I bet they’d used too much of the budget to re-film her scenes, but really, she was one of the only things they got right (well, maybe not “right” but close enough). I really like that she was a vampire of color who kept her color, despite being described as white (not Caucasian but light-skinned) in canon. I don’t know if ancient Egyptians were in fact light or dark skinned but in a series of alot of white ppl, it was good to see some diversity.
Crew morale was probably very low after she died, they might not have wanted to even try to replace her 😦
Okay, so firstly: I loved Aaliyah as Akasha. Sure, she wasn’t canon!Akasha, but practically none of the characters were themselves in this weird and loose adaptation. I wish she had completed filming fully and would have loved her backstory to be shown.
That said, I really, really want the next adaptation to do Akasha properly. She shouldn’t be black, but she sure as hell shouldn’t be white.
Akasha was from Uruk, which is roughly modern-day Iraq. Just imagine her role going to an Iraqi actress, and the implications of the most powerful vampire, the first vampire, the queen, being from a region whose people are treated like crap to this day and who face terrible persecution.
I imagine her to be like Sophia Jawad; the striking dark eyes Lestat mentions, the prettiness which underplays her regalness, etc. I would love to see Akasha brought to life as the infuriatingly brilliant debater cursed by her prettiness and her short temper.
I’m so glad that you thought of me when you read it! There are far worse things to be associated with omg. And yes: I still wonder if Louis is genuinely deep and depressed, and the pretentious tone comes from honest misery–or if he’s putting on some kind of Byronic mask, unable to actually feel for others any more than the average vampire does, and that this flowery writing is his attempt to reconcile with him self “Yes I CAN feel, I do still maintain that aspect of my humanity.”
And Lestat comes across as the villain because Louis wants him to, when you read the section of The Vampire Lestat that focuses on his time with Louis, you start to wonder how much Louis exaggerated to make himself feel like the long wandering philosopher, and that Lestat was little more than a rich European fleeing his troubles. Lestat, despite being just as melancholic and miserable is affected by things much differently, and unlike Louis, who at the end tries to stay detached from the world, Lestat compensates for his pain by falling in love with everything he sees in the world, throwing himself to the mercy of it in a half-death wish and half-euphoric madness.
They’re both such fascinating characters for the way that they handle pain and their own evilness (there’s a running debate under the surface with all of the vampires “are we inherently wicked becuase of what we are, or are we merely something enhanced, no more wicked than before, but everything we do seems louder?”). The cast of the novels are all so flawed but so heartfelt (often despite themselves).
As far as anti-heroes go, these two drama queens are up on my favorites list with the Phantom and Rochester, (though while Rochester’s failing was merely hiding and running away from his issues, pretending that they weren’t there, I’d say he’s lower on the ‘Byronic anti-hero’ level and more simply a Percy Shelley).
Finally, don’t apologize, I love talking about these books so much. Or at least the first three. I’m ride or die with Anne Rice at this point, but I try to take everything after Queen of the Damned with a grain of salt….or a few cups of salt. A lot of salt….
#Eloquent eloquence #Annabellioncourt #on point as always
They’re both such fascinating characters for the way that they handle pain and their own evilness… The cast of the novels are all so flawed but so heartfelt (often despite themselves).
^For me, this is what elevates VC from many other vampire/supernatural/any other series. If I liked them as vampires there’s plenty of other vampire media out there to get into, but these characters are who they are first, and vampires secondarily.
I would add that ppl are allowed to have those kinds of feelings when they’re 13, it’s around that time that we’re grasping the harsh reality of the real world. Disappointments about one’s expectations not meeting reality… it’s a trying time.
Whether growing pains are as valid as Louis’ issues (the whole “killing people is wrong but feels right now” is a big one), that’s up to individual reader’s judgment, but I think @annabellioncourt put it very well, that Louis is trying to maintain some dignity with the way he tells his story, which may come across as pretentious by our modern standards. The other thing to remember is that that book was written in the 70′s, and the writing style may seem dated for that reason, as well.
Remember that Louis reads A LOT, and he likes this older literature, so some of the language of the writers he loves seeps into his own language and the way he frames his memories. I think that’s partly why we see/hear so little of Louis in later canon, capturing his voice is a challenge.
What if Amadeo returned to Russia, when he was alive? Or maybe it was not long before the last meeting with his parents when he only became a vampire? Cold and beautiful russian winter and Botticelli angel.
Series: “Vampire Armand” by Anne Rice. Vampire Chronicles.
“Forget me now, Father,” I said. “Forget me, as if the monks had sent me away. But remember this, on account of you, I shall never be buried in the muddy graves of the Monastery. No, other things may befall me. But that, I won’t suffer. Because of you, that you wouldn’t have it, that you came that day and demanded I ride out with you, that I be your son.”
I turned to go. He shot forward, clasping the bottle by the neck in his left hand and clamping his powerful right hand over my wrist. He pulled me down to him, as if I were a mere mortal, with his old strength and he pressed his lips against my bowed head.
….
"Andrei, my angel child, my gifted and golden son!“
(Yep, I’m rereading TVA and at about 80 pages in, WOW, so much I had forgotten! There is a lot of action packed into this one book.)
“Might as well ask heaven what it sees, no human can know….”
How many times have I seen the movie/read the books? Y’know, I have lost count… re: the movie, definitely has to be more times than Neil Jordan has seen it. Maybe more times than it’s editor has seen it. The fact that I have a copy of it to pull gifs and screencaps from makes it so I can watch it frame-by-frame in excruciating detail and even re-edit parts of it to suit my needs…
BTW: This is a good official book I only read 1x and should reread, even if some info might conflict with canon info: The Vampire Companion: The Official Guide to Anne Rice’s “The Vampire Chronicles” This book was published in ‘93, before AR got as responsive over social media as she is now, and she is asked things to this day that she has explained in this book already, so I take this book as being more true to canon than her current answers, which may differ.
I will add that one weekend, around Halloween one year, movie!IWTV was on TV alot, and I ended up watching it 4 times in one weekend and THAT IS TOO MUCH. Even for me.
My favorite viewings are with other ppl though, where we say the lines out loud and make fun of all the stuff that can be made fun of.
As for the books, lost count on that, too 😛
Cut for length, not spoilers.
At some point I’ve gone back to all of the books to look for info, except Vittorio, which is not VC and I didn’t care much for him or his story. Some of them, I’ll admit I only read them start to finish 1x each (like BF, BC, Pandora, PL). It was never important to me to keep track of how many times I had read any of them, just that each time was a different point in my life and with that different perspective I was reading the same stories but I related to different characters and/or was focused on different things.*
I have this weird mixed feeling of being equally ashamed that I’ve read these so many times and being ashamed that I haven’t read them enough times to really qualify as An Authority. Does that make any sense? Pfffft…. I never claimed I was An Authority. I’m just doing my own thing with this addiction and trying to infect others with it and I’m happy to have you along for the ride ;]
*Just for one example, and being very simplistic about it: I related to Claudia when I was 11, and empathized with her frustrations at not being taken seriously as an adult, and later, when I had had child-care related jobs (babysitting, camp counselor, swim teacher, etc.) and was old enough to be a parent myself, I could empathize more with Lestat and Louis’s struggle to “parent” Claudia, who had a very real set of limitations and a lot of pain due largely to those limitations, and they were not at all equipped to handle any of that.
It’s summertime, I’m unemployed in-between gigs, and I want to open up commissions once more to help pay for monthly expenses in the meanwhile! Let me draw your favorite characters, your OCs, your next phone background! It’s all good~! Just send me a message and we can start today!
I ask for half the commission as a non-refundable deposit upfront, you will receive a preview upon completion and then after the amount is paid in full- you get your illustration!
Prices above reflect only standalone characters, if you want a reference sheet, rooms, backgrounds, props, etc, we’ll negotiate a price based on complexity.
NFSW is welcome if you’re of legal age, otherwise no.
UPDATE: I’m actually gonna be reblogging this a lot this week because of some unexpected losses. Know that literally every cent will go to bills, hahahaha.
If you want to keep from seeing this post please blacklist “Hiki Commissions” and you’ll be fine. I’d appreciate any reblogs.
On a little further reflection, you can skip: *possible spoilers under the cut*
Pandora – Is mostly about Pandora, and Marius, and their relationship. Pandora’s not really in PL much and their relationship doesn’t have much to do with how Marius is in PL.
Vittorio – This is technically not a VC book, and he has a different origin story and is not part of the VC vampire group.
Blackwood Farm – This is mostly a story told to Lestat and he’s not very invested in it, I don’t think many (any?) of the new characters introduced in this book make any more than a mention or brief appearance in PL. It is also fairly cracky.
Blood Canticle – AR said that PL deviates from canon in that it does not include the hybrid VC/Mayfair Witches stuff, but I think she meant this book specifically, which has Rowan Mayfair, who does not appear at all in PL. It is also very cracky.
IDK about other kinds, but Ricean vampires would have face, head, and body hair at the length and placement it was when they died (the texture and color of the hair does change slightly, and hair dyes would not remain permanent).
Jesse mentions being groomed before she’s turned. So those stray eyebrow hairs wouldn’t keep growing back for eternity.
There would be a nightly choice of shaving the face or not, if one had a beard when they were turned, and it would only grow back to the length it was the night they died. Which is partly why we never see movie!Louis trimming his sideburns, they won’t get longer. He could shave them off but they’d grow back.
[X] ^Lookit this bearded cutie trying on his fangs awwww… ❤
Lestat doesn’t mention having or being able to grow a beard.
LITERATURE MEME ↳ [1/10] FAVORITE CHARACTERS – LESTAT DE LIONCOURT
“Ah, come now. I look like an angel, but I’m not. The old rules of nature encompass many creatures like me. We’re beautiful like the diamond-backed snake, or the striped tiger, yet we’re merciless killers”
I-want-my-IWTV 