THREAD: I got laid off from NYMag/Vulture after 14 years. The family lost 75% of income + medical. Now mzs.press bookstore, once a side project. is do-or-die for Judith & I. I feel weird telling you this because others are doing much worse. But if you could like or share this, we'd be so grateful!

#EdwardsMovieCharacterChallenge2025 @midgetmoxie.bsky.social Jul 31 Sees or watches a volcano eruption The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003) Gollum falls into Mount Doom with the One Ring, vanishing into the lava of the erupting volcano.

#EdwardsMovieCharacterChallenge2025 @midgetmoxie.bsky.social Jul 30 Any movie character The Good, the Bad, the Weird (2008) The story of two outlaws and a bounty hunter in 1940s Manchuria and their rivalry to possess a treasure map while being pursued by the Japanese army and Chinese bandits.

#EdwardsMovieCharacterChallenge2025 @midgetmoxie.bsky.social Jul 29 Played by Warren Beatty Reds (1981) A sweeping historical epic about John Reed, the American journalist involved in the Russian Revolution. Beatty directed, co-wrote, and won the Oscar for Best Director.

#EdwardsMovieCharacterChallenge2025 @midgetmoxie.bsky.social Jul 28 Mysterious background/origins Teorema (1968) A stranger arrives unannounced, seduces each member of a bourgeois family, and then vanishes just as suddenly, leaving behind spiritual, emotional, and existential upheaval.

#EdwardsMovieCharacterChallenge2025 @midgetmoxie.bsky.social Jul 27 Movie character played by Deborah Kerr A group of nuns struggle to establish a convent in the Himalayas, while isolation, extreme weather, altitude, and culture clashes all conspire to drive the well-intentioned missionaries mad.

#EdwardsMovieCharacterChallenge2025 @midgetmoxie.bsky.social Jul 26 Music box The Music Box (1989) A lawyer defends her father, accused of war crimes, but there is more to the case than she suspects.

#EdwardsMovieCharacterChallenge2025 @midgetmoxie.bsky.social Jul 25 Director/Actor I Killed My Mother (2009) 16-year-old Hubert (Xavier Dolan) is surly and makes life difficult for his mum, loudly contradicting or objecting to nearly everything she says or does.

#EdwardsMovieCharacterChallenge2025 @midgetmoxie.bsky.social Jul 24 Texas Ranger Extreme Prejudice (1987) A Texas Ranger and a ruthless narcotics kingpin - they were childhood friends, now they are adversaries.

#EdwardsMovieCharacterChallenge2025 @midgetmoxie.bsky.social Jul 23 Pool The Color of Money (1986) – Sequel to The Hustler, again starring Paul Newman (now older) alongside Tom Cruise as a cocky protégé. Directed by Scorsese.

#JulyMovieChallenge @omacolt.bsky.social Jul 22 Penguin Batman Returns (1992) The Penguin (Danny DeVito) is flanked by trained penguins armed with explosives. Dark, surreal, and iconic.

#EdwardsMovieCharacterChallenge2025 @midgetmoxie.bsky.social Jul 22 Vacation on tropical island The Spanish Prisoner (1997) An employee who develops a process for his corporation is tempted to betray the company when higher-ups attempt to take the process from him. Dastardly intrigue ensues.

#Bales2025FilmChallenge Jul 22 Bank or ATM Wanted (2008) James McAvoy is feeling miserable. At one point, he checks his bank balance at an ATM; it’s humiliating: he's overdrawn, broke, and powerless.

#JulyMovieChallenge @omacolt.bsky.social Jul 21 Favourite Robin Williams role The Fisher King (1991)—a wild, soulful quest through grief, madness, and redemption. Directed by Terry Gilliam, it’s a modern fairy tale where New York becomes Camelot.

#EdwardsMovieCharacterChallenge2025 @midgetmoxie.bsky.social Jul 21 Absent-minded Jackie Brown (1997) Robert De Niro portrays an absent-minded character who forgets where he parked the car, leading to deadly consequences.

#Bales2025FilmChallenge Jul 21 Pigging out Marie Antoinette (2006) – Let Them Eat Cake (and Champagne, and Macarons…) Lavish, pastel-colored scenes of indulgence and excess, featuring characters pigging out on sweets and delicacies.

#JulyMovieChallenge @omacolt.bsky.social Jul 20 Native American Blood Quantum (2019) A smart twist on the zombie genre where Indigenous people are immune. Visceral and politically charged.

#EdwardsMovieCharacterChallenge2025 @midgetmoxie.bsky.social Jul 20 Played by Toshiro Mifune Hell in the Pacific (1968) On a deserted island in the Pacific during WWII, two enemy soldiers are stranded. Initially hostile, they are forced to coexist and cooperate to survive.

#Bales2025FilmChallenge Jul 20 character shopping for food Punch-Drunk Love (2002) – Adam Sandler obsessively buys pudding in bulk to exploit a frequent flyer loophole.

#JulyMovieChallenge @omacolt.bsky.social Jul UFO in a movie Liquid Sky (1982) Tiny aliens arrive in New York City to feed on the endorphins released in the human brain during heroin use and orgasm. They land on a punk model’s rooftop apartment in the East Village and begin harvesting.

#EdwardsMovieCharacterChallenge2025 @midgetmoxie.bsky.social Jul 19 unfaithful The Mother and the Whore (1973) – A long, talky exploration of a ménage à trois full of infidelity, set in post-1968 Paris.

#Bales2025FilmChallenge Jul 19 fall in love Portrait of a Lady on Fire (2019, Céline Sciamma) A painter and her subject fall in love in 18th-century France. No music, just the crash of waves and tension so rich it’s flammable.

#JulyMovieChallenge @omacolt.bsky.social Jul 18 Civil War Movie The Outlaw Josey Wales (1976) A Confederate guerrilla becomes an outlaw after the war. Revisionist Western with Civil War undertones.

#EdwardsMovieCharacterChallenge2025 @midgetmoxie.bsky.social Jul 18 Aging Cowboy Junior Bonner (1972) Steve McQueen as a fading rodeo star returning home for one last ride. This one is bittersweet, character-driven, and deeply American in its portrayal of failure, family, and dignity.

#Bales2025FilmChallenge Jul 18 bundled up Wind River (2017) Elizabeth Olsen and Jeremy Renner deal with murder and -30°C winds. Everyone looks frozen to the bone.

#JulyMovieChallenge @omacolt.bsky.social Jul 17 Plane Crash FEARLESS (1993): After surviving a plane crash, a man feels invincible—but detaches from life, love, and fear itself. A haunting, lyrical study of trauma and transcendence. Jeff Bridges is sublime.

#EdwardsMovieCharacterChallenge2025 @midgetmoxie.bsky.social Bad Day at Black Rock (1955) A one-armed veteran uncovers small-town secrets when he tries to visit an Asian-American war hero's family.

#Bales2025FilmChallenge Jul 17 Sunburn Sexy Beast (2000) Brutal gangster Don Logan recruits "retired" safecracker Gal for one last job, but it goes badly for both of them.

#JulyMovieChallenge @omacolt.bsky.social Jul 16 Rebellious Teenager in a movie The Wild One (1953) “What are you rebelling against?” “Whaddaya got?”

#EdwardsMovieCharacterChallenge2025 @midgetmoxie.bsky.social Jul 16 Played by David Niven The Guns of Navarone (1961) Niven's Capt. Miller says, "Killing a man isn’t hard. It’s forgetting him that’s hard."

#Bales2025FilmChallenge Jul 16 Complaining about prices Trading Places (1983) In Philadelphia, it’s worth fifty bucks. Bo Diddley setting Dan Akroyd straight.

#julymoviechallenge @omacolt.bsky.social Jul 15 Space exploration Mickey 17 (2025) During a human expedition to colonize space, Mickey 17, a so-called "expendable" employee, is sent to explore an ice planet.

#EdwardsMovieCharacterChallenge2025 @midgetmoxie.bsky.social Jul 15 Twins Dead Ringers (1988, dir. David Cronenberg) Jeremy Irons plays twin gynecologists whose lives spiral into psychological horror.

#Bales2025FilmChallenge Jul 15 Hungover Barfly (1987) Mickey Rourke plays Charles Bukowski’s alter ego, waking up in gutters and worse.

#julymoviechallenge @omacolt.bsky.social Jul 14 Someone gives birth in a movie The End We Start From (2023) A young woman gives birth just as London is overwhelmed by a catastrophic flood. As society collapses, she and her newborn must navigate an uncertain and dangerous landscape.

#EdwardsMovieCharacterChallenge2025 @midgetmoxie.bsky.social Jul 14 Has a cat as his/her best friend The Long Goodbye (1973) – Philip Marlowe (Elliott Gould) is a shaggy, disheveled detective whose only real relationship is with his cat. Their morning routine speaks volumes.

#Bales2025FilmChallenge Jul 14 someone enjoying a drink or beverage The Big Lebowski (1998) – The Dude’s White Russians are practically supporting characters.

#julymoviechallenge @omacolt.bsky.social Jul 13 Favourite Harrison Ford movie Blade Runner (1982): Where it’s always raining, everyone smokes indoors, and existential dread comes standard.

#EdwardsMovieCharacterChallenge2025 @midgetmoxie.bsky.social Jul 13 Puerto Rican Carlito’s Way (1993) Al Pacino plays Carlito Brigante, a Puerto Rican ex-con trying to go straight.

#Bales2025FilmChallenge Jul 13 National Park Wild (2014) follows Cheryl Strayed (Witherspoon) as she hikes over 1,000 miles along the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT), alone, to recover from personal tragedy, addiction, and emotional collapse.

#JulyMovieChallenge @omacolt.bsky.social Jul 12 Riot in a movie Riot in Cell Block 11 (1954) marked Don Siegel's early work as a director, with this sensational and high-octane, yet economically constructed drama set in a maximum-security prison.

#EdwardsMovieCharacterChallenge2025 @midgetmoxie.bsky.social Jul 12 Played by George Peppard Banacek (1972–1974) features George Peppard as Banacek, a suave insurance investigator. He solves impossible “locked-room” or disappearing-object crimes.

#Bales2025FilmChallenge Jul 12 Movie that shows someone at a formal dinner or gala The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie (1972) – Guests try to attend a formal dinner but are repeatedly and absurdly thwarted.

#JulyMovieChallenge @omacolt.bsky.social Jul 11 Duel in movie The Princess Bride (1987) “I am not left-handed!” A witty and charming swordfight.

#EdwardsMovieCharacterChallenge2025 @midgetmoxie.bsky.social Jul 11 Movie character from a movie based on a Nicholas Sparks novel The Notebook (2004) An elderly man reads to a woman with dementia the story of two lovers whose romance is threatened by the social class differences between them.

#Bales2025FilmChallenge Jul 11 Movie that shows someone at a coffee shop or café Bande à part (1964) Odile (Anna Karina), Arthur (Claude Brasseur), and Franz (Sami Frey) get up from their table in a modest Paris café and perform a quirky, synchronized Madison dance.

#JulyMovieChallenge @omacolt.bsky.social Jul 10 Trial in a movie Saint Omer (2022) Rama, a novelist who attends the trial of Laurence Coly at the Saint-Omer Criminal Court to use her story to write a modern-day adaptation of the ancient myth of Medea, but things don't go as expected.

#EdwardsMovieCharacterChallenge2025 @midgetmoxie.bsky.social Jul 10 Jerry Lewis The King of Comedy (1982) follows Rupert Pupkin (played by Robert De Niro), an aspiring but delusional stand-up comedian who dreams of fame and is obsessed with late-night talk show host Jerry Langford (Jerry Lewis)

#Bales2025FilmChallenge Jul 10 Poolside vacation clothing A Bigger Splash (2015) Luca Guadagnino’s simmering drama with two ex-lovers is disastrously reunited at a Mediterranean villa where the pool is a temple of bared flesh and sex perfumes the air

#JulyMovieChallenge @omacolt.bsky.social Jul 9 Somebody takes something without permission A delivery truck driver picks up two bags of cash and hides them. Only the help of a prostitute and a former biker released from jail might get him out of trouble.