Emmanuel Marre and Julie Lecoustre's Zero Fucks Given is showing exclusively on Mubi in most countries starting March 30, 2022 in the series Viewfinder.“Despite its seeming mundanity, the ritual of flying remains indelibly linked, even in secular times, to the momentous themes of existence. We have heard about too many ascensions, too many voices from heaven, too many airborne angels and saints to ever be able to regard the business of flight from an entirely pedestrian perspective, as we might, say, the act of travelling by train. Notions of the divine, the eternal and the significant accompany us covertly on to our craft, haunting the reading aloud of the safety instructions, the weather announcements made by our captains and, most particularly, our lofty views of the gentle curvature of the earth.”—A Week at the Airport : A Heathrow Diary by Alain de Botton Zero Fucks Given started with an image.
- 3/29/2022
- MUBI
Exclusive: ABC has put in development Why You Will Marry The Wrong Person, a one-hour dramedy based on Alain de Botton’s article of the same name, from Mad Love and Alex, Inc. creator Matt Tarses, The Good Doctor‘s Freddie Highmore and his Alfresco Pictures, as well as Sony Pictures TV, where Tarses and Highmore’s Alfresco Pictures are under deals.
Written by Tarses, Why You Will Marry The Wrong Person explores multiple possible relationships in parallel universes, as each of the two leads, on the eve of marriage, wonders “what if?”
Tarses executive produces with Highmore and Claire Londy of Alfresco Pictures. Sony Pictures TV is the studio.
Scrubs alum Tarses most recently served as consulting producer on Sony TV’s Mad About You revival for Spectrum Originals.
Highmore stars in and serves as a executive producer on ABC/Sony TV’s hit medical drama The Good Doctor...
Written by Tarses, Why You Will Marry The Wrong Person explores multiple possible relationships in parallel universes, as each of the two leads, on the eve of marriage, wonders “what if?”
Tarses executive produces with Highmore and Claire Londy of Alfresco Pictures. Sony Pictures TV is the studio.
Scrubs alum Tarses most recently served as consulting producer on Sony TV’s Mad About You revival for Spectrum Originals.
Highmore stars in and serves as a executive producer on ABC/Sony TV’s hit medical drama The Good Doctor...
- 8/21/2020
- by Nellie Andreeva and Denise Petski
- Deadline Film + TV
Any crisis tests your mettle. Over last summer, fall and winter, the team behind CBS’ “The Late Late Show with James Corden” were leaning into their variety show strengths, staging ambitious fast choreography for “Crosswalk” musicals and following up their ninth Emmy win for the Carpool Karaoke Variety Special “When Corden Met McCartney, Live from Liverpool” with guests Harry Styles, Billie Eilish, Justin Bieber, and Kanye West — who performed Airpool Karaoke with a 100-member choir, streaming on Apple Music.
All that big-scale production came to a skidding halt when the show shut down on March 13, 2020. “It was all a scramble,” said Ben Winston, “The Late Late Show” executive producer who moved to L.A. from England five years ago to reinvent the show with Tony-winner James Corden. As talk shows hosted by Stephen Colbert, Trevor Noah, Bill Maher, John Oliver, and Samantha Bee turned more political in the Trump era,...
All that big-scale production came to a skidding halt when the show shut down on March 13, 2020. “It was all a scramble,” said Ben Winston, “The Late Late Show” executive producer who moved to L.A. from England five years ago to reinvent the show with Tony-winner James Corden. As talk shows hosted by Stephen Colbert, Trevor Noah, Bill Maher, John Oliver, and Samantha Bee turned more political in the Trump era,...
- 6/29/2020
- by Anne Thompson
- Thompson on Hollywood
Any crisis tests your mettle. Over last summer, fall and winter, the team behind CBS’ “The Late Late Show with James Corden” were leaning into their variety show strengths, staging ambitious fast choreography for “Crosswalk” musicals and following up their ninth Emmy win for the Carpool Karaoke Variety Special “When Corden Met McCartney, Live from Liverpool” with guests Harry Styles, Billie Eilish, Justin Bieber, and Kanye West — who performed Airpool Karaoke with a 100-member choir, streaming on Apple Music.
All that big-scale production came to a skidding halt when the show shut down on March 13, 2020. “It was all a scramble,” said Ben Winston, “The Late Late Show” executive producer who moved to L.A. from England five years ago to reinvent the show with Tony-winner James Corden. As talk shows hosted by Stephen Colbert, Trevor Noah, Bill Maher, John Oliver, and Samantha Bee turned more political in the Trump era,...
All that big-scale production came to a skidding halt when the show shut down on March 13, 2020. “It was all a scramble,” said Ben Winston, “The Late Late Show” executive producer who moved to L.A. from England five years ago to reinvent the show with Tony-winner James Corden. As talk shows hosted by Stephen Colbert, Trevor Noah, Bill Maher, John Oliver, and Samantha Bee turned more political in the Trump era,...
- 6/29/2020
- by Anne Thompson
- Indiewire
In today’s TV news roundup, MTV has announced a new reality special, “True Life Presents: First-Time First Responders,” and Showtime has made two of their documentaries about racial injustice free to watch.
Dates
MTV will premiere a new reality special, “True Life Presents: First-Time First Responders” on June 9 at 9 p.m. The self-shot show will follow two millennial volunteer first responders in New York City as they risk their lives to help others amidst the Covid-19 pandemic. Rhanell is a trauma nurse and Alex is a Fdny Emt who have both volunteered to serve Throggs Neck Volunteer Ambulance Corp in the Bronx. Through first-hand accounts and deep confessionals, Rhanell and Alex show the world what it’s like to be a hero. “True Life Presents: First-Time First Responders” is produced by Hot Snakes Media. Eric Evangelista, Shannon Evangelista and MTV’s Dane Joseph serve as executive producers; MTV’s Laurie Sharpe is co-executive producer.
Dates
MTV will premiere a new reality special, “True Life Presents: First-Time First Responders” on June 9 at 9 p.m. The self-shot show will follow two millennial volunteer first responders in New York City as they risk their lives to help others amidst the Covid-19 pandemic. Rhanell is a trauma nurse and Alex is a Fdny Emt who have both volunteered to serve Throggs Neck Volunteer Ambulance Corp in the Bronx. Through first-hand accounts and deep confessionals, Rhanell and Alex show the world what it’s like to be a hero. “True Life Presents: First-Time First Responders” is produced by Hot Snakes Media. Eric Evangelista, Shannon Evangelista and MTV’s Dane Joseph serve as executive producers; MTV’s Laurie Sharpe is co-executive producer.
- 6/5/2020
- by Ellise Shafer
- Variety Film + TV
All work and no play makes Rory O’Hara a dull boy — which is to say, one can scarcely overlook the connections between Sean Durkin’s subtly unsettling second feature, “The Nest,” and Stanley Kubrick’s “The Shining,” even if this is by far the more tedious of the two movies. While the obsessive dad Law plays here doesn’t fly off the handle quite so spectacularly as Jack Nicholson did, the horror hits closer to home, since what’s haunting the O’Haras isn’t supernatural. Rather, this family’s unraveling, which likewise follows a big move to a spooky new abode, has more to do with all the baggage they’ve brought with them.
Nine years after “Martha Marcy May Marlene,” an unnerving art-house chiller that’s since achieved “cult” status among cinephiles, Durkin returns to the Sundance Film Festival with a movie that’s considerably more challenging, and...
Nine years after “Martha Marcy May Marlene,” an unnerving art-house chiller that’s since achieved “cult” status among cinephiles, Durkin returns to the Sundance Film Festival with a movie that’s considerably more challenging, and...
- 1/27/2020
- by Peter Debruge
- Variety Film + TV
Apart from the royal family and our obsession with competitive cake making, us Brits are known around the world for our sense of humour. All over London, people are attempting to put our national talent to good use, so why not join them because you’ve got to laugh, right? Events Now is the time that the UK’s top comedians get out on the road—often with a TV crew in tow—to film an obligatory holiday standup DVD. Jimmy Carr is no exception and is offering a “selection of his very best jokes along with brand new material for the ultimate comedy show,” so book now. You can also see Carr in a more intimate setting as he chats to philosopher and novelist Alain De Botton on Nov. 6. Jokes aside, they’ll be delving into what comedy is for and the emotional benefits of laughing. (Tickets: £30) Also on the road is cheeky,...
- 11/1/2017
- backstage.com
An unclassifably weird hybrid of documentary, fiction, and stream-of-consciousness meditation on the creative life, according to Renaissance man Nick Cave. I’m “biast” (pro): nothing
I’m “biast” (con): nothing
(what is this about? see my critic’s minifesto)
I’m not a particular fan of unclassifiably weird musician-Renaissance man Nick Cave: I’ve always liked his stuff when I’ve stumbled across it, but I’ve never particularly sought it out, and I’m certainly not in a league with the fans in the grip of religious Cave ecstasy we glimpse here. But if my experience is any guide, you don’t need to be that sort of Cave fan to find yourself utterly riveted by the unclassifably weird 20,000 Days on Earth, a deliciously odd hybrid of documentary, fiction, and stream-of-consciousness meditation on the creative process and living a creative life, according to Nick Cave.
I’m “biast” (con): nothing
(what is this about? see my critic’s minifesto)
I’m not a particular fan of unclassifiably weird musician-Renaissance man Nick Cave: I’ve always liked his stuff when I’ve stumbled across it, but I’ve never particularly sought it out, and I’m certainly not in a league with the fans in the grip of religious Cave ecstasy we glimpse here. But if my experience is any guide, you don’t need to be that sort of Cave fan to find yourself utterly riveted by the unclassifably weird 20,000 Days on Earth, a deliciously odd hybrid of documentary, fiction, and stream-of-consciousness meditation on the creative process and living a creative life, according to Nick Cave.
- 9/17/2014
- by MaryAnn Johanson
- www.flickfilosopher.com
Not a square millimetre of the director's navel is left ungazed at in Terence Nance's film of interviews with a beautiful woman he loves
Terence Nance's An Oversimplification of Her Beauty is an almost unendurably self-indulgent and burbling piece of lo-fi indie-autobiographical moviemaking, at the end of which there is surely not a square millimetre of the director's navel left ungazed at. Yet at the same time, there is something oddly revealing about it. It is developed from an earlier short film about the director's relationship issues with a certain beautiful woman, whom he prevails upon to appear on camera. Part of that short is incorporated into this longer feature in which personal issues are developed in a stream of droning voiceover babble. Nance's movie folds in on itself as he interviews the object of his affections, and discusses with her how she felt about the original short film,...
Terence Nance's An Oversimplification of Her Beauty is an almost unendurably self-indulgent and burbling piece of lo-fi indie-autobiographical moviemaking, at the end of which there is surely not a square millimetre of the director's navel left ungazed at. Yet at the same time, there is something oddly revealing about it. It is developed from an earlier short film about the director's relationship issues with a certain beautiful woman, whom he prevails upon to appear on camera. Part of that short is incorporated into this longer feature in which personal issues are developed in a stream of droning voiceover babble. Nance's movie folds in on itself as he interviews the object of his affections, and discusses with her how she felt about the original short film,...
- 2/7/2014
- by Peter Bradshaw
- The Guardian - Film News
What more has Courtney Love possibly got to share with us, and how will Steve McQueen fare at the Oscars? These are just a few of the topics that will set tongues wagging in the new year
Pop
Courtney Love's memoir
The question is not so much "what will be in Courtney Love's book?" as "what could possibly be in Courtney Love's book that she hasn't already spoken/ranted/raved about?" Still, her self-titled autobiography has been described as "too crazy not to be true" and should provide her definitive take on her time with Hole and her doomed relationship with Kurt Cobain. It will also, hopefully, spill previously unspilled beans on her relationships with Billy Corgan and Steve Coogan. Oh, and according to an interview she did with Rolling Stone, it was inspired by Russell Brand's My Booky Wook. The mind boggles. Tj
Everything to...
Pop
Courtney Love's memoir
The question is not so much "what will be in Courtney Love's book?" as "what could possibly be in Courtney Love's book that she hasn't already spoken/ranted/raved about?" Still, her self-titled autobiography has been described as "too crazy not to be true" and should provide her definitive take on her time with Hole and her doomed relationship with Kurt Cobain. It will also, hopefully, spill previously unspilled beans on her relationships with Billy Corgan and Steve Coogan. Oh, and according to an interview she did with Rolling Stone, it was inspired by Russell Brand's My Booky Wook. The mind boggles. Tj
Everything to...
- 1/1/2014
- by Mark Lawson, Andrew Dickson, Lyn Gardner, Oliver Wainwright, Andrew Clements, Jonathan Jones, Tim Jonze, Henry Barnes, Stuart Heritage, Judith Mackrell
- The Guardian - Film News
Past the Bonfire of the Exes and Mount Amazon, take a shortcut through The Atwoods, avoiding the Reef of Pretension and the Twitter whirlpool – the picture above is a map of the modern writer’s mind. It was drawn by Joe Dunthorne, author of Submarine, who is one of 16 high-profile contributors to Where You Are. A box-set of “personal maps” by Alain de Botton, Tao Lin, Adam Thirlwell and Olafur Eliasson among others, it will be published by Visual Editions in December; an interactive website is live now at www.where-you-are.com.
- 11/14/2013
- The Independent - Film
I suspect a previous, wackier version of this film was ditched in favour of this slick promo video – that I admit is rather watchable
A One Direction concert movie directed by Morgan "Super Size Me" Spurlock? Does he experimentally listen to nothing but One Direction for a year? Well, there's nothing subversive about this film. We get a single, wacky shot of a neuroscientist explaining their effect on fans' brains, and the band's hidden-camera stunts and pranks in public are mostly relegated to the final credits. I suspect a previous, wackier idea for the film was ditched in favour of a slick promotional video about their jaw-dropping global tour, but I also have to admit that this is a rather watchable record of a phenomenon. Strangely, it looks like a modified version of the personal "backstory" segment on The X Factor, showing them in rehearsal, backstage, on stage or at...
A One Direction concert movie directed by Morgan "Super Size Me" Spurlock? Does he experimentally listen to nothing but One Direction for a year? Well, there's nothing subversive about this film. We get a single, wacky shot of a neuroscientist explaining their effect on fans' brains, and the band's hidden-camera stunts and pranks in public are mostly relegated to the final credits. I suspect a previous, wackier idea for the film was ditched in favour of a slick promotional video about their jaw-dropping global tour, but I also have to admit that this is a rather watchable record of a phenomenon. Strangely, it looks like a modified version of the personal "backstory" segment on The X Factor, showing them in rehearsal, backstage, on stage or at...
- 8/30/2013
- by Peter Bradshaw
- The Guardian - Film News
“Most of our childhood is stored not in photos, but in certain biscuits, lights of day, smells, textures of carpet…” – Alain De Botton I hadn’t recalled my dank childhood basement in quite some time, but the room, with its wicker furniture, orange-ish carpet and large, wood-panelled Sony TV, came flooding back last week upon reading of the sad passing of film critic Roger Ebert, just one day after he posted a “leave of presence,” a slowing-down that was still more active than the combined work of two men these days. It was in that basement that I’d faithfully watch …...
- 4/11/2013
- by Scott Macaulay
- Filmmaker Magazine-Director Interviews
One Direction star Harry Styles has become friends with one of Britain's most respected philosophers. The 19-year-old heartthrob met Alain de Botton at a party and the pair surprisingly got on well and Harry spent a long time picking Alain's brain about the subject. The 43-year-old academic - who wrote the book 'The Consolations of Philosophy' - told The Sun newspaper: 'He was very interested in finding out about philosophy. He seemed a very intelligent chap.' Alain hopes Harry will introduce the subject - which deals with the meaning of human existence - to the millions of One Direction fans and make them realise it is an accessible subject. He said: 'In an ideal world, Harry Styles would be teaching...
- 2/14/2013
- Monsters and Critics
One Direction star Harry Styles has become friends with one of Britain's most respected philosophers. The 19-year-old heartthrob met Alain de Botton at a party and the pair surprisingly got on well and Harry spent a long time picking Alain's brain about the subject. The 43-year-old academic - who wrote the book 'The Consolations of Philosophy' - told The Sun newspaper: ''He was very interested in finding out about philosophy. He seemed a very intelligent chap.'' Alain hopes Harry will introduce the subject - which deals with the meaning of human existence - to the millions of One Direction fans and make them...
- 2/14/2013
- Virgin Media - Celebrity
After a long, long week in Cannes, Mumbrella managing editor Robin Hicks has some awards of his own to give out.
So, the crazy advertising circus that is Cannes is over. And all the awards have been given out. But no one likes going home empty handed.
Here are the Unofficial Cannes Lions winners…
Juiciest rumour – grand prix: The big networks have been leaning on the judges to vote for their own network’s entries.
Juiciest rumour – gold: Haymarket will close the print editions of ‘advertising Bible’ Campaign or Marketing in the UK and make them online only.
Juiciest rumour – silver: Block voting by networks will lead to a boycott of Cannes.
Biggest criticism of Cannes – grand prix: Presentations were repeats of those given at other festivals earlier in the year.
Biggest criticism of Cannes – gold: The work wasn’t as good as last year.
Most conservative estimate for how...
So, the crazy advertising circus that is Cannes is over. And all the awards have been given out. But no one likes going home empty handed.
Here are the Unofficial Cannes Lions winners…
Juiciest rumour – grand prix: The big networks have been leaning on the judges to vote for their own network’s entries.
Juiciest rumour – gold: Haymarket will close the print editions of ‘advertising Bible’ Campaign or Marketing in the UK and make them online only.
Juiciest rumour – silver: Block voting by networks will lead to a boycott of Cannes.
Biggest criticism of Cannes – grand prix: Presentations were repeats of those given at other festivals earlier in the year.
Biggest criticism of Cannes – gold: The work wasn’t as good as last year.
Most conservative estimate for how...
- 6/24/2012
- by Robin Hicks
- Encore Magazine
A highlight of Cannes for me has been the wisdom of philosopher Alain de Botton, a man so clever his brain has eaten his hair.
Here, in a series of quotes, is some of the clever stuff he said today about creativity, media and advertising.
“The world’s most powerful multinational corporation is the Catholic church. It has made lots of money by selling a good that people need, like a sense of belonging and self esteem. Advertising rarely does that. Too often it caters to the bottom end of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. Advertising needs to commoditise things that we need in life. You can make money from that, rather than focus on vain and menial desires like sex. ”
“Difficulty and suffering is normal. It’s an absolutely necessary part of creative life. If you don’t suffer in some way, you can’t be creative.”
“The problem...
Here, in a series of quotes, is some of the clever stuff he said today about creativity, media and advertising.
“The world’s most powerful multinational corporation is the Catholic church. It has made lots of money by selling a good that people need, like a sense of belonging and self esteem. Advertising rarely does that. Too often it caters to the bottom end of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. Advertising needs to commoditise things that we need in life. You can make money from that, rather than focus on vain and menial desires like sex. ”
“Difficulty and suffering is normal. It’s an absolutely necessary part of creative life. If you don’t suffer in some way, you can’t be creative.”
“The problem...
- 6/21/2012
- by Robin Hicks
- Encore Magazine
In a world where the overtly sexual novel "Fifty Shades of Grey" can dominate the cultural landscape -- and the best-seller lists -- it seemed likely that others would jump in on this new highbrow sex craze.
Alain de Botton, a prominent Swiss teacher and philosopher who writes about subjects as varied as "status anxiety" and how architecture makes us feel, announced that his newest venture will attempt to pose pornography as less of a societal evil, and more of a benefit.
"No longer would sexuality have to be lumped together with stupidity, brutishness, earnestness and exploitation," he wrote in a press release from The School of Life, a school he helped create in London. "It could instead be harnessed to what is noblest in us." Noblest meaning those moments when people are at their wittiest, "showing kindness, or working hard or being clever."
He hopes to create a website...
Alain de Botton, a prominent Swiss teacher and philosopher who writes about subjects as varied as "status anxiety" and how architecture makes us feel, announced that his newest venture will attempt to pose pornography as less of a societal evil, and more of a benefit.
"No longer would sexuality have to be lumped together with stupidity, brutishness, earnestness and exploitation," he wrote in a press release from The School of Life, a school he helped create in London. "It could instead be harnessed to what is noblest in us." Noblest meaning those moments when people are at their wittiest, "showing kindness, or working hard or being clever."
He hopes to create a website...
- 5/18/2012
- by The Huffington Post
- Huffington Post
Vincent Starr Alain de Botton
Human beings have two sides to them, physical and psychological, and these have had two contrasting repercussions in business. The material needs of man have led to the great corporations of our age. The giant multinationals have arisen on the back of providing us with things we need to wear, to eat, to house ourselves, to call each other and to transport us to work. However, remarkably, the psychological dimensions of man, despite their importance,...
Human beings have two sides to them, physical and psychological, and these have had two contrasting repercussions in business. The material needs of man have led to the great corporations of our age. The giant multinationals have arisen on the back of providing us with things we need to wear, to eat, to house ourselves, to call each other and to transport us to work. However, remarkably, the psychological dimensions of man, despite their importance,...
- 3/8/2012
- by Alain de Botton
- Speakeasy/Wall Street Journal
A down-at-heel Brit biopic proves rewarding against the odds...
Alain de Botton once wrote a chapter entitled How To Suffer Successfully. It is either an oxymoron or, perhaps, a prescient insight into the life of best-selling crime author Kevin Lewis. And whilst de Botton was referencing Proust, there is a certain kinship, however indirect, between the French literary genius and Lewis, whose acclaimed memoirs The Kid and The Kid Moves On he has now adapted into a film alongside actor-turned-director Nick Moran.
The story focuses on Lewis (portrayed by Rupert Friend, Augustus Prew and William Finn Miller) and his impoverished adolescence in 1980s London as an intelligent but abused child with a penchant for doodling on walls, who is shuffled between foster homes whilst being bullied at school. Despite his upbringing, and with the support of a few unsung heroes along the way, Lewis tries to make something of himself,...
Alain de Botton once wrote a chapter entitled How To Suffer Successfully. It is either an oxymoron or, perhaps, a prescient insight into the life of best-selling crime author Kevin Lewis. And whilst de Botton was referencing Proust, there is a certain kinship, however indirect, between the French literary genius and Lewis, whose acclaimed memoirs The Kid and The Kid Moves On he has now adapted into a film alongside actor-turned-director Nick Moran.
The story focuses on Lewis (portrayed by Rupert Friend, Augustus Prew and William Finn Miller) and his impoverished adolescence in 1980s London as an intelligent but abused child with a penchant for doodling on walls, who is shuffled between foster homes whilst being bullied at school. Despite his upbringing, and with the support of a few unsung heroes along the way, Lewis tries to make something of himself,...
- 9/10/2010
- by admin@shadowlocked.com (Ben Lamy)
- Shadowlocked
From the hip-hop artist who scares Kanye West to the funniest teens on the telly and the launch of Tom Ford's must-have womenswear label, here are 20 highlights for the next season
1. Celebrity offspring
It's easy to be envious of second-generation celebrities. Not only do their genes mean that without even trying they look vaguely famous, but they also get an unfair leg-up when it comes to money and contacts. While most of them squander their good luck, there's a batch of famous names who are annoyingly impressive. Though both Julia and Vladimir Restoin Roitfeld, children of French Vogue editor Carine, have done the obligatory modelling stint, they've both now struck out on their own. Vladimir, 28, has launched Feedback, a company that stages pop-up art shows, big sister Julia, meanwhile, works as a consultant art director. Elsewhere, Holly Branson has dropped out of medical school to work as publisher on entertainment magazine Maverick for dad,...
1. Celebrity offspring
It's easy to be envious of second-generation celebrities. Not only do their genes mean that without even trying they look vaguely famous, but they also get an unfair leg-up when it comes to money and contacts. While most of them squander their good luck, there's a batch of famous names who are annoyingly impressive. Though both Julia and Vladimir Restoin Roitfeld, children of French Vogue editor Carine, have done the obligatory modelling stint, they've both now struck out on their own. Vladimir, 28, has launched Feedback, a company that stages pop-up art shows, big sister Julia, meanwhile, works as a consultant art director. Elsewhere, Holly Branson has dropped out of medical school to work as publisher on entertainment magazine Maverick for dad,...
- 8/28/2010
- The Guardian - Film News
Some things were just meant to be
As a rule I'm a 'never-before-noon' man. But one morning recently there it was, on top of the spread of magazines laid out for me on my desk. Cover story of The Atlantic Monthly, the magazine founded by Ralph Waldo Emerson and some cronies over a few drinks at the Parker House Hotel in Boston in 1857. Four words. "The End Of Men."
I glanced at the clock -- 11:15. But I picked up the ice tongs anyway, put two cubes in an old-fashioned glass and drowned them in three fingers of Chivas. I broke the filter tip off a fresh Marlboro, put the business end between my lips, rolled the wheel on my Zippo, and settled back in the Eames chair. I started thinking. Thinking hard.
I should have seen it coming. The Pill, Title IX, The Mba degree. Wake up, Don. Promoting...
As a rule I'm a 'never-before-noon' man. But one morning recently there it was, on top of the spread of magazines laid out for me on my desk. Cover story of The Atlantic Monthly, the magazine founded by Ralph Waldo Emerson and some cronies over a few drinks at the Parker House Hotel in Boston in 1857. Four words. "The End Of Men."
I glanced at the clock -- 11:15. But I picked up the ice tongs anyway, put two cubes in an old-fashioned glass and drowned them in three fingers of Chivas. I broke the filter tip off a fresh Marlboro, put the business end between my lips, rolled the wheel on my Zippo, and settled back in the Eames chair. I started thinking. Thinking hard.
I should have seen it coming. The Pill, Title IX, The Mba degree. Wake up, Don. Promoting...
- 7/23/2010
- by Graham Button
- Fast Company
Next week, I'm taking Alain de Botton's advice (via Kottke) and giving my mind a break, unplugging from the world for a few days. Although this coincides with the press heading to Nicaragua to cover Survivor's first three days, I'm not going there, but instead just taking a little vacation. Instead of checking e.mail, tweeting, and even watching TV, I'll read some words printed on paper and bound into things I've heard about called "books."...
- 6/11/2010
- by Andy Dehnart
- Reality Blurred
There's a pretty clear quasi-joke that comes through in Alain de Botton's first novel On Love, but it's delivered better in the film loosely based on that work (and Essays in Love), My Last Five Girlfriends . This is perhaps because it is actually delivered in the film, but that's to split hairs really. de Botton's novel, which was dealt with rather harshly by a good many critics upon its initial release, came to popularity in rather backwards fashion. With the quite serious success of How Proust Can Change Your Life, and The Consolations of Philosophy (titles to books I might have penned myself frankly), fans began exploring his earlier efforts, and On Love found new legs. My Last Five Girlfriends follows Duncan (Brendan Patricks) as he first commits suicide, then begins examining what went wrong with his last five relationships. There's a deliciously unfun, uninteresting motif at play in the film,...
- 6/4/2010
- by Marc Eastman
- AreYouScreening.com
Stevie Wonder hits the UK, Toy Story goes 3D, and it's the last ever Big Brother – our critics pick the unmissable events of the season
Pop
Stevie Wonder
Anyone who can't face braving Glastonbury to see the Motown legend's Sunday-night set can head to London's Hyde Park for this headlining show. It's likely to be heavy on the hits, but a little too heavy on the audience participation, if complaints from disgruntled punters at Wonder's recent shows are anything to go by. And be warned: Jamiroquai seems to have been enticed out of retirement to provide support. Hyde Park, London W2, 26 June. Box office: 020-7009 3484.
T in the Park
This beloved Scottish festival is prized as much for its atmosphere as its lineup. And they're certainly wheeling out the big hitters this year: Eminem, Muse, Kasabian, Jay-z, Black Eyed Peas, Florence and the Machine, La Roux, Dizzee Rascal and Paolo Nutini,...
Pop
Stevie Wonder
Anyone who can't face braving Glastonbury to see the Motown legend's Sunday-night set can head to London's Hyde Park for this headlining show. It's likely to be heavy on the hits, but a little too heavy on the audience participation, if complaints from disgruntled punters at Wonder's recent shows are anything to go by. And be warned: Jamiroquai seems to have been enticed out of retirement to provide support. Hyde Park, London W2, 26 June. Box office: 020-7009 3484.
T in the Park
This beloved Scottish festival is prized as much for its atmosphere as its lineup. And they're certainly wheeling out the big hitters this year: Eminem, Muse, Kasabian, Jay-z, Black Eyed Peas, Florence and the Machine, La Roux, Dizzee Rascal and Paolo Nutini,...
- 5/24/2010
- The Guardian - Film News
See My Last Five Girlfriends on the beach - for Free! - at Caesars Atlantic City on Sunday, July 11! My Last Five Girlfriends is a fresh twist on the romantic comedy, reviewing a series of failed relationships from the man's perspective. One part John Cusack in High Fidelity and one part Jane Austen comedy of manners, the breezy British import first made a splash at the 2009 Tribeca Film Festival. And now, after a successful theatrical run in the UK, Tribeca Film has made it available to U.S. audiences On Demand via cable providers and online platforms. Watch it tonight! We recently caught up with director Julian Kemp via email. Enjoy! TribecaFilm.com: Tell us a little about My Last Five Girlfriends. Julian Kemp: My Last Five Girlfriends is a romantic comedy based on Alain De Botton's novel On Love. It tells the story of a young man's...
- 5/20/2010
- TribecaFilm.com
My Last 5 Girlfriends, a British comedy, based on the international best-selling novel by Alain de Botton’s, titled, Essays On Love and directed by Julian Kemp, about a suicidal young man, Duncan (Brendan Patricks) who narrates us, as he looks back at his last 5 girlfriends, in order to try and understand what went wrong in each relationship.
Naomie Harris is one of the 5 girlfriends. Her name headlines the poster for the film (along with Brendan Patricks), so she either has a significant role, or she’s likely the biggest name in the cast, or both.
It’s a film we’ve previously profiled on this blog, back in March, and, after premiering in the UK in March, it’s now available for stateside audiences to view, via Amazon.com’s VOD service, where it’s available in both Sd and HD quality, for $5.99 per 3-day rental. Not a bad deal at all,...
Naomie Harris is one of the 5 girlfriends. Her name headlines the poster for the film (along with Brendan Patricks), so she either has a significant role, or she’s likely the biggest name in the cast, or both.
It’s a film we’ve previously profiled on this blog, back in March, and, after premiering in the UK in March, it’s now available for stateside audiences to view, via Amazon.com’s VOD service, where it’s available in both Sd and HD quality, for $5.99 per 3-day rental. Not a bad deal at all,...
- 4/24/2010
- by Tambay
- ShadowAndAct
The chief appeal of this self-consciously smart romantic comedy is in its fashionable locations
Based on Alain de Botton's novel Essays in Love, this self-consciously smart romantic comedy begins with Duncan, a London architect, writing a farewell note, then recalling the assorted girls who drove him to suicide. Woody Allen is clearly Kemp's model, and the self-pitying protagonist sees his life as a theme park, recording his disastrous life as sideshows. The girls are attractive enough, though only Naomie Harris has much life, and the film's chief appeal is likely to reside in its numerous fashionable locations.
ComedyPhilip French
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Based on Alain de Botton's novel Essays in Love, this self-consciously smart romantic comedy begins with Duncan, a London architect, writing a farewell note, then recalling the assorted girls who drove him to suicide. Woody Allen is clearly Kemp's model, and the self-pitying protagonist sees his life as a theme park, recording his disastrous life as sideshows. The girls are attractive enough, though only Naomie Harris has much life, and the film's chief appeal is likely to reside in its numerous fashionable locations.
ComedyPhilip French
guardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds...
- 3/21/2010
- by Philip French
- The Guardian - Film News
I Love You Phillip Morris (15)
(Glen Ficarra, John Requa, 2009, Us) Jim Carrey, Ewan McGregor. 97 mins
Jim Carrey doesn't just play gay here, he plays flaming, in-your-face, heels-and-hotpants gay. And it kind of suits him. A police officer-turned-con man, his character is led even further astray when he falls for a fellow prison inmate (McGregor), and their courtship is treated like a traditional Hollywood love affair – albeit one full of prison breaks, audacious deceptions and outrageous accessorising. Gleefully trashy, at times exhaustingly unpredictable, it's certainly a brave move.
The Scouting Book For Boys (15)
(Tom Harper, 2009, UK) Thomas Turgoose, Holly Grainger, Rafe Spall. 93 mins
High hopes have been pinned on this, with Skins scribe Jack Thorne and plenty of young talent on board. Set in a Norfolk caravan camp, it's the tale of a boy-girl friendship developing into something else – quite what is up for grabs when they hatch a fake-kidnapping plan.
(Glen Ficarra, John Requa, 2009, Us) Jim Carrey, Ewan McGregor. 97 mins
Jim Carrey doesn't just play gay here, he plays flaming, in-your-face, heels-and-hotpants gay. And it kind of suits him. A police officer-turned-con man, his character is led even further astray when he falls for a fellow prison inmate (McGregor), and their courtship is treated like a traditional Hollywood love affair – albeit one full of prison breaks, audacious deceptions and outrageous accessorising. Gleefully trashy, at times exhaustingly unpredictable, it's certainly a brave move.
The Scouting Book For Boys (15)
(Tom Harper, 2009, UK) Thomas Turgoose, Holly Grainger, Rafe Spall. 93 mins
High hopes have been pinned on this, with Skins scribe Jack Thorne and plenty of young talent on board. Set in a Norfolk caravan camp, it's the tale of a boy-girl friendship developing into something else – quite what is up for grabs when they hatch a fake-kidnapping plan.
- 3/20/2010
- by Steve Rose
- The Guardian - Film News
A quirky relationship comedy based on Alain de Botton's 2001 novel. By Peter Bradshaw
Not so much a romcom as a relcom: a "relationship comedy" of the sort I associate with the 1990s, the world of Friends and Ally McBeal on TV: loads of quirky observational material and wacky fantasy gags. It's based on Alain de Botton's 2001 novel, Essays in Love, and structured around the Hornbyesque idea of revisiting (in your mind, at least) all your old girlfriends to find out why you're so rubbish at love. Brendan Patricks plays Duncan, a guy who is nerdy and conceited, passive-aggressive and thoroughly annoying – though I suspect he is supposed to be pretty lovable. Miserable about the way his romantic life has turned out, Duncan takes us through the story of all his former amours, a string of rather gorgeous women, including Jane March and Naomie Harris. There are some nice insights,...
Not so much a romcom as a relcom: a "relationship comedy" of the sort I associate with the 1990s, the world of Friends and Ally McBeal on TV: loads of quirky observational material and wacky fantasy gags. It's based on Alain de Botton's 2001 novel, Essays in Love, and structured around the Hornbyesque idea of revisiting (in your mind, at least) all your old girlfriends to find out why you're so rubbish at love. Brendan Patricks plays Duncan, a guy who is nerdy and conceited, passive-aggressive and thoroughly annoying – though I suspect he is supposed to be pretty lovable. Miserable about the way his romantic life has turned out, Duncan takes us through the story of all his former amours, a string of rather gorgeous women, including Jane March and Naomie Harris. There are some nice insights,...
- 3/18/2010
- by Alain de Botton, Peter Bradshaw
- The Guardian - Film News
Based on the international best-selling novel by Alain de Botton’s, titled, Essays On Love and made for the screen by Director Julian Kemp, the comedy introduces us to suicidal Duncan (Brendan Patricks) who narrates us, as he looks back at his last 5 girlfriends in order to try and understand what went wrong in each relationship.
Naomie Harris is one of the 5. Her name headlines the poster for the film (along with Brendan Patricks), so she either has a significant role, or she’s likely the biggest name in the cast, or both.
IMDb says this screened at Tribeca Film Festival last year, but I obviously missed it. It’s a Brit flick, and IMDb lists a UK released happening this weekend.
The trailer follows below. And underneath, watch as both Harris and Patricks discuss the film with AP News:
Here’s their interview:...
Naomie Harris is one of the 5. Her name headlines the poster for the film (along with Brendan Patricks), so she either has a significant role, or she’s likely the biggest name in the cast, or both.
IMDb says this screened at Tribeca Film Festival last year, but I obviously missed it. It’s a Brit flick, and IMDb lists a UK released happening this weekend.
The trailer follows below. And underneath, watch as both Harris and Patricks discuss the film with AP News:
Here’s their interview:...
- 3/18/2010
- by Tambay
- ShadowAndAct
After seeing the gritty but flawed British film ‘The Scouting Book for Boys’, Reviewed here, I was looking forward to witnessing another British film in ‘My Last Five Girlfriends’ and hoped for another example of what British Cinema has to offer. Unfortunately it turned out to be a flat, underwhelming Rom-Com but something that would have definitely worked as a TV series.
Taken from Alain de Botton’s book ‘Essays On Love’ and made for the screen by Director Julian Kemp, the film introduces us to impending suicider Duncan (Brendan Patricks) who narrates and carries us through his story of looking back at his Last Five Girlfriends to try and understand what went wrong with each one. We venture through an abundance of flashy filming techniques and visual relationship metaphors in a fantasy dream like imaginary world learning of each girlfriend on the list, their plus and minus points and what caused it to fail.
Taken from Alain de Botton’s book ‘Essays On Love’ and made for the screen by Director Julian Kemp, the film introduces us to impending suicider Duncan (Brendan Patricks) who narrates and carries us through his story of looking back at his Last Five Girlfriends to try and understand what went wrong with each one. We venture through an abundance of flashy filming techniques and visual relationship metaphors in a fantasy dream like imaginary world learning of each girlfriend on the list, their plus and minus points and what caused it to fail.
- 3/15/2010
- by Gary Phillips
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
The trailer for Brit self proclaimed non-rom-com has been released over on Empire. The movie stars Brendan Patricks who decide that the best way to find true love is to quiz his last five girlfriends on why their relationships didn’t work out.
My Last Five Girlfriends is directed by Julian Kemp and is based on the novel by Alain de Botton. It also stars Naomie Harris, Kelly Adams, Jane Marsh, Edith Bukovics, Cecile Cassel and Michael Sheen and is released 19th March.
My Last Five Girlfriends is directed by Julian Kemp and is based on the novel by Alain de Botton. It also stars Naomie Harris, Kelly Adams, Jane Marsh, Edith Bukovics, Cecile Cassel and Michael Sheen and is released 19th March.
- 2/3/2010
- by David Sztypuljak
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
ML5G star Brendan Patricks with fans at a Tff 2009 afterparty. Credit: Tanya Codispodi And the hits keep on coming! More good news today on the distribution deals coming out of the 2009 Tribeca Film Festival. This time around, word from Screen Daily that My Last Five Girlfriends has been picked up by Media 8 Entertainment. The second feature from writer/director Julian Kemp is a clever adaptation of the international bestseller On Love (by the entertaining French muser Alain de Botton), in which Duncan (newcomer Brendan Patricks) is a young man determined to find the secret to a healthy, strong relationship. Along the way, he mines his last five doomed romances for clues. The film was a crowd-pleaser at Tff '09, and we are delighted that a broader audience will get to enjoy this 'poignant and whimsical tale.' The La-based Media 8 has not released any details about the distribution plan,...
- 6/22/2009
- TribecaFilm.com
A new book examines architecture's influence on your soul.
The most widely discussed design book published last year was The Architecture of Happiness, a meditation on beauty and well-being by the British writer Alain de Botton.
Great buildings, he wrote, are like mirrors that reflect our greatest aspirations and "speak of visions of happiness." Thus a Gothic arch pleases our inner selves by conveying "ardor and intensity" and Richard Neutra's early modern homes in California, like the Kauffmann house (above) express "honesty and ease...a lack of inhibition and a faith in the future." In other words, architecture pleases us by expressing how we feel.
This, of course, is what classicism was about. Vitruvius, and later Palladio, believed that people and society would be enriched by following the ideals of symmetry and proportion.
Can a building really make a profound psychological difference? Can it lead to anything more than the...
The most widely discussed design book published last year was The Architecture of Happiness, a meditation on beauty and well-being by the British writer Alain de Botton.
Great buildings, he wrote, are like mirrors that reflect our greatest aspirations and "speak of visions of happiness." Thus a Gothic arch pleases our inner selves by conveying "ardor and intensity" and Richard Neutra's early modern homes in California, like the Kauffmann house (above) express "honesty and ease...a lack of inhibition and a faith in the future." In other words, architecture pleases us by expressing how we feel.
This, of course, is what classicism was about. Vitruvius, and later Palladio, believed that people and society would be enriched by following the ideals of symmetry and proportion.
Can a building really make a profound psychological difference? Can it lead to anything more than the...
- 5/29/2009
- by Michael Cannell
- Fast Company
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