Dita Von Teese on costumes, haute couture, Carmen Miranda, ‘CSI’ and more

June 27, 2011 by

For nearly 20 years, Dita Von Teese has mesmerized audiences with her brand of burlesque – sexy and sophisticated, provocative and polished. And definitely laced with humor. I saw her perform at the Roxy the last time she was in Los Angeles and wanted to know more about her and how she puts the show together. Here is our chat via email.

Photo by Aaron Settipane/www.ayessemedia.com

FNB: Your show is terrific and your costumes are spectacular. In this current show, do you have a favorite number?
DVT: I was pretty excited to have the new Swarovski crystallized glass because it’s something I always dreamed of, and it makes doing my most-known show exciting for me again. But I also loved doing the powder compact, it’s a show I made over 15 years ago, so it was fun to do it again. The Opium Den is definitely my most extravagant overall, so it could be a favorite. …

It’s difficult to choose a favorite because I created each of these acts, and so there’s a lot of heart-felt effort time, and money put into each act, and so I perform then with great pleasure. It’s much different than an entertainer who steps onto the stage in a show of someone else’s design, choreography, etc. It’s a huge process to build these acts, and so by the time each one comes together, it’s nearly impossible to say I like one more than the other!

FNB: I’ve read that you do your own makeup. Do you design your costumes? If not, can you talk about where they come from?
DVT: I work very closely with the costumers, I have very definite ideas of what I want to wear and the function of the costume. I like to give some creative freedom to the costumer, but in the end I have to be very attentive to how it’s made and how it looks as each piece of clothing come off. …

Each time a piece drops to the floor, it has to be a new, beautiful look worthy of a photo. I have costumes designed by fellow burlesque performer Catherine D’Lish, and it’s great to work with her because she actually puts the costume on and can feel what’s right and really understands the functions of the costume. I have costumes designed by haute couturiers Elie Saab, Christian Dior and Mr. Pearl too, and they’re beautifully made, and each has a very different style.

Photo by Aaron Settipane

It’s a lot of fun to work with these designers because their tailoring and attention to detail is amazing. Elie Saab did three gowns for me, and one is a long sheer gown covered in silver embroidered stars and I remember asking for a piece of the fabric to make a g-string out of and they came out of the atelier in Paris with two things: a piece of fine tulle and a bag of tiny beads. I had no idea that each and every tiny bead on this incredible, sweeping gown had been hands sewn on. THAT is haute couture! I also work with Christian Louboutin for all my shoes for the shows, and we have fun in his atelier coming up with new extravagant ideas for show-shoes … he’s working on something now that is amazing!!

FNB: From what I’ve read, your Mom was a big fan of old movies and got you hooked as well. What are some of your favorite films from the 1940s?
DVT: I’m a big fan of WWII era Technicolor musicals with Betty Grable and Carmen Miranda. These are my absolute favorites!

FNB: Any film-noir favorites?
DVT: I like ’40s era film noir, but I admit I am not a film noir expert as much as a Technicolor expert! I would love to have your recommendations!

FNB: I liked your role in the “CSI” episode, “A Kiss Before Frying.” Did you enjoy it and do you have any more plans to act in film noir-inspired projects?
DVT: Well, I have to admit that I did “CSI” because Eric Szmanda (who plays Greg) is a very close friend of mine, and we always jokingly talked about it, but you know, being a burlesque dancer, mainstream American TV seemed very out of reach for me. I was happy to have the experience, and really happy to bring a bit of authentic burlesque to a wider audience, especially in the wake of the commercialization and sanitization of burlesque that we see a lot of lately. …

I insisted that I take my bra off for the burlesque part of the story, because I’m tired of seeing burlesque portrayed as just retro-style dancing and singing, because it’s NOT. Gypsy Rose Lee, the most celebrated burlesque star of all time from the ’30s and ’40s, was a stripper, and wasn’t offended by the term at all. [Read more…]

Comments

Filed Under: Out of the Shadows Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

My quest for the perfect eyeliner: Part Four

June 26, 2011 by

Stiletto by Maybelline is a high-performance product.

Paris was a great chance to test a few products and Maybelline Stiletto Ultimate Precision liquid eyeliner, $7.50, was a fab find.

After lounging too long over coffee and pain au chocolat, I’d often be in a hurry to get ready and Stiletto was quick to apply. The thin felt tip is easy to control so you can create a soft feathery line or a thick dramatic band. The color is sheer, soft and stays put, without flakes or smears, even after a busy day of exploring the city.

Alas, the stilettos shown in this picture didn’t fare as well. Flats were my shoe of choice and the heels stayed parked outside my suitcase.

Product Source: I received a review sample from Maybelline. I did not receive compensation.

Comments

Filed Under: Noir Stuff Tagged With: , , ,

Paris on the run: ‘Zazie dans le Metro’ is an exhilarating, frenetic adventure

June 24, 2011 by

Zazie dans le Metro/1960/NEF, Pathé/89 min.

Michael Wilmington

Criterion is rereleasing ‘Zazie’ and while it really isn’t noir I couldn’t resist running this review from critic Michael Wilmington. The heroine is a tough little girl, director Louis Malle was a skilled noir storyteller (“Elevator to the Gallows” from 1958) and I still have Paris on the brain.

An impish little girl named Zazie with pre-Beatle bangs, an unusually profane vocabulary and a seemingly endless sense of adventure travels to Paris on the train with her mother (Odette Piquet). Once they hit Paris, her maman departs with her lover and leaves Zazie – a 12-year-old French gamine (played by the delightfully brash Catherine Demongeot) – to spend the day with her obliging, free-spirited Uncle Gabriel (Philippe Noiret). Zazie, tiny but indomitable, has a startling lack of reliance on adults, and that’s probably all to the good, since, as a babysitter, Gabriel seems initially a big fat fish out of water.

Oncle Gabriel, in fact, is a drag entertainer at a local restaurant-cabaret, where his size and manner recall that classic description of Oliver Hardy: “elephant on tippy-toe.” And Zazie keeps calling her uncle a “hormosessual,” even though the tart-tongued Gabriel is married to a loving wife named Albertine (Carla Marlier), who has the sweetest of dispositions and the looks of a movie star. But apparently, a “hormosessual” he is.

With or without Gabriel, Zazie has one big wish for her Parisian trip: She wants to ride on the Paris Metro. But the metro is on strike, and the subway gates are locked, so Zazie has to be content, for a while, with zipping around town in a taxicab with Gabriel and an exuberant driver (Antoine Roblot), who cheerfully misidentifies landmarks (The Church of St. Vincent de Paul becomes the Pantheon) and keeps getting caught in the traffic jams that the metro strike has caused.

Soon, however, Zazie breaks away and spends the day racing through the City of Light, picking up all sorts of strange new friends and enemies. In the course of Zazie’s spree, she turns Paris into a huge playground and the Eiffel Tower, in one astonishing scene, into the ultimate jungle gym. At the end, we see what looks like the beginning of a café revolution (Malle was ever the gentleman leftist).

“Zazie dans le Metro” was the movie that made Noiret a star – beginning a brilliant half-century film career and striking a blow for all those great movie actors who don’t look like Alain Delon. The film didn’t make a star of Demongeot. She acted in only three more films, and one of them was a cameo as Zazie, for Jean-Luc Godard‘s “A Woman is a Woman.” But it gave her something more precious: It made her immortal. [Read more…]

Comments

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Scenes to share from Paris

June 23, 2011 by

Cafes and carousels, romance and rain, gorgeous food and breathtaking architecture, Paris is a city you never want to leave …

The soaring, stunning Eiffel Tower.

 

A church in the Marais.

 

The beauty of a balcony window.

 

Flowers soften the lines of a stone building.

 

We stumbled upon this superb restaurant in the Marais.

 

Heaven on earth: Guerlain's store on the Champs-Élysées.

 

A gallery and bookstore on a leafy side street.

 

Looking through the courtyard at the École des Beaux-arts.

 

So many places to eat!

 

A garden sculpture; everywhere you look, there's something splendid to see.

 

One of the many decorated doorways.

 

A regal resident of the 16th arrondisement.

 

Passing time in a cafe.

 

Stained glass at Notre Dame.

 

A residential building in Montmartre.

 

Anish Kapoor's monumental installation at the Grand Palais.

 

The Latin Quarter's Saint-Michel fountain is a popular meeting place for Parisians.

Comments

Filed Under: Noir Style, Uncategorized

Paris, ‘Pulp Fiction,’ the proper way to approach Tarantino

June 6, 2011 by

Pulp Fiction/1994/Miramax Films/154 min.

My upcoming trip to Paris (I leave tomorrow) triggered the memory of that great scene in “Pulp Fiction” where two hit men chat about a quarter-pounder with cheese (Royale with cheese) in Paris so I decided to run this review in honor of my trip. For the next two weeks, my posts will slow down a bit as I spend time with a lovely friend and soak in the atmosphere of this ravishingly beautiful city.

Quentin Tarantino at the Cannes film fest in 2008.

Several years ago, at the Cannes Film Fest, I saw Quentin Tarantino rushing down the Croisette but I froze and didn’t approach him to say how much I liked his work. (He was helming the jury that year.) As I stood there, regretting that I’d missed the chance, two English guys walked up and asked me if I was lost. I filled them in; they said I was quite right to have refrained.

But then two Italian men joined us and told me I was crazy not to have said hello. “Maybe he’ll show up at the Ritz,” one of them said, gesturing toward the hotel. “Why don’t we have a glass of champagne there and see if perhaps he arrives?”

As tempting as that sounded, I’d already agreed to meet people at the cheap and cheerful Le Petite Carlton, where the casual, sometimes-raucous crowd spreads out into the street, people bum Marlboros and Gitanes, beer is served in tacky plastic cups and a little kitchen churns out thin-crust pizza well into the early morning hours. Another missed opportunity! 😉

So if by some odd chance, on this trip, I happen to see Tarantino on the Champs Elysee or some charming Italian men invite me to cocktails at the Ritz, I’ll know what to do!

John Travolta and Samuel L. Jackson in "Pulp Fiction."

“Pulp Fiction” is a neo noir of audacious originality, comic brilliance and exquisite craftsmanship. It was one of the most important films of the 1990s. Like his previous film, 1992’s “Reservoir Dogs,” it’s a crime movie that deals with bad guys doing bad stuff – in “Dogs” it’s a robbery gone wrong. In “Pulp Fiction” we’re immersed in three separate but interwoven stories about two chatty hit men, a corrupt boxer who defies a mob boss, and a grunge version of Bonnie and Clyde.

Tarantino tells us the stories out of order, bookended by the scruffy lover bandits (Tim Roth as Pumpkin and Amanda Plummer as Honey Bunny) who hold up an LA coffee shop. Bruce Willis plays Butch the boxer who pulls a double-cross. John Travolta made a stunning comeback as sexy smart-ass Vincent Vega and Samuel L. Jackson dazzles as Jules Winnfield, an armchair philosopher packing heat.

As Vincent and Jules discuss fast food, foot massages and Fate, Vincent is assigned an extra job from brawny bossman Marsellus Wallace (Ving Rhames): to take Mrs. Wallace (Uma Thurman) aka Mia out on the town. A headturner with jet-black hair, Louise Brooks bangs, wide blue eyes and long legs, Mia gets what Mia wants. Topping the list are milkshakes, drugs and dancing. Make that dancing with Travolta, mmm.

There is much to love about this film, particularly the highly original characters and crackling dialogue, which includes one-liners, retro slang, debates over points of logic and lengthy tangents of trivia. The dialogue seems to emerge organically from the characters and random chitchat punctuates major dramatic moments.

Actors talk with their back to the camera and sometimes put the imminent action on hold so they can wind up their conversation. Even though Pumpkin and Honey Bunny probably get the least amount of screen time, through their dialogue, we see several layers of their partnership, both tough and tender. [Read more…]

Comments

Filed Under: Neo Noir Reviews Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Quick hit: ‘Pulp Fiction’

June 6, 2011 by

Pulp Fiction/1994/Miramax Films/154 min.

One of the great loves of my life is Quentin Tarantino’s imagination and the bizarre people dwelling there. In “Pulp Fiction,” we meet a pair of hit men with a gift for gab, a boxer who refuses to throw a fight, and two adorable armed robbers named Pumpkin and Honey Bunny. John Travolta, Samuel L. Jackson, Uma Thurman and Bruce Willis star. Tarantino and partner Roger Avary won the Oscar for best original screenplay.

Comments

Filed Under: Neo Noir Reviews Tagged With: , , , , , ,

My quest for the perfect eyeliner: Part Three

June 6, 2011 by

I realize I’ve been remiss in my eyeliner updates. There have been so many noir movie events in April and May, I have, alas, fallen behind. But I have squirreling away tubes and sampling them when I can.

L’Oréal’s Voluminous Eyeliner has a slanted applicator.

Lately, I’ve been experimenting with Voluminous Eyeliner Mistake-Proof Marker by L’Oréal, $7. The felt tip is slanted so you can choose a thin line (use the pointed tip) or a thick line (use the slanted side).

Once you get it on, it does stay put and wears well; it also removes easily. But mistake proof? Not so much. Though the company says the flow of liquid is controlled and continuous, the tip itself doesn’t give you much juice so, in terms of ease of use, I was a little disappointed.

The key, I found, is a light touch. Because it’s a marker I was tending to hold the tube with the same strong grip that I would hold a Sharpie. That is not the way to apply – instead, easy does it! Voluminous is pretty good for a soft line, especially along lower lashes. Only $7, it’s worth a try, especially if you want to go a bit lighter for summer.

Product Source: From my own collection; I did not receive product or compensation from L’Oréal.

Comments

Filed Under: Noir Stuff Tagged With: , ,

This month’s reader giveaway: Experience the elegance of Bulgari’s Jasmin Noir body cream

June 3, 2011 by

“Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication,” said Leonardo da Vinci. Somehow I don’t think he had beauty routines or vanity tables in mind when he said this but you never know. He was a Renaissance man, after all.

Bulgari's new body cream absorbs easily, leaving an intoxicating scent.

I recently found a new product that’s really rather captivating in its simplicity, Bulgari’s Jasmin Noir body cream. The plain black jar, minimally adorned with a single gold band, catches the eye. The rich, yet light, cream is a joy to use, keeps skin summer-soft and eliminates the need for any other fragrance.

Earlier this week, I slathered some on after a shower and then dashed out the door for a blowout. “You smell fantastic. What is that?” Nava, the stylist, asked me as she washed my hair. Leaning back, with my feet up, it was the perfect way to relish the feeling of well being and pampering.

Bulgari says it was drawn to jasmine for its “intriguing ambivalence and complexity,” noting that the flower’s scent changes hour by hour. “At dawn, the translucent white flower has a fresh and delicate scent, then at midday it releases a citrusy fragrance that recalls orange blossoms, which then transforms in the evening into the characteristically warmer, more seductive notes.”

Perfect for a femme fatale, no? Also available: soap, bath & shower gel, body lotion and perfume. Bulgari’s Jasmin Noir Body Cream is $90 for 6.9 ounces. To buy it, visit Neiman Marcus.

Best of all, I have an extra jar for this month’s reader giveaway! To enter, just leave a comment on any FNB post, June 1-30. The winner will be randomly selected at the end of the month and announced in early July. Include your email address in your comment so that I can notify you if you win. Your email will not be shared. (The winner of the April giveaway has been selected and contacted.)

Product Source: Bulgari has provided a product for review and a product to give away to a reader. I did not receive compensation.

Comments

Filed Under: Noir Stuff Tagged With: , , , ,

Pick up L.A. Noire, where limelight meets streetlight, but be warned: it is hard to put down

June 2, 2011 by

By Logan Senn

L.A. Noire – the newest installment in a long line of genre-defining games from Rockstar Games and Team Bondi – fuses a sandbox-style, open-world, first-person detective game with the gritty and compelling backdrop of post-WWII Los Angeles. This daring venture, from the gaming think-tank made famous through the Grand Theft Auto series, has broken into uncharted territory with the first game ever to seamlessly blur the lines between gaming and cinema, doing so in near-perfect fashion.

Aaron Staton

As the opening cinematic sequence beautifully displays the glitz and glamour of golden-age ’40s Hollywood, we are introduced to our leading man Cole Phelps (Aaron Staton of “Mad Men”), an LAPD Detective who was thrown into his position headfirst after a brief stint as an officer in the war. The storyline follows Phelps as he climbs the ranks and battles over a seemingly unending quest to tackle cases of corruption, drugs, arson and murder, all the while fighting with his own brutal conscience and his decisions about morality.

It sounds more like the plot of a twisted noir novel than that of a multimillion-dollar gaming endeavor, but I assure you that every possible facet of this cinematic journey has been overly developed to the point where you can hardly discern between the enveloping story and the gameplay itself.

L.A. Noire is the first game on record to use Team Bondi’s new MotionScan animation-capture technology. With MotionScan, the game’s producers were able to capture actors’ facial expressions and body language with an accuracy never seen before on any gaming console. More to the point, it asks players to use every aspect of their intellect to evaluate and engage with the in-game characters’ physical actions and reactions.

This is a groundbreaking game on many other levels as well. The size and scope of the game are completely unmatched in anything I’ve ever come across on a console system. Everything from the scenic Los Angeles backdrop to the rich and enthralling soundtrack have been fine-tuned to deliver the true feeling of the dark and twisted world around you.

As far as the gameplay goes, there is little available on the open market to compare it to. The game delicately walks the tightrope between beautiful CGI and actual interactive gameplay. There are times in which the player has trouble figuring out when it’s actually time to pick up the controller and start playing. The cinematics are breathtaking, and the new sandbox engine far exceeds the greatest expectations of the most seasoned gaming veterans.

I would compare it to the GTA (Grand Theft Auto) series, but that would be doing L.A. Noire a serious injustice. You could spend countless hours exploring the rich scenery of a Los Angeles long forgotten. Angelinos may take particular interest here in that it’s pretty darn fun to explore your neighborhood as it looked nearly 70 years ago. With more than 60 model cars available, the driving is authentic and the shootouts feel realistic but not overwhelming.

The most interesting aspects of the game, however, are the deeply layered interrogation scenes. Each one of the dozens of cases comes with its own cast of characters, offering hundreds of unique and diverse plotlines. It’s up to the player to read and interpret the facial expressions and body language of the suspects, and the outcome of the story depends on your ability to do so accurately. [Read more…]

Comments

Filed Under: Noir Style Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

Honey, your June horoscope is here …

June 1, 2011 by

Marilyn Monroe

Susan Hayward

Fate reigns supreme in film noir, but that doesn’t mean we don’t love us some zodiac fun. Hope your June is full of brides wearing black and plenty of men with beachworthy bodies. And happy birthday, Gemini and Cancer! A special shout-out and remembrances to Gemini A-listers Marilyn Monroe (June 1), Tony Curtis (June 3), Angelina Jolie (June 4), Isabella Rossellini and Roger Ebert (June 18), Kathleen Turner (June 19), and Cancer treasures Billy Wilder (June 22), Frances McDormand (June 23), John Cusack (June 28) and Susan Hayward (June 30).

Gemini (May 22-June 21): This month, when you get that let’s-put-on-a-show! feeling, go with the urge. No experience, no cash, no contacts? No problem! See where enthusiasm and can-do energy will take you. Even if it doesn’t take you all the way, you will be generating exciting ideas and forging new paths. Man du Jour will make this a summer to remember; cut him some slack if he forgets to chill the champagne or shows up with a mere dozen roses. Keep him sweet – you may need him to work the curtain. 😉

Cancer (June 22-July 23): “Didn’t we just have this conversation?” you might find yourself saying, your typically dulcet tone poised to become an impatient snarl. In other words, there could be a few minor communication snags that try your patience and leave you flummoxed. Wait, I take that back. Flummoxed? I think not. Self-possessed and supremely confident, you can handle anything that comes your way. This month, try to dole out a bit of patience for those less capable than you. Be extra flexible the weekend of the 16th. [Read more…]

Comments

Filed Under: Noir Horoscopes
« Previous Page
Next Page »