Bond Woman: Quantum’s Olga Kurylenko revisits the role for GQ Germany—and apparently learns to fly a helicopter. [Trendhunter]
Blankets of the Damned: The infamous snuggie inches ever closer to widespread public use. [NYTimes]
Justice League: MoMA strikes back against Poster Boy and his ilk. [Vulture]
Hand Off: A users guide to archaic nightclub hand signals. [A Continuous Lean]
Speaking of the movies, the most recent Bond outing recently brought our attention to an entirely new kind of director: the Kansas City graphics firm MK12.
You may have seen their work before in the titles of The Kite Runner or detailing Will Ferrell’s humdrum existence in Stranger than Fiction (both from Quantum director Marc Forster), but the opening titles of a Bond film are iconic enough to be any animation worker’s dream job. Add in a desert setting and Jack White and Alicia Keys’ fantastic title song, and you’ve got one of the best intros in the series.
Well played, gentlemen.
| ALL Filmic |
TAGS
|
There are many ways to wear a cardigan. For the Italian premiere of a film you may have heard of, the esteemed Mr. Craig opted for the big collar/big tie route. It’s a good choice, since Italy is silk country and more is still better in Rome. He keeps the cardigan tactically slim instead of opting for the grandpa look, and ends up with a thoroughly adult outfit.
Also, it helps if you look like you’re ready to kick someone in the face.
| ALL Scene |
TAGS
|
All the Smiling Faces: Subway lover Patrick Moberg summarizes the nation’s forty-four presidents. Now that we look at it, a lot of them had pretty sweet mustaches. [Patrick Moberg]
Warren Peace: You can never have too many Warren Beatty appreciations. [AskMen]
We Be Villain: A talk with the new Bond villain. [Anthem]
How the Other Half Lives: Interior design expands into music, creating the playlist industry. Some day, this may be considered an actual job. [NYTimes]
An American Blogger in Tokyo: A Continous Lean continues to make us jealous with their Japanese/American swag. [A Continuous Lean]
Everyone’s a Critic: Early web reviews of *Quantum* trickle in from Condé Nast. Maybe they expected more one-button suits. [Men.Style]
Midtown’s Finest: British tailors seek refuge in midtown. [A Suitable Wardrobe]
Meeting Across the River: J. Crew is opening up another version of its famous men’s shop in New Jersey. It should be more or less the same, but with a lot more tracksuits. [Racked]
| ALL LinkOut |
TAGS
|
The Bond movies have been overstuffed with product placement from the very beginning, even when they were shilling for products that didn’t exist like the ejecto-seat or the razor hat. It makes sense, since the Bond market tends to be interested in fast cars, sharp suits, shiny phones and the like. But we didn’t expect them to expand into the world of matching drapes.
Apparently we were mistaken. The interior design gurus at Wallpaper have an extended Q&A with Quantum of Solace’s set decorator detailing Bond’s Bolivian bed in *Quantum of Solace*. It’s a custom job from B&B Italia, made larger so it would be easier to shoot.
We always heard he favored bespoke.
| ALL Filmic |
TAGS
|
Some are born with accessories, some acquire accessories, and some have accessories thrust upon them.
Mr. Craig may not have been thinking of spicing up his tuxedo when he injured himself, but it couldn’t have worked out better. It may throw his bowtie a bit off-center, but it was well worth it.
With the Oscars just five months off, it may be time for George Clooney to start planning a discreet but manly boating accident.
| ALL Good Idea |
TAGS
|
Product placement is nothing new to the James Bond movies, but we were pleased to hear that the new film is going to feature a whole lot of one of America’s most prominent designers.
Of course, Daniel Craig is already on record as being much-impressed with Tom Ford, but apparently he’s got a bit more clout these days, which means we’ll be seeing less Brioni and a lot less of those miniscule swimming trunks from *Casino Royale*. (Something tells us Roger Moore didn’t have to put up with that sort of thing…)
It’s rare to see a choice like this made by the star and not the marketing or wardrobe department, but it looks like Mr. Craig is moving up in the world. After all, what’s the point in having an acting gig if you can’t use it to score a good suit every now and then?
Let’s just hope he can keep them clean.
Political endorsements come and go, but the most important one by far comes from England’s most globe-trotting, martini-sipping secret agent. Yes, we’re talking about the Bond endorsement.
Making the press rounds for *Quantum of Solace*, Daniel Craig has said that Obama would make a better Bond because he could “look the enemy in the eye and go toe-to-toe with them,” which we assume means he’s spry enough to chase some guy doing parkour. As for McCain, Craig says he’s more M material. “There is, come to think of it, a kind of Judi Dench quality to McCain.”
But he always seemed a little soft on SPECTRE.
Yoga Flame!: Olivia Munn makes good Halloween choices. [Complex]
Tailor the Storm: Don’t weep for Savile Row…they’ve seen worse times. [Luxist]
Un-Donnish Behavior: Our beloved Don Cornelius has been taken in on domestic assault charges. If the soul train led you to this point, what good was it? [Gawker]
The Haters Are Always With Us: Bond faces his most diabolical enemy yet: early reviewers. [BlackBook]
We’re pretty happy with the current Bond theme, but there’s always room for improvement…
British semi-stars Joe Cornish and Adam Buxton recently recorded dueling themes for the upcoming *Quantum of Solace* as part of a “song battle,” and the results are staggering to say the least. Apparently some Brits—or at least some comedians—are none too happy with Bond’s new sensitive/brutal side.
In our favorite of the two songs, Cornish ends up waxing nostalgic for the days of Roger Moore, underwater cars and Union Jack parachutes. Say it ain’t so, Joe!
If Bob’s leftovers aren’t current enough for you, maybe you’d prefer a tune that’s a little more Bond-themed. Jack White and Alicia Keys’ theme for *Quantum of Solace* has been kicking around file-sharing sites for a while, but it’s finally gotten a proper video and we’re now ready to profess our undying love.
As the hype crescendos around *Quantum of Solace*‘s impending release—new Bond Girls!—it’s a good time to consider the flick in its historical context. Especially as a smashing collection of classic 007 placards are hitting the block at Christie’s in London tomorrow. The prized Bond lot in the auction house’s *Vintage Film Posters* sale is a mint condition 1964 *Goldfinger* sheet in the rare British quad style B format, estimated at $7,00 – $10,000.
We’re partial however to this quirky and equally scarce Aston Martin promo piece produced for *Thunderball* in 1965, which is a much better deal at est. $3,000 – $3,500. Also included are classics from *Dr. No* (1962, est. $2,700 – $4,500), *From Russia With Love* (1963, est. $2,700 – $4,500) and the rest of the pantheon, with several variations of each. Mr. Craig would do well to study these masterpieces if he hopes to err on the side of Connery.
We’re already more than hyped for *Quantum of Solace*, the new Bond film due in November, but before now we were relying on a teaser trailer and a few posters, which didn’t reveal much more than our protagonist’s preference for lightweight fabrics and heavyweight weaponry. Until now, that is.
The newly released trailer gives us a closer look at the sequel, a closer look at new Bond girl Gemma Arterton, and a glimpse at the surprising direction our favorite secret agent is heading. Apparently one place he’s heading is towards sequential plots; this one picks up right at the end of *Casino Royale*, with a heartbroken Bond out for vengeance. Unlike Connery’s Bond—whose relationship towards his companions was somewhat more casual—this Bond is shaping up to be mopey, vengeful and more than a little emo.
Not that we’re judging. We’d find Eva Green pretty hard to get over too.
Considering how seriously nouveau 007 Daniel Craig takes his suits, we were not surprised to see that he made the grade in *Vanity Fair*’s 2008 International Best-Dressed List.
However, knowing how into Tom Ford Craig is—as we noted before, he refused to wear anything else for his *GQ* cover shoot, and went through 40+ Ford suits while filming the latest Bond flick, *Quantum of Solace*—we were somewhat taken aback to see him pictured in the mag wearing nothing but Dolce & Gabbana. Looks to us like someone at *VF* went out of their way to favor the Italian duo over the MOTH king—and it also looks like Tommy needs to buy a lot more ad space.
LinksUrbanDaddy DRIVEN A Continuous Lean A Headlong Dive A Suitable Wardrobe Archival Clothing Art of Manliness Blackbird Blog BULLETT The Choosy Beggar Coolhunting Cool Material DETAILS Die, Workwear! Four Pins GQ Hypebeast The Impossible Cool Jake Davis The Midwestyle Mister Mort The Moment Put This On Racked The Sartorialist The Selby Selectism Valet Vanity Fair Daily Vulture Wax Wane What I Saw Today Well Spent |
Urbandaddy.com
|
Style: some people have it, and some neighborhoods really have it. To show you what we mean, we’ve partnered with Cadillac to present Style Shifters—a five-part, in-depth look at what the hippest gents in some of the country’s coolest neighborhoods are wearing now. Our intrepid photographers have roamed the streets in search of the most stylish guys around. Herewith, a few photos of what they found...
Williamsburg, Brooklyn, is home to some of the country’s best bars and coolest restaurants—and, of course, some of the best menswear shops in the world. Naturally, you’ll find more than a few stylish individuals perched outside those locations (and no, not all of them are Billyburg hipsters). See what we mean below...
Style. The Mission’s got it. Union Square’s got it. But each of them goes about having it in a different way—the Mission rocking a more bohemian coffee shop vibe, Union Square hosting some of the best higher-fashion shops (and shoppers) on the West Coast. We rounded up a few of the most stylish folks from both. Have yourself a gander below…
Forget everything you know about Miami style. Today’s Miamian is more LeBron James than Crockett and Tubbs—as you’ll soon see in our next edition of Style Shifters…
