The Founder March 2023

Women’s history month

KENZA GARMZI | CONTENT WRITER

March of each year is women’s history month, whereby we mark and remember women’s contributions to society. This tradition started in the United States and gained traction in the 1980s. Months highlighting the achievements of a particular group are usually afforded to those marginalised in both the past and sadly also the present. Intersectionality is a regularly disregarded concept within the discourse surrounding oppression, but an important one.

According to the Centre for Intersectional Justice, intersectionality is defined as “the ways in which systems of inequality based on gender, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, class, and other forms of discrimination “intersect” to create unique dynamics and effects”.

News....................................................................................2

Features................................................................................4

Opinion And Debate............................................................7

Lifestyle...............................................................................9

Arts: Arts and Culture........................................................11

Arts: Literary Reviews.......................................................13

Arts: Film...........................................................................17

Arts: Music.........................................................................21

Sports..................................................................................22

Celebrating every kind of woman: Bernadine Evaristo’s Girl, Woman, Other P.13

Continued on p.6

Puss In Boots: The Last Wish: Are animated films changing their demographic? P.17

Raiders of the lost artefacts P.7

Source: Marchers at Women’s March 2017, Gillian Laub

Shamima Begum loses appeal to regain British citizenship

ROBYN SPINK | NEWS EDITOR

The Founder Board

2022 - 2023

Editor in Chief/Deputy Editor

Ali Krausova/Chloe Boulton

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Devesh Sood

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Publishing & Creative Designer

Alisa Khodyryeva

designer@thefounder.co.uk

News Editor

Robyn Spink news@thefounder.co.uk

Features Editor

Daniel Pepin features@thefounder.co.uk

Shamima Begum has lost her bid to appeal the decision to remove her British citizenship. The 23-year-old fled the UK at the age of 15, along with school friends Kadiza Sultana and Amira Abase, to join the terror group ISIS in Syria. Whilst in Syria, she married a fighter of the group and had three children, all of whom have died. In 2019 Sajid Javid, the home secretary at the time, stripped her of her British citizenship, meaning she was barred from entering the United Kingdom and left stateless. The Court of Appeal gave Shamima Begum permission to return to the UK in 2020 to ensure a fair trial. However, in 2021 the Supreme Court found that concerns surrounding national security outweighed her right to a fair hearing, overturning the original hearing.

Begum’s lawyers argued that the decision to take away her British citizenship had been unlawful as the home secretary had not taken into account whether she had been trafficked as a child. However, the Home Office prevented her from regaining British citizenship based on national security concerns, presenting the argument that Begum travelling to Syria voluntarily was integral to national security concerns. The judge concluded that even if Begum had been trafficked, the home secretary had a legal duty to consider national security when taking away her citizenship and that there had been no fault in the decision of the Home Office to take her British nationality.

Begum’s lawyers have said that the battle for her citizenship was “nowhere near over”, whilst the Home Office has said, “The Government’s priority remains maintaining the safety and security of the UK and we will robustly defend any decision made in doing so”.

Opinon and Debate Editor

Joel Davies opinion@thefounder.co.uk

Lifestyle Editor

Molly Ainley lifestyle@thefounder.co.uk

Sports Editor

Iman Ahmed sportseditor@thefounder.co.uk

Illustrator Tabitha Turner illustrator@thefounder.co.uk

Arts Editor Lily Birch arts@thefounder.co.uk

Literary Review Editor

Viktoria Praczko literaryreview@thefounder.co.uk

Music Editor

Anna Armelin music@thefounder.co.uk

Film Editor

Jethro Robathan film@thefounder.co.uk

The Founder is the independent student newspaper of Royal Holloway, University of London. This means we are not affiliated to the student union or the college. We pride ourselves on our investigative journalism and aim to keep our readers up to date with news on and off campus. The views expressed in this publication are those of the author and not necessarily those of the Editor, particularly of opinion and debate pieces. Every effort has been made to contact the holders of copyright for any material used in this issue, and to ensure the accuracy of its stories.

To book ad space in The Founder, contact our managing editor at managingeditor@thefounder.co.uk.

Source: iNews

Natural disaster or man-made tragedy? Reflecting on the Syria-Turkey earthquake

NEVE WATSON | CONTENT WRITER

On February 6th, a 7.8-magnitude earthquake hit the border region between Turkey and Syria, the strongest tectonic movement in that region since the 1999 Izmit earthquake. Reports claim movement was felt as far as Egypt, Palestine and Cyprus, with the following week bringing almost 10,000 aftershocks across the region. The disaster caused widespread devastation and infrastructural damage, and the combined death toll for both countries has now surpassed 50,000 people.

While the earthquake which devasted the two countries was a disaster which occurred naturally, the conditions which led to such widespread desolation were created by manmade long-standing issues. Poorly supervised urban development in the countries meant infrastructure was of poor quality and residents were critically vulnerable to tectonic hazards. Placing an additional strain was government corruption, with fingers pointed at Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan for his unfulfillment of promises to invest money gained from raised taxes on disaster prevention. On the Syrian side, the ongoing war has crippled health and economic systems and created widespread internal displacement, drastically reducing the country’s capacity to respond to natural disasters. As death tolls continue to rise, and response efforts stem predominantly from locals themselves and aid agencies, it becomes more apparent that the Turkey-Syria earthquake was not just a natural disaster, but a result of systematic state fragility and corruption.

If you are looking for ways to help relief efforts, Action for Humanity, Islamic Relief and Human Appeal are all UK-based charities on the ground in Turkey and Syria. Donations will aid in providing hot meals, winter kits and urgent medical help to those who need it.

Source: Getty Images

A declining population

ALICIA PRYOR | CONTENT WRITER

On November 15th 2022, the world’s population passed the eight billion mark. However, birth rates in developed and highincome countries have been declining to a historic low in recent years. A notable country facing this problem is China, where the population has declined for the first time in 60 years. This has been the result of the one-child policy, which was implemented in the early 1980s as a measure to slow the nation’s population growth. The policy lasted around 35 years and was enforced through various financial incentives when rules were followed, and through various sanctions when couples were found to have had more than one child. Although couples are now allowed to have three children, the fertility rate is still low at only 1.28. The country is now facing dire consequences that have come with decades of population repression such as labour shortages and a progressively burdened pension system that will likely represent a new era of economic decline in China in the following years and decades.

China is now currently trying to undo the repercussions of the onechild policy and the lingering low fertility rates through tax cuts, free fertility treatments, payments for sperm donors, greater maternity benefits, and more. Regions in China like Sichuan have also announced that they would allow couples to have an unlimited number of children. Although these new benefits have been a drastic change from those harsh policies less than a decade ago, many people are still unpersuaded by the incentives. Concerns regarding the affordability and lack of support in childcare, and economic insecurity have affected many people’s choices in not starting a family, especially in high-income countries across the globe. As India is set on overtaking China in population, China must find other ways to solve the issue as it could be at risk of society malfunction down the line.

In a rapidly developing global economy, it is not a surprise that birth and fertility rates have dropped. This is not unique to China, as countries such as Japan, South Korea, Russia, and Sweden face similar problems that come with low birth rates and a rapidly ageing population. With more women adopting full-time careers, the stereotypical role of family has drastically changed in the past few decades.

Current cultural and social norms have also now made the choice of having children no longer seem like a necessity for families. For governments looking to address the issue of declining birth rates, making parenthood an attractive option is key. The adoption of more affordable and accessible childcare policies with extensive maternity benefits and providing the best support for children would be beneficial in reversing the effects of declining birth rates.

Source: The Diplomat

When will we stop blaming women for their murders?

Katherina Hoi | Content Writer

On February 5th, Epsom College head teacher, Emma Pattinson, and her seven-year-old daughter were shot by husband and father George Pattinson, who then took his own life. A few days later both The Sun and the Daily Mail published speculative articles claiming that “killer husband was jealous of school headmistress wife’s success”. They asked, “did living in the shadow of his high-achieving wife lead to unthinkable tragedy?”. This might not have been the journalists' intention, but such claims come with potential dark undertones; those being that the crime was motivated and justified by Emma and her ambition, not by her murderer. The articles also highlighted marital issues due to Emma’s demanding job and George’s two business failures.

A similar case arose this year on January 1st, in which Ana Walshe, a successful American real estate agent, was allegedly killed and dismembered by her husband, Brian Walshe. At the time, he was under house arrest, charged with an art scam while his wife was thriving in her career. A Newsweek headline described just as much, “Ana Walshe Married a 'Career Criminal' Who Hated Wife's Success.”

Such articles imply an image of a neglected and emasculated husband who suddenly snapped and lost control. As Labour MP Jess Philips wrote in The Independent, regarding the Epsom murders, the articles seem to imply that “[Pattison] could have avoided being killed if she had only been less successful than…her husband.” Headlines like these represent a shocking but familiar pattern in the reporting of marital murders; the blame is removed from the husband and instead placed onto an outside force, something out of his control, like the actions of their wives.

Sian Norris, journalist for The Byline Times, writes that the media centres on the woman’s behaviour, successes, or past actions in a way to “turn the focus away from the murderer’s agency”. Thus, ignoring the actual other drivers of male violence. With male-on-male crime, details like career, marital stresses, sexual pasts, or wages are not given due to relevance. Nor is ever it written that the perpetrator was just forced to snap because of the victim. No, such “luxuries” are only reserved for the murdered wife.

The now-banned provocation defence, called the “nagging and shagging defence” by Norris, has been used to excuse male violence against women for generations by the media and public. The defence considers that the perpetrator acted due to outside events; the wife “nagging” or “shagging” someone else. In these cases, she is simply more successful.

The way the media talks about a woman murdered by her husband is still rooted in societal misogyny. It turns a tragedy into a story of warning. And even prescribes guilt and shame to an ambitious, driven, and talented woman while easing the blame on her actual murderer.

Source: Picture of Emma Pattinson and daughter Lettie, Surrey Police

OPINION AND DEBATE 6

Continued from the Front Page:

This is important to note as it dictates the ways we realise oppression, its effects, and how to combat them. In this article, I will be showcasing three women who contributed significantly to civil rights movements while also representing intersectional struggles faced by a woman of another oppressed community.

Sylvia Rivera

Many people have probably heard of Marsha P. Johnson, a Black transgender activist who was actively involved in the Stonewall riots of 1969 and a founding member of the Gay Liberation Front, however not many know about their close friend and fellow LGBTQ activist, Sylvia Rivera. Sylvia was also a trans-woman and participated in many demonstrations. She and Marsha P. Johnson founded the Street Transvestite Action Revolutionaries (STAR) to support gay and transgender youth through political means such as by providing housing for LGBT youth and sex workers. Their work in the 70s is considered ground-breaking for the time and became a prototype for other queer organisations.

Audre Lorde

Also known as Gamba Adisa: “Warrior: She Who Makes Her Meaning Known”. Lorde was selfdescribed "black, lesbian, feminist, socialist, mother, warrior, poet," who spent her life writing about her experiences with these identities and how she travelled through life, with all the odds against her. Her personal identity was key within her poems, and she sought to use these to make other people’s struggles more visible. She criticised the “womanist” movement for failing to address the struggles of Black/queer women within the existing literature and later worked in The Cancer Journals (1980), in the hopes of making coping with illness more inclusive, inspired by her own struggles with breast cancer.

Ahed Tamimi

Ahed Tamimi is a Palestinian rights activist known for videos of her vocal resistance to Israeli settlers. Multiple members of her family have been arrested including her mother and older brother in 2012, and later her younger brother. Tamimi was later arrested and charged with assault after being filmed slapping an Israeli soldier outside her home following her 15-year-old cousin being shot in the head. Her cousin survived the ordeal and despite being a minor, Ahed Tamimi faced eight months in prison. Protests in North America and Europe took place in support of Tamimi as a result. She now has a book, co-authored with award-winning Al Jazeera journalist Dena Takruri, They Called Me a Lioness: A Palestinian Girl’s Fight for Freedom, detailing her struggles as a young girl living in occupied Palestine.

The digital era of human trafficking from Taken to Andrew Tate

HANA NABIZADA | CONTENT WRITER

We all know the scene. We all know the lines. “I don’t know who you are… I will find you, and I will kill you”. This comes from a scene in Pierre Morel’s 2008 film Taken, an iconic movie in pop culture in which the daughter of Liam Neeson’s character gets abducted and trafficked. This is no doubt a movie that comes to the minds of many when asked about human trafficking. However, human trafficking does not for the most part occurs in the way that it does in Taken, namely forced abductions, ransoms and Liam Neeson hunting you down. It happens much more sinisterly and quietly if you do not know the signs. When asked what human trafficking looks like in interviews I conducted, the majority of respondents relayed the same ideas: violent kidnappings of young girls and women in third-world countries and often the promise of a better job and livelihood. However, rarely does human trafficking look like this (excluding the promises of better provisions: this is a common tactic used by traffickers). It can happen anywhere to anyone, regardless of age and gender. However, young women are the most common targets, and most commonly occur through romance and seduction. Victims are often already the romantic partners/family members of traffickers.

In the digital sphere of sex work, they are groomed to allow traffickers to “manage” their online presence in exchange for a cut of the profits. But what usually happens is financial abuse, blackmail, non-consensual distribution of images/videos and exploitative contracts.

This is what human trafficking typically looks like on the digital front. The disparity between what is thought to be human trafficking and what it actually consists of has become a grave issue. This is especially true after the arrest of Andrew Tate on suspicion of human trafficking, rape and creating an organised crime group. People, particularly Tate’s delusional followers, object to the accusation of Tate being a human trafficker as the violent notions of abduction, human smuggling (not to be confused with human trafficking) and exploitation that comes to mind do not seem to appear in Tate’s case. However, knowing what we do about what human trafficking actually looks like in reality and in the digital sphere, we can understand that this is why Tate has been accused of human trafficking. Building a relationship with young women only to groom and exploit them for online sex work does constitute human trafficking. Human trafficking does not have to be violent or dramatic, and it is rarely so.

Source: Unseen UK’s ad campaign, #UnseenStories

A double resignation

JOEL DAVIES | OPINION AND DEBATE EDITOR

In a shocking twist of affairs in New Zealand politics, prime minister Jacinda Ardern resigned in January 2023, reasoning that she “no longer had enough in the tank” to do the job justice. Just a few weeks later in February 2023 Scottish first minister Nicola Sturgeon also resigned after eight years in office, with arguably a very successful track record in the role. These two resignations may seem disconnected in space and the political system, but keen observers have pointed out the similarities in these resignations. Both took place after leading their respective countries through unstable pandemic restrictions and difficult economic conditions. Both leaders stepped down before they were “pushed” to, as happens so often in politics, which is a rare move for leaders at the top of their game. Finally, both Ardern and Sturgeon were highly popular leaders in their states, with election results that reflected this, but which experienced small drops in support recently due to topical challenges.

These two high-profile resignations have raised concerns in the press about the unique pressures that female politicians face in our democratic societies. Before resigning, it was revealed that Ardern was facing higher levels of death threats and was at more immediate risk than her predecessors before her. This is especially worrying considering New Zealand’s status as a generally peaceful and stable democratic society. Sturgeon faced similar pressures in her role, with a man being arrested and charged in March 2023 for threatening her life on social media.

Both achieved great success respectively in their roles despite this, generally delivering large mandates for their respective parties to govern. It does raise questions, however, about the role that misogyny and hatred play in our political spheres. Even if each leader has declared that these unique pressures did not influence their decisions to step down, surely, they would contribute more to their burnout? This needs to be acknowledged as a pressure which has an outsized impact on women in politics (compared to their male counterparts), and measures should be actively taken to mitigate this impact and to ensure the safety of politicians against gender-based violence. There is the added concern that one of the issues which facilitated Sturgeon’s recent downturn in polls was the proposed amendment to allow gender self-ID in Scotland. It appears that the eruption over this unpopular policy would have played into Sturgeon’s decision to resign, even if claimed otherwise, and it is worrying to consider that transphobic, reactionary, and gender-critical movements can so easily bring down a previously popular democratic leader. There is no evidence that this is certainly the case, but it is hard to avoid the speculation. Overall, misogynistic, and by extension transphobic, behaviour appears to be making its impact on the decisions of female politicians to continue their careers, and we must stay vigilant of the dangers of online hate speech, especially towards vulnerable groups.

Raiders of the lost artefacts

OLIVIA SCATTERGOOD | CONTENT WRITER

On Christmas Day 1950, the Stone of Destiny, traditionally used in coronation ceremonies, was removed from its place, and consequently broken in two in Westminster Abbey, by a group of four Scottish students intending to return it to Scotland for the first time in 700 years in their Ford Anglia. It was not until 1996 on the agreement between John Major and Queen Elizabeth II. that the stone was finally returned for good, on the condition that it would travel back down south for the ceremonial sake of a monarch’s coronation. Recently there have been calls to not return it for the coronation of King Charles Ill, in an effort of protest against Scotland being denied the chance for an Independence referendum. This is just one case of the way in which historical artefacts are so emotive and significant to a country’s culture and history. Countless calls have been made by nations across the world for the return of their heritage, many of whom place huge spiritual significance on these artefacts we have behind glass.

This is perfectly illustrated by a governor of Easter Island visiting the British Museum to appeal for the return of its statues: “We all came here, but we are just the body - England people have our soul.”. Yet today, at least a quarter of the excavations undertaken by archaeological contractors in England produce collections that never find their way to a museum. It is only worsening with storage space rapidly running out across the country, meaning that councils could also struggle to compel developers to excavate sites of archaeological interest and much of history could be lost forever. For instance, the British Museum is estimated to have around eight million objects with only a tiny proportion of these ever likely to be seen by the public.

Source: Scottish Daily Express

OPINION AND DEBATE 8

In 2023 we have no moral or ethical justification for hoarding items plundered by the British Empire. However, almost any effort towards the repatriation of artefacts by major museums is prevented by The National Heritage Act of 1983 and the British Museum Act of 1963. Furthermore, there are those who would patronisingly argue that only we have the necessary capabilities and resources to preserve these historical items. On the other hand, there are a growing number of historians and archaeologists who would also argue for their return and the wider dissemination of British artefacts across the UK. This would make our nation’s history greatly more accessible to wider communities, and especially to those who amid rising train fares and the cost-of-living crisis is less likely to make the trip to our national museums. By allowing schools, colleges, pubs, and parish halls to display these items we can enrich the culture of all local communities. The creation of a national library of these artefacts would alleviate the storage issues whilst also being the only right thing to do.

Source: Moai figures are a source of great controversy, Getty Images.

How to avoid burnout

NAJYAH RAHMAN | CONTENT WRITER

The onset of burnout is gradual. Many people link this sensation to having trouble managing their workloads as a result of stress and a lack of drive. This does indeed tend to happen, resulting in poor performance and a loss of satisfaction. However, burnout has an impact on all areas of life. The effects can make it difficult to manage personal relationships and one's own needs. Longterm effects of burnout include health issues, cognitive difficulties, exhaustion, and overall negativity.

Can we beat burnout? Absolutely, even if you have to keep working. Learning to unplug is a great place to start, especially if your mind is still on your tasks during your free time. Until it is time to work, keep a physical distance between you and your laptop. When it is time to work, schedule breaks. Avoid using your phone at this time, as you would not want to further overload your brain with information. Focus on relaxation - eat, drink water, or move your body.

Certainly, pay attention to your body. Your body always sends out signals, including signs of burnout, so learn to pay attention. It is easy to brush off symptoms like a headache, stomachache, and an aching neck as problems caused by things you ate, sleeping incorrectly, or dehydration, but that is not always the case. Aches and pains can result from a build-up of tension and stress. Finding ways to practice selfcare that suit your needs will work wonders in beating burnout, and fighting it from the inside out.

On that note of self-care, how about leaning on our support system? As mentioned, feeling burnout reduces our energy to keep up with friends. Take a moment to reconnect and let out your feelings by talking about them. Seek help from people who can make your workload simpler and meet with lecturers to break down your uni assignments, for example. Spend time with people who give you a sense of happiness and security. Talking about your personal problems with people you trust will always bring out a fresh perspective and a lighter load on your shoulders.

Of course, there are numerous actions we can take to prevent or minimise the chances of feeling burnout. Organisation, many would agree, is the key tool. To stay on top of your work, you need an organised method, whether it is a timetable, a daily or weekly to-do list, or setting reminders on your screen. My favourite recommendation is to keep a planner with you at all times. I got mine from Papier. Planners are great for not only keeping track of tasks, but your finances, wish lists, goals, and dates.

As students, we may all face burnout to some degree, especially now that it is exam season. It is so important to understand which is the best way to personally prevent it through being organised. Sometimes we need to take a step back and remember to disconnect, pay attention to our body, and practise self-care. Even during these next few busy weeks, burnout can be beaten.

Source: Unsplash

Spring is springing!

MOLLY AINLEY | LIFESTYLE EDITOR

Despite the drowsy weather that scatters our week there are scents of spring in the air. Tesco has Easter chocolate and pastels, town centres have Easter activities planned, garden centres are smothering us with daffodils and the clothes are beginning to not need coats! With a change in seasons happening, there are things that come along with that – exams, the end of the academic year, and final topics, which can all make spring a little bit sour. The excitement of spring is jammed down our throats, and in a way, it is both bad and good, but I really do think we must embrace new beginnings in any way we can.

Here are things that I believe will allow us to actually enjoy spring:

1) Nature

Winter is sad and this is no secret. I think what makes it harder is that the escape of going on ventures is harder. However, we can begin leaving our rooms and actually enjoy going out. Virginia Water is finally back on the table without consideration of freezing. As a third year, I feel like I do not take advantage of the surrounding areas enough, there are places around Egham that we can get to, such as Windsor and even places like Ashford and Feltham. Although they are not as popular as London, there is something wonderful in just blindly going somewhere and finding out what is there!

2) Outfits

I hate coats. I hate all coats. I hate big coats and small coats. I am a summer baby through and through. The prospect of slightly warmer weather means my coat will soon be retired which makes me more than excited, it makes me exhilarated. I have lost my sense of style and I am so prepared to wear long sleeves, dungarees, and flowery skirts without a coat. Or even a jacket. This is something to embrace. Planning your spring wardrobe is a distraction from the seriousness that spring and summer bring.

3) Food

Homely meals are wonderful! They are, but I am excited about new food, new menus, and Easter chocolate. I think there is a clear separation between summer and winter, but I think the transition from winter to spring is often overlooked. Yes, you may have an essay but going for food after may act as a reward, and that is certainly something to embrace.

Overall, spring is exciting. It is the metaphor for new beginnings for a reason. Change is scary, and the ending of the term is sometimes confusing. I know this as a third year more than some can gauge, the idea of this being my last learning term, and the essay questions I am receiving being the last questions I receive is daunting. But I am trying to use spring as a token of hope, as something to be excited for. Separating the season from the exams that are upcoming is hard, and I just hope my readers know that spring is beautiful, and they are not alone if they are finding it hard.

Source: Tabitha Turner, Illustartor. illustrator@thefounder.co.uk

The textured beauty of Bottega Veneta

LILY BIRCH | ARTS EDITOR

Amongst all the beauty and craftsmanship in this year’s FW23 Milan Fashion Week, Mattieu Blazy stunned with the Bottega Veneta FW23 collection. Once again, Bottega Veneta have proven their attention to both detail and texture, with the looks on the runway being full of character, and more than they appear to be at first glance.

The collection showcased a multitude of new designs for Bottega, such as long sweater dresses for men, all leather suits and knitted shoes whilst staying true to their classic woven and braided designs for the handbags. The new designs for blazers that are now only worn as tops and experimenting with leather knitted socks and camis, shows what can be done when a brand takes the time to experiment with different materials and to understand what each one has to offer in terms of malleability.

What made this collection so special is how much attention to detail went into each individual piece and fabric type. The collection displayed the excellent craftsmanship needed to create pieces that are unique and thoughtful. From the wistful feathering details on the jackets and structured skirts to the beautiful, embroidered sequinencrusted floral dresses, Bottega Veneta have mastered the art of a simple silhouette and an elaborate textural craft.

Luxury and elegance are felt through both men’s and women’s clothing, accrediting the brand’s ability to excel in genderneutral suits and dresses. The men’s knitted dresses are sophisticated and formal, being shown in an ecstatic red and a neutral cream layered over the top of a shirt and tie and reaching all the way to the floor. And the women's suits are structured and tailored to complement the female figure whilst being sturdy and powerful. Similarly to Blazy’s SS23 Bottega Veneta collection, he wanted to explore the ideas of characters through these clothes and exude a mood to complement each garment. Through the dark leather suits representing honcho bankers of the city, to the women’s fur spotted coats and feathered skirts as one of freedom and beauty.

All eyes have turned to Bottega Veneta in awe of what new concepts they will create next, and despite the tough competition to stand out at fashion week without any of the more common theatrics nowadays, they have still made their mark and shown how the attention to detail and texture is what truly represents them as a brand.

Flies review: The effect of the male gaze on young women

LILY BIRCH | ARTS EDITOR

Boundless Theatre once again hit it out of the park with their newest feminist theatre play, Flies. Located in the Shoreditch Town Hall, writer Charlie Josephine sets up a studio with lights and cameras laying out the stage, with seven young women taking the floor and consuming the audience's attention for 70 minutes. Charlie Jospehine responds to William Golding's classic Lord of the Flies in a new, radical way; a contemporary allegory for female oppression and the fetishisation of the female body, especially that of underage girls.

The play itself feels as though it is split up into sections, with each one tackling a different struggle faced by girls and women in patriarchal society. Each actress expresses their frustration and disgust in dealing with issues such as catcalling, body image and rape culture, in a passionate and moving way, speaking for all the women who have been forced to stay quiet in fear.

The play feels extremely immersive with the actresses often directing their actions or words towards the audience, breaking the fourth wall, as though in conversation. Emotions and exasperation are felt heavily when these interactions are made, holding the audience accountable and making the comparison between the audience being voyeurs to the play in the same way that men are voyeurs to the female body, even when uninvited.

The girls are confined to the small space that the backdrop allows, and stepping outside of that boundary causes flashing lights from the cameras and studio bulbs, reminding them of their limitations. This meta-theatrical decision hints at a comparison between William Golding's Lord of the Flies with the restrictions the characters in the novel faced.

The performers (Afriya-Jasmine Nylander, Annabel Gray, Ellie-Rose Amit, Louisa Hamdi, Pearl Adams, Rosa Amos and Willow Traynor) are all excellent and engaging, yet their characters remain unnamed. This lack of a character name reinforces the message that the stories being relayed are lived by so many women, but the unity between these seven girls acts as a representation of all women uniting against the injustices faced and encouraging a safe place for women to feel as though they are not alone.

Source: @diet_prada on Instagram. FW23 Bottega Veneta Look 60

ARTS & CULTURE 12

While some of the subject matter and stories of rape and sexualisation of a young girl’s school uniform are serious and shocking, there are brief moments of happiness and laughter through high tempo dance breaks and moments where the girls comfort and listen to the stories of another offering support and empathy. The play leaves the audience feeling less alone in their experiences and with this comes a feeling of empowerment and responsibility as a woman to stay strong and unite in the face of a society that has left little room for the female voice, both in the world and on stage.

The First Monday in May

The First Monday in May, fashion’s biggest night of the year, is right around the corner. The highly anticipated “event of the year” is organised by Vogue Magazine and is hosted by Vogue’s Editor-in-Chief, Anna Wintour along with new co-chairs picked every year; this year’s hosts are Michela Coel, Dua Lipa, Penelope Cruz, and Roger Federer.

The New York City hosted event is located at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The Met’s steps are iconic, from visions of Blair Waldorf and Serena Van der Woodsen to the classic New York food carts at the bottom of the steps. Whatever and whenever the occasion, the Metropolitan Museum of Art stairs are not just a means of getting in and out of the museum.

The event is put on to showcase innovative and once-in-a-lifetime designs which helps to raise money for the Met’s Fashion Department. Among the obvious fashion moguls expected to be invited, celebrities, young creatives, and industry icons are all approved by Wintour herself with the limit of 600 highly coveted tickets each costing $35,000. Basically, anyone who is anyone will be there. There is an exclusive hierarchy that is placed on all the attendees and if there is a questionable guest that the public deem “unfit to attend”, the internet will make its opinion known.

Every year sees a new theme, notable mentions include 2016’s Manus x Machina: Fashion in the Age of Technology, 2018’s Heavenly Bodies, 2019’s Camp: Notes on Fashion, and most recently 2022’s In America: An Anthology of Fashion. For this year, the theme pays tribute to the legendary Karl Lagerfeld in Karl Lagerfeld: a line of beauty. Lagerfeld was an extremely influential figure for the fashion industry. He began his career designing for Chanel before starting his own fashion house. He sadly passed away in February of 2019.

I am expecting that the red carpet will be filled with archival or vintage pieces from Lagerfeld’s various designs over his illustrious career from either Chanel, Patou, Balmain, Chloé, or his eponymous brand, Lagerfeld. I hope that at least one person brings back one of the little Karl Lagerfeld dolls that Cara Delevingne carried in Fendi’s 2014 Fall Runway. I am also sure that at least one attendee is going to lean into the campness of the event and dress in Lagerfeld’s signature look: the long white ponytail, his slim black jacket and white shirt, black trousers, and black gloves. Perhaps even with Lagerfeld’s iconic black sunglasses along with his beloved blue-cream tortie Birman cat, Choupette. I, along with many others, wait for this day every year and I cannot wait to see what the designers decide to showcase.

ALEXANDRA LOMAS | CONTENT WRITER

Source: Captured through the camera gaze, Flies at Shoreditch Town Hall

Photograph: Tristram Kenton/The Guardian

Source: Wikimedia Commons. The Metropolitan Museum steps

Source: Getty Images. Collage by Marites Algones.

Celebrating every kind of woman: Bernadine Evaristo’s Girl, Woman, Other

ANNIKA SWANSBURY | CONTENT WRITER

One of my favourite months of the year is undoubtedly March; spring comes creeping round the corner, tipping over the horizon to flush the trees full of life, and it also happens to be International Women’s History Month! This may present you with the perfect excuse to seek out books written by women whether that be something new or returning to a comforting favourite. If the former is true, I have just the one for you: Girl, Woman, Other. Written by Anglo-Nigerian author, Bernadine Evaristo explores life for 12 women living in Britain throughout the 20th and 21st centuries. These 12 women are of varying age, class, gender expression and sexualities, but they all have one thing in common: they are all Black. We get to know them intimately across each chapter before learning of the intricate links they share with one another creating a rich a diverse web throughout time. Evaristo shows us sisterhood, motherhood, changing identities, poverty, racism and so much more in order to paint a rich and detailed image of, as the blurb puts it, “Britain as it’s never been told”.

It is refreshing to see such a diverse perspective on Britain, a view that does not gloss over the hardships and struggles faced by Black women in Britainm but puts them front and centre. Evaristo clearly is not afraid of making her readers uncomfortable. Marriages breaking down, abuse, racism, and assault make up the darker sides of the book, juxtaposed through explorations of deep sisterhood and examples of community that lighten the novel.

Each character is rounded and flawed and fully released, presenting their own unique narrative for us to digest. This is a book that I could not put down, desperate to discover more about each woman, what made them tick and how they would grow and develop.

Demented talent: Nietzsche’s autobiography Ecce Homo

RILEY MOORE | CONTENT WRITER

It is undeniable that Girl, Woman, Other is a great example of contemporary literature that encapsulates what it means not only to be a woman in Britain, but also a Black woman. This ranges from characters like Amma and her daughter Yazz who present their Black identities from the first page of their chapters to Penelope who discovers her heritage much later into her story.

Evaristo is a master of form, using a method she calls “fusion fiction” to seamlessly blur the lines between prose and poetry. Her lack of punctuation throughout may at first alienate some readers but after a moment of readjustment, the emotion and the sentiment behind the words comes to life. Perhaps in moving away from conventional forms and rules surrounding grammar and punctuation, Evaristo is also breaking from the White, Western ways of writing as she moves towards something new. Her experimental form does not restrict her characters, it sets them free, letting them have all the flaws and quirks of any other person. This ability to marry prose and poetry is undoubtedly what helped her win the Booker Prize in 2019.

Ifsomeone could be said to suffer from genius, Frederich Nietzsche is the man. Nietzsche was a German philologist turned philosopher who died in August 1900. He is generally associated with the school of thought called “existentialism” which, in broad strokes, is the belief that the individual must create their own meaning in life. In other words, existentialism dispenses with the supernatural, and firmly plants people in the material world. Nietzsche would not have been familiar with the term, for it was coined after his death in the 1940s. Nonetheless, Nietzsche is a kind of existentialist, for he frequently emphasised the absence of God, and the need for art and love, and especially music, to produce meaning in life. Perhaps the most famous line he ever wrote, and one of the most famous lines ever written, was in The Gay Science. He wrote, “God is dead. God remains dead. And we have killed him.” What does this mean? What is the reasoning underlying the declaration? He partly explains himself in Beyond Good and Evil and also in Ecce Homo, his autobiography.

Ecce Homo is Latin for “Behold the Man.” That phrase was announced by Pontius Pilate as he dragged the beaten, bleeding, and thorncrowned Jesus Christ before an angry mob. Nietzsche’s title, therefore, is half-mockery and half-innuendo. He is both insulting Christ and suggesting that he himself is a Christ-like figure. Nietzsche often signed his letters as the “Anti-Christ” or “Dionysus,” the Greek God of wine and pleasure. This image of Nietzsche as a vulgar atheist bent on belittling Christian doctrine is true, but incomplete. He offered legitimate and piercing critiques of the religion. In Ecce Homo, for instance, he explains that Christianity encouraged mankind to interrogate nature, to upend its root and soil and understand its patterns and elements. In other words, Christianity made truth its key virtue. In turn, this generated empirical science.

Source: Vogue/Getty Images

Source: The Guardian/Getty Images

Which, likewise, generated Darwinian evolution. Darwinian evolution, however, undermines the Biblical creation narrative. Nietzsche believed Christianity unintentionally imploded under its own key virtue: truth. When Nietzsche announces God’s death, therefore, he is not saying he killed God. He believes he found God’s corpse and is merely mankind’s messenger. But now God will not rise on the third day. God remains dead, Nietzsche says, and it is us, the exploring, scientific animal, that has killed him.

Like his other works, Ecce Homo is as aesthetically stimulating as it is philosophically. Nietzsche, unfortunately, is often treated as cultural furniture. His writing has been twisted and implemented to suit any idea, no matter how bizarre or distant from his own. He is associated with the Nazis because his sister, Elisabeth ForesterNietzsche, purposely mistranslated his work. He would have hated the goose-stepping herd-like genocidal maniacs who knowingly submitted to an authoritarian dictator.

“Be a man and follow me not,” he once wrote. Nietzsche developed an intense cognitive decline in his fifties and died with dementia. He was, technically, a mad genius. I prefer demented talent, for he possessed that his entire life. Ecce Homo is highly quotable and produced known phrases that have melted into culture: “What doesn’t kill me makes me stronger.” But I do not recommend treating him as he is commonly treated: as an unending quote bank meant for social-media captions. Engage with his ideas, and with the man himself. Read

Ecce Homo

Carmilla - love will have its sacrifices

HARRISON PITTS | CONTENT WRITER

LeFanu’s Carmilla is a slow and creeping tale with the character of a seeping sickness; never leaping for your throat, instead festering in the corners of your mind until its cloying sweetness overtakes you. Deep in the Austrian countryside we find Laura, a lonely young girl living practically alone, save for her father, in a stately schloss. After an unfortunate carriage accident at their very gates, they find themselves the impromptu caretakers of the charmingly beautiful and maddeningly enigmatic Carmilla. Our protagonist is instantly smitten with their guest and soon strikes up a passionate relationship, only to find her health soon begins to fail her as strange dreams plague her sleep.

The short novel stalks forward, piling dread upon dread across supernatural sequences with some truly unsettling imagery. With each surmounting horror, from shared nightmares between the two girls, Carmilla vanishing from her room, a ghoulish figure roaming the night’s fog down a path beyond the schloss, and frequent deaths of an inexplicable illness in the surrounding towns, the novel will keep you flipping pages eagerly enjoying this mysterious gothic classic.

Carmilla is a story built on fatal juxtapositions. The absolute solitude of the Austrian country is, on one moonlit night, serene and idyllic, and on the next an isolating captor without amity or aid for leagues. A newfound friend is equal parts alluring and repulsive, doting and violent, and an unexplained illness is at once a source of withering terror and melancholy peace. All in all, it makes for an insidious read that is absolutely dripping with sanguine dread and gothic atmosphere. For a book written nearly 150 ago it is shockingly comfortable with its heavy queer under, and often overtones, with moments of explicit affection between its two female protagonists commonplace throughout.

For those concerned that the presence of this is intended to draw unwanted parallels between homosexuality and the demonic, rest assured the women’s attraction to each other is deemed nothing but charming by the other characters within the narrative.

Carmilla is one of the foundational texts of the modern vampire, written in 1872 it predates Stoker’s Dracula by 25 years and its status as an inspiration is undeniable. The monstrous picture painted in these pages is one that we are all intimately familiar with by now, and yet in its original situation, the unfettered horror of it is more present than ever. While, from our modern perspective, the characters are at times maddening blind to the fate befalling them, allowing yourself to be immersed in a time when these undead night-borne terrors were fresh and yet to become culturally omnipresent is a truly exciting experience.

If you are looking for a short yet memorable, and at times truly unsettling read, with a compelling romance comfortably squeezed in its close covers, Carmilla is the seminal queer vampire tale for you.

Source: Neuschwanstein Castle, Mike Yukhtenko

This is not Jane Eyre: Charlotte Brontë’s Villette

EMILIE WILLIAMS | CONTENT WRITER

One of the many rewarding parts of studying an English degree is the ability to delve deep into literary classics. In my Brontë class, I have had the pleasure to study the novels by all three sisters and gain a richer understanding of Victorian literature. Charlotte Brontë’s Villette, published in 1853, is a powerful and intricate piece of literature that tells the story of the protagonist Lucy Snowe. Lucy navigates her way through a range of emotional and social challenges, from her struggle to fit in with her fellow teachers to her complicated romantic and platonic relationships. Brontë's prose is beautifully crafted, offering vivid descriptions of Lucy’s internal and external world to build a picture of her complex psychological state. Villette also offers a sensitive insight into Lucy's struggle to define herself as an individual in a society that values patriarchal conformity. This nuanced depiction goes beyond a simple plot line to provide the reader with an intimate and detailed presentation of Victorian mental health, and the human psyche more broadly.

As Villette was published six years after Charlotte’s most famous novel Jane Eyre, many of her contemporary readers were expecting this novel to be similar. Although they both feature strong female protagonists that navigate the complexities of love and society, Villette is not Jane Eyre and should not be held to the same expectations. Villette is just as unique and powerful, even if it does not include the same explicitly gothic plot and rural descriptions. Whilst Jane Eyre features a passionate love story between Jane and Mr. Rochester, Villette’s portrayal of romantic relationships is more subtle and intricate. Lucy's relationships with her male acquaintances are marked by ambiguity and Charlotte subverts readers' expectations by refusing to provide a neat resolution to her romantic struggles. Villette is a more introspective and psychologically complex work than Jane Eyre, delving deeper into the psychological states of its characters and offering a nuanced commentary on the complexities of the human experience.

So why should you read Villette? If you have enjoyed the other Brontë novels such as Emily’s Wuthering Heights or Anne’s The Tenant of Wildfell Hall, then you will be accustomed to the grand and detailed descriptive world of the Brontë’s. Villette is another excellent example of the Victorian literary canon and reading it can help readers gain a deeper understanding of the cultural, social, and historical contexts of the time. But I must warn you, as with many other literary classics, Villette contains many odd and disturbing scenes such as opium induced madness and older men wooing younger girls. It is also the visionary descriptions and gripping plot twists as seen in Villette that make the Brontë sisters some of the most read Victorian novelists. If you ever find yourself with a copy of Villette, I strongly urge you delve into the story of Lucy Snowe.

Source: @clothbound.connoisseur, Instagram

CREATIVE SUBMISSIONS

Royal Holloway’s Poetry Society aims to promote the culture of poetry within the university, for both spoken word and poets who work on the page, of any department or skill level. Come along to one of our events or workshops! The poems below were submitted by members of the society. More information on Instagram: @rhpoetsoc, or contact us at poetry@royalholloway. su

Birth of a nymph

By Emelia Wardle

Our Fathers would send us to the sea to fill the rot inside us, and our melancholia Was reflected in Her.

Her abundance is terrifying, The omnipresence of Her existence, I feel the waves on my shore, Licking, inviting, enticing.

I want the sea to swallow me, Gestate me, rebirth me like She did Aphrodite, Purify me in the salt,

Reconnecting with the constant. Tumbled and shaken, And ritualistically spat into the crest.

My rebirth invigorating, I see myself in the sea, My rot on her waters, Her presence in my blood, My sisters in the water,

Enticing the men with their screams, Their pallid divinity binding their fate.

The binding of fate not by us,

But by our Fathers.

Our Fathers contempt for our contamination, My rot is mine not his, All mine.

Portrait of Absence

By Vera K Yuen

After Arthur Sze

Untitled

By Hasan Robbani

When the chatter of billowing dust fills your ears

And obscure patterns unfold before your eyes

Be wary of the stone which lay entangled in vines

That it might crack and reveal A pain not felt since spring

So laugh

Like the earth were a coin playing in your fingers

Like your hands are warmed by a burning pile Of those letters of inspiration you often write to yourself

Laugh like the mirror of a thousand fleshy dreams

Does not pull you by the arms with the force of its holy name

Lest the stalk of the endless night pulls you by the feet instead And the wheels in your head are dislodged by its icy gaze

Laugh like you ride a wave of tears

Lest the hands of the many show you the beast That weeps beneath the waves and you are swallowed

Laugh like the machines of men are walking giants

Drunk on blood

And like the mere sight of them

Does not intoxicate

In feverous delight

Here is a pair of anguished hands making an uneasy roost on a hardwood table. Here is a mouth folded onto itself, tongue unstrung from melody. Here, a lonely blade of sunlight props itself against the dresser, changes its mind and cools off in the corner.

Here on the window sill, there are still rings of condensation, left by flowers that will never return. I have threaded bottle-caps through the window frame hoping to catch your spirit—

I even made a mosaic of sea-glass; so when the early morning coalesces with the sleeping room, the cathedral glow of it can provide you with a proper heaven.

Yet, when the curtains swing shut at night, there is no stream of amber behind a cracked door. No steam rising from the cup you drank from—

Only the strangest memory: girl turned ghost turned grief.

Laugh

Until the moon drips with crimson sap

Until eyes of gold seep through dry, cracked lips

Until your throat is scarred with marks

That run like rivers of ember

And your lungs shrivel like burnt pebbles

Only then

May you gaze upon

The great contraption

With unfeeling countenance

And finally gasp for air

And until then, What else is there to do?

Puss In Boots: The Last Wish: Are animated films changing their demographic?

BETHAN MARTIN | CONTENT WRITER

Over the last five years, it seems that the films produced by the DisneyDreamWorks machine have seen a tonal and thematic shift. On surface level, audiences still get to see the same glossy, wide-eyed character design and uplifting family-oriented narrative; though looking back on recent titles such as Inside Out (2015), Turning Red (2022) and Soul (2020), you cannot help but notice more mature ideas beginning to take hold.

Now this is no bad thing. Complex adult issues being explored in a children’s film is neither new nor ground-breaking. However, watching myself and my peers sob violently at an animated red panda was not what had expected from an evening viewing of the latest Pixar release. For some reason, the films released by companies like Pixar and DreamWorks in the last decade seem to affect adult viewers in a much more affronting way than they used to. Is this simply a comment on the emotional power of Disney, or because the emotional conflicts being explored in these films resonate more with an adult audience?

Puss In Boots: The Last Wish (2023) is no exception. From the onset, the emotional damage of hearing a tiny vagrant chihuahua innocently recount his owners attempt to drown him in a weighted sock cannot be downplayed. Not only are the details of his backstory surprisingly macabre for a film like franchise like Puss in Boots, but the story also sets up the moral implication of whether “can true happiness be granted with the last wish?”. This feels very high-concept for such a traditionally young demographic, and taps into some quite mature themes in each of the characters’ backstories.

While we are talking dark topics, it is worth discussing the character of Death. It certainly feels as if DreamWorks has not shied away from the frightfulness of their villains; Death is a much scarier antagonist than we may be used to seeing in our children’s films. His eerie red eyes, curved sickle blades and frankly terrifying whistle leitmotif sent chills down my spine upon my first watch. As an adult, I found Death on the big screen incredibly unsettling. After discussing with my nine-yearold brother, we concluded that I am a “scaredy cat” since he did not find Death scary at all. Perhaps this is due to the fact Death represents Puss’ anxiety, an emotion often felt in abundance for adults compared to younger audiences. Death’s ever-looming presence creates an atmosphere of dread and panic, lending itself to the eventual catharsis of Puss’ self-acceptance in the face of fear incarnate.

These introspective sentiments can also be found in some of the newer Pixar releases such as Luca (2021), which centres around a young boy’s struggle to accept himself as a merman. Additionally, Soul was certainly high concept in its hypothesis that a human life has no innate purpose but, rather, it’s a person’s ability to create joy that enriches a life with meaning. Even Inside Out ditches the traditional movie “villain” in favour of a battle with “the self”, as Riley learns to accept all aspects of herself, and to embrace the uncomfortable feelings that define who she is. These personal demons are not scary in the traditional sense, though I find myself and my peers resonating with the moral questions and fearful situations being posed more wholly after having lived through similar experiences to those being portrayed on screen.

On a more superficial level, I also found the visual appearance of The Last Wish to be subversive of the genre. Perhaps pandering to adult audiences with its stylised combat scenes, the film seems to have a lot in common with the fighting found in anime which uses speed lines to convey fast movement. Similarly, The Last Wish echoes more mainstream entries, such as Into the Spiderverse (2018), which utilizes fewer frames per second and dynamic camera motion.

It seems that as the nature of mainstream animated movies evolve and progress, Disney and its affiliates have opted to ride the wave of character study pieces that have been championed in recent years. The shift from traditional adventure-style blockbuster to introspective coming-ofage tales benefits an older demographic due to a resonance with the oftentimes harsh realities of growing up. As the adults that grew up watching the golden era of Disney in the 1990s and 2000s transition into a new phase in their lives, it seems these studios are transitioning right along with them.

Source: @pussinboots, Instagram

The horror of sound design: Infrasound and its many faces

BETHAN MARTIN | CONTENT WRITER

When I was 13 years old, my friends and I watched Sinister (2012) under my bed on a compact DVD player. I remember everyone at school had been talking about how scary the famed “lawn mower scene” was, and how we all screamed excitedly when it happened. Whilst I certainly found the gore unsettling, I will always remember how for me, the true abject horror of Sinister lay in the sound design of one scene in particular. During the “Family BBQ” murder sequence, the inhuman sounds of what seems like a frail singing man are played in reverse layered over the distorted crackle of a Super 8 Camera projector. The sounds come together to create the most evil and unsettling atmosphere I think I have ever encountered in horror. Even as I rewatch the scene on YouTube for this article, I am looking shiftily about my room with the same fear that paralysed me at 13. If you asked me now about anything that happened in Sinister, I probably could not tell you; however, the feeling of dread inspired by the sounds in that moment has stayed with me well into adulthood.

This idea that sound has the ability to inspire such unease in viewers has fascinated me, and I have since been more conscious of its role in storytelling. Whilst of course, score is a necessity in emotional evocation on screen, I am intrigued by the more subtle power of sound design embedded into the fabric of films. From the disturbing female chorus hollering in Robert Eggers bleak New England horror The Witch (2016), to the ominous flashbulb sound effect included in the opening of Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974), sound clearly establishes tone more effectively than any other creative medium.

Perhaps the best example of this type of sound can be found in Gaspar Noe’s controversial experimental thriller Irreversible (2002). Noe confesses in an interview that he purposefully included a low rumbling note during the first thirty minutes of the film that registered at only 27 Hz; a frequency which is often used by police as a means of crowd control during riots. Of course, just as it would during riot control, the presence of this sound frequency in Irreversible led to reports of nausea, headaches, and vertigo from viewers upon watching it. The function of this, was to disorient, repulse and ultimately immerse viewers in the depravity simultaneously occurring on screen. Undoubtedly this is an extreme and overly physical manifestation of sound as a means to unsettle, but you can also see elements of such techniques in mainstream blockbusters of recent years.

The frequently used “brown note” as my peers call it, has infiltrated many Hollywood films of the last decade. It is also particularly favoured by movie trailer production houses for largescale action movies. I am sure you have heard it before; a low, groaning note that has evolved from its muchadored predecessor (the “BWAH” sound) popularised by Inception (2010). Upon researching this trend, the only name I could find for this bass note is “BRAAM” (which despite feeling silly, certainly gives you an accurate idea of the sound in question). In Dunkirk (2017), such low ominous notes are played before the onslaught of enemy fire hits the helpless British soldiers and serves as a sort of auditory warning to viewers that the worst is about to happen. In much the same way Noe uses the droning note in Irreversible, Nolan uses seemingly abstract tones to inspire terror in the audience.

Source: @cinemartistry, Instagram

So, what is it about these low unsettling notes that seem to evoke such a dire atmosphere? Zarrelli writes of the hidden sounds in horror movie soundtracks that “deep rumblings or high-pitched squeals signal danger almost (if not actually) instinctively”. Undoubtedly, there is some subconscious human capital that sound designers can draw upon which lends itself to the horror genre. Though often overlooked (or unnoticed) in cinema, sound has proven itself to be perhaps the most important element in conjuring up pure terror.

James Gunn: The hero

Warner Brothers need?

G.G. TOWNSEND | CONTENT WRITER

How is it that Warner Brothers, which owns some of the most historically successful IPs in modern media, was only able to achieve a theatrical release for six films in the whole of 2022?

There is no simple answer to this question, only an unfortunately long list of bad financial decisions, questionable creative choices, issues with their stars and pandemic aftermath. In fairness, not all these issues are the studio's fault, but it is because of their inability to deal with them that they are in such dire straits today.

The DC movies encompass all these issues perfectly.

In August of 2022, it was announced that Batgirl, a film that cost (an estimated) $90 million to make, was being completely scrapped by WB. Their official statement was: “The decision to not release Batgirl reflects our leadership's strategic shift as it relates to the DC universe and HBO Max”. This makes sense to an extent, given that control of the franchise was slowly being handed to James Gunn, who officially took over on 1 November 2022, but when you consider the investment that had already gone into Batgirl, it is hard to see why they did not at least opt for a straight-to-streaming release.

Allegedly, test screenings of the movie received such overwhelmingly negative reactions that WB felt it was easier to cancel the project outright, rather than to spend more on it. I cannot recall any other instance of a movie testing so badly with audiences that the studio has had no choice but to cancel it after having already spent close to $100m. Not a good sign.

To rub salt into this already infected wound, there are the controversies surrounding their talent. The worst of which relates to Ezra Miller, who was arrested twice in Hawaii in 2022 for disorderly conduct, harassment, and second-degree assault. While the incidents were not WB’s fault, it is their response to the situation (or lack thereof) that has caused issues. After the arrests, it would be reasonable to assume that any and all projects featuring Miller would be cancelled. But if you had tuned in for half time at the 2023 Super Bowl, you would have seen a trailer for The Flash, starring, wait for it… Ezra Miller (though, to be fair, it does look pretty great). Supposedly, WB are in such a bad financial state that they simply cannot afford to cancel or reshoot the movie. We will see if this decision pays off in June.

Close runners-up in the controversy stakes include Amber Heard, whose role as Mera in Aquaman 2 has reportedly been edited down as much as possible; Ezra Miller’s other main role in the Fantastic Beasts franchise, which, given the studio’s silence on the subject we can only assume they have cancelled; Dwayne Johnson, whose alleged to have clashed with Gunn over the side-lining of Black Adam in his DC slate, and whose PR team are doing everything they can to convince people that Black Adam made enough money (Black Adam did not make enough money); and Henry Cavill, who has done nothing wrong (unless you count Enola Holmes 2), but who seemed to be under the impression he was still playing Superman until Gunn decisively tweeted: “Our story will be focusing on an earlier part of Superman’s life, so the character will not be played by Henry Cavill”. Ouch.

To the studio’s credit, one of the six movies WB released in 2022 was The Batman, their first DC movie to succeed both critically and in the box office since 2019’s Joker (there was, of course, James Gunn's The Suicide Squad, which was well-liked, but did not break even in cinemas due to its simultaneous streaming release). But what is strange about these darker takes on DC stories is that they stand alone. It seems almost obvious that the only two real, recent successes the studio has had should serve as the origin story for their new “cinematic universe”, but when Gunn’s slate of films was announced to the public, Reeves’ Batman and Philips’ Joker were notably absent. (Neither has been abandoned, however, as sequels have been announced for both.)

Gunn, as a director, is well-suited to the superhero genre. His films stand apart from your typical, action-packed blockbuster, and he is unquestionably experienced. It makes sense, then, that he is been handed control of DC. But whether his vision bears fruit remains to be seen. He is not the hero they deserve, but maybe, just maybe, he is the hero they need.

Source: CNBC/Getty Images

Make the Kardashians messy again

CHLOE BOULTON | DEPUTY EDITOR

If current rumours are anything to go by, the Met Gala 2023 will be the first in a decade where no member of the Kardashian-Jenner clan is in attendance. At time of writing, nothing is confirmed, only speculation that the family is not invited due to Anna Wintour “cracking down” on the guestlist. The Met Gala represents exclusivity, class, and fashion but in the past few years the guestlist has seemed to reflect a wish to sell stories and magazines, rather than appeal to those truly interested in fashion. TV’s First Family, whilst an undeniable staple in the contemporary American zeitgeist, are not necessarily “true fashion people”. Whether it is fair or not, their reputation and the way they came to fame will mean they will never quite meet the standards of class that Wintour is looking for.

The Kardashians in recent years have undergone something of a rebrand. They have moved away from the often labelled “trashy” television they once made, and into a more mature but considerably tamer (to be read, and I hate to say it, boring) space. Since ditching their first reality show, Keeping Up with the Kardashians, they have released two seasons of The Kardashians The Kardashians’ first season made for frankly uninteresting viewing. For myself at least, the experience was a lot of waiting for the good bit, only it never came. The batch of headlines that appeared between seasons made me intrigued to see what they would do next. Surely they would change what fell flat the first time around? Apparently not. Season two of The Kardashians was ten episodes of teeth-pulling self-obsession, in which nothing happened, and everyone was, in their own way, ever so slightly unbearable.

Part of the charm of Keeping Up, was that the family kept things to themselves when the show was not on air, so that when it was time for a new season, the drama felt fresh and interesting. Of course, there was still that element of self-obsession, but that is inescapable given the nature of the show. Plus, it was self-obsession, not self-congratulation, which is seen all-too-frequently in The Kardashians, for all the wrong things. The editing of the show was done in such a way that viewers could feel close to those onscreen, and the “confessionals” were just that. They were full of actual feeling and insight; these were human beings not just celebrities.

The style of The Kardashians is, admittedly, nicer to watch at than that on Keeping Up. The editing is cleaner, sharper, and more polished. It makes for a more cohesive and streamlined viewing experience, but at what cost? Who is watching this show for the aesthetics?

The last season of The Kardashians was so fashion-centric, in theory at least, that you would think the family members would have more to say on it. They do not make any real comments or insights about it, and there is nothing particularly ground-breaking about the looks they choose either.

No, what the family do best is what we saw in Keeping Up. When they are being honest, and when they are being genuinely messy, that is when we like them the most. I can understand why they would want to detach themselves from that image, but these ladies do it so well.

It remains to be seen whether the family is to be kicked off the Met Gala guestlist, but if they are, then it is clear that that Keeping Up-era reputation, that label of “classlessness” (unfair though it is), is still following them. Season three of The Kardashians is inevitable, and if they cannot escape where they came from, then they should lean into it: make the Kardashians messy again.

Source: @krisjenner, Instagram

The meaningless magic of the Cocteau Twins

DAISY DYSON | CONTENT WRITER

Ethereal, mystical, and dizzyingly operatic, the music of the Cocteau Twins has been the soundtrack to many melancholic contemplations or meticulously imagined shower sequences. They are a band that has not only survived but prevailed in the ever-changing state of the music industry, having formed back in 1979 yet experiencing a recent unexpected resurgence following one of their most popular tracks, Cherry Coloured Funk, going viral on social media platform TikTok. It is certainly a band you have heard before, whether it be wittingly or not. Simultaneously, it is nothing you could ever truly define. Their music is best defined by its lack of conventional features and tendency to draw outside the lines of categorisation.

However, it is this unconventional nature that makes them so standalone and distinctive. The Cocteau Twins originally consisted of only two members: guitarist Robin Guthrie and bassist Will Heggie. Despite the band’s small numbers, a great deal of instrumental substance was added through Guthrie’s creativity and exploration of sound. By using distortion and atmospheric audio, Guthrie transformed traditional riffs into dreamy tunes, laying the foundation for what would later become their famous sound. The crux of their now iconic sound, however, came with the arrival of Guthrie’s girlfriend and vocalist Elizabeth Fraser, whose swooping vocal range and melodramatic voice rounded out not only the number of band members but the songs themselves.

Loyle Carner: hugo tour

ANNA ARMELIN | MUSIC EDITOR

Touring the UK with his new album hugo, Benjamin Gerard Coyle-Larner, professionally known as Loyle Carner, is permeating the British hip-hop industry with his talent and charisma. Carner began his career supporting various rappers during their own tours, releasing his debut album Yesterday’s Gone with huge success that garnered him a nomination for the 2017 Mercury Prize.

The young musician, aged 28, has been credited for his “languid” style of rapping, and his sound has been described as “confessional hip-hop”, “introspective” and “jazz-infused”. He often cites American hip-hop, and grime music as musical influences. He claimed two Brit nominations in 2018, for British Breakthrough Act and British Male Solo Artist, since then also being nominated for Hottest Record of the Year in 2022 by BBC Radio 1.

Not only are his albums greatly successful, but Carner prides himself on the meaning and significance of his music, with spoken parts of his songs voicing issues surrounding gang crime, race, and inequality. He has been credited for his work tackling male suicide, using his exposure to raise money for the male suicide prevention charity Campaign Against Living Miserably (CALM). With help from family and friends, he worked to curate an art exhibition inspired by tracks on his album in 2019, donating all proceeds to CALM.

Often commenting on his own personal life, Carner vulnerably writes about his relationship with his biological father and forgiveness, whilst also praising his mother as the dominant female presence in his life. When speaking about his album Not Waving, But Drowning, he discusses the confessional nature of his lyrics. “It’s the only way I know how”, he says. “I was raised by women, by my mother and my grandmother, and they would talk about how they felt everyday”.

What is so perplexing, and more so spellbinding, about the works of the Cocteau Twins that stands alone from any other artist or musician is their utter incoherency; the lyrics have no tangible meaning or structure whatsoever, and typically consist of random strings of verbs, vowels, and vocal runs. This was shocking to learn. Having enjoyed the band for so long, I had no idea of this bizarre artistic inclination until very recently. Sure, their vocals are odd and hard to make out, but I was always certain there was some intelligibility to the lyrics for they do seem to take the tone of meaningful sentences.

Learning this fact also incited me to contemplate such an unconventional choice further: despite the lack of coherency, strong emotion is still fully achieved as though Fraser were lamenting the most beautiful of love songs, and thereby it seems that emotion does not come from the lyrics themselves in song but the voice and intention with which they are delivered. Could it be that the resurging popularity of the Cocteau Twins will inspire the resurrection of this unconventional music style, and that listeners can hope to hear more meaningless beauty from fresher voices? My disposition is optimistic. The expression of emotion through tone rather words is truly a skill, and to see it further popularised to the degree it deserves would be an invigorating renewal of the alternative music scene.

The title of his second album came from Stevie Smith’s 1957 poem Not Waving But Drowning, about a man who dies because bystanders are sure that he is just thrashing around, having a great time in the water. Carner comments on this as a reflection of the insecurities in the social media age. “People show everything and nothing because they are not showing anything that has real meaing”, he says. “If you looked at my Instagram, you’d go, ‘Wow, things are really kicking off for this guy’. But yeah, my little brother wants to go to uni, I’ve got to figure out how to pay for that. I’ve got to sort my mum’s house out. I’ve got my mortgage to pay. My missus has to mark essays, so we’re trying to navigate a better way of how I cannot be annoying when she comes home!”

Carner’s most recent album, hugo, contains lots of commentary on his experience as a mixed-race man growing up in Croydon in South London.

He often refers to a line from the Earl Sweatshirt song, Chum to sum up his feelings: “Too black for the white kids, and too white for the black”. His vulnerability about his experience has been felt by many, as he has created a platform for conversation and discourse around this problem. In one of his recent Instagram posts, he writes the caption “relevant, or revolutionary”, a phrase he has reiterated in his commentary on his hugo tour. During his performance, he introduces Athian Akec on stage to recite his essay on Knife Crime which he delivered at aged 16 as a Youth MP in the House of Commons.

Carner’s music is not only unique and inspiring, it conveys an important message to not only his young audience, but the whole of British society as a population. Addressing central issues with society and politics, his storytelling style offers a narrative with weight and significance that everyone should be encouraged to listen to.

Source: The Guardian/Getty Images

Source: @loylecarner

Arsenal’s ascendancy

IMAN AHMED | SPORTS EDITOR

It would be safe to say that in previous times, the idea of Arsenal FC being at the top of the Premier League was something most football fans would have very swiftly brushed off. It has been almost 20 years since the Gunners last won the League, a season in which they were unbeaten and became nicknamed the “Invincibles”. Is history now set to repeat itself?

Arsenal have always been the butt of jokes. They have never managed to get back to the heights of their success in the 1990s and early 2000s, some years barely just making it into the Champions League.

Yet, despite some losses earlier this February and close calls with previous League winners, Manchester City FC, it is Arsenal who currently led the Premier League table, and it is under the management of Mikel Arteta that they have done so since the beginning of this season. Yes, the team have always managed to consistently remain in the top four, and at times top five since their last League win, but this is the first time where Arsenal has really been a team that can win the trophy, and it could be this season that can finally solidify their win of the League.

So, what has changed? What has clicked within the team?

Arsenal, now, arguably has more playmakers and a stronger defence within the team, driving for more success, but more importantly leading the team to really be a team. With the likes of Gabriel Jesus, Martin Odegaard and Bukayo Saka, the team are lethal with their attacking and are confident with the ball.

Their presence within the first half of a game has bettered their performance, with fast starts of clear intentions away from panic and more towards a clear-headed mentality, becoming a crucial aspect of their play. Moreover, in comparison to last year, the team have reflected an intense improvement in their creation of shooting opportunities that has allowed for more goals to be scored.

Another key competent is the team’s solid bench strength. Contributing effectively to their long-term success, Arteta is now capable of calling upon the strong services, including Takehiro Tomiyasu, Kieran Tierney and Eddie Nketiah from the bench throughout the match. This has allowed for the team to consistently place continued pressure upon their opponents during matches without disturbing their rhythm. This settled squad largely differs to other Premier League teams. An unchanged line-up has become an advantage to their success and further contributing to their team sprit too.

Or maybe it is just luck, Arsenal’s time to shine and bask in their glory. And rightfully so. Having consistently remained at the top of the League for this long, even non-Gunners must respectfully agree it is Arsenal who will most likely take the lead.

Somehow, they manage: Gerrard and Lampard in the dugout

BEN AUDLEY | CONTENT WRITER

Aston Villa’s recent two-goal victory over Everton was a relatively low-key affair, with minimal media attention. It was, however, the first time the two sides have met since they each sacked footballing icons Steven Gerrard (Villa) and Frank Lampard (Everton). Gerrard’s time at Villa Park began with no small amount of fanfare and excitement; the caveats around his successes with Rangers were all but forgotten. Similarly, Lampard’s appointment as Everton boss was thought to be a rare sensible decision from the club’s hierarchy. Indeed, it would be hard to find many fans that were more excited at the announcements of their successors (Unai Emery and Sean Dyche), despite the gulf in quality between their managerial CVs. It is clear who the more experienced managers are; so just what is it that makes rookie appointments feel so promising?

Of course, all managers must start somewhere. There is even a certain logic that suggests an elite playing career might indicate a higher managerial potential. Pep Guardiola had barely spent a year at Barcelona B before taking over the main team. The great Johan Cruyff went straight into managing the senior Ajax side. There is no denying that the quality of their playing careers fast-tracked them into two of the most prestigious manging jobs in Europe. In comparison, Gerrard and Lampard had humble beginnings; some time with Liverpool’s youth teams before a spell at Rangers, and a year with Derby County in the Championship respectively.

Source: Wikimedia

Humility in comparison to two of the all-time greats is perhaps no great achievement. Cruyff and Guardiola are exceptions to most rules. Alan Shearer’s disastrous period as Newcastle boss was his first and only job in management, and a fair warning against reaching too far, too soon. In comparison to their successors at Villa and Everton, the England duo look significantly too ambitious. Emery came up through the Spanish third and second tiers, and Dyche worked with youth teams before landing a couple of jobs in the English Championship. They must both be thankful that they had the time to cut their teeth at a suitable level, experience that Gerrard and Lampard both denied themselves. What is done is done though, and the two managers are now at a crossroads in their careers.

Despite some unreliable reports suggesting PSG may be interested in giving Gerrard a chance, there is surely little chance for either coach to land a better job than the one they just lost. If they wish to continue their careers in management, a step backwards will be needed. This is in some ways not their fault. Moreover, it is even indicative of a larger problem in football: the overvaluing of potential, and the neglecting of experience. Both Englishmen will be better coaches for their underwhelming experiences in the premier league. So why then will they struggle to return? Simply, they have lost a certain shine. The promise that they might just be the next Guardiola or Cruyff has vanished. In its place, there is a better idea of their tactical profile, and what they can bring to a club. When considering these more down-to-earth factors, it is no wonder that the best managers are those that have worked their way up, and not jumped the queue on the back of their playing careers.

Everything you need to know about the 2023 F1 season

ALANA STODDART | CONTENT WRITER

The 2023 Formula 1 season is fast approaching. Testing got underway in Bahrain on February 23, and gave us a glimpse of the potential shakeups in grid positions that could be coming our way.

It is always important to remember that testing is testing; teams try different setups and runs to try and collect as much data on their new cars as possible during testing and there are a multitude of other factors that contribute to who aces their performance on a race weekend. It is hard not to be excited, however, by initial signs that the midfield will look different to what we have seen before.

It should not come as a surprise that the Red Bull car looks like it will be very fast, if not the fastest, for another year. Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez topped the timesheets during testing suggesting that they will occupy the top spot of the podium a good deal of the time in 2023. Ferrari also came away having executed successful testing, with new team principal Fred Vasseur (previously of Alfa Romeo) stating that “the mood in the team is perfect” (Formula 1). The other of the top teams, Mercedes, looks as though the beginning of their 2023 season will mirror their last as they try to get on top of balance issues that the car displayed during its laps around the Bahrain circuit.

Williams, Alfa Romeo, Alpha Tauri and Haas appear to be performing similarly to how they did last year. Williams’ rookie, Logan Sargeant, will be looking to impress alongside Alex Albon in his first few races for the team.

One of the big questions that we are left with as we hurtle ahead to the opening Grand Prix of the season is what has happened to McLaren? The team experienced issues with the aerodynamic efficiency of their car at testing and, at its close, had completed the fewest number of laps. McLaren’s CEO, Zak Brown, confirmed that the team had set winter targets that it “didn’t hit” (Formula 1) causing fans to panic as to how much their team will be on the back-foot this year.

New leadership in the team comes in the form of Andrea Stella who takes on the role of team principal and, alongside Lando Norris, the car will be driven by Oscar Piastri, the rookie who replaces the much-loved Daniel Ricciardo. It remains to be seen whether McLaren can overcome the issues that they have faced in these early stages.

The success story of the few days of testing in Bahrain was Aston Martin, whose car performed quicker than many were expecting. Fernando Alonso put in some stellar laps and the car looked to be working well beneath him. Lance Stroll had to sit testing out after a cycling accident that left him with wrist injuries, leaving the seat to Brazilian driver Felipe Drugovich who performed well for the team; Aston Martin have since confirmed that he will drive in the Bahrain Grand Prix if Stroll is unable to. It looks as though this team will be close to Alpine at the top of the midfield in 2023 and will be looking to pick up some podium places wherever they can.

Testing revealed that, once again, the season to come will be anything but dull. All teams will come away from testing and begin to work ferociously on their cars based on the fresh data they now have. Who can say what the grid will look like as we head into the 2023 season?

Source: ESPN/Getty Images

Source: Wikimedia