It continues to surprise me how beautiful some stop motion animation can be. “The Fantastic Mr. Fox” is an great example of this format in motion. I’m a die hard admirer of standard 2D however, after watching this film, I’m really desiring to see some of my favorite cartoons in stop motion animation as well. The film is adapted from the children’s book with the same title. Written by Roald Dahl, the story follows main character Mr. Fox, as he steals food to provide for his starving family from wealthy tycoons with evil intensions. The film is a great adaption and is very enjoyable. It stars George Clooney, Meryl Streep, Jason Schwartzman, Bill Murray, and many more. It is directed, produced, and written by the amusing Director, Wes Anderson (Royal Tenenbuams).
Ben 10 transitioned its self from a cartoon series to a live action movie before and is back for second time in live form. However, this time around he takes shape as the older cartoon counterpart and with the help of his comrades he must battle an invading force trying to enslave the human race. I really don’t like television made live action Sci-fi movies because the CGI in these films are really cheep sometimes. However, watching most of the trailers for this film; it seems they’ve used only a moderate amount of CGI and it seems to work for them – doesn’t look out of place or cheaply done. The film stars Ryan Kelley (Ben), Galadriel Stineman (Gwen), and Nathan Keyes (Kevin). The film is directed by Actor, Alex Winter (1989′s Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure).
V Man, Issue “16″ hits News stands today and on the cover is Ford Model Search Contest Winner, “Rico Nieves”. V Man continues to show how unique and substantial of a male quarterly they are issue after issue.
Here is the overview listed on there website for this spectacular issue of the magazine:
VMAN CULTURE
French movie star Vincent Cassel’s criminal mind, and your overview of all things music, print, film, and TV. Plus the fellas from True Blood and Weeds
VMAN STYLE
Move over Amy Winehouse! Music producer Mark Ronson’s new muse is Gucci. And for your aesthetic edification, our insiders’ look at the studios of Calvin Klein, Dior Homme, Givenchy, and Thom Browne. Plus new-skool designers, Trussardi’s legacy, cinema meets la mode, a collaboration roundup, chemicals you need for your bathroom, and a shopping extravaganza! Looking good, feeling good
FEATURES
FACE OFF
They journeyed to London from around the globe to do battle. The prize? The mighty mantle of VMAN Model Search winner and a contract with mega-agency Ford! Only one can earn the title, but all are winners in our eyes. Witness the making of fashion’s newest faces
PHOTOGRAPHY BY NICK KNIGHT
STYLE IDOLS
Four leading men who spark fashion creativity
WAITING IN THE WINGS
A fresh crop of acting talent from Britain
BY LAUREN COCHRANE
PHOTOGRAPHY BY HEDI SLIMANE
MOST WANTED
One of our favorite artists renders the most recognized stars in his inimitable way BY RICHARD PHILLIPS
DEFINING DIDDY
Diddy loses the playa façade and gets real BY JACOB BROWN
PHOTOGRAPHY BY CHAD PITMAN
FASHION
WORK IT OUT!BY TERRY RICHARDSON LEGENDARY BY JOSH OLINS CATCH THE DRIFT BY BENJAMIN ALEXANDER HUSEBY GENTLEMAN OF LEISURE BY KARL LAGERFELD
Here Are Some Out Takes From Rico’s Shoot.
Definitely, another great issue. Go grab your copy while they are still available.
“daraGoy” or “Expensive” – What ever way you would like to call it, is a Russian brand that is available at the Rogan Store in NYC. These T-shirts are painted with multiple designs and are very unique. I dig these shirts and even though its pretty clear its sweater season, wearing a cool “T” doesn’t hurt from time to time.
Just pure freshness. You can contact Rogan Store Here.
The Lincoln Center has always established it self as a great place for the performing arts and this celebration will last up until Jan 16, 2010. Go and enjoy what LC has to offer in Music, art, theatre, and dance . I know I will be there.
For more information on tickets and events you can visit Here.
Two well known Artist release their LP’s today: Rihanna and Lady GaGa.
1. Mad House.
2. Wait Your Turn.
3. Hard feat. Jeezy.
4. Stupid In Love.
5. Rockstar 101 feat. Slash.
6. Russian Roulette.
7. Fire Bomb.
8. Rude Boy.
9. Photographs feat. Will.i.am.
10.G4L.
11.Te Amo.
12.Cold Case Love.
13.The Last Song.
“Rated R” is Rihanna’s fourth studio album and really reflects a dark era in her life after her altercations with fellow Artist and former boyfriend Chris Brown. Rihanna went to production of “Rated R” and really developed a new image, sound, by pouring her emotions into each track – the birth of a fighter had manifested. “Russian Roulette” was released as her first single off of the CD and is a great setup to the other tracks on the album. Personal tracks I recommend are: “Cold Case Love”, “Hard”, “Last Song”, “Wait Your Turn”, and “G4L”. These really reflect an emotional and new Rihanna. Even though it isn’t a full track, “Mad House” is well done and should have been a full record. One down side of the album would be the track “Photographs” which was produced by Black Eyed Pea’s front man, “Will.I.Am”. The track doesn’t match the tone of the album. Rated R is a must have and I really vouch for it.
1. Bad Romance.
2. Alejandro.
3. Monster.
4. So Happy I Could Die.
5. Speechless.
6. Dance In The Dark.
7. Telephone feat. Beyoncé.
8. Teeth.
At first, this LP was labeled an deluxe edition of her first album. GaGa was quick to clear the air and informed everyone this release is indeed her second effort. Even though it is an eight track release, the construction of the tracks are good. At first listen though, its hard to get into but, when you take another listen, the songs begin to grow on you. I’m not a fan of the lyrics because most of it sounds concurrent with one another – not always a bad thing. The tracks I recommend are “Bad Romance”, “Telephone”, and “Speechless”. Over all its a good album and she seems very passionate on what she creates and its hard to find artist like that nowadays.
Here are the music videos to both of their first singles:
I finally came around and saw “Precious” today. The film is Directed by Lee Daniels and stars: Gabourey Sidibe, Mo’Nique, Paula Patton, Mariah Carey, and Lenny Kravitz. I’m very overawe by the realism of this film. I easily gain great admiration for a cinematic piece when the story comes to life suitably and is helped shaped by the acting. Another recent film that has managed to this is Sam Mendes’s “Revolutionary Road”. In Precious, the entire cast is just superb and they dominate their scenes. Because of this, its as if you are actually witnessing the events in present of you. The rawness, the tone, and the camera work plays an important part of the feature as well. If this film were shot any other way, the realm of the story would be lost. My only dislikes for “Precious” are the continuing notation of the plot, the spoon feeding of each character to the other for sake of the audiences watching, and the cluttered dialogue in each scene – less dialogue is more effective, I would think. Precious is definitely a must see. When watching you might say to yourself – I do that, I know about that, I’ve experienced that, and I’m not going to live like that no anymore. When a film is able to raise questions and have you think, its a good project.
Alright, “Race” is a new play getting a lot of buzz on Broadway and in the media. It stars: David Alan Grier, Richard Thomas, Kerry Washington, and James Spader. It is Directed & written by fame play write David Mamet and follows three Legal Advisors as they defend a man accused of a crime against a Black woman.
I’m really excited to see this play. I purchased my tickets the other day and I will have a full review after watching.
Twilight: New Moon premiered over the weekend and brought in some heavy numbers. The sequel to 2008’s blockbuster racked in an estimated $140 million in its first three days. Now, I haven’t read the series of books written by Author, Stephenie Meyer: Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse, and Breaking Dawn, so I didn’t know what to expect when walking into this movie like I did with the first. When it comes to book based movies, I always say its best to not compare the two universes because materials that might work well in book format might not do so when translated into film. After the flick, I felt irritated by the character of Bella (Kristen Stewart). I find it harrowing to know that throughout the entire movie she put her self in danger to get Edward’s (Robert Pattinson) attention – Jumping off of cliffs etc. The pacing is slow and drags the film out to an estimated 2 hours. An hour and couple minutes would have been an ideal length in my personal opinion. One might complain about the lack of action as well, but be that as it may “Twilight” is a transcending love story and the lack of action didn’t bother me at all. New Moon’s cinematography and CGI effects were a step up from the first Twilight movie and the dialogue very dignified. The character developments in this sequel are far preferable then the first flick and it’s probably due to the superb direction given by Director, Chris Weitz. I am intrigued at what the next film will look like. Similar to the second feature, Eclipse will be directed by a different Director – David Slade. If you admire love stories, then this movie is for you. If you love action, this flick will leave a bad taste in your mouth. I give New Moon three Autobots out of five.
