As I stand there mingling with the FabSugar.com gals and trying to find the dude with a tray of shrimp appetizer thingies, Muytjens gets introduced to us. He’s quite tall and his salt-and-pepper hair is perfectly coiffed and he dons a button down, a smartly tattered neck scarf, dark denim and a J. Crew Ludlow suit jacket (of course). As he makes his way down shaking hands with us, his excited eyes peer through some snazzy specs and he gets to me and he says, in his Holland-tinged voice, “I really like your glasses – they are like old Ray-Bans.”

Me (I’m the shortest one in the pic with a shaved head) with the FabSugar.com folks and Mr. Muytjens (center) Photo credit: Wireimage

When a successful designer (or any celebrity – Estelle loved my combat boots at SXSW – more on that later) compliments an item that I am wearing, it inflates my ego just a tiny bit. Okay – not a tiny bit – a humongous bit.

I tell Mr. Muytjens (I still cannot pronounce his last name correctly) that I honestly haven’t shopped in J. Crew in forever but I did step into one a couple weeks ago and purchased a regular all-purpose cotton long sleeve t-shirt – and the fit was different. It fit me very well. I remember J. Crew being boxy. I admitted all of this to Frank and he schooled me on the changes being made.

“Our challenge was to clean everything up a little bit,” he says. “A couple of years ago, things were a little boxy. We wanted to make things a little narrow. We wanted to achieve a tailored look- but not too
tailored. We still wanted to make it universal.”

The men’s collection at J. Crew has seen a little makeover. What was once classic preppy with critters crawling on Ivy League ties now has turned into a modern American look that was rugged and industrial.

Todd Barket (from left) and Carl Chiara of the SF menswear boutique, Union Made Goods with Muytjens. Photo credit: Wireimage

Muytjens says he wanted to give J. Crew a more hip and edgier sensibility. He has turned to magazines, modern design, architecture and even different movies to influence this new look of J. Crew that still maintains the classic charm of the label.

“I like (the movie) Blow Up from the ‘60s and I love Bullitt with Steve McQueen,” he says. “There’s also Novecento by (Bernardo) Bertolucci – which is my all-time favorite movie.”

Now who doesn’t want to look as cool as Steve McQueen?

The Runaways tells the story about the first all-female rock group which started with Joan Jett, Cherie Currie, Lita Ford, Sandy West and Jackie Fox. As instructed by their producer, Kim Fowley they were to “sing with their cocks” – and that they did. That they did.

The rock biopic (out in theaters Friday, March 19) stars a mulleted Kristen Stewart as Joan, a rouge-cheeked and feathered Dakota Fanning as Cherie, and Michael Shannon as the crass and motivating Fowley – and it’s just another brick that makes the wall of powerful (and sometimes feeble -and sometimes borderline lesbionic) movies that showed that a woman can just be as good as a man when it comes to be a rockstar.

1.) Spice World (1997): Oh dear God. I think I actually saw this in the theater. As painful as it was to watch and as much as I hate to admit it, the Spice Girls were an integral part of “girl power” when it came to pop music.

2.) Josie and the Pussycats (2001): Didn’t watch it, but I did keep up with their buddies in the Archie comics. Other than that, this was probably the peak of Tara Reid’s career.

3.) Crucial Taunt from Wayne’s World (1992): Cassandra (Tia Carrere) was the hot front woman for this band. Every time she sang “Ballroom Blitz,” I quiver.

4.) The Dreamettes from Dreamgirls (2006): This group of divas weren’t necessarily rockers, but they had a hefty amount soul, drama and star power. Plus the movie has a bellowing ballad of lost love and good diva throwdown – and who doesn’t love that?

5.) The Mystery from Satisfaction (1988): It’s like The Runaways but set in the late ’80s and cutesy (what kind of band name is “The Mystery”?) Plus side? Julia Roberts has big hair and plays a guitar!

Follow the jump for the entire list and a slide show of pics!

6.) The Barbusters from Light of Day (1987): Patti Rasnick is one half of the brother/sister band in this movie – and she’s played by Joan Jett! Her brother? A less noticeable Michael J. Fox. Clearly, we know who rocked out more in this movie. And to this day, I still remember that fist-in-the-air title track.

7.) Amelia from A.D.D. in The Rocker (2008): Played by Emma Stone, Amelia stands out as the beauty alongside her male bandmates (which includes an underwear clad Rainn Wilson as Fish) – and there’s something about a lip glossy, sassy, no-nonsense bass player is drool worthy.

8.) Watts from Some Kind of Wonderful (1987): I really thought she was a lesbian in the movie – but that’s beside the point. Mary Stuart Masterson jammed out on the drums like no ones business in this romance. It’s no wonder why Keith chose her in the end (if he didn’t she can probably would’ve kick his ass).

9.) Jem and the Holograms (1985): Okay – I know it hasn’t been made into a movie (yet), but how could you not mention fictional girl bands without mentioning the holographic pop sensation that is way cooler than Lady Gaga?

Duhamel rings a Bell in ‘When in Rome’

The story: When in Rome (not to be confused with the Olsen twin movie by the same title) is your basic story about an art gallery workaholic (Kristen Bell) who dives into a love-granting fountain in Rome to fetch some coins while in a drunken “I am going to be single forever” stupor (raise your hand if you can relate). In doing so, she sets off a magical spell where the owners of said coins stalk her – including Josh “Mr. Fergie-licious” Duhamel; who may or may not be under the spell.

Snap judgment: From the assuming formulaic story, critics will not like this movie. I think it may be too happy for them. And we all know that people are looking for really, really, really depressing stories or movies about CGI’d blue people to please them.

Cheesy but charming: C’mon – it’s a romantic comedy. Would you expect anything less? It is formulaic. It is predictable. It is cheesy. I don’t know if this is necessarily a bad thing but Duhamel is as charming as a bucket of Ken dolls. In any movie he is in, his smile and jock-meets-baby boy face will charm the pants off of you – literally and figuratively. For the next five years, he’s going to be the go-to guy as the love interest.

The modern fairytale: The is rom-com aimed at the tween and hopeless romantic demographic (hence the numerous “awwwww” moments in the theater). That said, it will reel in the appropriate people. It’s enjoyably shallow and all non-believers of love know that stuff like this never happens. Never. Other movies have handled this magical love story structure better (please reference Enchanted or even Big).

Kristen does comedy? She handles slapstick well – and she can be really funny when the moment calls for it. She’s not great, but she’s not terrible.

Funniest moment of the movie? It wasn’t from any of the lead actors; but from Kristen Schaal (from Flight of the Conchords) as the creepy and clueless dining-in-the-dark waitress. I was LOL’ing all over the place.

Strong support – like a jock strap: The supporting cast makes the movie bearable: Anjelica Huston as the Devil Wears Prada-esque boss; Jon Heder does his impression as a delusional Criss Angel type; Will Arnett as the artist with the foot fetish; Danny Devito as the stalking “sausage” king; and Dax Shepard as the narcisstic model with the heart made of mirrors – and even Ghostface Killah is all up in that movie! Well, at least in the beginning he is.

Eyebrow tangent: It may have been just me, but Kristen Bell’s eyebrows were freakishly thin in the very beginning of the film…I’m just saying.

Overall critique: It is a blatant product of Hollywood’s romantic comedy machine. And that’s what is exactly what it is. The movie wasn’t trying to be anything else. It’s entertaining and best of all, it requires NO critical thinking. Grade: C+

I’ve been slacking on my Oscar buzz movie list. Luckily, I dragged my happy meal ass to see Crazy Heart at the Embarcadero Cinema after work on Friday. I was kind of skeptical about seeing such a movie on a Friday night. According to socially correct standards, one is supposed to go party and get plastered on a Friday night, right? But I think Jeff Bridges’s Bad Blake in Crazy Heart got boozed up enough for the entire world.

Again, I was skeptical about this film, but since Bridges won a Golden Globe (and a SAG Award), for his portrayal of a washed up country star, I figured I’d see it – and I was happy I did.

Bridges’s accolades are well-deserved. More than that, the film reinvigorated my love for country music of the non-Taylor Swift/Carrie Underwood variety. Granted, I do appreciate today’s country; but the gritty storytelling of the down home country from the days of yore makes my heart joyfully sink. (and yes, I do like country – I spent most of my life in Texas, what can I say?) After the movie, I immediately went home to download the soundtrack.

Nonetheless, who’s ready to see Bridges reprise his role as Kevin Flynn in Tron Legacy?! I know I am!

Up in the Air
Avatar
The Hurt Locker
Precious
Inglorious Basterds
Invicticus
An Education
Up
A Serious Man
The Messenger
Julie & Julia
A Single Man
Crazy Heart
The Blind Side
The Last Station
Nine
Star Trek
District 9
Fantastic Mr. Fox
The Lovely Bones
(500) Days of Summer
It’s Complicated
The Young Victoria
Bright Star
The Informant!

I can officially strike The Lovely Bones off the list!

Stay tuned for the review….

Up in the Air
Avatar
The Hurt Locker
Precious
Inglorious Basterds
Invicticus
An Education
Up
A Serious Man
The Messenger
Julie & Julia
A Single Man
Crazy Heart
The Blind Side
The Last Station
Nine
Star Trek
District 9
Fantastic Mr. Fox
The Lovely Bones
(500) Days of Summer
It’s Complicated
The Young Victoria
Bright Star
The Informant!

The Oscars are on March 7 and being the obsessive compulsive person that I am , I must see all of the movies that are generating buzz. Luckily, Entertainment Weekly gave me a helpful guide (and just in case you’re wondering, my lost issue finally came in the mail) of the “25 movies I need to see before Oscar night”. I have seen many of them but I have quite a ways to go.

I have taken the liberty of crossing out the ones that I have seen already and I will continue to do so until I have completed the list.

Up in the Air
Avatar
The Hurt Locker
Precious
Inglorious Basterds
Invicticus
An Education
Up
A Serious Man
The Messenger
Julie & Julia
A Single Man
Crazy Heart
The Blind Side
The Last Station
Nine
Star Trek
District 9
Fantastic Mr. Fox
The Lovely Bones
(500) Days of Summer
It’s Complicated
The Young Victoria
Bright Star
The Informant!

Do I really need to be reminded that I don’t have the washboard abs of an oily variety werewolf bohunk?

Forget the lovelorn werewolf-vampire-human love triangle – this movie is all about seeing who cannot wear a shirt for the longest period of time.

Guys who have bodies like this are not human at all. You have to be a werewolf in order to have a body like this.

However, I did finally watch New York, I Love You (a continuation of the much more robust and enjoyable Paris, je t’aime) and despite what some people are saying, there was some diversity in the film.

Actually, there were just a lot of Asians involved in front of and behind the camera of this vignette-driven love letter to the Big Apple.

On the directing side of things, we surprisingly fared well:

Fatih Akin (Turkish – technically, Turkey is Eurasian, but we’ll count him any way.)
Yvan Attal (Israeli)
Shunji Iwai (Japanese)
Wen Jiang (Chinese)
Mira Nair (Indian)
Shekhar Kapur (Pakistani)

There are also three writers to include in the fold:

Hu Hong (Chinese)
Yao Meng (Chinese)
Suketu Mehta (Indian)

In front of the camera, there was some representation as well:

Qi Shu (Taiwanese)
Irrfan Khan (Indian)
Sinsu Co
Ugur Yücel (Turkish)
Richard Chang
Gurdeep Singh
Maggie Q
Vedant Gokhale

That brings the total to: 106

Keep track of my Asian pop culture tally by clicking here (don’t forget to send those tips my way!)

It has a very valid point about journalism and, more than that, it makes me reevaluate my intrigue with celebrities and stardom.

…but I still want to be famous.

Just as I was about to write this review of Where the Wild Things Are, my sister texted me and asked if she should take her two-year-old son to see the movie. I said, “I don’t know – he won’t comprehend the moral.” Then I thought, “Wait a second – I didn’t even comprehend the moral when this book was read to me as a child. I only had a wide-eyed curiosity for the pictures.”

In fact, the majority of the people I have talked to can’t even remember the moral or the story for that matter. They remember Max’s wolfie pajamas, his triumphant crown and his joyous adventures with Wild Things. Spike Jonze’s adaptation of Maurice Sendak’s beloved children’s book honors that with a fantastical serenity that is balanced with maturity and child-like wonder.

With 10 sentences and 338 words, it isn’t surprising why people don’t remember this story about a delinquent boy that escapes to a wonderland of make-believe cuddly, mutated creatures after being sent to his room. Jonze, along with novelist, Dave Eggers created a script that stretches that text (with some alterations) into a full-out moral narrative filled with dirt fights, humorous monster dialogue, friendship and dismemberment. Yes, I said it: dis-mem-ber-ment.

From the very beginning of the film, we are waiting to see these wild things – because that’s the sumptuous spectacle of the film. There’s an even-handed pace that Jonze uses that eases them in rather than shoves them in your face. When Max (Max Records) bellows the words, “Feed me woman!” to his mother (Catherine Keener) and then bites her – we know he is about to enter an alternate (and a tad bit grim) desert/forest universe as he runs out of the house in a huff.

When he gets there, he meets Carol (James Gandolfini) and his entire crew of fun-loving, albeit funky-looking Wild Things: the overly sensitive and needy goat Alexander (Paul Dano); the aggressive Judith (Catherine O’Hara); her partner, Ira (Forest Whitaker); the bird with a voice of reason Douglas (Chris Cooper); the emo Bull (Michael Berry Jr.); and the kind rebel KW (Lauren Ambrose). Although they are huge on a scale of Muppet Monster proportions (and they try to eat Max in the beginning), their voices are gentle and they talk as if they are on a playground during recess.

The scant amount of text was a good and bad thing. Good because it gave them an opportunity to build it into a story that could make it robust and enriching. Bad because – well – it was a short story. They took the limited amount of text and dipped it in water and it grew like a sponge.

Visually stimulating and carrying the tone of a librarian at story time, Jonze and Eggers did quite a number with the iconic children’s book. Their loyalty to the book was apparent in each playful and dramatic scene. We see Max’s loneliness from the very beginning and the poignant connection with his mother makes us appreciate Keener’s ability to make the most of her limited screen time. When he frolics with the Wild Things, there’s a hesitant and confused feeling of emancipation, but there’s also a solace that he shares with the audience. Even though those juvenile fun times can dig out the childhood nostalgia in your soul, you’ll be ready to bury it when they start acting like whiny babies.

The “take care of those who take care of you” moral may be a good one, but it’s the “Wild Rumpus” that will give you a bunch of warm fuzzies.

Overall critique: This is a perfect example of why books with lots of pictures isn’t necessarily a bad thing. B