Heterosexual Propaganda And The City
Posted on June 3, 2008
Filed Under Arts/Culture, Entertainment, Fashion, Film/Video, Gay/Lesbian, NYC, Women | Comments Off on Heterosexual Propaganda And The City
I emerged from the darkened cinema after watching the new film version of “Sex and the City” feeling just as beaten-over-the-head with heterosexual propaganda as “Mr. Big” was with white roses. Yes, the relationships between the primary four white women (plus the new addition of Carrie’s black personal assistant — a comforting, mammy-like portrayal by Jennifer Hudson) were lauded as the antidotes to female loneliness and isolation. The fact that there are never any economic consequences resulting from the folly of these white folks is more a commentary, I guess, on the collective desire of the masses to be swept-away by a Hollywood fantasy, and distracted from the drudgeries of daily reality (such as bill-payments, and the modern-day necessities of safe-sex and condoms).
Yes, we were bombarded with eroticized images of the male torso (complete with frontal exposure). But frankly, speaking as a woman, I am tired of being left totally ignored as a lesbian spectator of this on-going saga, (in spite of a sweet scene where Carrie and Miranda were mistaken as a lesbian couple having a romantic dinner on Valentine’s Day, when they, in fact, were two jilted straight girls).
Yes, we certainly enjoyed the experience of seeing Samantha’s beautiful body clad only in strategically-placed pieces of homemade sushi, and Charlotte’s sensual shower-scene during which she was so beside herself with happiness that she, in a moment of forgetfulness, allowed Mexican tap-water to trickle into her mouth. But couldn’t there have been one moment of physical admiration – especially by the pool in the Mexican sun – between these so-called friends? The closest we came to a simple acknowledgment of one for the other’s body was when Samantha noticed the growth of Miranda’s pubic hair enough to imply that Miranda had provoked her husband’s lack of sexual interest, and that she should schedule a bikini-wax ASAP. (Meanwhile, we all know that the actress, Cynthia Nixon, who portrays Miranda, is in actuality an out lesbian, and deserves an Oscar for her acting during the sex-scenes with her on-screen husband.)
The lesbians of the Big Apple have had enough of being ignored and swept under the rug of this fantasized portrayal of “best girlfriends” in New York City. Besides, what would this series be without the fabulous haute couture of designer Patricia Field, whom the lesbians of New York proudly claim as one of our own?
posted by Nyna
Nyna is a screenwriter and film director. She lives in Paris and New York City.
Women Help SATC Soar at Box Office
Posted on June 3, 2008
Filed Under Entertainment, Fashion, Film/Video, New York, Women | Comments Off on Women Help SATC Soar at Box Office
According to Gawker, Hollywood is apparently shocked that women can affect box office sales; Variety notes that after Sex and the City opened this weekend to the tune of $55.7 million, it shattered decades-old thinking that females — particularly older ones –can’t fuel the sort of big opening often enjoyed by a male-driven event pic or family movie.
The NY Times reports that the box office success was mostly thanks to the ladies, with 85 percent of the ticket buyers on opening night being women (Warner Brothers reports that more men began showing up over the weekend, however).
“It is kind of mind-boggling,” Sarah Jessica Parker, the “Sex and the City” star, said in a telephone interview from her Manhattan home on Saturday.“We are thrilled and humbled that the audience came out. I am so excited about the possibilities for movies about women.”
The powers that be are already in talks about a sequel. Just as women take a step towards changing preconceived notions of their role in keeping Hollywood afloat on opening weekends (which is so important), the movie itself takes a giant step back for womankind!
Fashion King Yves Sant Laurent Died Last Night
Posted on June 2, 2008
Filed Under Arts/Culture, Fashion, News, Women | Comments Off on Fashion King Yves Sant Laurent Died Last Night
French fashion icon Yves Saint Laurent died of a brain tumor in Paris last night at the age of 71.
Over the course of his 50-year career, he revolutionized women’s clothing by breaking down the distinction between masculine and feminine.
Perhaps best known for introducing the “Le Smoking”, a tuxedo for women, in 1966, Saint Laurent considered himself an advocate for women’s power. In 1968, this caused a scandal in Manhattan when New York socialite Nan Kempner wore the tuxedo to dinner at La Cote Basque restaurant. The maitre d’ told her she couldn’t dine in a pair of trousers and Kempner promptly dropped the pants and proceeded to dine in the jacket, which had instantly become a very short dress.
He would later open his pret-a-porter or ready-to-wear line which brought pantsuits and gender-neutral jackets and pants to everyday lives of women. This major shift in fashion coincided significantly with the changing socioeconomic role of women as millions began entering the workforce in the late 1960s and 70s. The change was so revolutionary that most women in Western cultures today don’t even think twice about wearing jackets and pants.
A full retrospective of his work opened at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts just last Thursday. It will be on view through September 28.
A farewell tip of the hat to a magical man.
