Project Runway: "All Stars & Stripes"

I thought this challenge was one of the most successful "average woman" challenges on Project Runway. It wasn't because all of the women on the show were military veterans, even though that was fantastic, it was because each client had a specific event that had specific design requirements. In the past the "average woman" challenges have had more vague parameters like "this is my lifestyle, make something that fits into it." 

It was a bit difficult to see the root of the critiques because the judges stayed smiley and positive in front of the veterans, and rightly so. It was a bit funny to see some 180s when the judges deliberated amongst themselves. 

Joshua designed for Leslie, an Army veteran. She needed a dress for black tie military events, because she wanted to be more feminine than her dress uniform allowed. I was nervous about that leopard print, but Joshua really stepped up and edited his design so hard for the first time in ever, so I do not begrudge him his win. In fact, I think this is the most edited and best challenge I've ever seen from Joshua. He might be a better designer within strict parameters, because otherwise, let's face it, he's just designing for himself if he were a woman and not actually considering what actually functions for a client. Also, puppy!

I was so scared for Anthony Ryan and his design for the Air Force veteran Donna who needed a dress for her 40th birthday party. He had really good ideas and intentions, but it's hard to know how to design for and distract from a large bust if you don't have one yourself. Sadly almost all this design features drew the eye right to the bust. First the amount of belting at the waist accentuated the bust, then AR had to resort to that weird, wide, white band to keep the dress up, and the the halter needed to angle a little more into the seam so it wouldn't gap. But his fabric choice and execution were beautiful, and I like it better in the image below than I did on the runway.

Uli, oh Uli, making another Uli dress for Marine veteran Jessica to wear to a wedding. It was executed well, but I was a bit bored with another resort style Uli dress. I was also nervous about what was or wasn't happening in the foundation garment department. 

I was more than relieved that all four designers were "in," because Emilio also had me shaking in my boots with his Vegas dress for Navy veteran Lisa. I know he chose to start over to "save time," but what he ended up with was horrific, especially in execution. The color may be the design's only redeeming quality. I think that strap in the back was zigzagged on at the last minute and pulled to within an inch of it's life. Also, two bust darts would have taken care of the sad gapping at the side. 

Based on the promo for next week (which I only saw half of), it sounded like next week was actually going to be the second to last challenge, so we really have two weeks of Project Runway: All Stars left? I could be wrong, please correct me if I am. Still rooting for AR to win the whole thing and hoping Joshua doesn't, but I feel like any of the designers could win at this point.

Project Runway All Stars: Whatever I Want

It doesn't matter that I've missed writing about the last six Project Runway All Stars episodes, right? Right. I'll just "catch up" with the last two.

"Flapper Fashion Face Off"
I like face offs. They bring out a little more intensity in the competition, and I think it's a good reality check for both the judges and contestants when side-by-side comparison is forced upon them. Since one of the up and coming trends is once again looking back to the 20s (I've been seeing it crop up here and there ever since I first saw The Great Gatsby trailer months ago), the challenge felt immediately relevant for once. Each set of faced off designers had a different 20s theme as their inspiration and parameter.

Emilio & Joshua: Afternoon Garden Party
Anthony Ryan & Ivy: Social Soiree
Uli & Laura Kathleen: After Hours Speakeasy

Joshua: This was probably my favorite look ever from Joshua despite the fact that the color combo, at least from the front, looked a bit old and dowdy. He should have put that lime stripe in the front too and left all the other fussy details off. He's always shooting himself in the foot with "more is better."

Emilio (winner of face off): I did like Emilio's look better than Joshua's, at least idea-wise. It wasn't an iconic 20s silhouette, but I bought his slightly stretched argument about it being a 20s-30s transitional dress...and admittedly I was partially swayed because I absolutely adore Emilio's personality. The lace cutouts were lovely, and his vintage-inspired print was a great choice, but the length looks more calypso than vintage.

Ivy: Oh, Ivy. I was shocked that she didn't go home for the last challenge. And this week she was wide of the mark again, but managed to scrape by. Her fabric was truly beautiful, but how she made it look so heavy and cumbersome is beyond me. I actually think her beaded fabric mixed with that grey leather could have been something amazing, but she didn't actually design anything, she simply constructed an ill-proportioned, mediocre sheath.

Anthony Ryan (winner of face off): I mean, y'all should know by now how much I love this boy. I'm certainly glad he won the whole challenge, but I can't say his design was perfect. Certainly 20s, certainly well-constructed and thought out, but still not a wow. But no one was a wow, so the best of the okay sometimes takes the cake.

Uli (winner of face off): I had mixed feelings about Uli's dress. There was nothing offensive, but nothing eye-catching either. I didn't understand the shoulder wrap, but her dress moved beautifully and was well-made.

Laura Kathleen: I was absolutely shocked that LK was out. Aside from the fur vest, this was one of her best silhouettes. I loved the color and the amount and placement of the sparkle was just right. No, it was not perfect as is, and no, it wasn't the best of the challenge, and no, I don't love LK, but the design certainly wasn't go home material. Ivy and Joshua have the same problems over and over again and they keep turning up like bad pennies.

"There's No Business Like Sew Business"
This last week the designers were challenged to make a modern, sophisticated, and feminine dress for designer Elie Tehari. They also had to keep their garment at a retail price point of $500-700. (Which isn't really all that difficult if you ask me.)

The bottom two were Josh and Ivy, but the funny thing is that if Ivy had listened to her critique and swallowed her pride (like Emilio did), she would have been in the top three, because the top of the dress was pretty great. Instead she went home with her nowhere length dress that had slits that cheapened the whole look.

This also meant that Joshua had a very narrow escape. Everyone agreed that his color and base fabric choice was absolutely gorgeous, but he couldn't not add and add to it until he ruined it. The lace and exposed zipper quickly took to the look to "lady of the night," and we don't really need to go into the droopy boobs nonsense.

Uli's look was okay for me. The silhouette and execution were fantastic, but it looked a little too much like crochet, and I do not enjoy crocheted clothes. (Yes, Virginia, fabric choice is key.) I'm not exactly tired of her doing white dresses, but I would like to see her do something else, because I like Uli and want her to be in the top.

I like Emilio's color choices and silhouette. Of course, as the judges mentioned, mustard can be hard to wear, but it doesn't mean that it's unsalable. In fact, a lot of "high fashion" I see is hard to wear in some way, yet it still seems to sell.

But my wee lamb Anthony Ryan wins again! Which is okay by me. He's remarkable in his ability to create clean, sharp looks that don't all look the same, and this challenge was no exception. The neckline could use a little pattern adjustment, and I might play with the proportions of the color blocking a bit, but that's all a bit nitpicky.

Movie Review: Les Misérables

In a nutshell Les Misérables was a great experience. There was nothing so bad in it that it was actually bad, there were only things that probably could have been better. And the things that were great were exceptional.

I will not go into any plot or deviations thereof here. I can't imagine that people don't know at least the basic plot by now, and I generally don't care about deviations unless they completely change the tone of the source. Onto the cheers and jeers, in reverse order.

First let me say that even though I'm a general fan of Broadway, I'm not always a fan of "Broadway voices." Often I find, that for my tastes, Broadway singers sound a little too brash or have a little too much vibrato. So my biggest letdown for the movie was my own fault, because somehow I was expecting little or no Broadway voices, fool that I am. And since Hugh Jackman, who did the most singing in the cast as Jean Valjean, had the Broadway-iest voice, I had to adjust quickly. Other than that, Hugh Jackman was excellent with an emotionally bared and raw performance.

I fear that poor Mr. Russel Crowe may be getting the brunt of any general bad feelings towards Les Misérables. I knew going in that his singing wouldn't be bad, per se, but it wouldn't be great. He is the lead singer of his own rock band, but I think that's about how far it goes. Oddly enough Mr. Crowe reminded me a wee bit of David Bowie when he sang, which is a good thing. The only thing I found lacking in Mr. Crowe's performance was during his big solo numbers. Simply put, the emotional side of the performance wasn't at the level it should have been. When he sang bits or with other people, the passions and hardness of Javert were there, it was just the solos that fell short. Unfortunately his self-awareness (and likely self-consciousness) about his singing was apparent instead of a deeper emotional performance. But his solos were not awful in the least. There was this tender, sweet moment with Javert towards the end that, for me, made up for whatever emotion he lacked in his singing performance. I won't spoil it here, because it's definitely something that didn't or couldn't come across in the stage performance. It was also the moment that I knew the my tears would likely not stop until the credits rolled. (I cry a lot in movies, so that's no shocker.)

My lowest expectations going in were of Anne Hathaway. It's no secret that I think she is an over-rated actor and an even more over-rated singer. But her performance was very good indeed with only a few moments of "performy" distraction.

The best singer, and perhaps the best overall performance, was Eddie Redmayne as Marius. His voice was so clear yet it had so much depth for his highest of high tenor (and I'm sure falsetto). And as far as his emotional performance goes, he was Marius. "Empty Chairs at Empty Tables" has never been so heartbreaking. Also there is something absolutely perfect about Marius being covered in freckles.

I know that Jean Valjean and Javert are supposed to be the leads, but I have come to the conclusion that Les Misérables is really about Marius. His passion and sense of justice reflect the best part of Javert, and his compassion and capacity for love reflect the best of Jean Valjean. Marius is Javert's fixation on right mixed with Valjean's capacity for good. As that amalgamation, Marius becomes the light and the hope in a thoroughly depressing story; he is the person who can begin to make the changes and live the life that everyone is fighting for or longing for in some way.

My favorite part of the film adaptation was the presentation, and the best bits of the presentation were the tight, unwavering shots of characters during their solos. Each solo was about being in that emotional moment, and director Tom Hooper honored that by staying close enough that nothing could distract or detract from that. It was intimate and truthful, and the intimacy was what made it more superior than an expansive stage production. Yes, I said it. And I mean it.

Movie Review: The Hobbit (And general views on adaptations)

I felt spurred to write something about The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey because 1) it's been getting middling reviews overall, and 2) I didn't see any of the major problems that people were complaining about. (I mean, I get what they're saying, but I just didn't seem them as problems.)

The biggest complaint I've heard is that people are upset that director Peter Jackson broke The Hobbit into three movies, and that he apparently did this to "make more money" or "milk us for all we're worth" or to "extend the hype machine." And while those things are happening--whether by design or default--breaking An Unexpected Journey into three movies is not doing The Hobbit as disservice. At least as far as I'm concerned. 

I've heard and read so many reviews that state this break up of the book made the pacing of An Unexpected Journey too slow. So I went into it expecting long drawn out bits that would make me roll my eyes and squirm in my seat. Instead I had almost no problems with the pacing, and when I did think the movie was going too slow, it was because of other factors. For instance, when the adventuring party finds itself in the goblin caves, I couldn't wait for that to be over, but it was mostly because I didn't like the overly comical interpretation of the goblin king, in personality and CGI-ness. 

In the end the pacing felt just like the pacing of the Lord of the Rings movies. There was certainly plenty of action, and there were certainly slower bits (but not too slow or too long) that involved the characters actually talking (oh no, not talking!), which, ya know, moves the plot forward and helps you feel connected to the characters.

The other biggest complaint, which is the biggest complaint whenever a book is made into a movie, is the plot and/or nuance changes in the adaptation. But I have two things going for me that reduce my anger towards plot changes: 1) I don't often remember plots of books I read in minute detail, but rather in general arcs and feelings, and since I don't remember minutiae I'm not upset if it changes; and 2) I decided long ago to do my best to look at adaptations as their own entity. They are different mediums and must be treated and consumed differently. To be clear I do get attached to plot points and details that I hope to see in an adaptation, and I am disappointed if my "pets" don't make it into the film, but I try not to let minutiae ruin my experience. However neither of these were really a factor with this adaptation, because I didn't love the book in the first place (I know, I'm a monster), so I ended up liking the movie much more than the book.

Now that all of that is off my chest, let's move on to the part where I talk about whatever I want with no through line and little focus.

I can't imagine anyone being more perfect as Bilbo than Martin Freeman. Since Mr. Freeman has a solid background in comedy and drama, he was able to play Bilbo's fussiness and inexperience as an adventurer without making Bilbo overly naive or ridiculous. His facial expressions, body language, and perfectly timed stutterings endeared Bilbo to me in a way that I didn't experience in the book. 

The other best bit to me was the introduction in the movie. It not only gives a lot of history that's needs to understand the movie's climate and the character's motives (without being boring), but it connected us back to the LOTR series. In fact, I had a couple of aha moments that brought some things full circle for me. 

Other stuff:

1) It was weird to see Gandalf as Gandalf the Grey, I just got used to Gandalf the White at the end of the LOTR series.

2) It was very hard to not immediately see Saruman as evil because of LOTR. And it didn't help that there were devices that could have been implications or foreshadowings of his turn to the dark side. 

3) I loved the solemn song the dwarves sang and that it became the theme music throughout the movie.

4) I loved that many of the actors playing dwarves weren't directed to change their native accents, so we had dwarves from, at the very least, Scotland, Ireland, England, and New Zealand. 

5) I was also very pleased with Richard Armitage's performance, even though I already knew he is stellar at playing intensely serious and overly proud characters. (See North and South [2004].)

6) And just for fun, this video of Martin Freeman and Richard Armitage.

Project Runway All Stars: "Up Your Aerosol"

With an episode title like "Up Your Aerosol," you gotta expect some drama. The drama was pretty much about how rich Lauren is and how no one else wants to hear about it. And I don't care one whit.

The actual challenge had the designers creating their own graffiti-inspired (or "aerosol art"?) fabric using spray paint. The idea was that their garments would be "wearable works of art." The designers' success in this challenge was incredibly mixed with most designers falling into an unmemorable middle.

Before I move on, I have to talk about the guest judges, Jeffrey Castillo and Robert Tagliapietra. I mean, did you see them in all their casual Santa, hipster lumberjack-i-ness. They looked both imposing and adorable. Plus their critiques were insightful and interesting.

I can't say I agreed with the judges' tom and bottom three, but I knew as soon as I saw Suede's dress in the workroom that he would likely go home. His dress was a mess. It looked swampy and not unlike a witch costume. I don't know why he had to emphasize the polka dots on the skirt with cutout polka dots. The bottom line is that his taste level always falls short, so he went home. Check another off my list of who will go home first.

Now, I'm not saying that Kayne's dress was good, in fact it was pretty bad, but it was much better than I anticipated when I saw it in the workroom. So I probably would have put Andrae's (bottom left) raffia bow-inspired dress or Casanova's (bottom right) odd patchwork dress in the bottom three instead. They both were poorly constructed with not-quite-right proportions.

Laura's dress was just okay. The judges had it right when they said that the top of the dress had potential silhouette-wise, but the skirt looked like a different dress. I really didn't like her fabric; the colors were muddy and the pattern was messy. A graffiti-inspired design should in the very least be crisply graphic and should probably include bold colors too.

I was shocked that the judges put Ivy in the top three; it was awful. Her fabric was lackluster and too literal to say the least, and her silhouette was boring and similar to her leather and lace design. And I don't even want to talk about that ridiculous chiffon lower skirt. The judges keep saying that she's an impeccable tailor, but her jackets are shapeless. To be clear, her construction skills are just fine, but tailoring is not the same as sewing well.

I would have put Joshua in the top three instead. Even though his fabric design was a literal city landscape, it didn't read too literally in the garment (excepting the road lines at the waist). But the interesting thing for me was the his silhouette and structure themselves somehow evoked a city landscape.

Emilio and Anthony Ryan duked it out for the win. Anthony Ryan tends toward clean, graphic looks anyway, so it was no surprise that he did well in this challenge. The lines of this dress were crisp and clean, which is a breath of fresh air among this group of designers. My only complaint: because the waistline was slightly raised, I would have liked the skirt a titch longer to avoid a 90s babydoll silhouette completely.

Emilio snaked the win in the end, and I think he deserved it. The colors were perfect. And while his oversized jacket is not part of my aesthetic, the overall silhouette was well-proportioned and more or less well-made. I would have liked it better if the sleeves were slightly narrower with a more fitted cuff, and the decorative zippers on the sleeve and skirt front should be nixed completely. They weren't needed in his already visually interesting garment.

Project Runway All Stars: "Put on Your Dancing Shoes"

I was confused by this week's challenge. The designers had to make "party wear" drawing inspiration for from disco and 70s-inspired shoes. When did that 70s come back? I mean, geez, the 70s are so 90s.

As seems to be the case recently on PR, the judges didn't actually judge based on all the parameters of the challenge; there was no mention of party wear in the judging as far as I could tell. Believe me you, I'm no party wear expert, but I didn't think many of the designs were party wear.

I cannot believe that Andrae didn't go home with another fussy chiffon jacket. It was so boring, it didn't evoke disco, and it didn't have anything to do with party wear. But I wouldn't mind owning that skirt. Also Andrae's weird affectations on the runway during critiques are off-putting.

It was a surprise that Kayne (left) was in the bottom instead of Suede (right). Kanye's was nothing special, except his exceptional work in matching the chevron stripes, but Suede's was a tortured, grecian mess where dreams go to die.

Of course Wendy went home. Her design was completely atrocious. Those gloves alone deserved the boot, but the whole outfit was a weird mix of 90s reference to the 70s and Russian prostitute. Yes, that's mean, and yes, it's true.

Even though I oddly didn't hate Casanova's design, I'm not quite sure how he made it into the top three. Sometimes a surprising color choice can go a long way, I suppose.

I liked Ivy's dress in theory, but not in production. The green and gold combo was lovely, but the green fabric was overworked and poorly finished. And the overall proportions were off, but the idea of a boy short under a sheer skirt is kind of fun...for someone to wear who isn't me.

Uli was certainly best of the top three. The dress had so much movement, which was fun and a bit exciting--perfect for party wear. And since no one else really wowed me, which happens when I'm overly tired, I was certainly okay with Uli's win.

Despite their design flaws, I will give honorable mention to Anthony Ryan (top) for his monochromatic graphics, Althea (left) for the interesting texture on the front of her dress, and Emilio (right) for his use of movement and volume.

 

Project Runway All Stars: "Redemption on the Runway"

Yes, this episode aired over a week ago, and yes, I'm going to post about it anyway. However:

I hereby pledge to post Project Runway rundowns in a timely manner. Please feel free to call me out if I do not.

Again we have our old friends Isaac Mizrahi, Georgina Chapman, and the refreshingly blunt Joanna Coles. But there is a new model-cum-host, Caroline Murphy. And she is even worst than the last All Star host. I understand why they pick models to host, after all Heidi Klum is a model and she does a great job, but Heidi Klum has a sassy, strong personality, and that cannot be said of Caroline Murphy. So incredibly bland.

They've also upped the prizes a little bit this time around, which is kind of bananas as it all adds up to a value of about $750,000. Prizes include, but are not limited to, a spread in Marie Claire and a one year gig as a contributing editor of the same, trips to all of next year's fashion weeks around the world, one year of paid office space, a studio of Brother equipment, and $150,000 cash. Rather gluttonous, no?

The first challenge was a team challenge, horror of horrors. Each team had to design around a single "attitude," and each designer was responsible for one whole look. You can see both collections here.

Team Bold included Joshua, Emilio, Suede, Laura, Peach, and Andrae.
Team Confident included Althea, Anthony Ryan (love), Ivy, Casanova, Kayne, Wendy, and Uli.

I didn't love either collection, but team Confident, despite their tired theme of leather and lace, won the challenge, which means the top three came from this group.

Ivy's jacket and short were a mystery to me. I thought it looked a little dated, a little 80s. The placement of the lace was interesting and flattering, but the silhouette did not wow me in the least.

I was also nonplused with Casanova's dress (left). The lace placement and finishing felt sloppy and awkward, if that's possible. Again, it was nothing special and it wasn't very flattering. Althea's very similar dress was more interesting to me. It was more flattering, and the high contrast felt more exciting.

My sweet, Southern cherub, Anthony Ryan, was the first winner! Yay! I loved him in his regular season, and I hope he's grown enough as a designer to win this competition. His design was graphic in the front, and soft and surprising in the back. Simple and lovely in great proportions.

Out of team Bold, the bottom three were Peach, Andrae, and Suede. No surprises there. I probably could've picked the bottom three before seeing their designs. I thought Andrae's was the worst, it was fussy, overworked, and a little 90s.

Suede's handkerchief student work was pretty bad too, but at least his craftsmanship was on par.

Peach's dress wasn't too far behind with her boring, sloppy, under-designed, phone-in of a design. She went home, but it really could've been any of the bottom three.

Laura from team Bold deserves a mention here, her silhouette was gorgeous, easy, and flattering.

I'm going out on a limb here to make predictions about the designers likely to go home first and the designers likely to make it to the end.

First go-homers:
Wendy, Suede, Kayne (he just can't stop making pageant looks!), Andrae, and maybe Casanova.

Make-it-to-the-enders:
Emilio, Anthony Ryan, Uli.

Joshua, Althea, Laura, and Ivy could go either way for me at this point.