Film Muse: IRL (2013)

Hey Film Muse-ers, 

Recently I've been thinking a lot about this blog: what it has become and what it will be. To be honest, I never intended Curbside Fashion to be a blog of almost solely film reviews - yet here we are. I started to question why I liked doing these posts and I realized that it's because I really enjoy other people's visions and success. When the music lines up perfectly and the shot is awe-inspiring I can't help but document it and share it with others. Ever since I was a kid I was mesmerized of how film can generate undeniable empathy within its viewers. All it takes is one good film to see the world differently.

I've learned from my experience as a Fashion Blogger that the field is very individualistic. Your dress size, hair color, and trendy accessories are all compared to the mass consumer market and sometimes the beauty of fashion gets lost. It is hard to explain. Yet I truly believe that watching films can inspire many facets of your life, including fashion. Even flawed films are worth seeing and talking about if they inspire you in other ways, and I believe it is important to support those who put their ideas into the world and don't get enough credit for doing so.

 Today I'm bringing you a short film from Grant Singer called IRL (2013).

   

IRL is a twenty minute long short film starring Sky Ferreira as Angel, a girl who is trying to remember her previous trip-induced NYC night out with a mysterious woman. As Angel tries to piece together the evening, she learns of a murder that took place on the "L" train tracks that she may or may not have been linked to. IRL's characters are hyper stylized, reminiscent of Gregg Araki's '90s teenage crews (Totally Fucked Up, The Doom Generation, Nowhere) - this group peppered with 2013 texting lingo. The underground club scenes are breathtaking, as they would be - given that Grant Singer has done so many great music videos in the past (Night Time My Time, You're Not The One). What I particularly enjoyed about Singer's direction is his curated aesthetic to create a mystery urban world of sterile apartments and neon smoke infused raves. It is clear that Singer's strong suit lies within musical montages that evoke unspoken emotions.

Originally written by Patrick Sandberg, I was very intrigued of the IRL script. As previously mentioned, the artistic head nod to Gregg Araki was crystal clear in terms of the character's dialogue. Araki's characters often spit some kind of razor sharp banter among each other. Araki's films have been ripped apart by critics, mainly for this reason. It isn't always easy to like such blunt (and sometimes vapid) characters. IRL dangerously goes further. Angel's friends obsessively snark at their iPhone screens, creating an insipid cloud of meaningless modern friendships. Although it was clear that Sandberg wanted to show the emptiness of these characters, something did not sit right with me.  In fact, I cringed a bit while watching these scenes. Not only is it hard to digest representations of internet subcultures on screen, but I'd imagine that it's even harder to act out the dialogue in a likeable way itself. Some non-actors fumbled with this delivery, yet where IRL lacked in acting it made up for itself in visuals. Watching IRL is a good study in understanding the importance of acting, especially in stylistic settings.

The reason I'm probably the most partial to IRL is because of the cinematographer Jason McCormick's work. The compositions of nearly every shot are so beautiful. The day scenes are washed out in the best way possible, while the night scenes seem to be pulsing with glowing energy. In particular, the warped shots of Angel in the convenience store are some of the most visually interesting frames I've seen recently. 

Sky's performance is one of the best. Her expressions are hauntingly meant for this film, and her voice carries the story along. These past few years I've kept a tab on Ferreira, especially when she collaborated with Gaspar Noé (Enter The Void) for her Night Time, My Time album cover. Sky has some great tastes, not only in pop culture - but in collaborators as well. She is one of those artists to keep an eye on. 

The stand out characters of IRL were actually Damien Echols and Genesis P-Orridge. They both looked like they stepped out of a Harmony Korine/Gregg Araki movie. It is so clear that they had the vibe that Singer was going for, and they delivered their lines perfectly. They were intensely eerie and somewhat comical - heightening the potency of the film's suspense. 

For music fans out there, Salem's John Holland and Gatekeeper's Aaron David Ross among others contributed to IRL as well. Their grainy slow pitched sounds permeate the plot line, so make sure you have a good speaker system or pop in those headphones when you watch the film. 

Overall, IRL is one of those films that you should study. While some of the acting is crude, by no means should the film be dismissed. You can learn from films' mistakes while still appreciating the effort, and that is why I make Film Muse posts. I respect this film enough to share it with you all because I see the potential and the seams of the idea. If you are an artist, you should be familiar with these refinement gaps already, and I believe it's important to support those who are still mastering the craft. Regardless, IRL was an enjoyable short film and I will be keeping tabs on all of the film's collaborators. I hope you all enjoy it as much as I do.

-Lauren Rose
Curbside Fashion

Art Muse: "Buy Now, Cry Later"

Art Muse? Yep. 

When I think of artists I actively seek and enjoy, there aren't too many. To be honest, the contemporary art world mildly terrifies me. I'm a visual person: I like montages, powerful imagery, attention to detail. I like certain color palettes, aesthetics, and art with elusive but somewhat approachable deep meanings. Basically -when I see a blob of paint on a canvas, it just doesn't get me going. 

What is art anyways? A tampon in a teacup?  I find myself pulling an Enid most of the time.

(still from my Film Muse: 90's Pop Cult Movies video!)

When I saw Patrick Martinez's work though, I immediately thought of some of my favorite film idols: Harmony Korine and Gaspar Noé.  I'm talking neon lights, hip hop culture, and commentary on present day America.  Martinez recently held a show at the Public Functionary in NE Minneapolis called "Buy Now, Cry Later". I had seen a photo of his work in the City Pages and was blown away when I gave him a Google.

Neon signs - signifier of podunk Americana gas stations and Chinese restaurants. They stay on all night, falsely comforting, illuminating deserted streets.  Low hums of constant buzzing. Martinez, born and raised in L.A. California, uses these neon signs  adding his own commentary on Americana culture. The commodification and blending of cultures, the never ending presence of junk food, and the reality of what it means to acquire success in the U.S.A. today. 

He uses a mix of neon signs and acrylic paint for his installations, which I think is a really rad concept. Some of his work incorporates Muhammad Ali, Tupac, and Nas lyrics - being born into an era of hip hop/sports culture. He has agency, he has inspiration, and he has a voice. 

One of my favorite pieces of his is called "Inflatable Thug". I haven't seen it in person, but the concept is awesome. It's a life-sized cast iron "thug"/water fountain sporting water guns and an inflatable body. It gave me a Spring Breakers vibe - a humorous take on "thug" culture with deeper and darker meanings.  

Overall I think Martinez has a good head on his shoulders. You can tell that he draws a lot of his inspiration from things around him, showing authenticity and honesty. I personally can't wait to see what he has in store. With that, I'm going to leave you with a link to his website http://www.patrickmartinez.com/ so you can check out his work on your own.

Keep it cool, 

Lauren Rose

Curbside Fashion

*all images are from Martinez's website, give them some love*

Film Muse: Spring Breakers

So this has pretty much turned into a film blog recently. I'm okay with this, but I will get some fashion posts in here just to spice it up soon enough.

If you aren't a regular follower of my Youtube channel, Lauren Rose, I just posted two new videos:

Record Store + Karmaloop Haul

and

College Q&A: Parties, Friends, and MORE! 

Alright. Today we are going to be doing a Film Muse on Spring Breakers (2012) dir. Harmony Korine. I've been meaning to do this post for a long time because so many people disliked this film. I saw this movie in theaters when it first came out and honestly wasn't quite sure how to feel about it. I thought the Skrillex music placement was a bit past it's time, the acting was a bit uneasy, and it looked like a really expensive film for a indie director like Korine. But after watching it again, I can no longer deny that I LOVE THIS FILM. 

~THERE WILL BE SPOILERS~

One of the biggest reasons why I love this film is because of the cinematic genius of Korine and Benoît Debie (cinematographer) combined. The shots are so beautiful that I took over 100 screen shots of this film when preparing for this post. If that doesn't convince you enough to watch it, I do not know what will. Each frame is treated with this amazing artistic respect when it comes to lighting, gels, and placement. Like Korine said in one of his interviews, he wanted it to look like a bag of Skittles exploded. Congrats dude- you made it happen.

When I heard that Korine was directing another movie, I was beyond psyched. He always has a way of making the audience feel moved, yet also very uncomfortable (Gummo, Trash Humpers). What terrified me so much was the cast - Ashley Benson (Pretty Little Liars), Selena Gomez (Disney), and Vanessa Hudgens (Disney). Now that's not a dig at child actors under big corporations, in fact, I think they are some of the smartest actresses out there because they are making BANK. What I was worried about was the outside attention it would bring to the film. Parents would throw their arms up in revolt and Hollywood would pretend to be concerned. It sort of ruins how even YOU see the movie - you expect it to be insanely provocative (which it pretty much was), and you begin to critique every Disney girl's line. If this was shot on a more independent scale with no name actresses, it would have had a totally different response. More on the actors' and actresses' performances later. 

If you haven't seen the film, you might want to skip this paragraph.

I really loved the opening scenes, a sleepy college, dodgy house party, and empty dorms. These few images set up the plot for the girls' robbery in such a seamless way. It just felt so still there. The robbery scene was again - PURE CINEMATIC GENIUS. We initially see a left to right tracking shot of the robbery from inside the getaway car. Later we get a peek of the actual event through flashbacks of Ashley and Vanessa's characters.  The placement of Nicki Minaj's "Moment For Life" song plus the illuminated neon signs made me SUPER invested for some reason. This scene was insane. 

As a feminist, I'm sure many of you are wondering how I can enjoy this film. I don't think I even saw any of the girls wear a T-shirt during the whole film. I agree that Korine's take of "the college girl" is perverted -  just like the industry that we as a society have created (Girls Gone Wild, Spring Break as a holiday, etc). I do acknowledge this "male gaze" of the film, yet I still enjoy it nonetheless. Most people seem to be upset because most of the girls have no back story, no emotional involvement (except Faith). But since when did it become necessary for directors to go so complex into the psyche of all of the characters? Korine chose to give us Faith (Gomez) as reference point of their morality - which I think is enough to understand the rest of the girls. Korine even stated that there was a ranking when it came to morality of his characters: Faith, Cotty (sort of a mother figure to Faith), and then Brit and Candy who were supposed to be on the psychotic and unpredictable spectrum. I think once you understand Korine's glimpse into the characters, their relationships and situations seem a lot more understandable. 

Performance Breakdown:

Faith (Gomez): I thought Selena did a great job in this film. She plays a cute southern and slightly sheltered girl who gets more than she bargains for. It's sort of a shame that her presence on set overshadowed everyone else though. Her character is only in 1/3 of the movie. I think she really took a chance with Korine and successfully shed her Disney quality. She also picked the right character to play, you never really see her in sexual situations. 

Cotty (Rachel Korine): AMAZING. Again, Rachel (married to Korine) was overshadowed by her fellow actresses' star value. She was the only one of the girls (except Hudgens) who did nude scenes as well. I felt like her acting was impeccable with some exceptions of some awkward voice over loops. She really protected Selena not only as her character but in real life as well. She wedges herself between Selena and real life horny party dudes to help her feel comfortable. Did anyone else notice this?

Brit (Benson): One of my favorites as well. We've all seen her on Pretty Little Liars, so I didn't worry too much about her acting (she is great on the show). She has a really great face for acting and showing emotions. Even though her character was "psychotic", she brought a side of venerability which I really appreciated. 

Candy (Hudgens): Better than expected to be quite honest. I think Hudgens is really comfortable with her stage presence and sexuality. At times I felt that she was a bit too overpowering in terms of ad libbing with Benson. I wish she brought more depth to her character, because most of the time she just acted straight up crazy. If that's the way Korine wanted it - then she did an amazing job. 

Alien (James Franco): Very interesting character. I think Franco did a really cool character study for this film. He was a comedic relief, yet also made the audience feel an alliance with him instead of seeing him as a total creep. If it had been anyone else playing the role, I think I would have viewed his character differently. But when it comes down to he, he is by far the most QUOTABLE person in this film.

"I got my tannin' oil, for when I wanna tan out by the POOL" 

"This is my fuckin' dream y'all. I got shit! I got fuckin' shorts y'all! I got 'Scarface' on repeat y'all! I got Calvin Klein Escape!"

"Sprinng Breaaak Forevaaa" 

(ATL Twins- actually really cool people - check out their interview on Vice)

One thing that I HAVE to talk about is the criticism of Selena Gomez's performance in the scene below. I heard some rumors about how she actually broke down on set (which actually fit her character) because she felt overwhelmed by the setting. Someone close to me at the time complained how racist she was because she was surrounded by a bunch of black people and couldn't handle it. Now let me explain something - what you see on screen in Korine's films is sometimes 100% real. The drugs, the entourages, the town locals who are cast, everything. I'd even go as far to say that some if it is almost like a documentary (filming Gummo for example). Apparently Korine surprised Selena with this scene in order to get a maximum performance (genius by the way). So how would you feel as a straight edge teen, being PLOPPED into a scene surrounded by real drugs and real people (probably) whispering stuff to you while you're in a skimpy bathing suit? Especially when people only know you as a Disney girl? No, you wouldn't be peachy-fucking-keen - you'd feel terrified- no matter what race the people were. As you can probably tell, Selena was NOT prepared for this - but it brought the most heartbreaking and true performance from her. I thought she was brilliant. Moving on. 

Some people also mentioned how they thought the characters weren't "real" - like teens today. I've already talked about the Spring Break industry, but I have to disagree with the statement above. These girls, although simplified, show the intense desire for life, and the mundane aspects of repetition. It is reinforced into our brains through the voice over loops of the girls. Some people thought this was stupid (partly because the acting wasn't amazing during the voice overs), but it really just tries to show the desperation that the girls have. I've met people like this, I've even felt like this myself, when you're so desperate for change you don't even care about the consequences. There are people out there without filters. Some of the more "civilized" people won't understand this. 

THE IMAGES AND PARAGRAPH BELOW MIGHT BE A SPOILER.

Before I finish, I need to dedicate a paragraph to Rachel Korine and her amazing performance. When she got shot by Gucci's entourage (by the way, forgot to talk about Gucci- his performance was hilariously bad but endearing), she had the most heartbreaking scene after. I loved the gels that they used to tint the shower scenes. Seeing her naked slumped down in the shower and NOT in a sexual way was the most beautiful scene. You feel her pain, her regret, her realizations. It all comes crashing down at this point.

The ending was a bit interesting. It was abrupt, and a little absurd (guy falling into the fountain after being shot, Gucci, etc). It leaves you wondering - will this be the last of it? I notice that Brit looked the most conflicted and changed towards the end, while Hudgens still looked unfazed. I'm not sure if that was supposed to be that way or not, but I thought I'd mention it.

My final thoughts are this: I enjoyed the movie, but you have to "come in the right way" when you see it. You can't try to pick apart the Disney girls' performances, or you will just miss the characters' developments. I was actually talking to a manager at one of my favorite theatres about this movie, and he bashfully said that he loved it (he was probably in his late 30s). His perspective was different than mine because he had no idea who the Disney stars were, with an exception to Gomez. Can you image that? Watching a movie in an unbiased way? Yep. Anyways, I hope you enjoy it as much as I did, it's a good time.

Keep it cool, 

Lauren Rose

Curbside Fashion