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Entries Tagged as 'Women In Film'

The Newest Show on Television is a SMASH!

January 23rd, 2012 by The OJBG Team · 20something, fashion, music, On Set, Women In Film

 By: Samantha

   There is a new television show in town and you need to be watching it. It’s called Smash and I can’t help but think after watching the pilot episode, this show is going to be quite a…well…SMASH. The show stars Katharine McPhee, American Idol old-timer and actress, and Megan Hilty, Broadway star, as two aspiring singers as they compete against each other to win the coveted role of Marilyn Monroe in a new Broadway production based on the screen siren’s life.

            It’s no surprise to me that I loved the pilot episode of this show because it encompasses everything in life that I love: theater, belting, sequins, lipstick, and Marilyn Monroe. However, no matter your personal interests, I think most people can truly enjoy the drama and unintentional suspense that seems to organically develop within the plotline of this new venture. Simply speaking, how could the tale of two women competing for the big break that will get them out of the ruts of their lives not be suspenseful? I watched the pilot episode with my male friend who is obsessed with politics and has not a clue about anything involving performance, music, Broadway, or Marilyn, and yet, he was completely mesmerized by the TV screen. It was almost uncanny.

Fresh-faced Katharine McPhee is completely charming and wonderfully likeable as she attempts to defy the odds and resist the dirty pitfalls of show business in an attempt to make her dreams come true. The show also stars actresses Anjelica Houston and Debra Messing and Broadway star Christian Borle.

So, basically what I am trying to say is jump on the Smash train and be sure to download the pilot episode off of iTunes for FREE! The next episode will be aired right after the Super Bowl. How fitting: two major performances back to back.

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Five Beauty Secrets Inspired By Hollywood’s Original Leading Ladies

December 30th, 2011 by The OJBG Team · 20something, Events, fashion, Going-out-guide, teen, teen things, Uncategorized, Women In Film

By: Samantha

With New Year’s Eve quickly approaching, I have turned to scouring the Internet in search of inspiration for an incredibly wonderful and original outfit to kick off 2012. My manic search has resulted in hundreds of photographs of Hollywood’s leading ladies at the height of their careers, dressed to the nines and looking absolutely stunning. So, I know those of you who may be reading this will ultimately have varying ideas of what you would like to wear as you welcome in the new year, so consider the following just some more inspiration that I have also discovered for myself, not just for your look on New Year’s Eve, but for every day and night of this new year. Goodbye to 2011 and cheers from OJBG with all of you to 2012- a year to look simply smashing!

 

1.  Don’t be afraid to change your hair color.

            Rita Hayworth began her career as a dark-haired beauty and eventually dawned every hair color possible, from platinum blonde to fire engine red. If you are debating whether or not to go for that lighter or darker hue, be like Nike and just do it. Hair is about having fun and playing with your personal style and appearance. Just be sure to consult with your hair stylist beforehand to see which shade of that particular color is best for your skin tone and eye color. Worse comes to worse, you can always dye your hair back to its original color. It’s worth the risk.

2. Find that “it” outfit.

            Marilyn Monroe was pictured wearing one of the most iconic dresses of our lifetime, and through this, she taught us that a great dress, or a great outfit overall, is a staple in every woman’s wardrobe. Keep a look out for that stellar dress that highlights all of your curves, that sleek tuxedo that hugs your body like a glove, or that head wrap that  makes you shine in a packed room. Once you find that outfit or item that you absolutely adore, buy it immediately and never let it go. Oh, and of course find an equally killer pair of shoes to finish it off.

PS: Today, I fell in love with biker cut-off gloves encrusted in fake jewels and bought them on the spot. My mother thought I was ridiculous. I don’t really care- it’s love.

 

3. Groomed eyebrows are essential.

            Vivien Leigh starred in over 15 feature films throughout her extensive career. Regardless of her role, one factor remained constant: her full, arched, and groomed eyebrows. Eyebrows do not only frame your eyes, but your entire face, so it is imperative that they are nicely shaped. Unlike the pencil-thin trends of the 70s and 90s, 2012 prefers a much fuller eyebrow, so don’t be afraid to rock some Brooke Shields brows. Experts have said that fuller eyebrows keep women looking youthful well into their 80s. If you have fallen victim to the pencil-thin trends of the earlier decades and your brows are looking a little skinny, grab a brown eyeliner pencil or some brown eye shadow and gently work it into your brows for a fuller look. If you’re having trouble, there are hundreds of tutorials and articles on how to do this on YouTube and Google.

 

4. Embrace your curves.

            When Sophia Loren stepped onto the Hollywood scene with her full bust and hips, she was not turned away. Instead, she was admired and well received for her fierce beauty and feminine mystique. Loren wore pieces that hugged her curves rather than hide them away or box them in.  If you have a fuller bust, some excellent hips, or a fine behind, show it off. Other women will respect you, and some may even envy you.

5. Quirky is cool.

            Our favorite funny lady, Lucille Ball, taught us one major lesson: it’s never okay to be a bore. Don’t put yourself in a dull box. Feel free to be funny and quirky whenever you want. I have noticed that some women, especially younger women, feel the need to suppress their personalities if they are in new social situations, like a job interview or dinner with some girls they met in their class at college. In fact, those are the exact situations in which you should let your personality take the stage. Everyone loves a girl that is confident enough to crack a joke.

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OJBG’s Flick Picks

November 24th, 2011 by The OJBG Team · 20something, Events, film, Going-out-guide, teen, teen things, Women In Film

By: Samantha

Okay, before you read any further, I must preface this blog post by stating that I have yet to actually see either one of the films I am about to promote. Nevertheless, I felt a strong need to highlight them in a blog post for OJBG because they seem absolutely DIVINE. The films I speak of are “Like Crazy” and “A Week With Marilyn.”

I must have re-watched the trailer for “Like Crazy” at least 38 times. From what I can gather from the trailer, it is a tale of a modern romance between a guy from the United States and a girl from Great Britain. She overstays her Visa while in the United States and gets banned from reentering the US again, having been shipped back to her home in the UK. This inevitably puts a whopping strain on the young couple’s relationship and causes some serious changes and reevaluations of their lives’ courses. Here is a link to the YouTube video of the trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hTUvX_pYNBM

The second film, “A Week With Marilyn,” just hit theaters, unlike “Like Crazy” which has been in theaters for over a month.  The film, an adaptation from a book written by Colin Clark, stars Michelle Williams fresh off her last cinematic hit, “Blue Valentine.” If her performance in “Blue Valentine” is any indication of the level of performance she will bring to this new film, I have no doubt that this film will be anything less than spectacular. As a die-hard Marilyn Monroe fan, upon hearing of this film, I was very apprehensive about whether or not Michelle Williams could pull this role off. I suppose I will inevitably have to see it to decide for myself whether or not she did the screen siren any justice. I think the best part of this movie will ultimately be Emma Watson’s premier in a film post Harry Potter. The plotline follows Marilyn’s alleged relationship with Sir Laurence Olivier’s assistant and highlights the trials and travails she faced at the height of her stardom. The link to the YouTube video of the trailer is: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U_tbnTM7zVE

 

If any of our readers have seen either one of these movies already, please comment with your thoughts and opinions! We welcome ALL comments!

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What Sex and the City Did For Women of the 90s

October 18th, 2011 by The OJBG Team · 20something, 90's, fashion, teen, teen things, Women In Film

By: Samantha

 

            If you’re a woman between the ages of 18 and 50, you most likely have seen at least one episode of the infamous television series, Sex and the City. Let me premise this post by saying that if you do fall within that age gap and have NOT seen an episode, immediately turn on E! and watch one of the re-runs. Seriously. Please. Just do it. I’m not kidding. But, really, I’m not kidding.

I am an avid fan of the series. It began in 1999 and finished in 2004, spanning over six seasons. It has won seven Emmy Awards and eight Golden Globe Awards and has inspired two major motion pictures. The show is about the lives of four single New York City women and their daily experiences with fashion, careers, sex, relationships, and life in the city that never sleeps. Many of my friends constantly tease me for my borderline obsession with the show. To persuade them otherwise, I began contemplating the reasons exactly why women such as myself have become so engulfed in the show. I determined that Sex and the City was much more than just another television series. It did four major things for women of the 90s and 2000s that continue to resonate in the lives of women today:

1. The show strengthened the role of friendships in women’s lives.

The four main characters are best friends. They treat each other as their own family and, at one point in the series, Samantha makes the famed statement that summarized exactly what the show was about: “Men, babies. It doesn’t matter. We’re soul mates.” Regardless of the men that come in and out of the characters’ lives, their friendships with each other remain. Few television series prior to Sex and the City maintained a plot line that encouraged strong bonds between women over heterosexual relationships. Women could find a positive message about sisterhood in the series and the importance of respecting and growing relationships with friends.

 

2. The show empowered female sexuality.

Yes, a big part of the series is about the four characters experiences in the sack. For a television series, this aspect of the show had never been show before on television. Women had never been portrayed in such a sexual light. I’m sure the show received backlash for this characteristic, but I think it was beneficial for women everywhere to see that a television show embraced the fact that yes, women, just like men, had sex. Sure, male characters were shown having sex on television shows for years prior, but a television series had not existed before Sex and the City that portrayed the female perspective.

 

3. The show encouraged women to pursue their careers.

The four main characters are all career women. Carrie Bradshaw has her own weekly column, Samantha Jones is a public relations executive for A list celebrities and businesses, Charlotte Yorke is an art dealer, and Miranda Hobbes is an ivy-league graduate and lawyer. The four characters always depend on themselves for financial support, rather than looking to the men in their lives for financial assistance (except for the one time that Carrie took money from Mr. Big to buy her apartment because she couldn’t afford to pay for it after Aidan dumped her). They are independent, self-sufficient, intelligent women, which had not been depicted on television a great deal in the 90s and 2000s.

 

4. The show encouraged a positive body image.

When the show first started in 90s, super model Kate Moss had revolutionized the “stick-thin” body type in the fashion industry. However, this image was not carried over to Sex and the City. Yes, the women were attractive and healthy, but they were always shown in the series going out and eating. Sometimes they felt insecure about their appearance and weight (i.e. when Miranda doesn’t want to go out with the girls after being pregnant).  My point is that they were never portrayed as women who obsessed over their appearance and starved themselves to fit into a size 2. They were real women with real body insecurities just like the rest of us. Amen, sista, amen.

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Setting the Stage: First Female Film Director

April 28th, 2010 by The OJBG Team · Bishop's Garden, Blog, film, Women In Film

Alice Guy Blaché (1873-1968) was the first female film director. Setting the stage in 1896 with a short film “La Fee aux Choux (The Cabbage Fairy)”. Blaché went on to film 300 total films until 1920. She was also the first and, so far, the only female director to run her own studio plant (The Solax Studio in Fort Lee, NJ, 1910-1914). Her mark on the industry was forgotten until the release of her memoirs in 1976.

Alice Guy Blache

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Women in film. We digg it.

April 28th, 2010 by The OJBG Team · Bishop's Garden, Blog, Women In Film

There are lots of great female head honchos in Hollywood but these 10 talented women have been named the “Top Ten Women Directors in Hollywood”.  (This list is still missing tons of amazing and important filmmakers, but it’s still worth giving a shout to these talented ladies).  So, in no particular order, here are:

10. Nora Ephron.  Okay, OK, so I’m definitely NOT a big “When Harry Met Sally” fan… (I know, people get mas when I say this).  But you got to give it to her for being so prolific and successful in a tough industry. Ephron began as a screen writer, becoming known for “When Harry Met Sally” and “Silkwood”. Her directing career became sucessful with “Sleepless in Seattle” (1993); “You’ve Got Mail” (1998); “Lucky Numbers” (2000); “Bewitched” (2005″ and her most recent film “Julie & Julia” (2009)

9. Nancy Meyers is another writer turned producer starting with the writing of “Private Benjamin” and “Baby Boom”. Her direting carrer has been a huge success begining with the widely loved “The Parent Trap” (1998). She also wrote and directed the beloved “Something’s Gotta Give” (2003). She then filmed the first Hollywood Romantic to star a 60 year old; “It’s Complicated” (2009)

8. Nicole Holofcener is widely known for her “Walking and Talking” (1990); “Lovely and Amazing” (2001) and “Friends with Money” (2006)

7. Catherine Hardwicke focuses on teen films such as her widely favored film “Thirteen” (2003) and not to mention the first “Twilight” (2008).  She actually started out doing tons  of production design– like 90′s fave film ‘Tank Girl”.  You can definitely see her aesthetic attention to production design remain true now, with the lush & gorgeous set she featured as the Director of “Twilight”.

6. Mira Nair is known for “Vanity Fair” (2004) as well as “Monsoon Wedding” (2001) and “The Namesake” (2007)

9. Julie Taymor began as a stage directory; winning a Tony for “The Lion King”. One of her most memorable films is Shakespeare’s “Titus” (1999) and the lovely and trippy “Across the Universe”.

4. Jane Campion was the second woman to be nominated for the Best Director Oscar for “The Piano” (1993). She is known for her portrayls of non-mainstream women of all eras. Such as “Portrait of a Lady” (1996); “Holy Smoke” (1999) and the most recent “Bright Star” (2009)

3. Sofia Coppola was also nominated for the Best Director Oscar for her film “Lost in Translation” (2003).  She is also well known for her films “The Virgin Suicides” (2000) and the unorthodoxed “Marie Antoniette” (2006)

2. Amy Heckerling is known for her film “Fast Times at Ridgemont High” (1982) and her remake of Jane Austen’s “Emma” aka”Clueless” (1995)

1. Kathryn Bigelow is the first woman to win the Best Director Oscar – for her film “The Hurt Locker” (2009). She began her career by crossing the line only men usually did with her vampire film “Near Dark” (1987). She then showed her love for action with “Point Break” (1991) and gained her reputation for being technically sophisticated with “Strange Days” (1995)

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Doin’ it. Props to Kathryn Bigelow for winning in a man’s world.

April 28th, 2010 by The OJBG Team · Bishop's Garden, Blog, Women In Film

Kathryn Bigelow was the FIRST woman to win the Academy Award for Best Director for “The Hurt Locker”. Really, just now? Don’t get us wrong, we’re all for letting the best (wo)man win but surely there’s something to be said about it happening just this year.

image via

Bigelow’s career began with her first short short film in 1978, “The Set-Up”. Bigelow was the 4th woman to be nominated for Best Director Award, the 2nd Female American director.

“I’ve spent a fair amount of time thinking about what my aptitude is, and I really think it’s to explore and push the medium. It’s not about breaking gender roles or genre traditions.” – Kathryn Bigelow

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