Candy, Cakes and Desserts of Marie Antoinette the Movie

 

Many of you have seen posts on Marie Antoinette the movie by Sophia

 Coppola. I only had a chance to see it tonight which inspired me to look up

a synopsis of her life story to see how accurate the portrayal of her life was. 

The movie isn't exact but it comes close (she had 4 children and not 2 among

other points.)  It skips over the latter portion of her life where she became

more involved with politics and tried to help her husband.  

I think Marie Antoinette is one of the most misrepresented people in history.  

She was literally the scapegoat of France in those times.  Despite the odds, 

she managed to survive in a politically hostile environment with a mother who

sought only to use her solely as a political pawn.  Unfortunately, she actually

had very little political influence in France.  Not to mention a husband who was 

so insecure that the marriage wasn't consummated until 7 years after they

were married (and even then - intervention was required to get to the bottom

of the mystery...)  Granted they were married at 14, but 7 years is a long time

not to consummate a marriage. 

I now appreciate what an amazing woman she was and have come to see 

the enormous amount of pressure she was under.  Like many of us gals 

today, when she was depressed or down - she liked to party and have retail

therapy.  As for her spending, it was no more frivolous than what a queen 

would have spent in those days.  I can't imagine being sent away from home 

at 14 to a foreign land to be married.  Being Austrian (not friendly with the 

French), she was a convenient scapegoat.  

What I liked about the film is that it did not feel like any of the usual period 

films.  The film is from theperspective of Marie Antoinette and it makes feel 

as if you are personally witnessing all the events.  I also think the romantic
scenes were wonderfully filmed - romantic and classy (no need for graphic
detail.)  Enough of my babbling and onto the eye candy... literally!

Laduree provided all of the candy, desserts 

and sweets that were shown in the movie.

 

In fact everything in the movie looked like candy and cake.

 Absolutely gorgeous.

Strawberries galore.

 

Candied almonds adorn this plate with a 

piece of chocolate as the centerpiece.

Isn't the orange color a feast for the eyes?

 

 

Pink and Red go so well together for candy and desserts.

A personal cake inspired by Marie Antoinette (not my cake.)

Marie Antoinette The Journey

If any of you are interested in Marie Antoinette's story, Sophia Coppola based 

her movie script on a book she read on Marie Antoinette's life called:  Marie

Antoinette The Journey.

Photos are from Google and movie stills from Sony

Coco Avant Chanel

I watched a wonderful movie last week about Chanel's
life before her fame and fortune. I really enjoyed it.
The movie gave some insight into the early years of
Chanel's life and really hits home just how far ahead of
her time she was when it came to fashion, comfort and
easy elegance. She, was a very elegant woman.

Audrey Tautou (from the movie
Amelie) plays young Chanel.

Here's a side by side photo of Chanel and Audrey Tautou.

Some stills from the movie. Can you imagine how eccentric
people thought she was for wearing mean's clothing? You
must remember that Gabrielle Chanel was born in 1883
and became 21 years of age around the turn of the century.
Women back then did not simply strut around in men's
clothes.

Alessandro Nivola plays the love of her life who was Arthur "Boy" Capel.
Both "Boy" and Chanel had other lovers as well but Boy seemed to be the
one that Chanel loved most. Boy also financed her first shop in Paris and
she borrowed greatly from his closet for inspiration. Since 99% of the
movie is in French, Alessandro had to learn French for the movie.
Alessandro is an American actor who was born in Boston. He is very
dashing and appropriately intense in the movie.

Coco Chanel with Cecil Beaton in 1937.

This was the only real picture of Arthur "Boy" Capel
that I could find. He was an English Polo player who
was also a politician and self made businessman.

I really love this image from the movie as it
depicts Chanel so elegantly in her workspace.

This is a very old photograph of a very young Coco.

Chanel always had this way of mixing masculine
and feminine style together effortlessly.

All of her portraits are just stunning. Not in the flat out
sexy feel that Marilyn Monroe had but a true kind of
elegance, chic and just plain coolness.

Back then, it was chic to smoke and Chanel definitely
smoked A Lot. Many of her famous portraits and
photos show her with a cigarette hanging out of her
mouth - even while working and pinning models.
Now that I think about, I don't see many photos of
her without a cigarette in hand.

I love this portrait of Coco. It's a very unique angle that
shows off her profile. It was either a popular angle back
then or Chanel just really knew how to pose. I think Chanel
really knew how to pose...I'm not sure I've seen a bad photo
of her.Another photo of young Chanel.

This one with short wavy hair. She cut her hair at
a time when short hair wasn't fashionable. During
the 1930's, you had the "flappers" era of daring and
forward women who bobbed their hair and wore
short skirts. Chanel cut her hair before it had come
into fashion.

Chanel with a straw hat - straw hats that
she brought into fashion for women.

Love the netting. She crossed her arms a lot -
like a man. I don't imagine it was considered
feminine for women to do it back then.

What a cool looking pose. She's like the epitome
of cool. The female version of James Dean.

I love this candid photo of her. She just always
looked so relaxed - very much so in her own skin.

Chanel: Her Style and Her Life

I think this this book is one of the best books about
Chanel as it combines her life story with beautiful
photographs of her, her life and and her work. It's
a bit pricey but well worth it if you're looking for an
informative and beautiful book about Chanel.

In the past, I've blogged about Coco Chanel's apartment
above her flagship store and her suite at the Ritz in Paris.
Check them out if you're interested.

Coco Chanel's Paris Ritz Suite Part I

Coco Chanel's Apartment Part II

Chanel's 2007 Campaign - Keira Knightly

Photos from the UK's Guardian, Getty
Images and various Google Image sources.

Beauty & Design in Chinese Film ~ Curse of the Golden Flower

You should watch this film if not for the eye candy and
colors alone. Curse of the Golden Flower is directed by
acclaimed director Zhang Yi Mo. He is sort of the Chinese
version of Steven Spielberg you could say. He's made
many many films in his life time and in his last couple
of films, his style has definitely changed to become more
artistic and has put huge emphasis on color and imagery.

The film stars Gong Li and Chow Yun Fat. Two heavy
weights in the Chinese film industry. Gong Li was in fact
made famous by director Zhang Yi Mo. Gong Li may not
be the most beautiful woman to live, but she certainly
has presence like no other. Simply by entering a room,
she can command it. I love watching her films.

The whole movie is a showcase of fashion and interiors!
The photo above and the few below showcase one of the main
hallways in the film. It is a "sick" display of beautiful hand
carved panels and woodwork. I've never seen anything like it.

Through clever use of lighting, the same exact hallway

can change into different colors altogether. What was
originally the bright red hallway above is now Green.

A beautiful shade of peacock blue.

And red again. Simply amazing.

Another element that there was an obvious focus on

were the costumes. The scene here shows maids

dressing each other.

And the finished costume. I will note that in no way were

any Chinese ladies allowed to wear bare shouldered gowns

in any time period in history. However, for a modern

rendition of an old story - the colors and attention to detail

are simply amazing.

Another look at those gorgeous gowns.

I just couldn't stop staring at those colorful panels!

This is a close up of those beautifully carved panels.

I wonder how they made the panels translucent to

let in light.

Get a load of that hair do!

And this brings new meaning to the

phrase "Red Carpet Treatment."

A night time peak at the same red carpet.

At the end of the red carpet is a

staircase that leads into the palace.

A great still of a Chinese room with traditional

furnishings and architectural elements.

Her head dresses are simply amazing.

This makes the word "decadent" pale in comparison.

Especially when you realize just how large this square is

and they somehow managed to cover every square inch

of it. All I can do is look in awe. No words can describe it.

I had been preparing a post on this movie but La Vie Est Belle

has beaten me to it. Definitely stop over at her blog to see her post

because she has a different take on the movie and has shared some

really interesting pieces of Chinese history as well.

If some of you are interested in Zhang Yi Mo's other beautiful

films, I would also recommend "Hero" which is also beautifully

filmed filmed. Beautiful in Color and Beautiful in Scenery

with some of the most amazing scenes in China.

All photos from Sony Pictures and taken by Ms. Bai Xiaoyan.