الثلاثاء، 30 يونيو 2020

Rami Malek stars in star-studded Cartier campaign

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Tue, 2020-06-30 16:02

DUBAI: US-Egyptian actor Rami Malek has been selected to star in Cartier’s new star-studded campaign to celebrate the re-launch of the French brand’s iconic Pasha watch. 

The Oscar winner stars alongside “Game of Thrones” star Maisie Williams, Australian singer Troye Sivan, American singer Willow Smith and Chinese rapper Jackson Wang.

Cartier shared a snippet of the campaign video on Instagram, writing “'Cartier relaunches its signature watch from the 1980s, made for those who view the world in a broader way. #PashadeCartier coming in September (sic).'”

Pasha de Cartier was originally designed by the luxury label for the Pasha of Marrakesh in 1933.

The iconic timepiece is expected to hit the market in September.

The 38-year-old actor has previously served as an ambassador for the prestigious fashion house. 

Earlier this year, Malek starred in Saint Laurent’s Menswear campaign for Spring 2020.

The “Mr. Robot” actor landed his first high-fashion gig when he served as the face of Dior Homme, fronting the label’s Spring 2017 campaign alongside English singer Boy George, as well as rapper A$AP Rocky. 

Recently, the James Bond villain has been nominated for the Best Actor in a Drama Series at the Golden Globes 2020 for his role as a computer hacker named Elliot Alderson in the American thriller television show “Mr. Robot.”


 

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https://ift.tt/3iihpkM June 30, 2020 at 02:07PM

US streaming platform to deliver regional films to American audiences 

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Tue, 2020-06-30 13:20

DUBAI: This month, Netflix released a new catalogue of 44 movies by Arab directors, including Youssef Chahine, Youssry Nasrallah, Nadine Labaki and many more, adding Arab productions on the international radar. 

Now, American streaming platform Telescope Films is also giving Middle Eastern movies a global appeal by partnering with the Arab Cinema Centre, a platform by regional distribution company Mad Solutions. 

The site guides its viewers to where a specific film is available and which platforms stream it. Telescope Films also includes the synopsis, trailer and feedback from critics for each production. 

The platform categorizes its fiction movies, documentaries and short films under “Box Office Hits,” “Oscar Submissions” and “Short and Straight to the Point.”

“The Arab world has produced some of the great masters of world cinema, as well as some of the most exciting directors working today,” said founder and chief executive of Telescope Film, Justine Barda, in a released statement. “We believe their work should be better known in the US and want to help make that happen.”

 

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https://ift.tt/3eOHl5r June 30, 2020 at 11:22AM

‘The Oak Room’ — a slow burner with a rich horror story

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Tue, 2020-06-30 12:35

CHENNAI: The late Ismail Merchant, who made magnificent cinema along with James Ivory, would often say a good movie must tell a good story. Cody Calahan’s (“Let Her Out”, “Antisocial”) newest film “The Oak Room,” part of the recent Cannes Market held on a virtual platform, true to Merchant’s thinking, is rich in the way it builds up the plot and conveys it.

The work, one of the 56 titles that the Cannes Film Festival picked but could not screen as the coronavirus pandemic stopped the 12-day event in May, begins on a cold, icy night with a blizzard raging, an apt setting for a gothic horror. The mysterious happenings revolve around a Canadian snowstorm, making the movie a compelling watch. 




The film stars R.J. Mitte and Peter Outerbridge. Supplied

Amid this gloomy and dark night, Steve (R. J. Mitte) walks into a bar, just about to pull down its shutters. After many years, he returns to repay an old debt to bartender Paul (Peter Outerbridge). But Steve tells a rather annoyed Paul that he would give back the dues in the form of a story. What slowly emerges is a terrible tale of mistaken identities, brutal violence (including decapitation) and a threat to expose the town’s secrets. 

Written by Peter Genoway (an adaptation of his own stage production), “The Oak Room” — despite being a chamber piece, and with just a couple of characters on the screen most of the time — gets you completely engrossed in the lives of the two men. The film draws you into the suspense with studied precision until it reaches an exploding point, throwing up twisted facts and sheer gore, even while examining a father-son relationship.

Most brilliantly portrayed by Mitte and Outerbridge, the narrative demands one’s undivided attention. Otherwise, viewers can lose the thread of the plot. Calahan throws subtle hints and peppers his story with clues. But they are not easy to spot, and “The Oak Room” is certainly not for one who may wander in and out of the room to take a phone call or get a bag of popcorn.

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https://ift.tt/2VrQrNZ June 30, 2020 at 10:40AM

Kim Kardashian West is now a billionaire following deal with Coty Inc.

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Tue, 2020-06-30 10:45

DUBAI: Just a few weeks after Kylie Jenner and Kanye West topped the annual Forbes list of the highest paid celebrities, Kim Kardashian West is now reportedly a billionaire. 

The reality TV star, who is the brainchild of brands KKW Beauty, KKW fragrance and SKIMS shapewear, sold a stake in her beauty label to Coty, a beauty conglomerate, for $200 million, in a deal that values Kardashian’s three-year-old business at $1 billion.

“We are thrilled to welcome one of the most influential beauty icons to the Coty family: @kimkardashian West!” the company wrote on Instagram Monday.

Kanye West, father of her four children, took to Twitter to congratulate his wife. “I am so proud of my beautiful wife Kim Kardashian West for officially becoming a billionaire,” he wrote to his 29.2 million followers.

“You’ve weathered the craziest storms and now God is shining on you and our family.”

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https://ift.tt/2VvPaW6 June 30, 2020 at 08:50AM

El-Gouna Film Festival announces new dates for its 4th edition 

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Tue, 2020-06-30 10:31

DUBAI: The El-Gouna Film Festival has been pushed back one month and will now run from Oct. 23- Oct.31, organizers announced this week.

This decision was made in line with the global health and safety measures amid the coronavirus crisis.

“Several film festivals have been impacted by the ongoing global Covid-19 pandemic and their return to the scene will send a positive signal that the world is on its way to normalcy,” festival director Intishal Al-Timimi said in a released statement.




Bushra Rozza is the co-founder of the festival. (AFP)

Egyptian actress Bushra Rozza, who is also the co-founder of the festival, said the organizers are constantly looking at how they “may adapt to the current situation and continue to play their roles in developing the industry regionally and internationally.”

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https://ift.tt/31wdJ9k June 30, 2020 at 08:44AM

Virgil Abloh’s cover art for rapper Pop Smoke’s posthumous album to be changed following backlash

Tue, 2020-06-30 10:12

DUBAI: Off-White designer Virgil Abloh’s cover art for rapper Pop Smoke’s debut posthumous album ‘Shoot for the Stars, Aim for the Moon’ is set to be changed following social media backlash. 

On Monday, American record music executive Steven Victor took to Instagram to unveil the cover artwork, revealing that the late rapper who was murdered in February specifically requested Abloh to design his debut album cover.

However, the  artwork immediately received backlash from fans, who took to social media to express their outrage. One fan even made an online petition calling for the album artwork to be revised. The petition accumulated over 14,000 signatures in five hours.

Following the complaints over the newly-unveiled cover, Victor wrote on Twitter that he would be “making a change” to the album artwork.

He also added that “Pop would listen to his fans.”




(Twitter)

Moments later, the music executive  took to Instagram to expand on his tweets. “As Pop’s label and as his friends/family, it is our obligation to bring his vision to life. He wanted Virgil to lead creative, we fulfilled his wishes however, unfortunately, he’s not here to give his final approval. His fans, are,” he said. 

“You know why you love Pop, your voices are loud and clear. He loved his fans and listened to his fans. Changes will be made. See you July 3rd 2020," he added.

Abloh, who has yet to respond to the outrage, wrote in a now-deleted Instagram post, “This album cover was one of like 5 things we talked about. He mentioned his story felt like the metaphor of a rose and thorns growing from the concrete of his hood in Canarsie, Brooklyn.” The designer also said that he “Just finished it yesterday,” though the album is scheduled  to drop in a couple of days. 

The Louis Vuitton Men’s creative director is also responsible for the album artwork for Kanye West’s “Yeezus” and Westside Gunn’s “Pray for Paris.”

Pop Smoke, who was born Bashar Barakah Jackson, was shot to death during a home invasion in Los Angeles on Feb. 19. He was 20-years-old.

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https://ift.tt/2YIQzuo June 30, 2020 at 08:18AM

Singer Jennifer Hudson wears Reem Acra for powerful B.E.T Awards performance

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Tue, 2020-06-30 09:30

DUBAI: The 2020 B.E.T. Awards may have been virtual, but its style moments were very real. The celebrities who participated in the annual ceremony brought their fashion A-game to remind the world just how exciting and glamorous red carpet style can be. You don’t have to look further than US singer Jennifer Hudson, who channeled the late Aretha Franklin for a show-stopping performance of “Young, Gifted and Black.”

The star, who first sat behind a white piano before moving to a standing microphone, looked glamorous in an emerald green gown from Lebanese fashion designer Reem Acra. With its contrasting velvet and mesh texture and a colorful gem-encrusted high neckline, the kaftan-style dress won’t soon be forgotten. Paired with matching green eyeliner and diamond studs and with her caramel-colored dreadlocks piled into an elegant updo, the final look was nothing short of glamorous. 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

We are Royalty! Oh what a lovely precious thing it is to be young gifted and black ! @betawards

A post shared by Jennifer Hudson (@iamjhud) on

The performance also served as a sneak peek of what we can expect from Hudson’s portrayal of the Queen of Soul in the upcoming Liesl Tommy-directed “Respect” biopic, in which she will play the late Franklin.

Following Hudson’s set at the B.E.T Awards,  the official trailer for the biopic, which is set to premiere in December, was unveiled. The clip features quick flashes from the musical artist’s  life and career, including scenes from Franklin’s  meteoric rise to fame, her signing with a music manager and the legendary singer belting out the song “Respect”  in a gold gown.

Before Franklin died in August 2018 at the age of 76, she handpicked the “Dreamgirls” star and to portray her in the film. 




US singer Jennifer Hudson also championed the Lebanese designer at the world premiere of ‘Cats.’ Getty

Meanwhile, it’s not the first time that the Oscar winner chooses a design from Reem Acra for a special occasion. Fans might remember the form-fitting black gown with crystal-embellished mesh overlay from the Lebanese designer’s Fall 2019 collection, which she wore to the world premiere for “Cats” in New York’s Lincoln Center back in December.

The 38-year-old singer’s  love for Reem Acra designs go way back to 2012, when she performed at the Concert for the Rainforest Fund in New York City wearing a strapless rose gold gown with an embroidered bodice eight-years-ago.

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https://ift.tt/3eQsfMQ June 30, 2020 at 07:33AM

الاثنين، 29 يونيو 2020

Review of ‘The Slave Yards’ by Najwa Bin Shatwan

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Mon, 2020-06-29 16:03

CHICAGO: Along the Libyan coast in 19th-century Benghazi, thousands of African slaves line the shoreline. They’ve been kidnapped or forcibly sold to Libyan caravans to serve their white masters in sub-Saharan Africa and the brutal living and working conditions they endure are laid out in “The Slave Yards,” the latest novel by the critically acclaimed author and academic Najwa Bin Shatwan. Shortlisted for the 2017 International Prize for Arabic Fiction, Shatwan’s incredible tale adds another shadow to the dark history of slavery, highlighting the resilience of the men and women who pushed forward amid the greatest inhumanity through one of the darkest periods in history.

A second-generation free woman, Atiqa, who is described as “long-suffering and silent, like a boulder that endures the pounding of the salty waves year in and year out without being eroded away,” has lived most of her life in the “slave yards,” a stretch of the Benghazi coastline that nobody wants. She grows up in a shack with her aunt Sabriya, who is black, Miftah, a blue-eyed, blond-haired orphan, and herself, who is dark-skinned but different. With an identity that has always eluded her, Atiqa’s life has always hung in a fine balance. She lives in a city where a name can restore a person’s rights, where a traumatic past can be undone by a single piece of paper claiming birthright. In a story where it’s easier to keep the door closed on a painful past, Shatwan throws it open.

There is an ever-present heartbreak as you read Shatwan’s powerful novel, one that steers clear of happy-endings and white saviors, presenting itself with a bold clarity. Her characters may have no rights and no free will, but they are vibrant. From the moment they are auctioned off, pinched and prodded as if they were animals, to when they step foot in someone’s home as a possession, they suffer cruelty and viciousness. However, they don’t allow the inhumanity of their white masters to take away from the incredible bonds they have built and the resilience to make a life. Women stick together in the heavily patriarchal and traditional society where bad luck and superstition is used to control and harm them.

Shatwan’s novel is meticulously detailed and very moving. First published in 2016 and translated into English by Nancy Roberts, “The Slave Yards” penetrates the soul and lives deep down in the heart. This story adds another layer to a traumatic history that still haunts the world today.

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https://ift.tt/31tJBeC June 29, 2020 at 02:10PM

Katy Perry reveals she considered committing suicide in 2017

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Mon, 2020-06-29 13:27

DUBAI: US singer and songwriter Katy Perry revealed she considered committing suicide after the star and her fiancé, actor Orlando Bloom, split in 2017, Daily Mail reported this week. 

The pregnant music sensation was also at rock bottom because her album “Witness” was not performing well, she said.

“My career was on this trajectory when it was going up, up and up and then I had the smallest shift, not that huge from an outside perspective. But for me it was seismic,” the 35-year-old singer said speaking to radio station SiriusXM CBC.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Let’s just say it’s gonna be a jam packed summer... #NeverWornWhite is out now

A post shared by KATY PERRY (@katyperry) on

“I had given so much out, and it literally broke me in half. I had broken up with my boyfriend, who is now my baby daddy-to-be.”

Gratitude is probably the thing that saved my life, because if I did not find that I would have wallowed in my own sadness and probably just jumped. But I found the ways to be grateful,” the mum-to-be added.

The couple, who are expecting their first baby girl together, got together in 2016 and broke up in February 2017, only to rekindle their romance a few months later. They got engaged on Valentine’s Day in 2019.

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https://ift.tt/2BnQQtP June 29, 2020 at 11:39AM

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