without the snake, if anyone would like that one)
ETA: I strongly recommend you go and read
elisi's extraordinary Good Omens meta - the first section is a wonderful commentary on Aziraphale's journey as presented through this glorious vid by promethia-tenk, and the second section (about two thirds down the page) is about Crowley, and ties into this vid! YAY, INTER-TEXTUAL FANWORKS \o/download: 169MB @ mediafire
Also on tumblr and the AO3
stream:
Lyrics
SCREAMING WITH TIME-STAMPS
Date: 2019-07-25 03:32 pm (UTC)0:10 — this is the moment where I knew this vid was going to be great and I was in safe hands, with Aziraphale bricking up the hole in the wall of Eden. And it also introduces the AMAZING USE you are going to make of Michael Sheen’s AMAZING FACE
0.20 — “the minor fall, the major lift” — I feel like this is your stating your opening case for THIS SONG BELONGS TO “GOOD OMENS” NOW, and it’s a strong one
0.25 — “the baffled king” with Aziraphale resurrecting the dove (and of course he taps its chest exactly on beat) — I LOVE this because it’s a change from the book (where it’s Crowley who resurrects the dove), which annoyed people, and which was apparently done for practical reasons because of blocking issues, and you make such perfect use of it here; here is a being who has divine power to bring the dead back to life, and he is using it on a bird that he accidentally killed by shoving it up his sleeve in order to do pretend magic
0:33 — his radiant face reacting to the food, and I love the idea that that’s holy, because it really is part of his profound love for the world
0:42 — including books (and magic tricks, and wine, and snacks)
0.50 — and his little dum-dum-dum as he hangs up his coat, and into that sequence of gestures, so delightful
1.01 — “you saw her bathing on the roof, her beauty and the moonlight overthrew you” — these are the big money moments that get used in so many vids, but you tell the holy water story so deftly (and the “oooh-ooh-ooh” vocal embellishment as the thermos is handed over, you are SO GOOD at this)
1.12 — “she tied you to the kitchen chair” — all the little facial expressions and glances exchanged, with the coin thrown and caught woven in, as Crowley seduces him into the Arrangement and then into agreeing to godparent the Antichrist
And it’s so perfect with the David-and-Bathsheba/Samson-and-Delilah lyrics, because those stories are traditionally about being tempted/seduced into sin, but the song reframes them in terms of succumbing to vulnerability, to being “human” and flawed and frail in a way which is itself holy
1.133 — and oh, the hallelujahs are getting very harsh and lonely now, his faaaaace I can’t bear it, being judged and rejected by Heaven as a consequence of all the “softening” he’s done
1.39 — this close-up shot of Aziraphale losing his faith in heaven is one of the most impressive bits of acting in the show, and you place it perfectly in the vid and earn the space it holds, beautiful, especially with the cut away to the light in the portal dimming, and him averting his face from God’s light during their awkward conversation about the sword (and again the light dims), then returning to his face again
1.52 — the voice change and the POV change, I SCREAM; this is such a lovely shock for anyone who doesn’t know that this cover of the song has two lead singers, and you give Crowley such a power entrance with that little jump cut, I’m sure he’d appreciate that
2.05 — this is all so perfect for the song and you know it
2.09 — “I’ve seen your flag on the marble arch” — YOU USED THE CRUCIFIXION FOOTAGE YES GO THERE, AND THE ARK
2.12 — “and love is not a victory march”, with the two contrasting wall slams, and there’s a really interesting segue from the kind of performative-but-not-actually-scary violence of Crowley’s wall slam (which is nonetheless throwing “nice” back in Aziraphale’s face) to the real violence of the "bad angels" and the emotional nastiness of Gabriel’s little mock gut-punches
2.22 — all the little eye raises to heaven
2.24 — the softening “hallelujah”, and the chains fall away
2.28 — all the glances, you’re so good with glances, Aziraphale silently flirting his way into “Hamlet” being a hit, the paint being blown away is in every damn vid but again you earn it
2.40 — Az looking up as the bomb comes down, another unused moment, that’s someone watching his world about to come crashing down around them
2.42 — “how to shoot somebody who outdrew you” — all Crowley ever learned of love is rejection and abandonment and taking out your traumas on your houseplants, and yet he manages to love so deeply and so kindly anyway
2.56 —“a cry that you hear at night” — Aziraphale’s FAAAACE as he rejects him
3.12 — the slow beats that you’re cutting on behind the “hallelujah”s, the levitating and the fire, and then into the more subtle moments, the two of them stepping up to flank Adam and argue about whether the great plan is also the ineffable plan, before we’re into “come up with something or I’ll never speak to you again”
3.28 — Aziraphale getting sucked into the globe and then Crowley throwing his arms up to stop time as the music SWELLS, fuck yeah, and into the revelation of their wings
3.44 — Lucifer pounds his fists on the ground perfectly on the beat, Crowley getting yanked to the ground as he emerges is an overlooked moment
3.48 — Aziraphale gets ready to fight with his flaming sword as Adam gets ready to protect Eve with the same sword
3.53 — Aziraphale reaching to grab the scrap of paper with the “choose your faces wisely” prophecy as Eve reaches for the apple, lovely
3.58 — passing the scrap of paper on the bench
4.05 — the slow wing beats as the song settles and the narrative resolves and everything falls into place, the Ritz (and the piano echoing the wing covering) and the final callback to the wing covering on the walls of Eden
Re: SCREAMING WITH TIME-STAMPS
Date: 2019-07-25 11:28 pm (UTC)Re: SCREAMING WITH TIME-STAMPS
Date: 2019-07-26 08:30 am (UTC)Re: SCREAMING WITH TIME-STAMPS
Date: 2019-07-26 02:45 pm (UTC)Re: SCREAMING WITH TIME-STAMPS
Date: 2019-07-27 09:25 pm (UTC)To respond to some of the things in your glorious timestamped flailing:
0:10 — this is the moment where I knew this vid was going to be great and I was in safe hands, with Aziraphale bricking up the hole in the wall of Eden. And it also introduces the AMAZING USE you are going to make of Michael Sheen’s AMAZING FACE
HIS FACE IS SO AMAZING, I CANNOT DEAL. 90% of this vid is trying to make interesting points and arguments, and 10% is just LOOK AT HIS FACE. I’m glad you like this clip! I was v pleased with it - I talked a bit more about it in a reply to Elisi, above: https://purplefringe.dreamwidth.org/23708.html?thread=368796#cmt368796
0.20 — “the minor fall, the major lift” — I feel like this is your stating your opening case for THIS SONG BELONGS TO “GOOD OMENS” NOW
Oh I’m so glad! (Incidentally, please please don’t worry about your comment about this song being overused - I was not thinking of you at *all*! And I don’t really mind those comments, it’s actually quite flattering, it’s just also nice when people do like the song you’ve picked!) I am actually now feeling a bit weird about this moment, as I have an idea for how I could have done it slightly better, and the part of me that wants to obsessively tweak everything I make FOREVER is itching to change it. But I won’t. I do like how Eve closing her eyes as she bites into the apple is echoed in the shots of Aziraphale enjoying his food at 0:33.
0.25 — “the baffled king” with Aziraphale resurrecting the dove (and of course he taps its chest exactly on beat) — I LOVE this because it’s a change from the book
I’m glad you like this! I was a bit worried about using it for exactly that reason - it’s supposed to be Crowley. But I reasoned that even if it is supposed to be Crowley, we know it’s a thing Aziraphale is *capable* of doing, so it seemed ok. And it was just too perfect a moment - him being a soft, gentle angel, using his miracles in the only way he knows how. (In my first draft, I used the clip of him tossing the dove in the air - one of my betas very sensibly pointed out I should focus more on the actual moment of resurrection, and she was totally right)
0:33 — his radiant face reacting to the food, and I love the idea that that’s holy, because it really is part of his profound love for the world
YES. I was worried this might make people laugh…but this holy reverence for small earthly pleasures is such an important part of who Aziraphale is, and I hadn’t seen it explored seriously in any other vids.
1.01 — “you saw her bathing on the roof, her beauty and the moonlight overthrew you” — these are the big money moments that get used in so many vids, but you tell the holy water story so deftly
Thank you! This is Crowley being Vulnerable and Kind and I just feel like there’s such a strong through line between those three exchanges - the holy water request, the salvaged books, the thermos. It was VERY HARD not to use a longer shot of A’s beautiful face at the end of the church scene, because it’s just *so good* but I consoled myself that I had used basically all of it in my first Crowley/Aziraphale vid XD
1.12 - And it’s so perfect with the David-and-Bathsheba/Samson-and-Delilah lyrics, because those stories are traditionally about being tempted/seduced into sin, but the song reframes them in terms of succumbing to vulnerability, to being “human” and flawed and frail in a way which is itself holy
I love the way you’ve put this. Thank you for being so much more articulate than I am! One of my other betas described this as ‘Aziraphale, letting Crowley turn him into something an angel shouldn't be - someone with agency and free will - but willingly’.
1.133 — and oh, the hallelujahs are getting very harsh and lonely now, his faaaaace I can’t bear it, being judged and rejected by Heaven as a consequence of all the “softening” he’s done
This, and the first set of ‘Hallelujah’s, were the very first bits of the vid I put down, and they didn’t really change at all throughout the process.
1.39 — this close-up shot of Aziraphale losing his faith in heaven is one of the most impressive bits of acting in the show, and you place it perfectly in the vid and earn the space it holds
<33 omg I completely agree about the acting here. This moment was inspired by this twitter thread: https://twitter.com/CharCubed/status/1141531169839886337?s=20
1.52 — the voice change and the POV change, I SCREAM[…] you give Crowley such a power entrance with that little jump cut, I’m sure he’d appreciate that
Ahahahaha, I hope so! HE IS SO EXTRA, I LOVE HIM.
2.09 — “I’ve seen your flag on the marble arch” — YOU USED THE CRUCIFIXION FOOTAGE YES GO THERE, AND THE ARK
YES, two moments when Crowley is horrified at God/Heaven’s violence, and Aziraphale is trying desperately to justify them, when it’s clear he secretly agrees with Crowley. ‘Your flag’ is both Heaven’s and Aziraphale’s, here.
2.12 — “and love is not a victory march”, with the two contrasting wall slams, and there’s a really interesting segue from the kind of performative-but-not-actually-scary violence of Crowley’s wall slam (which is nonetheless throwing “nice” back in Aziraphale’s face) to the real violence of the "bad angels" and the emotional nastiness of Gabriel’s little mock gut-punches
I really, *really* wanted to contrast those two moments. I wanted to get more of Aziraphale’s reactions to both of them - his fear when faced with the angels, and his total chill when it’s Crowley. But alas, the footage didn’t work. This is…the violence of God’s love, and the violence Her followers enact in Her name, and the general hypocrisy of Heaven.
2.22 — all the little eye raises to heaven
I hope this moment breaks people as much as it broke me when I made it /o\
2.24 — the softening “hallelujah”, and the chains fall away
WHAT A GREAT METAPHOR, THANK YOU SHOW
2.28 — all the glances, you’re so good with glances, Aziraphale silently flirting his way into “Hamlet” being a hit, the paint being blown away is in every damn vid but again you earn it
Ahahahaha, like ALL my vids can be broken down into either ‘shots of people gazing at each other’ or ’shots of people’s hands’. That is all I vid. Oops. But yes - I wanted these Hallelujahs to be Crowley’s gentle demonic miracles for Aziraphale - the chains, Hamlet, the paint, and finally the church. As a nice contrast to the angelic violence of the previous clips.
2.40 — Az looking up as the bomb comes down, another unused moment, that’s someone watching his world about to come crashing down around them
It’s that, and also supposed to echo all the eye-raises at 2:22 - except this time, he’s looking heavenwards because of *Crowley*, rather than because of God - Crowley, who actually comes to his aid, unlike God.
2.42 — “how to shoot somebody who outdrew you” — all Crowley ever learned of love is rejection and abandonment and taking out your traumas on your houseplants, and yet he manages to love so deeply and so kindly anyway
At one point I actually had the shot of Crowley holding up the empty plant pot, which was DEEPLY SYMBOLIC and had some great motion…but also was just a bit too ridiculous and made my betas laugh, so I took it out (always listen to your betas)
3.28 — Aziraphale getting sucked into the globe and then Crowley throwing his arms up to stop time as the music SWELLS, fuck yeah, and into the revelation of their wings
I loooooove that wing clip. I love that Aziraphale has almost the same expression of reverence as he unfurls his wings as he does with the sushi! And Aziraphale going into the globe and Crowley stopping time - these are their big, Dramatic moments of Defiance, and I like putting them together.
3.53 — Aziraphale reaching to grab the scrap of paper with the “choose your faces wisely” prophecy as Eve reaches for the apple, lovely
More defiance! Eve and Aziraphale both make their choices wisely, to break free of what has been holding them back, and choose to truly *understand* the difference between Good and Evil. Which - ironically! - it turns out that NEITHER Heaven nor Hell understands. (They have no idea about the bodyswap - literally can’t tell ‘good’ or ‘evil’ when it’s tied up in front of them) (This is the other moment I am itching to tweak; I know how to do it better, but am RESISTING /o\)
4.05 — the slow wing beats as the song settles and the narrative resolves and everything falls into place, the Ritz (and the piano echoing the wing covering) and the final callback to the wing covering on the walls of Eden
I love that shot at the Ritz, because it’s Aziraphale taking delight once more in earthly pleasures, and also in CROWLEY - look how he doesn’t take his eyes off him! (In the next frame he starts to blink, so I cut before that). And ended with that shot of the wing covering because it’s Aziraphale’s second act of rebellion/compassion, after giving away the sword. (Well, perhaps his third act of rebellion if you count LYING TO GOD as a separate act) - this potential was always in him.
Um. So. That’s the vid commentary you didn’t ask for! *hides*
Re: SCREAMING WITH TIME-STAMPS
Date: 2019-07-28 07:31 am (UTC)Oh, I love the song! (I imprinted on the John Cale version way back when, but this particular cover is perfect for what you're doing here.)
But it's got such a huge over-familiarity problem, like it's been coated with layers of varnish. It's like the "To be or not to be" problem -- any actor playing Hamlet has to try to figure out a way to walk out on stage and do that speech and make the audience actually hear the words, as if they'd never heard them before, rather than going "Oh, here's the 'To be or not to be' speech".
Which is what makes it so jaw-droppingly impressive that you managed to do that.
Re: SCREAMING WITH TIME-STAMPS
Date: 2019-07-28 12:08 pm (UTC)\o/ \o/ \o/ Also oh good now I don't have to feel embarrassed about gushing at such length at you. *g*
This is such beautiful work and you deserve ALL the feedback.
YES. I was worried this might make people laugh
It is a little funny initially (which is not a bad thing at this point in the vid, soften your audience up before you start putting them through the emotional wringer): sushi set to religious music.
But it's also adorable (his faaaaace), and you develop your argument so clearly, showing him handling the book with equal reverence, and suddenly it's not "haha he loves food", it's "OH -- he loves EVERYTHING." *flaily hands*
but this holy reverence for small earthly pleasures is such an important part of who Aziraphale is, and I hadn’t seen it explored seriously in any other vids.
YES.
There's some discussion here you might like, if you haven't already seen it:
https://princessofgeeks.dreamwidth.org/935645.html
his Aziraphale is so concerned about the details! This particular taste, this particular person, this particular vintage, this particular book. It just chokes me up -- the beauty he finds in the details. He never overlooks anything.
And in the comments here: https://princessofgeeks.dreamwidth.org/935645.html?thread=15647197#cmt15647197
It's easy to imagine angelic love as compassion and kindness, but Sheen's embodiment perfectly connects Aziraphale's hedonism and gluttony to his kindness, because he simply takes untrammelled, childlike delight in everything, and he makes it charming and radiant.
and
+1 on embodiment--it's one of those cases where it's SO IMPORTANT that A has that little belly, because its a mark of his ability to experience embodied pleasure in food beyond strict nourishment (or fitting in - do these guys "need" to eat at all?) And that's marked as a kind of wonderful and holy thing, which I think it is
The sushi is a very important part of the theological argument! (Especially, it occurs to me, as it's the sushi that we see Gabriel so baffled by and judgemental of.)
Guessing you've seen Michael Sheen's comments about starting his characterization by thinking about what an angel as a "being of love" would be like?
Ahahahaha, like ALL my vids can be broken down into either ‘shots of people gazing at each other’ or ’shots of people’s hands’. That is all I vid. Oops.
CORE FANDOM MATERIAL. *g* And it means you catch and showcase all these tiny details of performance -- like the swallow at 1.26, or his happy little smile at 2.28, or the way he watches Crowley step up to talk at 3:22. Not just the obvious ones that have already been gif-ed and analysed endlessly.
It’s that, and also supposed to echo all the eye-raises at 2:22 - except this time, he’s looking heavenwards because of *Crowley*, rather than because of God - Crowley, who actually comes to his aid, unlike God.
I didn't consciously catch that (though I see other people did), but THAT'S SO COOL
(Also, not vid-related, but I see you mention being in London on your DW -- did you see Neil Gaiman's confirmation that he had St Dunstan-in-the-East in mind as the church? IT'S LITERALLY A GARDEN NOW, MR GAIMAN SIR YOU SENTIMENTALIST.)
Um. So. That’s the vid commentary you didn’t ask for! *hides*
BUT I WILL TAKE IT HAPPILY THANK YOU.
Re: SCREAMING WITH TIME-STAMPS
Date: 2019-07-28 08:31 pm (UTC)https://popularcultureandtheology.com/2019/06/07/good-omens-and-transformational-eating/
Re: SCREAMING WITH TIME-STAMPS
Date: 2019-07-30 05:26 pm (UTC)Guessing you've seen Michael Sheen's comments about starting his characterization by thinking about what an angel as a "being of love" would be like?
YES, and isn't he just wonderful?? I love every single acting decision he has made as Aziraphale, bar none.
the swallow at 1.26, or his happy little smile at 2.28, or the way he watches Crowley step up to talk at 3:22. Not just the obvious ones that have already been gif-ed and analysed endlessly.
I think this is partly due to the really stupidly obsessive way I have to vid? I actually have a very poor visual memory, so I have to spend a lot of time scrolling through scenes in microscopic detail - rather than just going 'oh, I know he smiles in that scene in ep 3' and going straight to it. Which I think means I tend to pick out little moments like that? Anyway, thank you for mentioning that, I am pleased with the little swallow at 1:26 in particular :)
Also, not vid-related, but I see you mention being in London on your DW -- did you see Neil Gaiman's confirmation that he had St Dunstan-in-the-East in mind as the church?
I DID NOT SEE THAT BUT OMG THAT'S SO GREAT! I have actually visited that church!! CLEARLY I now have to go back :D Thank you!!
Also oh good now I don't have to feel embarrassed about gushing at such length at you
DO NOT FEEL EMBARRASSED, honestly, this has brought me *such* joy. Also, I am JUST the same when it comes to art I love. You should see the length of comments I've left on some other vids... *I'M* embarrassed by how long it's taken me to reply to you each time, but that is because I am a human disaster who is not very good at dealing with compliments and need to work up the courage to look at them XD
Re: SCREAMING WITH TIME-STAMPS
Date: 2019-07-31 10:00 am (UTC)Tangential, but I'm telling everyone they need to listen to his ep of David Tennant's podcast: https://play.acast.com/s/davidtennant/michaelsheen
Relatively little of it's about Good Omens -- though a fair chunk of it is Sheen's Neil Gaiman stories, which are amazing. But it's honestly one of the most fascinating interviews I've heard in a while, and they go deep into acting process, among many other things. And it sounds like two people who know and like each other having a genuine conversation, which is a rare and nice thing in an interview.
(Content note: they discuss experiences of stage fright and blanking on stage in a way which is liable to give anyone with anxiety the vicarious horrors in sympathy.)
I actually have a very poor visual memory, so I have to spend a lot of time scrolling through scenes in microscopic detail - rather than just going 'oh, I know he smiles in that scene in ep 3' and going straight to it.
Huh, that's fascinating. Not what I would have imagined at all -- I'd have assumed without thinking that good vidders must have excellent visual memories -- but it makes total sense now you've said it.
I have actually visited that church!!
Likewise; it's so lovely.
*I'M* embarrassed by how long it's taken me to reply to you each time, but that is because I am a human disaster who is not very good at dealing with compliments and need to work up the courage to look at them
Completely understood, no stress! My personal failure mode tends to be "Oh wow, this person has written me a long and thoughtful comment, I will put it to one side until I have the mental energy to write them an equally thoughtful reply, oops it's been two months."
But FWIW, one of the things I love about formats like DW is not having to have conversations in real-time, and I love it when people reply to something I've said weeks or months after it was posted: the conversation can keep meandering on in its own time! it's great!