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March 29, 2024, 11:57:57 AM

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Lovecraft and Presence

Started by Hey, Punk!, November 14, 2018, 09:02:02 PM

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daf

How you getting on SMBH?

I used to have vivid dreams of climbing up spiral staircases in ivory towers in long shadowed 'magic hour' deserts after first being immersed in his stuff - totally intoxicated my subconscious.

Going back in soon for another dip - just need to get a seasonally scheduled Nancy Mitford out of the way first (Christmas Pudding)



Small Man Big Horse

Quote from: daf on December 08, 2018, 12:40:06 PM
How you getting on SMBH?

I used to have vivid dreams of climbing up spiral staircases in ivory towers in long shadowed 'magic hour' deserts after first being immersed in his stuff - totally intoxicated my subconscious.

Going back in soon for another dip - just need to get a seasonally scheduled Nancy Mitford out of the way first (Christmas Pudding)

I'm still enjoying it a lot but I do know what people mean about his being best as an ideas man, he reuses the same descriptive terms a little too often which can slightly annoys but the story is fantastic stuff.

BlodwynPig

Quote from: Small Man Big Horse on December 08, 2018, 10:59:30 PM
I'm still enjoying it a lot but I do know what people mean about his being best as an ideas man, he reuses the same descriptive terms a little too often which can slightly annoys but the story is fantastic stuff.

Ignore what people say, find your own path.

Small Man Big Horse

Quote from: BlodwynPig on December 08, 2018, 11:01:16 PM
Ignore what people say, find your own path.

I did, I just found myself agreeing with them in part. It is a fantastic story and I enjoyed it a great deal, but there were times I wish he used metaphors rather than describing everything as horrendous or grotesque, and the way he kept on referring to Nicholas Roerich's art rather than telling us exactly how he saw it was a bit irritating. These are very minor complaints though as it was a story that gripped me and he builds tension in the final third beautifully.

I discovered that it was adapted in to graphic novel form a few years ago and was interested to see how they'd portray events, but unfortunately the art is ludicrously bad.



Small Man Big Horse

I'm half way through The Case of Charles Dexter Ward and enjoying that a lot, right now I prefer it to At The Mountain Of Madness but it's a close run thing and how it ends might affect such a thing.

Also: There's a small Lovecraft theatre festival-y thing (including Lovecraft influenced burlesque!) in London next year - https://www.oldredliontheatre.co.uk/london-lovecraft-festival.html - I won't be able to afford tickets until January but plan to go to a couple, and if anyone else fancies coming along that'd be great.

BlodwynPig

Damn, in Canada when that is on!!

Pingers

The Case of Charles Dexter Ward is currently on BBC Sounds. I haven't listened to it yet, but looking forward to that.

Pingers

Re: Mountains of Madness, I think we can all agree there is more to this than meets the eye

BlodwynPig

By the fungoid of Shuggoth, fix that link!


BlodwynPig


Small Man Big Horse


BlodwynPig

Quote from: Small Man Big Horse on December 22, 2018, 10:46:51 PM
You're a very selfish man.

Missed everything because of Canada and wife hating my interests. I sit wistfully in my log cabin dreaming of a different reality, nuzzled in bed with you in our Elephant & Castle basement flat, watching mad things and perchance laughing.

Small Man Big Horse

Quote from: BlodwynPig on December 23, 2018, 12:11:06 AM
Missed everything because of Canada and wife hating my interests. I sit wistfully in my log cabin dreaming of a different reality, nuzzled in bed with you in our Elephant & Castle basement flat, watching mad things and perchance laughing.

When both our partners die in mysterious circumstances I will make your dream come true.

Pingers

Turns out the Case of Charles Dexter Ward on BBC Sounds is a retelling, set in the present day and presented as a case file and investigation, with much of it dramatised. I'm two chapters in and it's good. It's well done and has the same feel of unravelling a mystery as the original, despite being quite different.

Small Man Big Horse

Quote from: Pingers on December 23, 2018, 12:11:31 PM
Turns out the Case of Charles Dexter Ward on BBC Sounds is a retelling, set in the present day and presented as a case file and investigation, with much of it dramatised. I'm two chapters in and it's good. It's well done and has the same feel of unravelling a mystery as the original, despite being quite different.

That sounds interesting, once I've finished the book and a couple of weeks have passed I'll have to give it a go.

Pingers

I am about 7 episodes in now and it is excellent. The way it gradually pieces everything together and builds the suspense is top notch. I reckon HP would have very much approved.

Consignia

Yeah I've been quite enjoying it too. Been sticking it on whilst out running. I'm up to the episode where the American presenter is just sending a bunch of clips to the English presenter. It does sometimes feel it's losing it's framing somewhat, given it really started well. Hope it can keep it up until the end.

Cheers for the recommendation.

Small Man Big Horse

Finished The Case of Charles Dexter Ward last night and enjoyed that a lot, there's a little bit of padding between the tale of Joseph Curwen and Charles's story properly starting but overall it's a strong read and quite unsettling in places. Has anyone seen Dan O'Bannon's film The Resurrected which is based on it out of interest? Or the Vincent Price version?

NoSleep

Haven't seen either film versions but translating Lovecraft to cinema has proven to be quite difficult over the years. Often the final films can be a hoot (Re-Animator maybe the best example) but they tend not to remain particularly "Lovecraftian", with Dagon being the closest to an exception.

Small Man Big Horse

Quote from: NoSleep on December 31, 2018, 12:16:39 PM
Haven't seen either film versions but translating Lovecraft to cinema has proven to be quite difficult over the years. Often the final films can be a hoot (Re-Animator maybe the best example) but they tend not to remain particularly "Lovecraftian", with Dagon being the closest to an exception.

Ah, that's a shame to hear, I'm going to give The Resurrected a shot at some point, and Dagon's on my list now thanks to your recommendation, but will go in with low expectations. And I have seen Re-Animator and loved it a lot, but will have to rewatch it too given what I now know about Lovecraft.

BlodwynPig

Dagon is fantastic. Really captures the atmosphere well.

I like In the Mouth of Madness, but that has the vibe of a mythos RPG rather than original Lovecraft

Pingers

Basically everyone is just waiting for Del Toro to maybe, hopefully get to make At the Mountains of Madness, please, please, please.

Mister Six

Didn't he can that after Prometheus basically did the exact same story, only shit?

greenman

He always seemed a bit to whimsical to do Lovecraft well to me.

Alberon

It's worth mentioning Charles Stross' Laundry series knicks the Elder Gods for his books. The series has the mass of human brains computations and alignments of the stars weakening the barriers between universes leading to the end of the world.

Consignia

Just finished the podcast version of Charles Dexter Ward. Absolutely brilliant, well told and gripping. Not reading the original, I guess it takes a lot of liberties with the source, beyond the obvious modernisation. Whenever I look into Lovecraft stuff, it all appears very silly, and indeed this is silly in places, but there's enough around it get your teeth into.

BlodwynPig

Can someone pm me to remind me to listen to that when i get back to Canada

Thanks

Yog xx

Consignia

One thing, the English presenter does sound like Rhys Thomas doing Gary Bellamy. I was half expecting the people being interviewed to be voiced by Charlie Higson or Simon Day. Or to talk to a practising Cthulhuologist. 

Pingers

Just read Herbert West: Reanimator again after a long time. I didn't detect any of the horror of presence that Hey, Punk! mentioned, but it feels a bit of an odd one out compared to his other stories. Not very good I thought, also well racist.