new age

Things sound like they might be getting a little funkier on TV On The Radio's upcoming album, "Dear Science,":

"Golden Age"

these eyes

"Marcello" Frames
Robert Geller, $220
Marcello Mastroianni's glasses in "8 1/2" were my initial inspiration when I first got glasses years ago. These Robert Geller frames remind me there is no need to be inspired by anyone else when it comes to finding the perfect pair of classic and effortlessly stylish frames.

first look: comme des garçons for h&m

Comme des Garçons for H&M
Fall/Winter 2008
Polka dots for fall? I thought plaid was all the rage.

prep story

Ten New Yorkers
photographed by Scott Schuman
What happens when a veritable selection of ten New Yorkers, Scott Schuman of The Sartorialist, and Gant team up? A celebration of the preppy heritage of Gant and true, individual American style. Take notice Gap, this is how to creatively rebrand without losing your core audience as well as reaching out to a newer, more contemporary and fashion conscious audience. Admit it, there's a little bit of prepster in all of us.

upgrade u

Since when did Joshua Jackson become so damn well dressed? I don't know what to be more ashamed of:

A.) I blogged about Pacey.
B.) I admire his ability to wear two cardigans.
C.) Joshua Jackson reminds me of how badly I want a Mighty Ducks jersey when I was elementary school. Hey, it was the early '90s and wearing athletic uniforms as daywear was huge and, uh, I was like eight.

q&a

John Varvatos, Thom Browne, and Michael Bastian
discuss style on men.style.com
The one question I really wanted to know: What do they think of each other?

first look: happy-go-lucky

"Happy-Go-Lucky"
directed by Mike Leigh
October 10, 2008 (limited)

Mike Leigh lightning up? I'm in.

grizzly man

The Limited Edition Karl Bear, $1,500
“Bears are very nice, as long as you are nice to them."--Karl Lagerfeld

Does this not make you laugh out loud?

gentlemen prefer blondes

Gold Digger unveiled a sneak peek at Raquel Zimmerman's stunning editorial shot by Ryan McGinley in the upcoming September issue of French Vogue. The Look-See has mad love for Raquel as well:

"La Sauvage"
photographed by David Sims
W, March 2006

the perfect crime

"Elevator to the Gallows"
directed by Louis Malle
1958
To view more iconoclastic and hard-boiled sexy moments on film, check out Film Forum's "French New Crime Wave" series now through Sept. 11.

For more info, click here.

performance: 3 women

It should come as no surprise that Woody Allen has a thing for women. Not just any kind of woman. She lands somewhere in between impossibly glamorous, whip smart, and a complete trainwreck. Thankfully Allen has sidestepped his leading man status the past couple of films and instead allowed his eye for the most beautiful of the beautiful to do the convincing. Scarlett Johansson, Rebecca Hall, and Penelope Cruz are the new babes on the Allen block and what each brings to their roles in his latest romp, "Vicky Cristina Barcelona" is something old and new in the canon of Allen's work. A tale of two women spending a summer abroad becomes an interesting study in impetuousness versus cautiousness, real love versus idealized love, control versus power, and accepting one's fate versus attempting to catapult it in a different direction. Big themes for an Allen comedy, but he is in his waning years, so these issues with where one fits in the world suggests that an artist is at a new and interesting place in their career. For one of the few (if not a complete rarity) filmmakers in the world making films every year over the past few decades, what does Allen have left to say? Rather beautifully and hilariously, Allen lets his trio of actresses do the talking.

Thanks to a handy voice-over crisply supplied by Christopher Evan Welch, Vicky (Hall) and Cristina (Johansson) are immediately established as opposites. Aside from their physical difference (Vicky is all brunette wisps of hair and tall, angular features where as Cristina is nothing but curves and cascades of sunny blonde waves), Vicky is the controlled, rational, level-headed one that knows exactly what she wants, but Cristina is still searching for meaning in her life and does so by making spontaneous, impulsive decisions. Both women are approached at a cafe one evening by a debonair painter (Bardem), who offers to spend a weekend with him, where upon they would make love, drink good wine, and do as the bohemian and cultured do in Spain. Through some coaxing and more wine, the women decide to go with their Dan Jaun, but as fate would have it, their outcomes from the weekend are as opposite as their appearances and outlook on life.

Hall, especially shines in a role that becomes more and more complex as the film grows. Vicky is engaged to be married to a bland corporate lawyer, whom she thought she loved, but was it the idea of being married, successful, and complete, the thing that she was in love with or was it true love she felt for her fiancée? Hall does something that very few new actors in the Allen factory are capable and confident enough to do, turn in a compelling performance. Allen is notorious for his anti-direction, thereby causing his actors to sink or swim in self-directed performance hell or heaven. Hall is the neurotic Allen heroine, but she restrains the ticks and isms so commonly and lazily associated with the Allen gesture and patois that has damned him and canonized him. Her neurosis is actually accessible and not a caricature, something that gives substantial weight to an Allen film and adds to the theory that maybe Allen is still wondering if this is all there is for him. For one reason or another, Johansson has become the go-to girl for the critics to lacerate for her obvious sensuality and questionable talents. Johansson is young and still finding her footing for what kinds of roles suit her and it's clear she has a certain brand of sexuality that burns on the screen, but I'm still waiting for a consistently satisfying performance that she so seemingly and perfectly pulled off in Sofia Coppola's "Lost in Translation." Perhaps every film should open with a shot of Johansson in her panties to get her sex appeal out of the way, and then supply her with ample room to give an exciting performance. This isn't to say she is not as good as her co-stars in this film, but Allen has found something in her that hopefully when truly developed will become something unforgettable. As Cristina she plays youthful hedonism to a tee, the other side of the brain that has Allen craving his youth and perhaps wishing his purpose was purposelessness, an aimlessness that will never extinguish. And then there's Penelope, who also hasn't until recently found the right kind of films and roles that audiences and critics are embracing. I thought she was just right as the HIV afflicted pregnant nun in Pedro Almodovar's "All About My Mother" and once again due to Almodovar, gave audiences range, maturity, and assuredness in his last film, "Volver." In this story of women finding themselves, Cruz has found herself and represents a combination of a life that is rife with passion and intellect, but never quite finds an appropriate or sane balance. Maria Elena (Cruz) gets a great introduction as a character about mid way through the film. Fresh from the hospital, where she was treated for attempted suicide, her ex-husband, Juan Antonio (Bardem) escorts her into his home to meet his new lover, Cristina. With her mascara dramatically dripping down her gorgeous face and a touch of desperation and madness in her voice, Maria Elena is the embodiment of a woman on the verge of a nervous breakdown. An actress can't ask for more and Cruz goes for broke in this role, digging into its darkness, but revealing a comedic skill along the way. From her combustive arguments with Juan Antonio in the streets of Barcelona to the emotional, almost sexual way she paints, Maria Elena is unlike any Allen creation in recent memory. If this role isn't already proof of Cruz's talents, then she might have to play ugly, but if it were that easy, this beauty would have done that long ago.

"Vicky Cristina Barcelona" is such a light, amusing affair that it leaves its audience with an appreciative feeling that Allen is not conducting a death march with gloom and doom fare. How can a man not still enjoy life in all its vexing, perplexing, and surprisingly fascinating and fulfilling ways when he makes a sexy comedy set during a balmy, breezy summer in Spain? The only minor quibble I had with the film is more of a wish fulfillment issue. Seeing all three actresses in one frame would have been quite the sight. All three bright young things of varying ages, ethnicities, and talents all share the common thread of not only being the object of Juan Antonio's affections, but the audience's as well.

gasp!

"I control 'Metropolitan.' I don't really control 'Last Days of Disco' and what happens with it. I think Criterion is supposed to bring it out, but those negotiations seem to be taking forever -- not with me, it's with one of the studios."--Whit Stillman on the DVD future of his 1998 masterpiece "The Last Days of Disco", IFC Interviews

start spreading the news

It's funny to think that last Monday I was running around Manhattan for a day. I don't want to give away too much because I'd hate jinx myself, but I guess I'll state the obvious and say that I am more than excited about moving. Louisville has been kind, but a change of scenery is definitely in order. I saw my apartment for the first time and in turn met my awesome new roommates. I'll be living in the Clinton Hill neighborhood in Brooklyn and thanks to a guided tour from a dear friend, I'm already looking forward to movies at BAM and dinners at Chez Oskar.

Oh yeah, and naturally I did a little bit of shopping. Am I the only one that thinks Uniqlo is a little overwhelming? The stacks upon stacks of basics startled me and didn't lead me into one particular direction. I did like the cashmere sweaters, but with the late summer heat settling in, the thought of cashmere anything makes me break out in a sweat. And when will the price point break at A.P.C.? Not all of us mortals can afford such classic pieces at insane prices. I still have my eye on eventually owning a pair of their jeans, but $160 for a plaid shirt is a bit much to ask. My favorite new find was Odin, a contemporary menswear store in Soho that carries brands like Band of Outsiders, Comme Des Garcons, Rag & Bone, Trovata, Nice Collective, and Engineered Garments. What did I get you ask?

Rag & Bone
Classic Short, on sale for $59
Rag & Bone
Cardigan Vest, on sale for $59

I have come to terms with the idea that I might go in slight debt when I move because when you buy such well made pieces at such great prices, there is no turning back. None. The countdown begins...

a man's right to shoes

Common Projects
Suede Desert Boot in Grey, $310
While waiting to hear about the availability of a pair of Rag & Bone bermuda shorts in my size, I stepped out of the dimly lit fitting room at Odin to find a wall of non-descript white shoe boxes. My eyes wandered in their blank direction, where upon it was revealed they were the boxes for Common Projects shoes, the most ludicrously overpriced but badass tennis shoes brand. Minimal in design, but maximum in their subtle impact, Common Projects are the tennis shoes dreams are made of. Dream wasn't far off from what I was experiencing. My trembling finger tips reached out, almost as if I were reaching to touch E.T.'s cold, alien light of a finger. Steven Spielberg wasn't directing this scene, but the halo of light persisted from a neat pair of grey desert boots, calling to me silently, urgently. The touch was soft as a threadbare t-shirt, the feel was sporty luxury defined. I dared not try them on for fear I would feel something a little too real for an inanimate object. The sales girl, a cross between Alex Wek and Clara Bow, informed me my beloved bermudas were on hold at the East Village location. Thank you, I said, mouth still agape at the sight of those wondrous shoes.

big love

"The Ut Uniqlo Project"
Chloë Sevigny and Tadanobu Asano
photographed by Dan Jackson
This was by far the most fetching thing at Uniqlo besides those inexpensive cashmere sweaters.

via chole sevigny.org

in memoriam: black moses

"Hot Buttered Soul"
Isaac Hayes
1969
An iconic album cover if I've ever seen one.

the out of towner

Dear Friends and Foes,
The Look-See is going on break for an extended weekend. I'm making a brief trip to New York to meet my future roommates, interview for some jobs, figure out that tricky subway thing, and shop like a mad man. I'm sure some calamitous events will occur along the way, of which I will gladly report on this here blog. Until I come back, I'll leave you with one of my favorite opening sequences:

"Belly"
directed by Hype Williams
1998

W.

first look: the informers

"The Informers"
directed by Gregor Jordan
Release date TBA

I'm always a sucker for the indulgent and ludicrous world of Bret Easton Ellis. This looks awesome in the worst way possible.

my girl

Jourdan Dunn
"Welcome to the witching hour", photographed by Emma Summerton
i-D, September 2008

Dear Jourdan,

W.

lark & wolff

Looks from Lark & Wolff by Steven Alan
for Urban Outfitters
What do we think of the latest diffusion line at Urban Outfitters by Steven Alan? I have to see this clothes up close because $58 is a bit much for a short-sleeve button-down shirt. I love the simplicity of these clothes, but I need a little something more than pleat details and woven prints. However, that type of plaid on the right has my wheels turning for what to wear this fall.

Click here for the full collection for men and women.

batman returns

The Wall Street Journal is convinced Batman is a thinly veiled characterization of George W. Bush. The New York Times believes "The Dark Knight" takes itself too seriously, which in turn, is leading to a creative peak for the superhero movie genre. New York Magazine cantankerously responded to the "The Dark Knight"'s balance between popcorn entertainment and the coded philosophical, political, and psychological messages. Add to that the movie just made $400 million domestically in eighteen days. I guess this movie was bound to experience some sort of backlash. Director and co-writer of "The Dark Knight", Christopher Nolan, discussed some of the political themes of the film as a guest on The Film Programme. Nolan's aloofness about the film's political resonance makes one wonder if it's possible, or not, for mainstream art to avoid being inspired by the current state of affairs in the world. Maggie Gyllenhaal adds to the interview with her own thoughts on the new trend of weighty themes finding their way into big blockbusters.

Click here to listen.

girl.

Michelle Williams photographed by Scott Sternberg
Boy by Band of Outsiders Fall/Winter 2008 Look book

“It’s just us goofing off and having fun. There isn’t hair and makeup, there are no lights or anything. We were just laughing and talking all day. They are not supposed to be self-important and serious [shots]. It’s the antithesis of all that.”--Scott Sternberg, designer for Boy. by Band of Outsiders

in the mix

I thought the collection was really underwhelming, but the throbbing, wild beat of Justice saves the day. Continuing the tradition of acclaimed music artists contributing the soundtrack to a Dior Homme show, click below to listen to the fifteen minute track Justice created for the Spring/Summer 2009 show.

the tin man

(left to right)
Robert Downey Jr., Clive Owen, Edward Norton, Daniel Craig,
David Beckham, Sean "Diddy" Combs, and Matthew Goode
The gray suit is the new khaki suit for summer.

sun block

Maison Martin Margiela
L'Incognito Sunglasses, $590

I wonder what Gold Digger would make of these.