Martin Scorsese

“Cinema is a matter of what’s in the frame and what’s out.”

— Martin Scorsese

Vladimir Restoin-Roitfeld has let it be known in interviews that Martin Scorsese is one of his favorite directors. Widely considered one of the greatest American filmmakers of his time, Scorsese grew up in New York City and his parents made their living in the Garment District. When one thinks of NYC and movies, the next thought is Martin Scorsese (well it’s mine at least). Who knows, maybe one of the reasons Vlad currently resides in Manhattan is due to Scorsese’s many NYC-centered films. Vladimir seems to fit right into the Big Apple and with his art exhibits and ties to the fashion world I wouldn’t be surprised if he and Marty attended many of the same parties.

Currently Scorsese is working on yet another film that takes place in New York, The Wolf of Wall Street. It stars Leonardo DiCaprio and sounds a bit like an update of Oliver Stone’s Wall Street. Here is a photo of Leo looking very dapper on the set of The Wolf of Wall Street (perhaps taking a fashion cue from Vladimir in the double-breasted suit?).

While it is true that many of Scorsese’s best pictures take place in New York — Goodfellas, Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, Mean Streets — surprisingly the only movie for which he has won the Academy Award for Best Director was filmed in my backyard, The Departed. On a side note, one can’t but wonder if the director Fabien Constant utilized any of Scorsese’s techniques when filming his Carine Roitfeld documentary, Mademoiselle C.; Scorsese did direct the famous The Last Waltz and films in a documentary style. There is no question, Marty assuredly knows what’s in the frame and what’s out...

Martin Scorsese, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Matt Damon on location for The Departed (2006)Martin Scorsese and Robert De Niro filming Raging Bull (1980)Martin Scorsese and Robert De Niro on the set of Taxi Driver (1976)Martin Scorsese and the cast of Mean Streets (1973)

Martin Scorsese and Leonardo DiCaprio photographs courtesy of interviewmagazine.com, reelists.com, and flicksandbits.com.

Meryl Streep

In the October 2010 issue of the Italian version of Style, we learned that Vladimir Restoin-Roitfeld’s ideal leading lady is none other than American film royalty, Meryl Streep. Hardly surprising, as Vladimir is a man of taste... which of course runs in the family... Carine Roitfeld chose to feature Streep on two of three covers for Vogue Paris in May of 2010. Streep has been widely acclaimed as both a critically and a commercially successful actress for the duration of her career which spans more than three decades. Her greatest distinction is that of the most nominated actress in the history of both the Golden Globe and the Oscar awards.

Mary Louise (Meryl) Streep was a Vassar undergraduate and holds a Masters in Fine Arts from Yale. According to SimplyStreep.com, this German beauty is also fluent in Italian — enough to retort when Dino De Laurentiis complained in Italian about her looks during the auditioning for King Kong. I wish I’d been a fly on that wall...

She rose immediately from stage and television to a part in Julia in 1977. It was said everyone thought she was a great actress from the beginning, but her emotional range is hardly any wonder given what the young Meryl went through. Her fiancé, John Cazale, was dying from bone cancer during their filming of The Deer Hunter. They took their parts in the film to be close to each other in his last days. They filmed all his scenes first, and he would not live to see the finished film.

Streep won Oscars for Kramer vs. Kramer and Sophie's Choice, of course, as well as a slew of other awards. Her other well-regarded titles include Silkwood, The House of the Spirits, The Bridges of Madison County, Music of the Heart, and the musical hit, Mamma Mia! And who can forget A Cry in the Dark? (You may want to. Let‘s try.)

Then there’s Julie & Julia, which I could watch again and again. In fact, I do. A friend of mine was recently in Paris and she found herself standing in front of the same peeling blue shutters she had seen in the movie — a famous book store in which Meryl’s Julia Child goes rummaging for a French cookbook in English, only to find one does not yet exist. Meryl is spot on as Julia, no question, but it is Amy Adams’ adorable Julie that makes me want to throw dinner parties and tackle an aspic (ewww). You will be hard pressed to come away from Julie & Julia without wanting to pick a passion and blog about it in hopes of getting a book deal.

Most recently I wanted to be Meryl’s affair-having, weed-smoking, pastry-chefing character in It's Complicated. She’s the best woman-with-her-act-together to aspire to since Diane Keaton’s character in Something’s Gotta Give. After viewing It’s Complicated, I immediately made my own croque monsieur dripping with Gruyere and went on a late night quest for lavender ice cream. Unlike many of her early films, my quest ended well.

Speaking of which, sadly I feel the ending to Adaptation was a travesty. In fact, the only salvageable part of the film in my opinion was Chris Cooper’s character and Meryl’s partial narration. Her voice so beautifully depicts the verbally sensuous book that the movie was loosely based on, The Orchid Thief: A True Story of Beauty and Obsession. I’m not going to recommend the movie, but rather the non-fiction book that inspired it.

Other than that, Meryl Streep is usually very selective about her scripts. I’ll admit to guilty pleasure in The Devil Wears Prada, and the largely forgotten Postcards from the Edge, based on Carrie Fisher’s book, but my personal favorites from the past are her exceptional romantic period dramas, Out of Africa and The French Lieutenant's Woman.

Out of Africa is based on the 1937 autobiography of classic authoress and coffee planter, Isak Dineson (a nomme de plume), starring 1970s alpha male Robert Redford and featuring an appearance by model Iman. The tale relates an old woman’s memories of an illicit love affair. She was a young wealthy woman married to a total slacker. Naturally, she falls for a real hero and adventurer (and big game hunter, but we'll ignore that because he's dashing and handsome). Incidentally, if you’re anything like me, you put on majestic film scores before settling on the couch for a nap, and the soundtrack to Out Of Africa is ranked 15th in the American Film Institute's top twenty-five. Out of Africa won seven Oscars and was nominated for four more! Wins included writing, art direction, and cinematography. This makes me want to see it again and soon.

The French Lieutenant’s Woman was close behind with five Oscar wins. Meryl herself received a nod for Best Actress but who could compete with an ancient Kate Hepburn in On Golden Pond? The film is based on the eponymous novel by John Fowles. Set in the Victorian era, the novel only relates the story of one couple, but because of certain narration challenges, the screenwriter introduces a second, parallel story — that of actors staging the aforementioned Victorian romance, a device that was not original but worked to great effect. In this story, the actors’ lives do not imitate their art, however. The dual story is a chance to use alternate endings written by the original author. Meryl’s mysterious fallen woman creates an iconic image, standing on the wave-swept quay of the gloomy English seaside town that has ostracized her. This film makes me want to trot down to the dock wearing a hooded cloak... I’d give passing strangers my best haunting, heartbroken stare, only to magically disappear into thin air (if I could) and leave them wanting (and not a little freaked out).

That brings us to Meryl’s latest project... Everybody knows you can tell the quality of an actress by how ugly she’s willing to get. Let’s not miss the legendary Meryl Streep as none other than Margaret Thatcher in The Iron Lady, to be released later this year. If you’d like to read more about the life of this talented star, check out The Kindle Book of Meryl Streep by Celebrity Books, or The Meryl Streep Handbook by Donna Beech. For a more in depth look at her early years, try The Meryl Streep Story by Nick Smurthwaite.

Meryl Streep photographs © 2010 Condé Nast and courtesy of suicideblonde.tumblr.com, thecomedyoferas.tumblr.com, kingtartous.com, tarotquest.wordpress.com, instyle.com, imstars.aufeminin.com, littlegoldenguy.com, dailymail.co.uk, listal.com, examiner.com, purepeople.com, nummynims.wordpress.com, fanpop.com, last.fm, julianstark-moviesandotherthings.blogspot.com, and smh.com.au

Les Valseuses

In an interview with the Italian equivalent of Style, Vladimir Restoin-Roitfeld quoted Les Valseuses as being his favorite film. Based on his book, Bertrand Blier directed the film which was released in 1974. Les Valseuses is French slang for "the testicles" though the film was renamed Going Places in the English version, keeping controversy at bay. This is one of the most famous films from the Seventies and when I discussed it with a few French people I know, their instantaneous laughter and grins made it clear that the film's popularity has not decreased here in France. In fact, it is considered a classic.

French film legend Gérard Depardieu and Patrick Dewaere star as thoroughly nasty delinquents who spend their time doing what they want, stealing what they want, and basically being as self-consumed as can be, all whilst treating women as mere objects placed on earth, or at least in their towns, for sexual gratification. Two of France's leading ladies, Isabelle Huppert and Miou-Miou, also star in this film. It is worth noting that Les Valseuses is full of sex and maybe, due to the dialogue and violence, not ideal for those easily offended.

Les Valseuses image courtesy of fnac.com

Serge Gainsbourg

Vladimir Restoin-Roitfeld considers his style idol to be Serge Gainsbourg, a true French original renowned as a singer, songwriter, and director among other talents. Gainsbourg lived the familiar life of the artist, tumultuous, passionate, impulsive. Notable among his numerous trysts are his third wife Jane Birkin and an ardent affair with Brigitte Bardot, the muse for his song "Initials BB." He has four children, Natacha, Paul, Charlotte, and Lucien.

The Vatican once publicly denounced Gainsbourg as offensive and of course as a result the song in question, "Je t'aime... moi non plus," quickly became a top ten hit in countries throughout Europe. He also pissed off Bob Marley and much of Algeria with a reggae version of "La Marseillaise" at another illustrious point in his career.

If you happen to be in the mood to explore the discography of Gainsbourg, permit me to recommend my favorites: "Requiem pour un con," "Sea, Sex, and Sun," but most of all the iconic "Bonnie and Clyde" which has inspired musicians like French rapper MC Solaar who samples it in the brilliant tune "Nouveau Western" from his album Prose Combat (1994). What are your favorite songs by Gainsbourg?

A film about Serge's life titled Gainsbourg (Vie héroïque) released in France in January. Written and directed by Joann Sfar, the biopic features Eric Elmosnino in the lead role, the late Lucy Gordon as Jane Birkin, Laetitia Casta as Brigitte Bardot, Anna Mouglalis as Juliette Gréco, and Claude Chabrol as Gainsbourg's music producer. If you saw the film, what were your impressions? Do you, like Vladimir, find the style of Serge Gainsbourg inspiring?

Serge Gainsbourg images courtesy of youtube.com and amazon.com

Update on mercredi 25 août 2010 by kellina

Just read this fabulous quotation:

"Big breasts and lips. No! I hate those girls. I hate famous women. My ideal woman is Serge Gainsbourg. Not that he was a woman." — ISABEL MARANT