Pudgy Girl

Craft Night

2008-04-29T10:44:00.000-07:00

Every Wednesday at Akbar, nine 'til midnight.

2 drink minimum and a little donation is appreciated ot this group of locals who teach crafts from the kindness of their hearts. They also encourage to BYOS (Bring your own scissors).

Tomorrow night's craft is still TBD but I'm guessing they'll bring their usual supplies for making paper bag puppets.

Make mom happy and make her a pretty frame on May 7th.

All the info on their website and blog.

Akbar
4356 Sunset Blvd.
Silver Lake, 90029
323.665.6810

Rock Out in North Hills

2008-04-22T12:29:00.000-07:00

My friends Summer School Vampire are playing deep in the valley. Who wants to take the trek with me?

Matthew's Cartoonist Corner

2008-04-17T10:31:00.000-07:00

My dear buddy Matthew made the Small Cool Apartment Contest this year on Apartmenttherapy.com. Go vote "super cool" for him and he has the chance of winning gift certificates not to mention the accolades of all the design-y people. If you check out Matt's floorplan you may recognize his work from his super great web comic, Isolated Instances of Non-Gravity. He's currently taking commissions, and if the comments on Apartmenttherapy are any indication, Matt's drawings could be quite the hot ticket.

The orange stripe on the wall was a good lesson in what a little painter's tape could do. The shelves were those basic modular kind just painted to match. Matt's vintage finds come from eBay and the Pasadena Rose Bowl.

P.S. I made the robot painting in Matt's living room!

Pictures of the colorful kitchen and bathroom here.

Alexandra Cassaniti is a name you must know

2008-03-19T09:59:00.001-07:00

One of my favorite girls is featured on Daily Candy today.

Daily Candy - Sand and Deliver

www.alexandracassaniti.com

Alexandra Cassaniti moved to the neighborhood last year and took over. All the ladies will be trying to dress like her soon and they sort of can since she's launched her own line. It's an online catalog right now so beg all your favorite boutiques to start carrying her summer themed stuff in time for you to hit the beach. She'll even design you a custom surfboard. (That's Alex in the picture showing off a custom lighting bolt pattern on one of our hometown beaches in Encinitas. That's right. I grew up with an up and coming designer, jealous?).

I'm loving these sandals that are handcrafted with cork. They also come in black.

The new bag: canvas and hand-painted. Rumor is Catherine Keener is a fan.

Available in these LA stores:

CURVE
154 N. Robertson
Los Angeles, 90048
310.360.8008

OPENING CEREMONY
451 N. La Cienega
Los Angeles, 90048
310.652.1120

BEST SONGS OF 2007 - The CDs Are Yours

2008-03-16T19:19:00.000-07:00

PG 2007 Mix CDs are ready!
Wait, you say. Aren't we almost a third into the new year? Please excuse the lateness and send me on your address if you were one of the contributors. 3 full CDs are coming your way.

email: meredith@pudgy-girl.com

Local 705 Yard Sale

2008-02-07T13:18:00.000-08:00

[Edith Head image from See Dorkas Run.]

My peeps in the UCLA library sent this on to me today. I think it's one of the best ways to help those affected by the WGA Strike. Anyone who's gone to an industry props & costume sale knows the treasures one might find.

As you may know, a great many people in the film and television industry - especially those "behind the scenes" (grips, techs, designers, etc) - are out of work (and out of an income) due to the ongoing Writer's Strike. To try to counter this effect, the Local 705 Costumer's Guild has set up a "Welfare Fund" to help support it's members who are unable to work during this time.

The 705 is having a HUGE YARD SALE on Saturday, February 9th from 9 a.m. til 2 p.m. The union members will be selling a wide variety of costumes and jewelry (and I'm not talking just the hokey kind of stuff - some awesome, wearable - and often unique - threads & accessories!). Each individual vendor will donate a portion of their sales to the Welfare Fund AND there will be a number of tables full of strictly donated items with 100% of those proceeds going to the Welfare Fund. So do some SHOPPING and help support some of those affected by the WGA strike. Come early to get the grooviest, funkiest and coolest stuff!!

Saturday February 9th, 9 a.m. - 2 p.m.
Local 705 Costumers Union Yard Sale
History for Hire Prop House (a great big parking lot...)
7149 Fair Avenue
North Hollywood, 91605
Just SW of the Sherman Way/Vineland intersection

Damn Fine

2008-02-02T22:35:00.000-08:00

Film: Michael Clayton (2007)
Date: 2/1/07
Place: AMC Media Center, Burbank

Advice from me to a film snob: Every once in a while go see a movie at a mall movie theater. It's a much different experience in LA to see an Oscar nominated flick with the Friday night mall crowd than at some other industry hoopla.

Michael Clayton is one damn fine film. It's a fairytale for this modern age. I chalk it up with the other beautifully bleak Oscar contenders from this year (There Will Be Bloood, No Country For Old Men). Tilda Swinton plays a wonderful villain and Tom Wilkinson is consistently stunning. For the first half of the film George Clooney distracted me. His charisma is sometimes too much to take on one screen and fights the smaller character driven moments a film like this demands. But by the end I was hooked. The end title sequence, by the way, is one of the best I've ever seen. There's a silence and lyricism that you don't usually find in Western filmmaking. In fact, it might be a Wong Kar-Wai or Hou Hsiao Hsien rip-off. If not, then filmmakers take note. That is one effective ending.

Michael Clayton comes out on DVD 2/19 for those not lucky enough to have mall movie theaters bring back movies for Oscar season.

Come on down to SouthPark

2008-01-17T16:59:00.000-08:00

Starting this Sunday, this downtown city block will be a lot more happy.

Only in L.A. would a flea market call their first weekend outing an opening. Indeed, the folks that bring deal-hunters and trend-makers the Fairfax Flea Market will start another flea market downtown. Every Sunday 9am to 4pm, starting this Sunday, a parking lot gets revitalized. Between Olive and Grand, you'll find the entrance on 8th street. DJs and live bands play throughout the day and typical fair food serves the parched. Admission is only $2. Kids and Seniors are free. A Farmer's Market will also be a part of the usual vendors but keep your leashed doggies out of the food section or risk the consequences of a health code violation. There's more info and booth pictures up on the website southparkfleamarket.com. I wonder if they staged a publicity shoot for the booth pics. How L.A.

Sundays - rain or shine
South Park Flea Market
8th & Grand Parking Lot
Downtown, 90014

If you lived here you'd be royalty by now

2008-01-15T10:40:00.000-08:00

I have a habit of browsing Craigslist's rentals even when I don't need a new place to live. I like to keep up on what's available in the neighborhood, remind myself how crazy the cost of studio living is, and daydream about the perfect home. But I never knew Craigslist could be a portal to learning about designers, until today. See the ad here.

Behold: 2316 Catalina, Los Feliz

You too can rent a completely renovated Mediterranean style mansion decorated by John Janik. Just who is this Janik? Well, he's got quite the rep for luxe, modern style and has been featured in Home & Garden and Vogue. This house, nestled in the Los Feliz foothills, had a spread in H & G itself. It was built in 1924 by A.F. Leicht, the guy who made the Spanish Revival really popular in the 1920s and designed the Angelus Temple in Echo Park. This lil' mansion takes advantage of the view. I love the windows, but from what I can tell from the pictures, Janik's affinity for end tables and chairs is taking over this place. How many individual sitting areas does one floor need? Although I might steal the photo-wallpaper idea.

Pretty windows. Lots of chairs. Silly TV.

For $10 grand a month you to can have a closet that looks like a West Hollywood boutique.

I don't what's going on in the bedroom and why one would need multiple trays. Maybe this is the expansive lower floor guest quarters.

Icons of modern design fill the home...red barcelona chair, surfboard conference table, artichoke pendant lamp...

Close-up of the sideboard with the photo-wallpaper Janik designed himself.

This is actually an example from one of Janik's Manhattan residences but this is how I would pattern the photo-wallpaper. Those floating end tables aren't a bad idea to snag either. Whitewashed wine crates drilled in the wall could do the trick.

Keller-Williams realty hosts an open house today 11:00am-2:00pm. 4 bedrooms, 3 baths, 3500 square feet and furnished, all yours for $11,000 a month. Go to www.2316catalina.com and ask for Stefan, the realtor. He says this makes a nice vacation getaway house too, if your last name is Windsor.

Coffee and Ciggarettes

2008-01-11T14:46:00.000-08:00

Silver Lake is getting another brand new hoity-toity coffee shop. LAMILL opens its much anticipated doors today. Now I can finally get that pork belly and mocha creme fraiche craving out of the way. Wait. What?!!?

[image from Majiscup -Drink for Design on Flickr]

Check out the buzz on CurbedLA and Eater LA.
plus Daily Candy.
plus Thrillist.

The coffee and cigarette drink intrigues me. That's a fine dark roast with tobacco infused whipped cream. Plus the decor is looking awfully sharp. But I dunno if this will be the best place to park a laptop in my yoga sweats and risk the chance of dirty looks. I dare someone to order a venti cafe con panna.

Lamill Coffee
1636 Silver Lake Blvd.
Silver Lake, 90026
323.663.4441

We are living in a Material World

2008-01-10T10:34:00.000-08:00

Those who know me know I like things - but I am not a material girl - even though my closet says different. I often give in to the fleeting happiness gathered from beautiful clothes, shoes, jewelry and other stuff. These three are on my happy list today:

Atelier Hoodie by Eloise. Available at Anthropologie, just in the stores, not online anymore. Softer than the most expensive terry cloth hoodie and way more flattering. The wide band in the middle hugs the curves in the right spot. The wide bell sleeves and slightly puffed shoulder elevate this to a not-so casual sweatshirt. Plus the crochet details is just right, especially the row on the back, which compliments a lady's lower back just the way we like it. I'm trying out more layering options for this piece because if worn just with jeans the BF thinks I look too much like a Shirley Temple character and calls me good ship lollipop.

Thanks to the eames photostream on flickr I now know the U.S. Post Office will release Eames design stamps later this year. I'm a big fan of commemorative stamps. I'm not a collector, I just really enjoy the trips to the post office when they have a wide selection for you to choose from that doesn't include Christmas imagery or stamps made for weddings. I must plan a Saturday visit to the Eames House in Malibu soon as well as the Eames Office - the gallery/store that's gotta be cooler than the closest DWR.

My inner teenager wants to scribble all over my notebooks I heart Missbehave Magazine. Even though it's New York City centric it's full of sass. Like Jezebel, sometimes the sass needs to be taken like salt in small doses, other days I crave for the foul-mouthed fashionistas in training and say, bring it. I'm indulging in all of their guilty pleasures from ghetto-fab nails to the latest plastic-fantastic accessory. The blog occasionally posts party fliers for the LA area. I'll be checking in often to know which latest trend I'm missing out on.

Concert Review: Sounds of The City

2008-01-09T11:17:00.000-08:00

There aren't many times I wish I was one of those concert bootleggers who stashes state-of-the-art recording equipment, like omni-directional tiny mics in a baseball cap, to record concerts. Last night I wish I had one of those set-ups.

As part of this month's series of concerts and films, LA Philharmonic hosted Concrete Frequency: Sounds of The City. This is the third curated concert I've gone to at LA Phil and like the other nights, it was a mellow, beautiful experience. My buddies and I were grateful for uber professional lights and sound and in awe of Disney Hall's hidden intimacy. Each guest artist was assigend the task of playing 2 songs and encouraged to explain why those songs spoke to the evening's themes of exploring urban living. The stage was actually backdropped by each guest artist sitting on stage in a dimly lit living room set. The half-circle shape echoed the little amphitheater and the graceful curve of the Hall itself. With the Gehry organ shooting up into the audience in the round, every performer took the spotlight nervously, looking up at their pretty surroundings. With a collection of folk-rock musicians, everyone would have probably been more comfortable at the Troubadour, well, at least familiar. The curated event took singer/songwriters out of their bands and into the prestigious spotlight. Echoing the young crowd, the Disney Hall was filled with jeans rather than tuxes. Each artist's nervous energy only drew us in, listening to the words of radio hits rather than just plugging into our iPods for a morning bus ride. A city theme seems far too easy. Couldn't every indie-rocker explain why that one tune inspired by their last grueling tour is also an anthem about love lost and found in the urban environment? Isn't every rock song a love song written in some metropolis? Moving beyond this hype I was happy to learn that most songs are about what they are about, literally. I may load a mix tape up with all the moody tunes to make my latest lover an emotional wreck, but it's actually refreshing to learn Money Mark's neo-soul ditty "Black Butterfly" is really just about catching a black butterfly. The man mostly know in underground crowds and by Beastie Boys fanatics sat at the piano last night and told a sweet anecdote of chasing butterflies in the abandoned fields of his LA youth. John Doe from X not only played the obvious choice "Los Angeles" but I also learned he likes to write songs about skyscrapers. Zach Rogue from the Rogue Wave's song "Chicago x 12" is really about playing a shitty bar in Chicago 12 times in one year. Like an emo girl's wet dream, you can up the cutie factor simply by letting a shy shoegazer talk about his music. Rogue was especially easy on the ears and I was toe-tapping along to his song currently on the airwaves "Lake Michigan". In lieu of a recording here's my highlights:

Biirdie - A lovely quintet opened the night with "LA is Mars". The lead singer reminds me of every cool guy in High School who quietly doodled in the back of the class and sported an Amnesty International sticker on his Trapper Keeper. Joined by a harmonious group, each cute line like "take the last train to Griffith Park", makes them the newly crowned most crushable LA indie band.

Annie Stela comes from that group of lovely ladies who can't help but share themselves through song. I picture her sitting in her apartment constantly at the keyboard trying out new poetry. While not the most musically challenging, she fits the niche of the story of a girl coming to LA to make it and then years later actually finding happiness. She's got quite the set of pipes and can rock the piano foot pedals in stilettos especially when she played "Fool". She also played the story of her falling in love with LA thanks to walking the dog during the Jacaranda bloooms, even though the audience had to help her with that one. She just knew them as "those big purple flowers." It seems that's what every new Angeleno calls them.

Marc Bianchi was an awfully cute toothache. With a large bass acoustic guitar around his skinny frame he won us all over rocking back and forth, pointy elbows a-soaring. Known for fronting indie band Her Space Holiday he played "The Boys and Girls" a faithful version of the recording under his side project xoxo, panda. He said it was about three people in love and in different parts of the country. Very sweet, indeed.

[Marc Bianchi photo from mtv.com]

Zooey Deshcanel brought the movie industry theme to the LA concert. A quirky actress, as well as an accomplished torch singer, she was accompanied by M. Ward on guitar. Not just bringing the movie star reference by being herself she also sang "Lonesome Town" which I don't think was some happy accident. Most of us know it from the Pulp Fiction soundtrack. Zooey and I are roughly the same age so I'm gonna believe we were introduced to the Ricky Nelson hit the same way, although probably not. She's way cooler. She probably knew every word by the time she was ten rocking out on her parents' shag rug with a pair of those oversized headphones. She invoked this little fantasy in my head last night rocking a voluminous white baby doll dress. She then wailed it on a cover of "I Put a Spell On You". Here's a video yanked from myspace:

Sondre Lerche got a loud applause, especially when he acknowledged the crowd behind the stage. It was like his fan club was all sitting there. The Norwegian cutie always puts on a good show. He was especially chatty last night, detailing every bit of his move from Norway to New York City. He played "Wet Ground" from his early album Two Way Monologue and "Minor Detail" from the jazzy 2006 The Duper Sessions.

Inara George from The Bird and the Bee sang for composing legend Van Dyke Parks at the piano. Inara wins best dressed for the night all decked out in a stunning brown floor length gown. They will be releasing an album together later this year and swang a number from it. But it was "Vine Street", the Randy Newman standard favored by Harry Nilsson (they both happen to have been BFFs with Van Dyke Parks) that really had the rest of the artists in a hard act to follow.

[Inara George pic from musicforants.com]

Bob Mould rocked his old Husker Du tunes "Thumbtack" and "Surveyors and Cranes". He said he hand't played these in ten years since leaving Austin. They sounded dated and he was underdressed but I felt fortunate to see someone so influential. Plus Mould spoke about dropping out of urban engineering school, which gave validity to the night's theme. Being a current DC native he got a big applause when he claimed, "Don't worry. Things will be better in November". Appealing to the cultured liberal = always a crowd pleaser.

Kyp Malone from TV On The Radio concluded with a long meandering experimental set. I was surprised to see the night take a dark turn full of ambient noise. Malone followed Grizzly Bear's front man and anyone who's gone to a Grizzly Bear concert knows how esoteric those boys can get. Malone's anecdotes were candid and real but I think the majority of the crowd had tuned out after the back to back of more famous faces. People started to take off early, in true urban LA fashion.

[Kyp Malone polaroid from The Stranger]

BEST SONGS OF 2007

2007-12-14T10:43:00.000-08:00

Last year's giveaway was a lot of fun. Those that joined in are still enjoying their 2006 mix (3 CDs total!). This year the guidelines are the same: I start the list off with my favorite songs from 2007. You send me your lists of favorite songs from 2007 by posting in the comments section of this post. Then I compile all the lists, take some editorial license, track down the songs and burn some mix CDs. Email me your address and I'll send you the mix until all supplies run out.

Worried about the nitty-gritty? All songs must be off albums released in 2007.
Check iTunes if you're unsure of the date. It's not at challenging as it sounds. To be eligible for a mix CD you just have to submit a list with at least one (1) great song. I know some of you have been keeping these lists handy since last year so let's get it started!

Pudgy Girl's Best Songs of 2007 (since I'm anal - these are in order of release.)

1. "Satan Said Dance" Clap Your Hands Say Yeah - From the album Some Loud Thunder. It's just one of those albums you listen to all the way the through even when you weren't planning on it.

2. "Phantom Limb" The Shins - Every once in a while a band comes along that makes everyone who sings along to their songs copy the lead singer's style. I dare you not to pick up on it when you sing along to the Wincing The Night Away album where this track comes from.

3. "Young Folks" Peter Bjorn and John - This whistling tune is more reason to thank Scandinavia for importing cute culture to the States besides IKEA.

4. "Keep The Car Running" Arcade Fire - The influence of Bruce Springsteen is strong on this album. If you were lucky enough to see the Fire play this song with The Boss then you might possibly be part of the most fortunate people on earth. Us mere mortals can enjoy the extraordinary indie orchestra that is Arcade Fire in the comfort of our homes.

5. "Grace Kelly" Mika - Oh this is super gay. I need to wear a lot of purple and spandex just to keep up with all its Freddie Mercury stylings. So much fun.

6. "Everything I Cannot See" Charlotte Gainsbourg - She's French art royalty. She delighted audiences in The Science of Sleep and I'm Not There. Her fashion will go down as legendary. Did I mention she's French? Miss Gainsbourg's second album is a delicate acquired taste. I like this track especially when I'm in an obsessive, stay in bed all day mood.

7. "My Moon My Man" Feist - This little Canadian lady keeps gaining a bigger and bigger following and she is so deserving. The "1234" video featured in those iPod commercials is pretty nifty but the video for "My Moon My Man", the first single off her '07 hit album The Reminder, had me hooked and wanting to step in time just like her. Watch all of Feist's clever videos here.

8. "Home" Great Northern - This track started getting airtime on local L.A. stations early before the full album release. Everytime it came on I wished I could run to the radio station and beg them to play it again.

9. "Mistaken for Strangers" The National - '07 was the year that brought back Joy Division with the film Control and continued to promote all things neo-folk-pop. I like The National probably because they sound a little like Joy Division. Anytime a deep-voiced pretty boy sings sweet lyrics I get weak. I can't help it.

10. "Falling Slowly" Glen Hansard & Marketa Irglova - From the film Once. There is not a more a romantic song from this year. I dare you cynics not to get a little mushy.

11. "Tenderoni" Chromeo - More tongue-in cheek than truly legit, this electronica duo is like the post-modern Hall & Oats. Only into their first album, these boys promise much more booty shaking in the future.

12. "Conquest" The White Stripes - Jack Black is truly a rock historian. The entire Icky Thump album from this year is deceptively simple but stands out as a primer to rock and roll basics. Covering this Patti Page tune could not be more fun. Jack's voice is a little girly, a little gravely, and the beat is infectious. You can't go wring. I equate listening to the White Stripes as joyous as reaching a high score on Guitar Hero.

13. "Umbrella" Rihanna - This was practically the pop anthem of the summer. So catchy. So many covers. But the OG still stands up as one poppy delight.

14. "D.A.N.C.E." Justice - Little kids voices? Disco break-beats? What else could be the definitive party song of 2007?

15. "Earth Intruders" Bjork - Leave it to our petite Icelandic art princess to take on global warming with one very inspiring call to battle.

16. "Stop Me" Mark Ronson feat. Daniel Merriweather - Ronson produced 2006's darlings Lily Allen and Amy Winehouse and he made a great album of his own this year. Full of brass horns and upbeat tempos, Merriweather does a take on the medley covering both The Cure and The Supremes. The album's other brilliant cover is a completely instrumental version of "God Put A Smile On Your Face" by Coldplay.

17. "Pioneer To The Falls" Interpol - These indie-rockers are at their best when they embrace the showmanship of an epic song. "Pioneer.." takes the listener on a melodic journey proving that indie-rock is strong and staying at the top of the charts for good reason.

18. "Back In Your Head" Tegan and Sara - These sisters' repetitive ditties never fail to delight me. Both innocent and conniving at the same time, "Back in Your Head" is the type of song you listen to after a crush has gone sour.

19. "Paper Planes" MIA - In wartime it is refreshing to hear a strong woman's take on violence and greed. The schoolyard sounds mixed with gunfire puts MIA right up there with the more money more problems crew like vintage Jay-Z and Nas.

20. "Is There a Ghost" Band of Horses - The band's howling, folky shoe-gazer signature sound is strong on their opening track. I'll listen to this song ten times in a row and still want to hear it again.

So that's just 20 songs to get us started. What are your favorites?

Red Baloons for everyone

2007-11-27T16:19:00.000-08:00

Film: The Red Balloon (1956) & The White Mane (1953) Double Feature
Date: 11/26/07
Place: Nuart, Santa Monica

Thanks to celebrating a new DVD release by Janus, I got to see my favorite short film of all time: The Red Balloon. It's French; it's practically silent; it's close to perfection. Directed by Albert Lamorisse, who is also famous for inventing the board game Risk, he cast his son as the precocious little boy who befriends a balloon. I remember watching this on rainy days as a child. My parents watched this as children. With adult eyes the poverty of urban Paris during the 1950s is much more evident, as well as how cruel children can be to each other. Seeing it on the big screen doesn't break any illusions. That balloon gives a fantastic performance. On a completely restored print, you don't see any strings.

The White Mane is Lamorisse's earlier short. These are by no means 10 minute quickies, but cinematic novellas of 30+ minutes each. Like the Red Balloon, but in b&w and with a horse, a poor boy befriends a wild stallion and the film culminates in a bittersweet existential conclusion. The photography could be a nature film and the over-dubbed soundtrack is simply charming. Again, Lamorisse gives a lesson to the aspiring filmmaker that a story doesn't need a lot of dialog or fancy camera work to make it work - it just has to be real.

The Nuart gave everyone a red balloon to take home after the screening. Out on the streets we were all children. If that's not the definition of magic at a movie house I don't what is.

Do'nt Forget This Sunday

2007-11-16T15:24:00.000-08:00

Derby Tomorrow Night

2007-11-16T10:54:00.001-08:00

Damn it doesn't feel so good to be a gangsta

2007-11-12T15:28:00.000-08:00

[image from moviecentre.net]

Film: American Gangster
Date: 11/11/06
Place: The Vista

First off: I love love love The Vista theater. I worked in a one screen movie house just like it in high school, except where we lacked in uncomfortable seats, a sub-par sound system, a cracked screen, and stale popcorn, The Vista excels in. The technical quality of each film they screen is always superb. Even the cheesy pre-show reels worn down from show after show make me smile every time. And the Vista is the best place to go for an opening night. You will not find more dedicated fans all crammed up together and applauding the screen every chance they get.
On a Sunday evening the Vista is the perfect refuge from a hectic weekend where I can just snuggle up with my date. At this point, does what I'm watching even matter?
Yes. Of course it does.
So me, my man, plus The Vista's Sunday showing of American Gangster was the perfect equation. But American Gangster is not a perfect film. It's the popcorn fare that makes film snobs scratch their heads and wonder when the big boys will pull their heads out of the sand and attempt to make movies that matter. Like the string of gangster films released right after The Godfather, AG will be forgotten soon. It's entertaining, well acted, and well shot but just not that special. I was thankful to see director Ridley Scott give up the dreaded bleach bypass shaky camera look his brother likes so much (see Domino) and get back to traditional period cinematography. This is a crime drama in the '70s so mustardy-green tones dominate an already high contrast look. It's nothing innovative, just effective. In fact that could be applied to every aspect of the film, including Denzel's performance -- Effective, yes. Innovative, no. I will admit again, I am really starting to respect Russell Crowe as a fine, fine actor. Here he pulls off the Charlie Bronson style-action and gets to have those touching vulnerable moments. I love a good gangster flick and AG follows all the standard genre conventions. It also touches down in cliche-town quite a bit. Crowe's vulnerable when he's fighting for custody of his son. That's right: good cop, bad father. Denzel Washington as Frank Lucas is the ultimate bad ass. He does bad, bad things (drug trafficking, war profiteering) but gets the cleverest lines and falls in love with the prettiest lady on screen at first sight. Josh Brolin shows up as the crooked NYPD detective we're supposed to condemn more than Mr. Frank Lucas the drug-running, murdering gangster. How do we know Detective Brolin is going to hell? Well, he's got no respect for the system he skims off of so greedily, plus he smacks women around and he shoots a dog. The life of Frank Lucas was controversial and revolutionary. He was a bad man but he stuck it to whitey at a time when whitey needed it stuck to. For this, I am grateful to the film for exploiting that part of the '7os and throwing"Across 110th Street" into the soundtrack. More than just another drugs will kill ya tale, American Gangster gets to let the public know about how Frank Lucas and one cop brought down a very corrupt NYPD. Does this matter in the scheme of things? I'll watch Scarface and The Public Enemy a couple more times and get back to you.

She's a brave brave girl

2007-11-08T19:14:00.000-08:00

She Asked For It

2007-10-26T11:57:00.000-07:00

Q: When did the word "provocative" begin to mean "gut-wrenching offensive in your face obnoxious self-glorifying smut"?

A: Right around the time that American Apparel billboard went up above the Echo Park store on Sunset & Alvarado.

LA billboard [via Curbed LA].

For months people are talking about how from the right angle it actually looks like a nearby telephone pole is violating the faceless lady. Yes, it's yet another in Dov Charney's campaign to promote naked hipsters as provocative selling tools. Some people in New York had enough. Someone defaced the same billboard at the Houston Street store to read "Gee, I wonder why women get raped?" Good thing Jezebel shot a picture before American Apparel replaced it with another less provocative ad.

NY billboard [via Jezebel].

Read American Apparel's retort from a couple months back here. I especially like how they eat up the outrage with a big spoon and call it compliments. That's like calling a Tecate and a cigarette dinner. They belittle the outpsoken complaints from New York by explaining that LA is bored with their ads due to this post from Curbed LA. Exploring the American Apparel Daily Update today I gather sarcasm is not really a part of their "thing".

This is your call Los Angeles. Get up on that billboard and have some fun.

There is a God

2007-10-22T10:34:00.000-07:00

File Under Fashion

2007-10-19T17:00:00.001-07:00

In an homage to L.A. Fashion week I spent last night at the new store opening party for Mas Boutique. OK. I went for the free beer. I stayed for the Eastside hipsters meets Beverly Hills ladies-who-lunch shenanigans. Only in Silver Lake on a Thursday night would both tribes of fashionistas fight over overpriced skinny jeans while exchanging plastic surgeon tips.

Speaking of skinny jeans - here's homeboy Jeffrey Sebelia's new Cosa Nostra Spring/Summer 2008 collection. Other blogs have been dissing on the Project Runway winner/vegan but I have to admit the embrace of the spats trend was a bold choice and upped a lot of these otherwise bland housecoats to wearable style. I also like a new designer who opts to design both a men's and women's show. But I can't embrace all the choices. The line is supposedly based on the memoir turned new movie Into The Wild. I can't say I see it. The silvery colors supposedly represent the ill-fated hiker Chriss McCandless ascent into Alaska. I just don't see it. Did McCandless fancy striped sweaters and Toms slipper shoes?

Pink spats and cute house dress: good.

Messy white spats over skinny jeans: bad.

White spats with baby doll muumuu: so wrong.

[Images from Project Rungay]

Mas is a cute clothing addition to the 'hood. I appreciate the boutique's location a little off the regular Sunset Junction track, drawing the street traffic out to the Sunset Blvd. edges. I fancied me some knit babydoll blouses and dresses there, especially the $180 yellow tank (I think it was by Clu). Hope the salesladies have a salesrack in the works.

Mas Boutique
3511 1/2 Sunset Blvd.
Silver Lake, 90026
323.663.3112

AssAss Of

2007-10-12T10:46:00.000-07:00

Film: The Assassination of Jesse James by The Coward Robert Ford.
Date: 10/5/07
Place: Burbank AMC 16

The entire title could not fit on my ticket stub so I went to see "AssAss of" on a pleasant double date night. I was warned the film is LONG and I was warned the film is SLOW but ended up at a 10:40pm screening. Needless to say I nodded off more than a couple times. But that is not the end of my review. This is one interesting film. The acting all around is superb, especially Casey Affleck (Ford). And Mr. Pitt proves again why he is our shiniest Hollywood star. He's deeply sunken in to the tragic anti-hero Jesse James and radiates a dark charisma in each pale smile. Sam Rockwell, aka the most underrated character actor, fits into the cast nicely. He verges on buffoony but redeems the role-reversal of the central characters at the end. It could not be played more poetically.

The Burbank mall multi-plex is a theater to embrace all digital projection (vs. 35mm film). I haven't found myself affected by this yet, until now. Like an old record put up next to a remastered CD, the picture was crisp but left me cold. Cinematographer's magazine this month detailed the film's DP Roger Deakins' (of Jarhead, A Beautiful Mind, The Big Lebowski) bleach-bypass method and assured me this was indeed shot on film before undergoing the digital intermediate process. When I compare Deakins' gorgeous compositions to the iconic shots of Westerns past I miss the grainy warmth from a Peckinpah or Ford epic. But this is not your average Western. In fact, the flick doesn't feel like a Western at all. The parts are there - guns, bandits, and horses - but the revenge of Robert Ford has little to do with the genre. I admit I missed the bravado. Maybe I'm too fresh from 3:10 To Yuma. That film will go down as one of my favorite westerns of the past few years while Jesse James... will most likely fade to obscurity once post-Oscar season washes the celebrity away. The film weaves a voice-over narration into the story with moody montages shot behind beveled glass. A narrative purist, I usually detest the voice-over but the glass effect mesmerizes and the narration unfolds like a novel on screen. The poetry is so strong you think you see words gliding up over the homestead landscapes. But to what greater purpose? The source material is so iconic there doesn't seem to need to be another re-telling of the coward Robert Ford and how he shot Jesse James down. In fact, the film depicts Ford's audience growing tired of his weary tale. It's a beautifully executed moody, weary tale but I can relate to Ford's audience. I was left sleepy and wrapped up in the story of a man's great depression. Not depressed myself, just cold.

Nunchux Wine Toast

2007-10-04T12:03:00.000-07:00

I survived Oktoberfest in Torrance last weekend. Next weekend I'll be dining on Brats once again at Nunchux: The Wine Toast VII's Oktoberfest themed event. Santos, the fearless founder behind The Wine Toast, brings the goods to this monthly speakeasy. He pours the wine at Silver Lake Wine and puts on the sommelier hat at the acclaimed AOC Wine Bar. Rest assured, foodies will not outnumber Oktoberfest fans at this wine event. Alternatively, Nunchux brings the best of both parties. Like the tastings at Silver Lake Wine there's bound to be some very delectable wines and beer along with eclectic and boutique pours. In this case the selection is all German. Santos has also made some tasty munchie selections. (He's promised high quality sauerkraut). Food prices stay around $5. Beer and wine is sold by the glass $4-$12. A cover of $4 ($2 if you RSVP in advance). All in all it won't set you back too much. As this is a true speakeasy - Cash Only.

Oh and did I mention the band I Make This Sound will do a live show? Their dreamy rock vibe pairs with a vibrant red quite nicely but I hope some Oktoberfest enthusiast requests the chicken dance.

Sunday, Oct. 14 7:30pm
Nunchux: The Wine Toast VII
2000 N. Figueroa (San Fernando & Figueroa)
Downtown, 90065
RSVP: nunchux@mail.com

Can you keep a secret?

2007-10-03T11:33:00.000-07:00

Great Northern plays a super secret show tonight at Silver Lake Lounge. They're the "special guest" on The Fold's website.
Why: They're hosting some big A&R New Yorkers in our 'hood.
How: Thanks myspace.

Wednesday, Oct. 3 8:30pm
Silver Lake Lounge
2906 Sunset Blvd.
Silver Lake, 90026

Film Journal Entry #1

2007-10-01T16:09:00.000-07:00

As of late I've been out of the scene and enrolled back in school. UCLA's Moving Image Archiving Master's Program - I tell everyone it's like a program to make librarians for the movies. The highlight of the program is UCLA's very own Film & Television Archive where they not only preserve and house the second largest Film & TV archive in the country but they do their own restoration work and host a plethora of screenings year round. I'll not only be doing the prerequisite grad school reading and writing but I'll also be watching a lot of great movies. Some rare and some restored favorites along with my usual diet of multiplex openings and special events. Back in my undergrad film school days I had a brilliant professor who encouraged all his students to keep a Film Journal. We basically made a list of all the movies we would see with a couple paragraphs on not only it's critical significance to whatever we were studying but wrote about the personal experience as well. A lot of times I wish I had my old notebooks at my fingertips. As any film student can attest, we watch so many films day in and day out one can easily lose track. So as I embark on archiving some of cinema's lost treasures I'll try not to lose my own notes.

Film: Take A Letter, Darling (1942)
Date: 9/29/07
Place: Billy Wilder Theater

Part of the Screwball Comedy screening series hosted by the UCLA Film & TV Archives. The farce is Rosalind Russel plays a powerful advertising executive and Fred McMurray is her secretary. She constantly flaunts her sex and her by-any-means-necessary approach to nabbing the big clients. McMurry is an ex-football star/out of work artist who's god-given chauvinist charm gets put the test with every new assignment. The set design is so gorgeously stylized. McMurray hovels in a bohemian paradise then puts on full tails for nights on the town with Russel and their clients in restaurants each more opulent than the next.

I've been hooked on AMC's "Mad Men" all summer and this film is a perfect politically incorrect companion from the period not afraid to laugh at itself as long as you laughed with style. I've never seen McMurray look more handsome and Russel as supremely confident in the role of a fabulously clever and gorgeous executive. Of course they fall in love. Their romance gets complicated when (of course) she choses business over pleasure but longs for him to melt her heart and then further complicated when a wealthy tobacco family comes into the picture to marry off these two singletons. It's a formulaic 1940s "will they or won't they" but the cynical delivery keeps all the dialog so fresh and funny. Even though the strict studio code won't ever flat out address issues of sex the implications are everywhere and the screwball side comes out when every supporting character gets to assume McMurray is a gigolo when really he just aims to make the best of his position. Because why on earth would a male secretary make so much money? And why on earth would a man stand the demoralization by a female boss if he wasn't making good money? I don't see the theme as so far off from any other office romance comedy Hollywood's released in the last 60 years. Social implications aside, I keep remembering the sets. All staged interiors with detail but without the ornate fuss one's used to seeing in golden age hollywood films. Russel's cabin retreat is especially fun, where she steals McMurray away for a weekend of uninterrupted work. It's a two story modern playground for the camera decorated with a masculine fireplace and even a stuffed bobcat. A nod to the cougar stereotype not missed but today's or yesterday's audiences.

[Poster image from filmposters.com]

[Fred McMurray publicity photo from Cinemaclassic]