Love, Tilda.

In the heat of the summer, it's easy to convince people to part with at least $12 of their hard earned dollars to sit in the icy cool of a sun-less movie theater. But, in the case of I Am Love, I'm not persuading you to watch it on the big screen, I'm demanding it. The film demands it. The smooth alabaster of Tilda's skin abutted against her paled strawberry chignon simply won't look the same on your personal-sized laptop screen. Neither will the swooping tracking shots or the perfectly plated meals. The brightness of the big screen was invented for films like this. The rich colors, the lush and surprisingly intense score--it all needs a theater.

The film is a study in freedom and family. It executes its narrative through thoughtful details on every level--the costuming most impressively. Tilda's assimilated Russian character plays house in the estate of an historic (and rich) Milanese family. Their rituals and customs, those that only old money can pass on, are tightly arranged and sophisticated. In the beginning of the film, when Tilda's Emma is ensconced in that culture, she too is tightly arranged and sophisticated. Her hair is smoothed, her clothes are pressed, her jewels are in place, and her tailor is obviously preternaturally talented. As passion seeps in the cracks of the heavy doorways, Emma unravels, blushes, brightens. Raf Simons designed Swinton's wardrobe to speak a chromatic language. The premise may sound cloying (red=passion), but the result is more subtle than all of that. Besides, it's not until Emma's clothes start to get stripped away that they really start to speak for her. They are peeled from her, like so many layers of hiding. Underneath it all, her bare skin is almost translucent as it gleams in the San Remo sunshine, appearing especially pale in contrast to her darker lover, the one who has undressed her.

Her clothes wind up back on, sometimes forcefully and you see what a burden they are. In the context of the film, yes they are a burden. But my, oh my, in the eyes of a fashion fan, they are pure bliss. Do yourself a favor, put down the internet and see this film on the big screen if you get a chance. It's simply gorgeous.

Stills and film clip from Nowness.com.

What Can She Give You?

British photographer Glen Luchford captures the ever-after muse of fashion, Ms. Tilda Swinton, in a pensive piece about love and wigs styled by Katy England.



via Dazed Digital.

One/One-Thousand: Jean-Baptiste Mondino.

A portrait of the artist: Mondino and his work.

Jean-Baptiste Mondino began his career designing album covers in the '80s. His initial ambitions were musically inclined even beyond his subject matter. He released two singles that charted in Europe with different collaborators before he found his way into photography. But, his musical leanings never left him. He's shot tons of pop stars for iconic album covers, editorials, and has directed some of their best videos. His shots have a stark intensity to them, whether they are black-and-white, soft hues, or his signature bright colors, the mood is always emotionally afecting.

His still work is so great, but some of his videos are simply classic. Here are a few clips of his work in motion:

And Another One.

Designer-comissioned art films are the new black. Watch a beautifully lit Tilda Swinton dig in the dirt in her designer duds provided by Pringle of Scotland in a short film shot by Ryan McGinley.



It's beautiful. It's Tilda.

Absurdly Beautiful

I'm a fan of the more original among us. I can appreciate the classic, the pretty, the subtle, the right fit, but more often than not it is the one that makes people shake their head that really catches my eye. Style.com has a great feature today about red carpet dresses that critics loathed, but they loved. I wholeheartedly agree with most of their choices. Here are the flack-getters that should have been praised:

Cameron Diaz in Ungaro


Kirsten Dunst in Rochas


Tilda Swinton in Lanvin


Bjork in Marjan Pejoski

Here's to the non-conformist, anti-establishment, swan-wearing starlets that make my fashion world go 'round. Someone please take a cue and do something interesting at this year's Oscars. Please. I think my money is on Mickey Rourke.

Tilda tidies up

I love me some Tilda Swinton. I'm a huge fan of outsiders and she generally looks like she may come from way outside, like another galaxy. Alien chic. In this month's W Jeurgen Teller captures a few different sides of her. This is the Upper East Side of Tilda doing dog walking duty:


Perfect satire. Show me the bag and the shoes as you do the deed...Now, this may seem to go against my more models/less actresses post from earlier, but it's Tilda. I'll make an exception for Tilda. Maybe talented actresses make good models (oh yeah, I said it!).