Inklings // July and August 2025

Hello, friends!

This post has twice the fun for Heidi's monthly Inklings because I'm posting my answers to the prompts for both July and August. I'm late for July because I was gone for most of the month, but as the prompt is one of my absolute favorite things, of course I want to be able to ramble about it. 

How it works:

1. At any time during the month, on your own blog post a scene from a book or film that matches the prompt, including a link back to Heidi's blog in your post.

2. Make sure to come back and leave a link to your entry in the box on that month's post.

HERE are my previous entries; this is one of my favorite link-ups!

July 2025 prompt: 

A sword dueling scene in book or film

Link to the other July entries HERE.

Sword duels are essential to swashbuckling films and I love swashbuckling to my CORE. I would say it's my favorite genre but I don't think I've watched enough to count. But I definitely count The Son of Monte Cristo (1940), which has all kinds of delicious dueling.

There are a couple of scenes here to fulfill the dueling requirement, so I'll just choose the first one, which starts with some formalities.

"Who are you?"

*brandishes sword* "My friend here will introduce me!"

"Don't worry, my father was the best swordsman in France!"

The sword fight even gets some action on the stairs (with someone rolling down them in style!). I can't find images from it, so you'll have to go enjoy the scene yourself. Which is very easy to do as this movie is in the public domain!

I started rewatching The Son of Monte Cristo just to watch the swashbuckling bits while writing up this post, but now of course I'm going to watch the rest of it. This used to be my 4th favorite movie of all time and I would say that I could watch it on repeat and never get tired of it. While it's not in my tippy top favorites anymore, I still adore this movie despite the rest of my family thinking I'm crazy. It just scratches a particular itch that I have when it comes to stories.

Now that I've watched it again I'm going to have to say it's back up into my tippy top favorites. It's dorky but it's dorky in my kind of way.

August 2025 prompt: 

A bread-making scene in book or film

Link to the other August entries HERE.

My choice is from the film Support Your Local Sheriff (1969). Prudy is one of my favorite characters and I relate to her based on how many unexpected situations she finds herself in. One of which completes this prompt. 

Let's just say it's full contact baking.

Which leads to fire...

...and frustration because why do these things keep happening to her??

Which is usually how my cooking turns out, too. Just now I'm sporting a cut from doing the dishes, so you can imagine what happens when I get close to the stove.

Me answering this prompt in this way has a second motive because Support Your Local Sheriff is my favorite western and currently Heidi, Olivia, and Rachel (Hamlette) are currently hosting Legends of Western Cinema Week! Go to any of these posts to join the fun: Along the Brandywine, Meanwhile in Rivendell..., and Hamlette's Soliloquy. 

What are movies that scratch an itch for you? What's an ingredient (such as a sword fight) that makes you love a story? How are you when it comes to baking (i.e. how much flour ends up in your face and hair)?

Thanks for reading!

Chloe the MovieCritic