Littlewit Philips
Short stories, movie reviews, and media essays.
The primary task of life is outgrowing the bio you have already written.
The Castle Of Constant Night
On the coast of a sea that I will not name, there is a castle where it is always night. If I told you the sea's name, you might try to find the castle with GPS, but that would not work, and then you would doubt my veracity. In all probability, you are already doubting me because I told you about the constant night, but that detail cannot be omitted. I do not understand how it is possible, but it is true. The castle sits at the crest of a hill dotted with jagged stones. Some of them sparkle in blues and greens. Others are pure obsidian. On most sides, the castle is protected by impassable mountains. The only way to reach the castle is via the sea and a long climb up a winding path.
Littlewit PhilipsPublished 3 days ago in Fiction
"The Trip" REVIEW
Lars and Lisa take the "'til death do us part" of their vows very seriously, it seems. Their marriage isn't working out so great anymore, but will this couple seek out a divorce? Maybe some counselling? No, they have a different outcome in mind. One with more fatal consequences.
Littlewit PhilipsPublished 6 days ago in GeeksBloodlust at Camp Carpenter
While the screen is still dark, the rattling, repetitious sound of an old-timey projector plays in the dark. Of course it is an affectation. The film is being played from a digital projector, and the retro sound-effect is playing through the speaker system. Light pops across the screen, jittering up and down. Five words coagulate out of those bursts of light:
Littlewit PhilipsPublished 7 days ago in FictionThe Sledgehammer of Dreams
The dreams always progressed down the same route: first the woods, then the lake, then the bottom. But that only happened when Ed managed to sleep, and for months he'd felt his control of nocturnal habits slip away. The worse it grew, the more he worried. Now it was the only thing he could think about by the time he sat down for dinner. Would he sleep tonight? If so, for how long? Was there anything he could do to improve his chances? What should he do if he went to bed and he tossed and turned? Should he call the doctor and change the medication again?
Littlewit PhilipsPublished 8 days ago in FictionCreatively Bankrupt?: THE EVIL DEAD (1981) vs EVIL DEAD (2013)
In 1930, a technological revolution exploded through Hollywood with an audible bang: sound. Universal Studios, seeing the implications of this new addition to the medium, remade earlier films to incorporate this shocking new artistic device. Even though The Cat and the Canary had only come out three years before, Universal remade it as The Cat Creeps, and the horror-movie remake entered the world.
Littlewit PhilipsPublished 11 days ago in Geeks
"There's Someone Inside Your House" REVIEW
There's Someone Inside Your House begins with a familiar sequence of events: Jackson Pace is home alone. A few household objects are out of place, but he only considers them briefly before moving on. By the time he realizes he is in danger, it's too late. There's a killer inside his house, and the killer will not stop before stabbing him to death. To add insult to injury, Jackson's death is synchronized with a mass text that reveals Jackson's most vile secret to the whole world.
Littlewit PhilipsPublished 11 days ago in Geeks
"Werewolves Within" REVIEW
Beaverfield has attracted a weird bunch of residents. There's the new forest ranger, the gas tycoon who wants to build a pipeline, the reclusive hunter, and even the pair of gay tech-millionaires. Some residents, like the environmental scientist, want to stop this new pipeline. And some, like the residents who would profit from the pipeline, really want to build it.
Littlewit PhilipsPublished 14 days ago in GeeksThe Final Pirate King
As kids, we spent so much time around the lake that I never imagined it might be dangerous. It was our playground, and you don't realise that a playground could be dangerous until one of two things happen: You can get old enough that you see all of the possible splinters and the places where, should a child slip, they could break their bones. Or you can tumble yourself and have the whole event come crashing home at once.
Littlewit PhilipsPublished 16 days ago in Fiction
