J'adore Dior- Sex and the City 2. Harmless fun or offensive drivel?

The Guardian has called Sex and the City 2 the epitome of the “rise of the critic-proof movie” meaning that no matter what the reviews have said about how awful the film is, people will still flock to see it.
So where do my allegiances lie?
Well I love Carrie, Samantha, Miranda and Charlotte (in that order- I love asking people who their favourite character out of the 4 main girls is. I think it does tell you something about what kind of person they are) and I love the TV series.
I saw the first film and thought it was very bland and disappointing however according to many reviews this new film is supposed to be even worse.
The glorious Hadley Freeman, my favourite columnist for the Guardian (Ask Hadley is simply brilliant. Check it out now) said that “The Sex and the City films have destroyed the legacy of a funny and fantastic TV show.” Then there is the genius review from Linda West which said that Sex and the City 2 is pretty much "a home video of gay men playing with giant Barbie dolls."
The hilarious reviews have put me off but with the fun, the frocks and the friends, it’s just a bit of harmless fun.
I will have to see it before I can judge it properly but at the end of the day it just comes down to a couple of hours of escapism. And call me materialistic to watch it simply for the clothes- especially the J’adore Dior tee which SJP wore, pictured above- but I don’t think there is anything wrong with that.

Have you seen Sex and the City 2?
What did you think?

Beth Ruby xoxo

"If you never do anything, you never become anyone."

As you already know, I am a firm believer that you should always read the book before seeing the film, so I read Lynne Barbers memoirs before seeing the multi award winning film. I devoured the book in one day and the film is now in my top 10 favourite films list. They are both simply brilliant.
Carey Mulligan and Peter Sarsgaard

Nick Hornby did an amazing job turning the memoirs into a screen play and transforming Lynne into the wonderful character Jenny, who Carey Mulligan plays so convincingly you cannot help but fall in love with her when you watch it.
It's the story of the clever school girl Jenny and her dilemma as she has to choose between going to Oxford University or marrying a charismatic older man, who whisks her away to Paris and introduces her to his glamorous friends. But he is not all as he seems...

Rosamund Pike and Dominic Cooper

I cried and laughed out loud at both the book and the film.
They made me want to visit Paris and go to fun parties and meet beautiful people and wear gorgeous clothes (the costumes in the film are breathtaking)
But of course even more than that watching and reading An Education just backs up my ambition to go to Oxford University, study English Literature and ride around on a beautiful bicycle- preferably this Pashley.
Clearly I cannot rave about how much I love the film enough, so go and read it and see it ok? Only then you will understand how much I love it.

Also Carey Mulligan wore this amazing Prada dress to the Oscars. Check out the little knives and forks and scissors! Unbelievably awesome, right?
Oh and did you know that she's going out with Shia Labeouf? She is one lucky lady.
Beth Ruby xoxo

"The guitar's all very well, John, but you'll never make a living out of it"-Nowhere Boy

I went on Sunday night as a pre-stressful school week trip to the cinema with a best friend to see Nowhere Boy. It was brilliant; you get sucked right into the story and really see the points of view of all of the characters.

It’s a biopic of John Lennon’s childhood and teenage years of being brought up in Liverpool by his formidable Aunt Mimi, played by the fantastic Kristen Scott Thomas, and then meeting his free spirit mother Julia, played by Anne-Marie Duff, when he was 16. The film is centered about his relationship with these two influencing figures in his life as they both compete for his love.

But a special shout out has to go to Aaron Johnson who plays the young Lennon role of charismatic and troubled bad boy really well (and yes he played Robbie in ‘Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging’ and my hasn’t he grown since then. Me and Emma couldn’t stop swooning over him in the cinema haha)
Of course a rock n roll film isn’t complete without an amazing soundtrack and the music in this film really transports you back into the 50’s. I am a huge fan of Sam Taylor Wood who is the director of the film. Her exhibition called ‘Suspended’ (it’s worth the Google it if you haven’t heard of it already) really connected with me and is one of the few exhibitions you visit where everything in the room is the same high brilliant standard. She definitely is my favourite modern artist. Incidentally Sam Taylor Wood, aged 42, is also engaged to Aaron Johnson who is 18 years old and is expecting his child. Seeing as he is absolutely gorgeous she is one lucky lady.

Anyway juicy gossip aside here is the trailer:

Beth Ruby xoxo

5 Stars- The September Issue *****

Just got back from seeing “The September Issue” and it didn’t disappoint.
R.J. Cutler's new film is an amazing insight into the Vogue office and the world of fashion where as the tagline states: “Fashion is a religion. This is the Bible.”
The film documents the 2007 September issue of Vogue as the team put together the single largest issue of a magazine ever published.
It was intriguing to see Anna Wintour, the editor in chief nicknamed “Ice Queen” behind closed doors and I was surprised to see how charming she can be, for example with the designer Thakoon and there is a particularly touching moment when she says her brother (a political editor for The Guardian) and sister (who works in charity) find her job "amusing."
The film actually has lots of funny moments such as when the brilliantly flamboyant Andre Leon Talley declares: "There is a famine of beauty darling! My eyes are starving for beauty!" and also when he turns up to a tennis lesson (on Anna's orders) in Louis Vuitton.
But the star of the film for me had to be Grace Coddington, creative director at American Vogue who is the genius behind the clothes and the photo shoots who has been working in the business for thirty years. She specialises in 20 page editorials which are often romantic and have a picture book like quality to them (she was the talent behind that magical Alice in Wonderland themed shoot)
Grace and Anna started Vogue at the same time and so Grace is one of the few with the courage to stand up to Anna when she is in her formidable business mode. You cannot deny they are obviously a perfect partnership though with Grace's artistic talent and Anna's straight talking drive.
Altogether it is a fascinating look at what it would be like to work in the famous Vogue office with fashions most influential figure.

Sienna and Anna (in her trademark bob and sunglasses!) at the premiere for The September Issue
The finished result of all the hard work shown in The September Issue
Grace Coddington and Anna Wintour



The hilarious Andre Leon talley playing tennis in his designer gear