Esta peli es difícil para mi porque muta de vez en cuando.

Añoré mucho verla en cine en el 2007, no se cuánto pero fue demasiado. Me devolvía de mi viaje a Argentina y en el avión la estaban poniendo, creo incluso que sin subtítulos, no iba a aguantarme semejante ignominia: Una peli en una pantalla menor a una hoja carta doblada a la mitad y menos doblada al español. Apreté los ojos, mascullé oraciones hasta que al fin logré dormir, conciliar un sueño y olvidarme de la peli.

Después estuve esperado que los benditos distribuidores colombianos trajeran la peli y nunca fue. Luego azares del destino trajeron consigo buena fortuna y logré encargarla por Amazon. Le puse demasiada fe, una montaña rusa que empezaba en The Royal Tenembaums, seguía The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou y finalizaba en The Darjeeling Linited. Mi expectativa había agotado toda la belleza de esta peli.

Mi primera impresión fue desalentadora, un balance bastante ordinario, nada del otro mundo, mi segunda vez fue como observar que aunque el sol se oculta todos los días, todas las veces lo hace de una forma diferente, mi tercera vez fue realmente entrañadora y justifica el éxito de la vuelta, finalmente, esta mi cuarta vez puedo afirmar que es un éxito. No es la mejor peli de Anderson pero tampoco es como la venía calificando. Es, realmente, un viaje en el desarrollo psicológico de los personajes, un tren que los lleva a madurar, a perdonar, a conocerse, a entenderse y a quererse. Esa sóla aseveración la hacen muy destacable. Su equipo intacto, su fotografía impecable, la música excelente, la historia muy bien desarrollada. Y, sin embargo, para mí lo más bonito, sigue siendo, que su actor fetiche, Bill Murray, esté presente en una escena tan romántica como la del principio y donde le dice algo como: “Llavería, me voy a la India, se que usted no puede acompañarme, lo llevo en mi corazón, espéreme, vuelvo y planeamos el siguiente golpe”. The Businessman es lo mejor y me sigo preguntando si no habrá un corto alrededor de este personaje.

Pero hay muchas más cosas buenas. Después hay una serie de chistecitos, un poco subidos de tono, un poco muy demasiado para el estilo de Anderson pero se entiende que los diálogos y el equipo encargado de la historia y los parlamentos son frescos, son nuevos. Qué bueno que cada vez que arma equipo de escritura se mantiene como líder pero se refresca en escencia, esta vez fue Schwartzman y el hijo de Coppola quienes lo acompañaron en la tarea. Se nota el cambio. Schwartzman es un marico que me cae bien, todo el tiempo está frunciendo el ceño en la peli y haciendo pucheros pero es capaz de mojarse los dedos mientras besa a una mujer, correrle los calzones y penetrarla. Un lord. Un gentleman.

Rotten Tomatoes dice que lo destacado de esta peli con el resto de lo que venía haciendo Anderson es que el director no está encasillado como si lo puede estar Tarantino, es una oda completa a Satyajit Ray una eminencia en el cine indio y es una reinvención de lo que venía haciendo (esto se puede demostrar fácilmente estudiando la banda sonora y analizando que en más de una ocación Anderson parafrasea a Ray). Yo destaco la música, el tren como metáfora de crecimiento personal y las citas o frases de cada uno de los personajes que son como pequeñas gotas filosóficas que hacen mella en nuestra cotidianidad.

A continuación un listado de esas frases que me encontré por ahí y que hacen, de esta, una delicia:

**
[Francis y Peter están peliando]
Francis: You don’t love me!
Peter: Yes I do!
Jack: I love you too, but I’m gonna mace you in the face!
**
Jack: I wonder if the three of us would’ve been friends in real life. Not as brothers, but as people.
**
Rita: What’s wrong with you?
Jack: Let me think about that. I’ll tell you the next time I see you.
Rita: Okay, let’s do that
Jack: Thank you for using me
Rita: (suspiro entrecortado) You are welcome
**
Jack: Which direction did your’s go?
Francis: What do you mean?
Jack: Your feathers… mine blew toward the mountains
Francis: That’s not right. It’s not suppose to get blown away. You’re suppose to blow on it then bury it.
Peter: I didn’t get that. I still have mine.
Francis: You guys didn’t do it right. I asked if you read the instructions. You did it wrong… I tried my hardest. I don’t know what to do.
**
Francis: How did it get to this? Why haven’t we spoken in a year? Let’s make an agreement.
Peter: To do what?
Jack: Okay.
**
Francis: A: I want us be become brothers again like we used to be and for us to find ourselves and bond with each other. Can we agree to that?
Peter: Okay.
Peter: Yeah.
Francis: B. I want us to make this trip a spiritual journey where each of us seek the unknown, and we learn about it. Can we agree to that?
Jack: Sure.
Peter: I guess so.
Francis: C. I want us to be completely open and say yes to everything even if it’s shocking and painful. Can we agree to that?”
[Peter y Jack voltean sus cabezas y se miran. Francis simplemente continúa]
**

Nota personal: Qué divertida que es la aparición de Barber Schroeder como mecánico del padre, despidiendose de la escena con los ojos enrojecidos, completamente conmovido y con la voz quebrantada. Y qué divertido es ver a Owen Wilson quitarse las vendas y aprovechar esa nariz peculiar que tiene en aras de la historia.

Is That Symbolic?, originally uploaded by Revolutiony.

Tribute to The Darjeeling Limited… Photo by Ali.

TelegraphIndia.com has its top 100 films of the last decade and ‘The Pianist’ made it to number 88.  I don’t know who helped the writer make this list.  My guess is he got a handful of his office co-workers to help him, and one of them had to be a young, single guy since ‘Knocked Up’ made it on there.  I’m surprised that ‘The Darjeeling Limited’ wasn’t on there since the above mentioned site is based in Calcutta, India.  It’s also insane that ‘King Kong’ didn’t make it either.  His co-workers must not be Adrien Brody fans.

Navegando por ahí dentro de las miles de comunidades que nos dominan hoy en día, me enteré que había una peli, más bien un corto, que explicaba o hacía referencia a la bata amarilla de Jason Schwartzman en The Darjeeling Limited de Wes Anderson de 2007.

Mi primera reacción no fue bonita. Fue una ansiedad y una profunda decepción por sostener un falso estamento que en mi poder tenía toda la colección de Anderson.

Sin embargo, hoy me dí cuenta revisando los adendos especiales de The Darjeeling Limited que Hotel Chevalier, el corto de Wes Anderson, estaba allí. Y siempre había estado.

Hubo dos suspiros de descanso, uno, porque podía de nuevo sostener mi estamento; dos, porque aunque uno sobrevive a la trama de The Darjeeling Limited si es especialmente iluminador el corto de Hotel Chevalier. Natalie Portman adquiere un carácter más protagónico (qué bella que es) y las frases de Jack Whitman como escritor adquieren un tono melancólico y testimonial.

El corto inquietantemente hermoso, ambientado en París y con una relación amorosa entre dos amigos que se hicieron mucho daño en el pasado, es el relato de ellos justo en ese instante que no sólo quieren tener sexo, así Whitman diga con desdén que podría ser tan sólo eso y no importaría. Me inquieta entonces saber si no será que Anderson tiene por ahí un corto o una referencia reveladora sobre El Hombre de Negocios interpretado por Bill Murray en TheDarjeeling Limited.

There’s an article about Wes Anderson and his movie ‘Fantastic Mr. Fox’ in SouthFloridaSun-Sentinel.com.  It’s really a non-post since there only a short mention of Adrien.  Just that another character in the animated film wears the identical blue pajamas that Adrien wore in ‘The Darjeeling Limited’.  I thought he was really cute in that look.

If those blue pajamas worn by Mr. Fox’s nephew Kristofferson (the voice of Anderson’s brother Eric) look at all familiar, you’ve probably seen the director’s picaresque 2007 road movie “The Darjeeling Limited.” In that film, Adrien Brody can be seen sporting an identical outfit.

Dir: Wes Anderson, 2009

…don’t use fantastic…don’t use fantastic…don’t use fantastic…

There has been a lot of talk, during the lead up to the release of Fantastic Mr. Fox, about how Wes Anderson was one of the most influential of the filmmakers comprising the indie film scene of the Nineties. During that decade I was ages four through fourteen, and largely had neither the inclination nor the necessary identification to test this claim for myself. I did, however, see The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou when it was released in 2004, and an Anderson fan was born instantly. I eagerly sought out the director’s earlier films, and awaited with great anticipation his next offering, The Darjeeling Limited.

I then heard tell of Anderson’s plans to direct an animated adaptation of Roald Dahl’s Fantastic Mr. Fox. Anxiety took hold. Whilst The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou had contained brief sojourns into the realm of stop-motion, Anderson himself had no experience of that technique. Could he be planning a (gasp!) CGI feature?

Mercifully, my fears were unfounded. Anderson did not resort to digital trickery; instead, the stop-motion animation in Fantastic Mr. Fox looks more old-fashioned than even The Nightmare Before Christmas, the first stop-motion feature film. There is an endearing jerkiness to the way old Foxy and chums move, and the fur on their bodies bristles in a way that suggests, paradoxically, both artificiality and genuine life.

The film, of course, follows the eponymous canine (voiced, in an inspired piece of casting, by George Clooney), once a serial poultry thief, as he battles Boggis, Bunce and Bean, the three most successful and horrible farmers in the land. After settling down with his family, Mr. Fox decides to carry out one last batch of burglaries. Things go awry, however, and soon the entire woodland is at jeopardy from the three vengeful farmers.

The spirit of Roald Dahl’s proto-socialist children’s book is here, but this is Anderson’s film. Stop-motion animation really is the ideal medium, as it lends another facet to the painstakingly crafted artificiality that pervades of the director’s work. The film’s loose chapters are all declared with headings overlaid onto the action (and written in yellow Futura Bold, of course), and scenes are often played out in meticulously blocked static shots, or cross-sections of the sets, ala Zissou’s Belafonte.

Anderson has also extended the cast to include his own array of archetypes. Mr. Fox’s son Ash (Jason Schwartzman) bears resemblance to Klaus Daimler in The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou – a ball of frustration and unattained ambition. Ash feels threatened by the arrival of cousin Kristofferson (Eric Anderson), an amalgamation of Richie Tenenbaum and a more competent Max Fischer, and their rivalry is kept in check by Mrs. Fox (Meryl Streep), who could just as easily have been played by Anjelica Huston. Other Anderson staples include Bill Murray as Mr Fox’s badger lawyer, Willem Defoe as a rat in the employ of Bean, and Owen Wilson as a whackbat coach. (Whackbat is a fictional sport only slightly more comprehensible than Futurama’s blernsball.)

Underlying all of this is the wry and understated humour that has made American independent films so popular as of late. “They probably didn’t have opossums in Ancient Rome,” Mr. Fox tells his friend Kylie when he can’t remember his Latin name (it’s Didelphis virginiana, by the way). This is sure to irk some viewers (the trans-Atlantic conedy, that is) who, lured in by the source material and the old-fashioned animation, will be expecting something unadulteratedly British. These same people will almost certainly find fault with a community of American-accented animals doing battle with the evil Boggis, Bunce and Bean (Robin Hurlstone, Hugo Guinness and Michael Gambon respectively). And maybe this is a real problem with the film, but nevertheless I cannot bring myself to criticise Anderson for it. Fantastic Mr. Fox strikes a perfect balance between both sides of the Atlantic, with quirky American characters interacting with a quintessentially British setting.

And why should American and British values be separated in the cinema? In the same way that Anderson’s signature style and Dahl’s source material both benefited from their coalescence, American humour and British settings play off each other to create something greater than either could have been on its own. Perhaps Fantastic Mr. Fox will be wholly accepted by neither the Anderson elite nor the Dahl devotees, but for those who still believe in the Darwinian ideal of cross-fertilisation will be sure to find Anderson’s latest nothing short of fantastic.

…damn it.

Patricia: Now who wants scrambled eggs raise your hands. 

*raises hand*

As a massive Wes Anderson film you can probably guess where this blog is about to go.  If not you’re probably the stupidest person on earth and deserve an unfortunate death in a similar way to a snail.  Stamped on in the dark.  The Fantastic Mr Fox is possibly the finest animation to have come out in the cinema since Up.  Regular readers of this review will note that I wrote for an eternity about how amazing Disney Pixar’s latest release was.  However, The Talented Mr Fox even manages to trump this experience.  In all seriousness Anderson has probably created one of the finest pieces of animated cinema to have been released since Belleville Rendezvous and brings a welcome return of handmade animation – a particular favourite of mine.  Read on to discover why this film is so great and why you should part with you hard earned money to watch it.

Mr Fox is a bird thief.  However, on discovering his wife is pregnant he agrees to retire from this profession.  Jump forward 12 years and Mr Fox is a newspaper journalist.  His home is dysfunctional and his relationships with his wife and son are strained.  He decides to move above ground to a tree on top of a hill (luxury accommodation for local animals).  This places him in direct view of the local farmers and landowners Boggis, Bunce and Bean.  Mr Fox decides to carry out one last job and carries out a mega raid on all 3.  This angers them and leads to weeks of revenge which threatens to put the animal community at risk.

This film is fantastic from start to finish.  The animation is absolutely fantastic.  It is such a treat to see a film made with such an attention to detail.  Every second is a moment of joy on the eyes.  The sets have been beautifully made.  The characters wonderfully sculpted.  Even the recreation of the Little Theatre in Bath is further sign of the passion and dedication that was paid to the film.

The vocal performances in the film are something to cherish.  I am not normally someone who raves about actors performances in an animation but it is particularly worthwhile in this instance.  George Clooney is fantastic.  There a suaveness that is as easy to hate as it is to love.  Meryl Streep is also absolutley excellent.  Although in my opinion the scenes are often stolen by Willem Defoe as the rat.  His vocal performance is captivating.  It is also a pleasure to hear Owen Wilson tune with a brief role as a gymnastics coach.

What is enjoyable about the film is the way that Anderson puts his own mark on the classic story.  Everything is reminiscent of his other work.  The clipped use of language, a pastiche for classic objects and the slightly surreal dated world he creates.  Everything is very precise.  But it is theme of dysfunctional family life that has drawn the most attention.  Ash – Mr Foxes son is always constantly in the shadow of his dad and he developed a resentment towards him.  This feeling is made worst by the arrival of Kristofferson his cousin who is hugely talented and instantly courts the affection that he desires from his father.  Anyone who has seen The Royal Tenenbaums or The Darjeeling Limited will instantly pick up on the themes.  The film is a natural evolution from his other work and does as previously mentioned easily fits in with his work.  It is interesting to see how a director of this talent can spread his skills across different disciplines.

Overall – This is the best film of the year.  I say this a lot but I mean it.  You won’t find better! Like Paul McKena I will try and hypnotise you and make you go. Go! Go Now!! NOOOOOOOOOOOOWWWWWWWWWWW!!

9/10

1)  This is one of my favorite ways to waste time.  DarkRoastedBlend has some great links to crazy stuff which has served only to distract and amaze me. Some of my favorite things have been links to crazy modern furniture designs, crazy science stories, and strange maps (just to name a few).  My favorite part of DRB is the Link Latte – it is a deep, deep well of random and often useless information, but damn does it make for good trivia knowledge!

 

 

 

 

(photo credit: http://www.darkroastedblend.com/2007/03/world-imbalances-shown-on-unique-maps.html)

 

2) Another great way to waste time is by visiting this little gem of a site: http://www.engrish.com/.  Now, please don’t think that I am being offensive – believe me I have done my fair share of spelling things wrong in Spanish and saying things the wrong way!  I usually just shrug my shoulders and chalk it up to one of those “oops-moments,” laugh, then move on with attempting to communicate.  We all have to admit that some of these mistranslations are pretty hilarious though!  I think one of my favorites is one of a pencil case with polar bears on it.  There’s just too much about it that makes me laugh!

3) If you’re into good movies, or are like me and just never know what new movies are coming out, itunes movie trailers are perfect for staying in touch with the cinematic world.  B-T-Dubs, the new Wes Anderson film, Fantastic Mr. Fox, looks…fantastic (?).  First of all, pretty much every movie he has directed has quickly become one of my favorite movies.  Second, it’s a stop-animation style which is also one of my favorites!  I may be predisposed to liking the film, but that’s fine with me.  Which leads me to the next great way to waste some time…

4) Stuff White People Like!  The first time I saw this website I was so ashamed to catch myself saying, “oh I love that!” after every thing on the list.  Preeeeetty funny if you ask me.  Wes Anderson is definitely on this list. 

5) If wasting time really isn’t something you do, or if homework (or work work) just beckons too strongly for true time-wasting, at least try to have something somewhat enjoyable to brighten up the overcastiness (yes I made up a word).  Good music is really going to be essential here.   Thus, here are my top five playlists or albums for getting work done on a not-so-good-looking day. 

         I. “To Travels and Trunks” – Hey Marseilles

                      This album is great for listening to at work.  I mean seriously.  It would also make a really epic roadtrip album.  It’s the kind of music that would make you feel like you were in some indie movie, with the road methodically passing by you and the sun setting behind majestic, red rock formations, and the warm wind tousling your hair while the windows are down.   And, they’re local (Seattle)!

     II. The Darjeeling Limited Soundtrack

                  I love Wes Anderson films (as I already mentioned), and the music chosen for his movies is partly the reason why.  This soundtrack is great for doing work, and for getting a lot of attention.  People give me some questioning looks, andI don’t think they understand why I am listening to Indian music.  I’m sure they are just jealous of my unique indie taste in music.  Probably not.  Anyway – great music.  I think this would be great for a road trip too.  (apparently ‘roadtrip-worthy’ is one of my good-music qualifiers). 

      III. Horse Feathers – any of it.  It’s all good. 

                 Now before I go any further, I need to admit something about myself.  I tend to exaggerate a litte.  In my older, wiser, post-grad existence I have seriouly cut down on this bad habbit.  Now hear this – I do not exaggerate at all when I speak of my love for this band.  I speak only truth when I say that Horse Feathers easily falls into my top three favorite bands of ever.  And I don’t think that simply listening to their albums would really offer up a good explanation as to why: don’t get me wrong, I love them, but seeing them play live is a must if you want to really appreciate what they’ve got going on.  Which is a lot.  They will be playing at the Empyrean in Spokane on November 9th (and you bet your ass I am going to be there fawning over their musical magic!), and highly recommend seeing them if you can get down there. 

      IV. Buena Vista Social Club – Pandora station

 I don’t care who you are…that’s just some good shit.  Everytime I listen to this station I feel like I should be the lead girl in “Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights,” dancing with Diego Luna (cutie!) in the midst of the Cuban Revolution.  Just listen to it.  You’ll fall in love.  All the artists that pop up on the station are also great, and it gives a good mix of tunes to keep you awake on a gloomy day.  [If you  like this kind of music, I also highly recommend Ozomatli.  They're coming to Spokane in November]. 

       V.  “Zee Avi” – Zee Avi

I catch myself humming a lot when I listen to this.  I love Blues, and this is a more laid-back, “Nora Jones-y” style of blues, but I still love it.  Zee Avi is upbeat enough that I don’t fall alseep, and is indie enough that I don’t feel like some old Michael Buble listener (sorry to those Buble fans that I have offended.  It just makes me feel like an old person when I listen to his music).  My favorite song on this album is “Honey Bee” – it has affirmed for me the desire to get a honey bee tattoo (there are deeper reasons than just this song, obviously). 

Ok, I hope the “good for nothing” post was entertaining for a least a couple of you out there!  If it wasn’t, don’t tell me.  I don’t want to know that an hour of my time was wasted, and that you wasted your time not enjoying something.  That would be useless to all of us. 

Think Erin Wasson, Kate Moss, biker boots, Glastonbury festival, leather jackets and you get the new Blue Blood women’s jean named after Erin Wasson called, The Erin.

The Erin is predicted to be the must-have-female-it item of the new Blue Blood SS10 collection. This perfectly fitted jeans suits everybody but is mainly aimed at the beautiful self conscience, independent and edgy woman. The Erin was inspired by the success, look, feel and mainly its fit of one of our first famous jeans for women called Jeannie. The Jeannie and its new variation, The Erin are both skinny jeans with a lower rise. The Erin, made in Italy comes in various washings, all that are stunning and bare a look and feel of a jean that has been used yet it is completely new.

The two variations of The Erin are called Missed The Train and The Zoe. The Erin – Missed The Train washing is inspired by a great Wes Anderson movie – The Darjeeling Limited. The story goes that the actors have been travelling immensely and are in a rush to catch the train but unfortunately they just missed it, where upon they stumble and fall.

This jean therefore also comes with a patch on one of the knees as if the wearer actually fell and had to re-patch her jeans. So when wearing The Erin – Missed The Train it will provide that feeling of edgy roughness, eccentric traveling but being able to stay effortlessly beautiful.

As for the The Erin with The Zoe washing you will definitely get that feeling of being a “London it girl”. Its based on as mentioned earlier the beautiful model Erin Wasson and the edgy Kate Moss as these jeans look used, they are ripped and stitch repaired giving you that nonchalant-sexy-London-girl look.

And our inspiration model…Erin Wasson

We can’t wait for The Erin to be in store from January 2010 onwards!

BB

Two days left until the autumn officially begins (September 22, 2009 at 5:18 pm EDT).
As I am a huge fan of summer, this fact breaks my heart EVERY year. So THIS year I’ve decided not to call it “autumn” or “fall”, but “the season of the reverse side of light”.
Light has gone nowhere. It is just going to be negative for a while! So no need to weep, my dearest summer friends!

1.

It’s taking over my life. I am Batman. When I got to the Batcave I came a bit.

2. Brand New’s brand new album Daisy has leaked. Is it any good? In a word, AAAARGH! Which means yes. To the fans who wanted more Deja Entendu and less The Devil And God Are Raging Inside Me: tough luck. On first listen, the dark, grungy feel of their last LP continues unabated, and the album is all the better for it. It’s hard to believe this is the same band that made Your Favourite Weapon.

I’m not gonna post any songs cause it’s not fair on that super-sensitive soul Jesse Lacey. But if you want to hear the tunes, they are not hard to find. The Hype Machine is a good start.

3. Frank Turner, a man I have waxed lyrical about in the past on this blog, released his third album, Poetry Of The Deed this week.

I’m in the process of downloading it just now and i’m psyched. The Road was a great lead single and was supported by a fantastic video which documented Turner’s batshit insane attempt to  play 24 gigs in 24 hours. Somehow he managed it, using what I can only assume is some Jedi magic. Check it out here.  Make sure you watch the ‘Making Of’ too, it’s great. Find that here.

Frank Turner – Thatcher Fucked The Kids

4. Randomly stumbled upon this video of Bon Iver performing Skinny Love in Paris.

What makes this video unique is a simple element: it is shot from behind the performer. This seemingly basic switch makes the viewing experience totally different; as we see how the people react to the flow of the song. It’s a beautiful setup in a small room with candles and all that jazz, but the best part is watching the kids just getting into it.  We actually don’t get a look at Justin’s face whatsoever. And listen for the drummer’s harmonies: dude is rocking a Prince style falsetto.

5. Been watching a few Golden Era Simpsons episodes recently. Rocked the one with John Waters today, and totally forgot about this scene. All you need to know is that Homer is afraid of gays, and believes Bart is becoming one. So, naturally he takes him to the most testosterone-fuelled workplace he can think of. Hilarity ensues:

6. The Guild – Do You Wanna Date My Avatar?

You may recognise Felicia Day from the infamous 13th episode of Geek Overlord Joss Whedon’s Dollhouse. Before she got that sweet gig, she wrote and starred in The Guild, an online comedy for gamers by gamers; if you have any knowledge of game-chat at all then you will get the myriad tech gags that are the shows lifeblood. Other non-game-specific geek references abound in a similar style to it’s clear forefather, the show of a generation; Spaced.

Do You Wanna Date My Avatar? is an advertisement for the upcoming third season, available on YouTube. You don’t wanna miss it!

7.

Very rarely is it the case I leave the cinema as happy as I did after seeing 500 Days Of Summer. Essentially a film about a relationship that doesn’t work out, it really made me reconsider the romantic comedy genre; and proved to me that Judd Apatow isn’t the only guy in Hollywood capable of making films that deal with love in a modern, non-ridiculous manner.

Both leads Zooey Deschanel and Joseph Gordon-Levitt do great, understated work throughout. Deschanel is all huge eyes and cute smiles, while JGL really pulls out his comedy chops. The two actors have real chemistry and it shows. Deschanel has been waiting for a while for a role to really pay off for her and this could be the one. It seems like so long ago that my spotty 15 year-old self fell head over heels for her in Almost Famous.  I watched on anxiously as she gradually built up her profile in films like Elf, Bridge To Terabithia and Yes Man. It’s awesome to see her finally knock it out the park with Summer.

And Gordon-Levitt? His next film is Christopher Nolan’s Inception. On. My. God.

8.

Wes Anderson is a cool guy. Immaculate dress sense, quirky cool films and a good looking and well connected guy in general. I recently seen The Darjeeling Limited again, and loved it far more the second time around. In the past I felt that with the exception of Rushmore, he sacrificed emotion for stylistic quirks. And there is a disturbing lack of good roles for non-whites in his films too. But not anymore. I felt he really treated India with respect and managed to draw a tender performance from a vulnerable Owen Wilson (who tried to commit suicide soon after filming). Adrian Brody and Jason Schwartzman are both awesome also, first bring the serious and the second bringin’ the funny.

Also, Limited contains the funniest line in any of his films; spoken by the aforementioned Schwartzman:

"I love you too, but I'm gonna mace you in the face!"

Roll on Fantastic Mr Fox.

I had never seen the Darjeeling Limited before. Sometime after seeing The Life Aquatic I decided I wasn’t connecting emotionally to his movies. So I skipped this one.

But Jenn makes a pretty good argument and so we watched this. And of course it is pretty amazing.

Bleak, but amazing.

My father hates to fly, so our family used to take the train to South Dakota every summer. A few times we had sleeper cars. I loved the sleeper cars because it seemed like an old movie.

The Fantastic Mr. Fox, thanks to Fox Searchlight movies, has released this official poster. This stop-animation movie based on the beloved Roald Dahl book featuring the voices of George Clooney, Meryl Streep, Bill Murray, Owen Wilson, Willem Dafoe, Jason Schwartzman, Michael Gambon, Adrien Brody, Brian Cox, Anjelica Huston, and Wes Anderson himself who also is the director of the film and Oscar nominated (Bottle Rocket, Rushmore, The Royal Tenenbaums, The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou, and also The Darjeeling Limited).

If you havent seen the trailer yet enjoy:

Mr. Foz will be in cinemas the next November 13th

They’ve all discovered the beauty of Claude Debussy’s Clair de Lune and brought it to a variety of new audiences.  Whether you’re a teenage girl, an arty student or a fashionista, there’s no escaping the power of Debussy’s beautiful melody.

I have no problem admitting that many of my favourite pieces of classical music came to me through modern populist means and Clair de Lune is one of them.  I first remember coming across it in the early 1980s and I didn’t like it at all. Then it was introduced to me again in recent years and I realised the error of my ways. It’s a fantastic piece of music. Even with solo piano, it has such passion and beauty, it is amazing.

It is because of this passion and beauty it remains so popular with artists in the modern age.

Stephanie Meyer, the celebrated author of the Twilight book series, makes reference to the music in the book Twilight and the reference and music appear in the film.  Take one look at the number of Twilight/Clair de Lune montages on youtube and it’s clear that the music has taken hold with that generation.

Wes Anderson also uses Clair de Lune as a backdrop to a poignant moment in his film The Darjeeling Limited.  The quirky comedy and intellectualism of Anderson’s style of cinema attracts a very different audience to that of the average Twilight fan but they are equally susceptable to Debussy’s charm.

And finally there’s the Chanel No. 5 commercial with Nicole Kidman, directed by Baz Luhrmann.

To break the stereo type with myself, I don’t fit into the architype follower of any of the above but I am a fan of all three all the same.  However I must confess it was Baz Luhrmann’s genius aesthetics that first won me over to the magic of Clair de Lune.  How could I resist the crafted camerawork, the fabulous Karl Lagerfeld dress, Nicole’s radiance and the indulgent beauty all round. It’s the ultimate fantasy of a Romantic like me.

It’s only a matter of time before Clair de Lune lends its passion to popular culture once more..

Ya saben que adoro las pelis de Wes Anderson, anoche me repetí The Life Aquatic of Steve Zissou estrenada en el 2004 pero esta vez la ví en versión Criterion Collection con la única intención de encontrar qué hace que una peli de Anderson le pertenezca en estilo y apariencia; me dí cuenta que su estilo ha madurado con el paso de los años, el perfecto ejercicio y la experiencia de su ópera prima (Bottle Rocket de 1996, Rushmore de 1998 y The Royal Tenembaums de 2001).

A continuación, y basado en esta peli, enumero lo que para mi es el estilo de Wes Anderson, no en orden de importancia ya que cada punto es sinérgico y la ausencia de cualquiera de ellos afectaría el producto final.

Hay algo que define las pelis de Anderson (que se mantiene incluso en The Darjeeling Limited de 2007 y Fantastic Mr. Fox de 2009) y es la inclusión de Bill Murray como su actor fetiche. Kumar Pallana había estado en sus tres pelis anteriores pero se ausentó en esta y en Fantastic Mr. Fox; Owen Wilson se ausentó en Rushmore al igual que su hermano Luke Wilson; Angelica Houston sólo aparece desde The Royal Tenembaums aunque sea ya una parte importante del equipo. Bill Murray por el contrario no aparece en la versión original de Bottle Rocket de 1994 ni en su reprodución en largometraje dos años después pero a partir de Rushmore se hace parte importante del equipo (creo que si se hubieran conocido para el primer proyecto de Bottle Rocket igual hubiera sido amor a primera vista entre ellos y hubiera participado sin dudarlo. Me arriesgo a decir que si eso hubiera pasado de pronto el papel de James Caan hubiera tambaleado un poco). Y es que Bill Murray no sólo actua en las pelis de Anderson, él es un bastión importante que resuelve tomas, es propositivo en argumentos, improvisa de la forma correcta para el proyecto y se desenvuelve en el contexto como pez en el agua Bill Murray es un caballero que mantiene un ambiente feliz y cómodo para todos.

Ya habíamos tocado el tema de Bill Murray en Broken Flowers de Jim Jarmusch y su forma característica de repetirse, de sus excelentes repertorios cuando encuentra el perfecto guión y/o el ambiente adecuado. En esta peli Murray interpreta un documentalista acabado egocéntrico, pretencioso que trata de reinventarse porque se está perdiendo en su baja autoestima. La presentación de su obra más reciente lo dejó sin su mejor amigo Esteban du Plantier interpretado por Seymour Cassiel y esto lo involucra en la búsqueda de un tiburón tigre con la firme y poco científica intención de aniquilarlo, así sea el único de su especie. La peli se trata entonces de la filmación de este documental y de esa forma se sigue mostrando todas las calidades de Wes Anderson como realizador.

El siguiente punto que me gustaría analizar es la música que ha estado a cargo de  Mark Mothersbaugh, líder de la banda Devo que conformó en los 70’s con su hermano Robert. Mothersbaugh ha colaborado desde siempre y hasta este, su último proyecto con el equipo. Es un hombre bastante recorrido en el campo de la composición, su gran aporte a las pelis es el perfecto conocimiento del gusto de Anderson, caracterizado por melodías festivas con instrumentos de tono alto, algo barrocas con el uso de un clavicordio para Rushmore, definitivamente sofisticadas y clásicas para The Royal Tenembaums y muy pero muy sencillas y básicas para The Life Aquatic of Steve Zissou, muchas de estas tonadas son respaldadas por mini Casios que dan la sensación midi de un juego de video, un poco más ligero y dinámico que el género de sus antecesoras. Al final la peli tiene una caracterización de aventura y para las escenas de acción se usaron trombones, orquestaciones bajas, profundas, entregando un halo de suspenso al proyecto. Esta peli tiene otra gran característica a nivel musical y es la presencia de Seu Jorge quién interpreta a Pelé Dos-Santos, en la peli uno más de la tripulación, en la realización, el encargado de la interpretación de la banda sonora, un repertorio de muchas canciones de David Bowie cantadas en portugués con una profunda melancolía y tan sólo una guitarra acústica para su interpretación, que dan la sensación de una misma tonada durante toda la peli. Ahora bien, si se le suman el par de canciones originales del mismo David Bowie, el caastañeteo de Paco de Lucía, un par de tonadas de Sven Libaek y las creaciones de Mothersbaugh, al final, el resultado es una gran banda sonora.

Algunas características son más evidentes que otras, al final, unas se perciben como condimentos del plato gracias a su perfecta armonía con el resto del producto. Por ejemplo, es una característica desde siempre el constante uso de la fuente tipográfica Futura para relacionar temas de los protagonistas (así como sutiles diferencias de fuente para los antagónicos), una ambientación con colores saturados evocando sensaciones de los 70’s o una sensación surrealista del mundo basado en ilustraciones de su hermano Eric Chase Anderson, gran responsable del diseño del entorno; en The Royal Tenembaums se hizo evidente en el estudio de Richie Tenembaum pues tenía caricaturas de su papá como mural de sus paredes. En esta peli el presupuesto le permitió ilustrar el interior de un barco y volverlo el set de grabación permitiendo unas secuencias de cámara sencillamente geniales y con una sensación de continuidad fantástica.

Es realmente divertido descubrir qué hace diferentes las pelis de Anderson, podríamos continuar con comunicación de cámaras de bruscos paneos en vez de corte de planos, acercamientos que gracias al grano de la película ensucian el cuadro, acucioso sentido por el más mínimo detalle como el caso particular de los títeres de la peli sutilmente irreales o la diferencia sustancial en cada uno de los gorros de la tripulación (unos tienen pompones, otros no, unos tienen semáforos bordados, otros son atuendos religiosos de musulmanes ortodoxos) o algo tan sencillo como la ayuda para escribir la obra con alguno de sus amigos de una manera sencilla y fabulezca (antes los hermanos Wilson, en esta ocación con Noah Baumbach). Pero lo que no se nos puede escapar es que lo que verdaderamente hace especial cada una de estas pelis es el ímpetu, la frescura, el entusiasmo, la fantástica perspectiva del mundo, de este niño de cuarenta años.

Ya para finalizar, quiero destacar la espléndida y sobresaliente caracterización de Willem Dafoe como Klaus “Klausy” Daimler un conmovedor alemán, leal a su líder Steve Zissou que lo aprecia casi como padre y lo secunda incluso en sus errores, un personaje tan enternecedor como humano que logra robarnos más de un par de sonrisas, de nuevo, de una forma muy sofisticada y elegante. Un aplauso para el resto del reparto que se enfrascaron en esta aventura Andersiana y que parece estarían felices de repetir en otra oportunidad: Cate Blanchet, Michael Gambon, Noah Taylor y Jeff Goldblum.

We would like to thank everybody already for all your funny, great, and interesting reactions. We would especially like to say thank you and show our appreciation to Petra Vlasblom.

We at Blue Blood loved her response!

Dear BLUE BLOOD, STEVE TE PAS ,TEAM<

THE ANSWER TO YOUR QUESTION:

The collection of SS-10 is inspired BY: 3 WES ANDERSON MOVIES…
The main movie was: THE DARJEELING LIMITED (2007)
IT IS AL ABOUT: TRAVELING/ FAMILY & FRIENDS!!!!!
(See also the inspired Louis Vuiton Travel Cases)

I made a cool collage!!!!Hope to win a pair of BLUE BLOOD JEANS!!!!
And come to the PARTY!!!!!!!!!

Hope to see you next week FRIDAY!!!Strand ZUID!!!!!

Best Regards,

Petra Vlasblom

Not only did she give the correct anwer but also took the time in this hot summery weather to create amazing collages based upon the theme of the new Blue Blood SS10 collection.

BB

Movies – movies are watched by all of us. As a form of entertainment, education or it may be a very useful source of inspiration to people all over the world. Great designers world wide have been inspired by many different movies in order to create a wonderful new collections. We, at Blue Blood were extremely moved by The Darjeeling Limited by Wes Anderson, likewise were Louis Vuittons’ new luggage designs.

Last week you were able to read a post on an ode made to Wes Andersen by artist Elloh. Today we spotted on Empireonline.com that just like we here at Blue Blood were inspired by his movies, so were the designers at Louis Vuitton. These great luggage designs by Louis Vuitton look identical to the once shown last week at the Blue Blood fashion show. Check out more pictures of designers that were inspired by movies and that designed for world famous movies – resulting in as a source of insiration for all of us out there.

Sex and The City -  wedding dress by Vivienne Westwood

Fifth Element – costume design by Jean Paul Gaultier

Breakfast at Tiffanys – costume design by Givenchy

Annie Hall – costume design by Ralph Lauren

BB

wes anderson’s newest movie, the fantastic mr. fox is based on the book by roald dahl (author of james and the giant peach and charlie and the chocolate factory). featuring the voices of george clooney, meryl streep, bill murray, owen wilson, and jason schwartzman.

in theaters november 13th, 2009.

I can’t stand Wes Anderson. Not personally, of course, as I’ve never met the fellow. I mean his films. And I know I’m in a tiny minority here, but I hated Bottle Rocket. I hated Rushmore even more. I hated The Royal Tenenbaums. I refused to see The Life Aquatic and The Darjeeling Limited because, based on my previous experiences, I knew those films’d suck ass as well.

I just saw the Mr. Fox trailer. Much to my shrieking chagrin, it looks awesome. (Is that stop-motion with dolls?) Could it be that Mr. Anderson has finally stopped sucking and not being funny? Goddamn I hope so. Because, for such a gigantic hack to be so rewarded in Hollywood just boggles my mind.

So if, Mr. Anderson, your film doesn’t blow, I say good on ya and what the fuck took you so long?

P.S. Who the fuck gave this man a go to direct an animated film??