Stories by @nathanbates

The Two Jakes

Private detective Jake Gittes has a new client. Jake Berman believes his wife is cheating on him and wants Gittes and his associates to catch her in the act. Everything appears to be going according to plan until Berman shoots the man dead. It should be an open-and-shut case but now Gittes is drawn into a complex web that involves far more than infidelity.

1977 Oscars

mad as hell

True Grit (1990)

A stubborn teenager enlists the help of a tough U.S. Marshal to track down her father's murderer.

Prometheus

the trick is not minding that it hurts

Kingdom of Heaven

A heavily fictionalised portrayal of the events leading to the Third Crusade, focusing mainly on Balian of Ibelin who fights to defend the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem from the Ayyubid Sultan Saladin.

2009 Oscars

the dark knight

2025 Oscars (2025/2005)

brutal

Nosferatu (2024)

The night demon has supped of your good wife’s blood.

Almost Cast: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

Rape, torture, fire, animals, religion. Am I missing anything?

67th Academy Awards

forrest gump

The Grifters

A small-time conman has torn loyalties between his estranged mother and new girlfriend, both of whom are high-stakes grifters with their own angles to play.

80th Academy Awards

Yeah, I’m stealing this idea.

Casting Call: The Sandman

“Y’know, comic book fans just love to think that whatever entertains them would entertain everyone else.”

Dead Man (2025)

Every night and every morn, some to misery are born. Every morn and every night, some are born to sweet delight. Some are born to sweet delight. Some are born to endless night.

Almost Cast: Interview with the Vampire

I'm going to give you the role I never had.

Almost Cast: The Exorcist

the power of cast compels you!

A Crime Tale

In the late 1950’s, two men - one a police detective and the other a private investigator - pool their resources in order to catch a killer.

Almost Cast Counterparts: Tim Burton’s Penguin

I am not a human being! I am an animal!

KEN

After realizing that he is kenough, Ken embarks on a journey of goodwill to the far corners of Barbieland and beyond.

Alien Resurrection (2024)

The Alien movie that time forgot.