picspam: deathless
DEATHLESS
A CASTING PICSPAM
NOTES: Deathless, by Cathrynne M. Valente, is an update of the story of Koschei the Deathless and Marya Morevna, notable figures in Russian folklore. Obviously, not every character in the book is cast. Zemya is the most notable omission, as I didn't quite know what to do with his multiple incarnations within the book. I didn't want three different actors for Zemya and I couldn't think of one who could span across his incarnations. I also stuck mainly to the major players, so this isn't anywhere near comprehensive. If this makes sense, I was less inclined to cast characters who were more physically magical, as I had less idea what to do with them? As for the book itself, nothing I say could do it justice. If you haven't read it, just go.
But your birthday inflated the bones with which you creak
They stole your shoes and brought you to the caverns of their teeth
You pleaded, "Oh, kind sir, please let me say goodbye."
Your soul ripped from your stomach, you gave an awful cry
A cry, a cry, a cry
THE SPING SONG CAKE BAKE BETTY
MARYA MOREVNA
(leila bekhti)
How broad her chest looked, suddenly; how dark and squared her shoulders. How the fur brushed her pale chin; how severe her hair and dark lips looked!
"I am Marya Morevna, daughters of twelve mothers, and I will not be denied," she whispered to the girl in the mirror.
KOSCHEI BESSMERTNY/KOSCHEI THE DEATHLESS
(oscar isaac)
"Oh, I will be cruel to you, Marya Morevna. It will stop your breath, how cruel I can be. But you understand, don’t you? You are clever enough. I am a demanding creature. I am selfish and cruel and extremely unreasonable. But I am your servant. When you starve I will feed you; when you are sick I will tend to you. I crawl at your feet; for before your love, your kisses, I am debased. For you alone I will be weak."
BABA YAGA/CHAIRMAN YAGA
(helen mirren)
"Husbands lie, Masha. I should know; I've eaten my share."
IVAN NIKOLAYEVICH/IVAN THE FOOL
(richard madden)
"I sat in the dark house without you, without Kseniya Yefremovna, without little Sofiya babbling about fishes and balloons. I cried so hard that day I thought my spine would crack. And then Zvonok was sitting beside me, patting my knee. The little domovaya said she'd known you all your life, and that you were wicked and had left her, too, but also that you would come back, probably. Wicked creatures never stay away for long, she said."
MADAME LEBEDEVA
(lotte verbeek)
"Do you think I am a fool, Masha? All this time, and you speak to me as though I were a flighty pinprick of a girl. I am a magician! Did you never think, even once, that I loved lipstick and rouge for more than their color alone? I am a student of their lore, and it is arcane and hermetic beyond the dreams of alchemists."
WIDOW LIKHO
(isabelle huppert)
"Bad luck relies on absolutely perfect timing." Likho grinned.
NAGANYA
(shirley henderson)
"Property is theft!" snapped Naganya, her cheek-pistons clicking. "Therefore, just by sitting there you're stealing from the People, Zemya! Bandit! Ring the alarms!"
KSENIA YEFREMOVA
(melanie laurent)
I am a Leningrader now. And so is Sofiya , and we will survive because of our strong backs, not because once, before the war, we were rusalki. No one is now what they were before the war.