INFLUENCERS

I came across this trailer, some pretty good stuf. I tried to find out more about the dates of the release or something but they seem to be all so secretive (clever!) because this is ALL I could find on the web. Well.. I guess we just have to join the facebook group and wait for some more!

"INFLUENCERS is a short documentary that explores what it means to be an influencer and how trends & creativity become contagious today in music and fashion.
Directed by Paul Rojanathara and Davis Johnson, the film is a Polaroid snapshot of New York influential creatives (advertising, design, fashion and entertainment) who are shaping today's pop culture."

Follow INFLUENCERS on facebook.com/​influencersfilm

Et Dieu... créa la femme

... and what a woman, let me say!
Have you seen this french movie starring Brigitte Bardot? As much as I've heard, this movie was exclusively created by Roger Vadim to launch BB, project which obviously did not fail. I liked the movie, very life true, not too complicated nor original, just a story. Considering the times and traditions of the fifties, I can imagine how much scandal a story like that may have caused. Not even for the subject (a story about a very young very sexually active girl), but for the tone it was all told. It was very.. noir.. may I say? or just realistic. Or at least comparing the french cinema to the italian one, this is what I felt. And then I caught myself thinking: it's amazing how much you can learn about one nation by only watching a movie. For example in this particular case, in telling the story, the french cruelly concentrated on bringing out the primitive nature and viscious instincts of a man, the darkest side of human kind. The italians would have told the same story in a whole different key, much less psychologically and more superficially, with a light humour and even irony in it.

Here's what imdb writes about their story:
"Vadim took a May 1949 issue of the Elle magazine to rip out a page, but doing so, he saw a photo of Brigitte Bardot, then a 15-year-old fashion model. Vadim became fascinated with Bardot's image, and gave her photo to director 'Marc Allegret', who was about to film Vadim's script. Although Bardot did not get a role, Vadim started a relationship with her, while her parents were away. Soon, her enraged bourgeois parents tried to cut him off, and nearly sent Brigitte to a school in England, but Vadim and Brigitte prevailed. His friends procured Brigitte her film debut, so Vadim's relationship with her flourished, until her unwanted first pregnancy, which she would abort, causing her much trauma and long-term fear of maternity. At that time, Bardot's father, Louis Bardot, was in rage and pulled out a gun on Vadim, causing everyone more shock and trauma, that led to Bardot's several suicide attempts. Vadim spared no effort to comfort Bardot with his love and their romantic getaway in Saint-Tropez, making the French Riviera their escape resort. In 1952, Vadim made his film acting debut together with Brigitte , albeit he was uncredited. In December of 1952, Vadim and Brigitte became married. Their personal life somewhat stabilized and resulted in a few years of fruitful collaboration. Their groundbreaking film, Et Dieu.. créa la femme (1956), co-starring Jean-Louis Trintignant, was also Vadim's directorial debut. The film became a massive box-office hit and catapulted both Vadim and Bardot to world fame. The memorable scene of BB dancing barefoot on a table to the tango, delighted male audiences and became one of the most titillating scenes in French cinema. Bardot's natural sensuality turned her into an international sex symbol."

And ofcourse, there is nothing left to say about Brigitte, the woman is just D I V I N E . Loook how she moves!! Besides having the right curves and all, she has got IT! That extra-magic that makes one woman beautiful and desirable and the other not. Because she feels like it. I think it's all about that, about feeling yourself beautiful and sexy. What you think, my girls?

La Ex Dolce Vita

Things are changed since the late fifties when life was all about fame and spotlight on Via Veneto, the street where the "Dolce Vita Romana" was born. Here you could see the "intellectual" aristocrats, nobles, hollywood jet-setters and divas living or rather showing off their sweet, and yet bitter, I tell you!, life of the "only few and selected ones", chased by paparazzies day&night trying to catch every moment, scandal, fight, secret, failment, kiss there was...

And it was a great blast, every international star dropped by to have a taste of the Sweet Life: Liz Taylor, Gary Grant, Ava Gardner, Richard Burton, Audrey Hepburn, Kirk Douglas, Anita Ekberg, Andy Warhol, Sophia Loren.. just naming few.

Federico Fellini pictured by Andy Warhol, on Via Veneto.

There is one particular episode which is remembered as the most scandalous happening of the time, which, in fact, may have signed the begginning of the uncontrollable exploration of sin and joy (always in big contrast with the Church, and it still is):

It's 1953, a birthday party is held in one of the most chicest restaurants in Trastevere- Il Rugantino. Obviously after too many drinks a young turkish woman Aiché Nanà decides to do a little belly-dance and ends up entirelly naked, this all witnessed by photographers.

Shocking front-page news of improvvisated striptease inspiers The Master of Cinema Fellini to add a scene in his movie colossal La Dolce Vita and seven years later, when the film is released, it gets banned by censores. Still it broke all box office records and still it got the Palme d'Or at Cannes (in 1960).

The most famous scene from the La Dolce Vita: Anita Ekberg with Marcello Mastroianni in the Fontana di Trevi.

Now..
well nothing is left of those glamourouse days that Rome City senter used to witness. Via Veneto is sadly empty and when I went there a couple of days ago, in the aspiration of taking some pictures to write this post... there was nothing to photograph. Nothing. Even on flickr you don't find anything good or special. Via Veneto is now full of expensive traditionally boring hotels for busy business men and empty restaurants with few lost tourist inside eating something not worth even a third of it's price. In the evening some escorts try to make money by stepping from one bar inside another. There are one or two restaurants and lounge/bars which try to keep up with the modern city nightlife with a cool interior design or a deejay set, but there's nothing much left to do. La Dolce Vita is gone. And I seriously doubt it's going to resee it's glory days.

Marcello Mastroianni in the final scene of the film.

PS! There is still one pearl lieing in it's dusty shell- a fish restaurant with a quite interesting interior design. I'm going to post about it;)