turn on the bright lights

Jil Sander
Spring 2011

I'm not one for fluorescent colors, but how can you resist after you watch that?

fall back

Kai-aakmann
Fall/Winter 2010
For whatever reason as it's being warming up, I can only think about Fall/Winter 2010 outerwear. There's a Fall/Winter 2010 leather jacket that I saw back in January that made my mouth drop and I'm literally counting the days until I can wear it, but another outerwear piece I've been wanting for the longest is a solid trench coat. I think you have to be a certain age to look comfortable and effortless in a trench. A mac is one thing, but a trench is something I associate with my dad wearing. That's not necessarily a bad thing, but a boxy London Fog or Burberry trench is not what I'm looking for. Enter, this Kai-aakmann trench pictured above. There's something about it that makes it not your dad's trench. Impossibly cool and with all the details you want out of standout outerwear piece (my weakness for epaulets unashamedly continues), this is one of the items that makes you wish Fall was here a little sooner.

song of the week: the ghost who walks

Karen Elson
"The Ghost Who Walks"
directed by Jack White

This is the perfect music to enjoy while sitting next to a fan and cooling off. Trust me, I'm doing it right now.

25

My dad once told me about when he saw Stanley Kubrick's "A Clockwork Orange" when it was initially released in theaters in 1971. It was rated X and was shown in one theater in Louisville, Kentucky that also doubled as a porno theater. He said at the time it was very controversial and most people considered it cheap exploitation, devoid of any substance, and an assault on taste and the boundaries one should explore with sex and violence on film. Now, it's considered a masterpiece. I don't think you could ever know if you're watching what will become part of the cultural lexicon and the quintessential canon of "best of..", but it is worth chewing on the endless possibilities. The first ten years of the new millennium is a fascinating space of time because it stills feel present and difficult to define. The images that are projected on the screen are stories that connect to us and define us. Sometimes they're ugly, sometimes they're far removed from reality, and sometimes they cut right to the bone and say something so true and honest that you can't help but have those images seared into your memory. Some of the best works from filmmakers new and old were able to do that from 2000 to 2009. Maybe decades from now it will be easier to assess what is truly the best of that time, but each of the films that I think were the twenty-five best reflect something personal and profound, and that is the timeless quality of good art. Here are the twenty-five best films from 2000-2009:

1. There Will Be Blood, directed by Paul Thomas Anderson (2007)

2. Children of Men, directed by Alfonso Cuaron (2006)

3. Talk to Her, directed by Pedro Almodovar (2002)

4. The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, directed by Andrew Dominik (2007)

5. 24 Hour Party People, directed by Michael Winterbottom (2002)

6. The Bourne Identity/The Bourne Supremacy/The Bourne Ultimatum, directed by Doug Liman and Paul Greengrass (2002) (2004) (2007)

7. The New World, directed by Terrence Malick (2005)

8. Before Sunset, directed by Richard Linklater (2004)

9. Zodiac, directed by David Fincher (2007)

10. The Station Agent, directed by Tom McCarthy (2003)

11. City of God, directed by Fernando Meirelles (2002)

12. About a Boy, directed by Chris Weitz and Paul Weitz (2002)

13. Mulholland Drive, directed by David Lynch (2001)

14. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, directed by Michel Gondry (2004)

15. 2046, directed by Wong Kar Wai (2004)

16. Wall-E, directed Andrew Stanton (2008)
17. Dogville, directed by Lars Von Trier (2003)

18. Lost in Translation, directed by Sofia Coppola (2003)

19. The Piano Teacher, directed by Michael Haneke (2001)

20. 25th Hour, directed by Spike Lee (2002)

21. Adaptation, directed by Spike Jonze (2002)

22. Kill Bill Vol. 1., directed by Quentin Tarantino (2003)

23. Traffic, directed by Steven Soderbergh (2000)

24. The Royal Tenenbaums, directed by Wes Anderson (2001)

25. Far From Heaven, directed by Todd Haynes (2002)

dvd pick of the month: red desert

"Red Desert"
directed by Michaelangelo Antonioni
1964
And the best part of this release besides the obvious (the tetralogy is almost completely on Criterion!) is this clip on the site. I love how the trailer looks like a cheeky, farcical 60's couple romp of a movie when in fact it perfectly fits in the cannon of provocative, confrontational, and quietly sexy that Michaelangelo Antonioni does so well. The quail egg scene in the red room is unforgettable. When, oh, when will Criterion put "La Notte" out and make me a truly happy man? "Red Desert" is out on DVD and Blu-Ray on June, 22nd.

first look: somewhere

"Somewhere"
directed by Sofia Coppola
December 22, 2010

Let's hope the movie is as good as the poster.

goop

Gywneth Paltrow in Stella McCartney
at the Stella McCartney Resort 2011 Presentation in New York
Remember the summer of Gwyneth and the mini? I miss those days, but there's something to be said about a woman in a blazer and a pair of pants. Gwyneth, you can cook for me any time.

gqmf

Ryan Gosling in Band of Outsiders
I haven't been shopping in three months and this image of Ryan Gosling heading to Cannes for the premiere of his new movie, "Blue Valentine", makes me think two things: my first purchases should be a new cardigan and a new pair of black slim cut jeans. I've been wanting the Band of Outsiders cardigan he's wearing since I saw it at Odin a couple months back. It's so simple and yet so stylish. I also need a pair of black slim cut jeans after I destroyed my Shipley & Halmos pair while playing kickball in January (long story). Can't it be Christmas in May and someone just give me these things?

via JustJared

everybody in khakis

Rag & Bone
Blade II Chino, $265
Save Khaki
Classic Chino, $110
Topman
Vintage Wash Chino, $60
There was a period in my life where I almost exclusively wore nothing but khakis. I had every shade imaginable from Gap and J. Crew. But then suddenly one day, I decide NO MORE. I wish I could be that strict when it goes to stuff that's actually bad for me (alcohol, fast food, crushes from a far), but like any old habit, the desire to wear a khaki pant has come back. I wear jeans every day of my life and I like the comfort, ease, and practically that denim provides. They can be worn with literally almost anything to look super casual or super dressy and that universal quality is key to how I think about what to wear on a daily basis. Khakis, on the other hand, can be difficult because they can look too utilitarian or too Soccer Dad. The length is so important as well as the fit through the leg. I want something slim, but not ultra-skinny and with a little weight, but not linen or super light. Something with a stain resistant would be nice. I own two pairs of stain resistant khaki shorts from Gap that look like the day I bought them almost five years ago and I couldn't treasure them more. The search is officially on. Next thing you know, I might make a return to sweatpants. Or not.

three lovers

"La Collectionneuse"
directed by Eric Rohmer, 1967
Two guys and a girl in St. Tropez in the late 60's. It's the perfect setting for a story brimming with sexual politics and erotic tension. It's also innately stylish. Patrick Bauchau stars a man hellbent on achieving nothingness in an idyllic summer home. Enter the coy temptation that is sexual youth and abandonment played by Haydée Politoff. Oh, and his friend, Daniel Pommereulle, is staying with him too. Masterfully measured, the morally vexed tale of repression and release plays wonderfully and cruelly in such beautiful settings. The wardrobe is at times distracting because it seems so precise. Oversized cuffed shirts with extra long shirt tails, terry clothed sweatshirts, caftans for days spent lying in the brush, and of course, bikinis to eye at for days. There certainly isn't a timeless to every wardrobe choice, but the ones that do resonate last just as much as the power of Rohmer's art.