It Should Have Been Called Flike...

So the latest film that was screen in my Film history class was Umberto D. by De Sica.  At first I was not sure how I was going to feel when the movie started with a pensioners protest, and I didn't really quite understand the character of Umberto or his motives.  But as the film progresses I began to have an overwhelming sympathy for this man, and the cruelty, snobbery, and selfishness he faces.  He is too proud to beg, and so he sells his possessions.  It is hard to say how attached he is to them because he is always trying to be a good salesman.  In a sense he is a storyteller, and yet there is some truth in what he says?
But midway through the film and to the end I became attached emotionally to his dog, Flike.  His only faithful companion. Flike is the sweetest and most intelligent of pets.  Umberto almost looses him twice, which visually you can plainly see is a very painful experience for both him and Flike.  Upon leaving all his worldly possessions and friendships behind, Flike is all Umberto has left, and perhaps vice versa.
De Sica certainly convinced me of the beautiful tragedy that plays out.  Sometimes there is nothing we can do in life to fix our circumstances, try as hard as we might.  And no one will feel obligated to help.  It does feel completely true to the Italian Neo-Realism.  Sometimes when no one is looking the most awful things are happening to those we might have known once, or still know.  Human hardship is inevitable, but we all must find ways to survive.  So thank goodness for Flike.
I highly suggest watching this film if you have never seen it, or only seen part of it.  It is psychologically very effective, if you like these types of emotionally realistic movies.

Upcoming...

So I've been neglecting my poor sweet little blog.  I am still getting the hang of things, I am only so technologically savvy.  But lately it seems like I've skimped out on all the material I could have been posting.  So thus I am giving a sneak peek into what's been looming around in my life and dancing in my thoughts and dreams.  Full slew of posts to come tomorrow, with a promise of ample amounts of photos.

Desire Inspire + Ornamentation & Frivolity + Reflected Vanity:
1.  Lemon yellow.  I do love a good pastel, and as of last summer lemon yellow is my new favorite color, especially for spring/summer.  I think it comes down to the fact that it's such a happy color, and before I never felt confident in orange of yellow hues, but now I found a shade that works for me.
2.  Hat collection.  I have too many hats, but in the best way of having too many of something.  I bought a new hat this weekend at Lord & Taylor.  But my all time favorite hats consist of the vintage collection I inherited from my parents (I think they had/have great taste).
3.  Rhapsody In Blue-My wardrobe as of about a year ago is substantially blue based.  I am not sure what color dominated my closet before, but blue has taken over.  I especially love charming blue&pink ensembles.
4. I have a new obsession with high end make-up, especially Chanel, YSL, and Estée Lauder.  I think after a certain amount of time you determine that something are worth the money.

Strut & Strike A Pose:

I need to finally cover my favorites from the S/S 12, F/W 12, and resort.  Two of my ultimate favorites this year has been Ralph Lauren, and DVF ready-to-wear.  Both classically American, the subtle perfection of beauty, and yet so different.  Late 1800s/early 1900's dapper and swank vs. 50s/60s/70s grove in the best shades of neons, pastels, and neutrals.

But I do have others that I loved beyond belief.  Some designers never fail to mesmerize my every delight.

Life, Leisure, Luxury:

So I'm in the current mood of: My room does not function for me creatively.I purchased new sheets that I love.  But there is still much work to be done.  I have a lot of clutter from ongoing projects, and in such a small room it is hard to organize all my possessions and my never-endingly-growing wardrobe.  Worst of it is my hats are starting to crowd.  I have a few ideas for how to fix this though.
One of which is use them as decoration instead of hanging art.

Screen Gazers + Amazed & Amused:

1.Recently I've seen some very thought-provoking films, one about Karl L., and the latter was We Need To Talk About Kevin (Tilda Swinton completely blew my mind).

2.Exhibits:  The New Wing at the Stewart Gardner, 4 equally wonderful exhibits at MFA
3.Butterflies, Geckos, and Bonsai trees at the Boston Museum of Science

4.  Current band and song obsessions: Lana Del Rey, Noisettes, Santigold, Animal by Miike Snow, Pumped up Kicks, Rhapsody In Blue, New York I Love You But You're Bringing Me Down...

4.  Recently watched B&W films.  Favorites: The 39 Steps, Nosferatu, The Big Sleep, M, Broken Blossoms, The Goldrush  Intriguing: Earth, Strike, Zero for Conduct, Rules of the Game, Paisan Hated: L'Age d'or (Explanation: While I saw the artistry in the film, it makes you so uncomfortable you don't want to watch, but I conclude that the surrealism was well executed, and sometimes it is painfully uncomfortable to observe humans in all states of indignity.)

Workstation:

1.As I said, many ongoing projects.  One of which is finishing of the first skirt I have ever made.  I hit a rough patch with it, ultimate frustration.  Sewing, properly that is, is a test of patience.  But it is coming along nicely, it's not perfect, but with some practice I think I'll be on my way.  Definitely not giving up on sewing classes.  I highly suggest taking one.
I made some other things as well, but what I really need to get back into is my sketching and painting.
2.Wildlife photography has my attention now as well.  Even in highly urban areas it is amazing the sort of wildlife that flourishes.  Maybe it's just that I am happy to be out of Winter and into Spring, with flora everywhere, and the promise of goslings.

Yachts, Jets & Paradises:

1.I am completely determined to one day own a floating island.  I keep seeing these images cropping up all over the web, and it just seems like a great getaway.
2.Also intensely looking forward to Summer and heading to the beach.  My sister and I went to Cape Cod at the end of last summer and it was an amazing trip, I'm craving more adventures.

Wit & Lit:

What's on my bookshelf?  Cult of the Amateur by Andrew Keen, Everyone Worth Knowing (I temporarily gave up on reading this, it became to whiny to handle), Blink, Follow The Model, Emily Post's Etiquette, The Invention of Hugo Cabret (Scorcese did a wonderful job bringing this to life, but nothing beats the actual text and original illustration-good to know sometimes that there are traditional book artist out there such as Selznik), The Art of Fiction (Ayn Rand), The Know-It-All, Henry James' The Turn of the Screw, It's Not How Good You Are, It's How Good You Want To Be (Paul Arden)

So that's what April has brought.  And I leave you with these photos.

xx, Ladies and Gents

All Artists Agonize

I recently went to the Kendall Square Cinema for one of my Friday night movies.  I was particularly excited for the film I was about to encounter being that it was Paul Dano's latest screen performance as the young self-loathing writer Nick Flynn (Being Flynn with Robert De Niro).
I have a particular fascination when it comes to Dano's acting ability.  It wasn't after Little Miss Sunshine that he caught my eye, but rather after his rather alarmingly amazing performances in two polar opposite films.  The former, There Will Be Blood, where he literally almost overshadowed Daniel Day Lewis until the end, and then the latter, Gigantic, where he overwhelmed the screen with his talent despite being in the midst of a ridiculously talented cast (Zooey Deschanel and John Goodman).  Since then he has been on my radar as an American actor who knows his stuff, as I like to say.
I am very picky when it comes to actors/actresses.  If they cannot convince me that they are versatile, or classically trained, I just can't seemed to be bothered.  But Dano possesses a quality on screen that is entirely believable.  He becomes so wrapped up in a characters entire psychological and physical presence that you forgot about the funny-but-charming-faced young man.  In fact Dano's real personality to this day is kind of a complete mystery to me.
So enough praise about Dano, and now to reflect on his latest character.  I hated Nick, but in the best way that you can hate a character.  To put it this way, when Ewan McGregor is addicted to heroin in Trainspotting I hated him as well.  Both characters are completely mortifying, but they are meant to be the bottom of society, they are pathetic, worn down, confused and in a rat race against only themselves.
Dano falls so easily into step with Flynn's quickly dwindling neurosis.  But I find myself wondering how long did it take him to break down into this character.  How far above and beyond did he go to become the pathetic hunched over strung out blitzed nervous wreck of a time bomb that eventually appears.  Nowadays there are all sorts of special effects to accelerate the process of decomposing appearances, but the actor cannot rely on that alone, and I think from Dano's skills so far, it is very plainly obvious that he has not relied on anything else but his talent.  He could probably convince you he was the same character even with a brighter light cast upon him.
So two things I absolutely suggest:
1. Go see Being Flynn.  It is at times a lot of heavy emotional material to handle, but it is worth it to watch the collaboration between a mega-force actor like De Niro, and a rising mega-force actor such as Dano.
 2. Find some Paul Dano movies and commence watching.  I hope you will be as impressed as I have been.