I was introduced to Guy Richie through Snatch in the 10th grade. Yes, this was years after it’s release but I was a sheltered kid. The only adult movies I remember watching up until then were old James Bond films and the Die Hard franchise. But Snatch was special, I instantly fell in love with Guy Richie’s way of story-telling, his characters and his style of editing/filming. I quickly took a deep dive into all of his work before Snatch and have watched anything new since. I find his style is full of energy. If it wasn’t done purposely to keep our short attention spans engaged then kudos to him for figuring it out. So when I heard about The Gentlemen I was excited. It’s been years since Richie has written and directed a film. Eventually I would eagerly sit down with my popcorn with high hopes of another clever zig-zagging story about some criminals. Sadly I left the theatre disappointed and realizing it may be the only Guy Richie movie I don’t rewatch. The Cast: I will admit; the reason I watched Snatch was because Brad Pitt was on the cover. He may have brought me to the Guy Ritchie party but he wasn’t the reason I stayed. I think this movie is again trying to appeal to American audiences through a big name in Matthew McConaughey. He also pulls some UK actors from popular shows in the US like Charlie Hunnam (Sons of Anarchy) and Michelle Dockery (Downton Abbey). Round that out with other well-knowns: Hugh Grant (90s Rom-Com heart throb), Henry Golding (Crazy Rich Asians) and Colin Farrell (the guy from that movie). Overall it’s an impressive cast, the a-listers and everyone else works really well together. The acting is top notch and believable, a real bright spot in the movie.  The Recap: Most of the movie is being told by Hugh Grant as a movie and blackmail pitch to Charlie Hunnam who plays Matthew McConaughey’s right hand man, in his big time weed empire. But it’s time for Matt to retire so he’s working to sell the empire to one drug kingpin (with another getting in the way) while a newspaper man is trying to sully his ‘good’ name. It’s a Guy RIchie film so there are lots of little stories going on with each character and we get to know each of them in interesting ways. Overall the story is pretty straightforward. The good:
The bad:
Why you should watch or not watch it: As of this writing the Tomatometer had it at 73%, Metacritic was at 51% and IMDB was at 81%. And I generally agree that it was a good movie but the overall feeling for me was boredom. I’d recommend a watch if you like a good crime movie, just don’t expect much. Last thought: Compared to past Guy Richie films this one felt underwhelming. Maybe because Guy Richie himself is a big wig now, but a focus on characters and settings that are very fancy and upper class rather than the underdogs I used to cheer for kept me from getting invested. I just don’t care as much about a guy trying to make a deal for billions of dollars. Now a movie with a focus on Colin Farell and his gym ‘thugs’? Now that would be entertaining! 
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What makes you feel confident? I’m sure many things just rushed to your mind. Is it that great outfit? When your skin is clear? Those naturally good hair days? Finding heels that are also comfortable? I could go on and on. For me, I feel like I can take on the world when my eyebrows look good. I am not naturally knowledgeable with make-up. When watching youtube makeup tutorials, I sit in awe thinking how impossible it all seems to do myself. So it was only a few years ago that I learned about eyebrow make-up. I have thick dark brown hair on my head but everywhere else my hair is thin and on the blonde side (which I will never complain about when it comes to my legs). So after that first time I filled in and coloured my eyebrows I’ve never looked back. One fateful evening looking for random deals on Groupon I found myself finding quite a few different places offering Microblading. I had no idea what that was so off to google I went. What is Microblading? It is a semi-permanent way to add colour to your eyebrows making them look fuller and adding shape. It does not deposit pigment very deeply into your skin which is why it will fade. How quickly it fades depends on a number of different things including: sun exposure, skin type (how you heal), ink used, and ongoing skin care routine. It can last anywhere from 8 months to 2 years. A touch-up is usually recommended between 6 and 8 weeks, as healing/scabbing can cause the pigment to be uneven. I did not add the touch up to my groupon option so I will unlikely get it. Why did I do it? I’m lazy… I loved the idea of waking up and my eyebrows already having colour and shape. Saving time in my makeup routine was very appealing. So after doing some research on what microblading was, I figured why not give it a try, especially when I could save 50% with groupon!
How long did it take? Give yourself some breathing room after the appointment... With the separate 1 hr consultation appointment a week before, I’d say in total the whole thing took just over 4 hours. 85% of the time was spent making sure the shape was perfect. The first hour and a half was just drawing with a black pencil the shape I wanted. It was all about We wanted to enhance the shape I already had and making sure that, while not exactly the same, the dimensions were similar and complemented each other and my face. Once we got started, I would lay down while she scraped away but would jump up to look in the mirror more times then I could count. We added a sharper arch and then just focused on defining and filling in the rest. She wanted to make sure that once gravity was pulling in the right direction things still looked right. At least 3 times she scraped as I was sitting up. She would start from the inside of the brow and work outwards. “You can add a hair line but you can’t take it away.” I didn’t mind all the time it took, I wanted to make sure it was right and that I would love it. Do I love it? Not at first... It felt like I was walking around with permanent marker eyebrows the first few days. It was so dark and so prominent looking. She was trying to match with my hair colour so she had mixed 4 different browns; espresso, taupe, dark brown and brown. I knew it would start off dark and that it would fade but it was sooooo very dark, and looked almost black. Plus the shape was so dramatic, compared to what I was used to. I wanted to hide at home for the week after but I had things going on, including a massage appointment the next day. It was pretty funny when I lifted my head from the hole and there was a perfect eyebrow imprint on the towel. Pretty much every woman I talked to the days following complimented the shape and talked about either wanting to try microblading or their experience having already tried microblading. Seems it's really catching on. By day 5, I couldn't take it anymore and washed my face (they recommend to wait as long as possible to clean your eyebrows). All the clumps and scabs came off easily. I felt so much more secure! It looked more natural while still being able to see more of the individual lines. After more days passed, the final scabs came off and my skin was no longer inflamed, I loved them!
 The Concept: Netflix’s answer to people who want more Project Runway and more Queer Eye. They are obviously trying to separate themselves from Project Runway but the basis premise is the same: grab some designers, give them some challenges, put on some fashion shows. Next In Fashion has its own light-hearted tone. Tan France, who is well known as the fashion guy of the Fab Five in Queer Eye, with his cohost Alexa Chung are very playful and keep the whole show fun. They keep talking about wanting to find the next big treads and fashionable ideas but either I’m very out of touch (which could be) or there wasn’t much boundary pushing with those design concepts. The Good:
 The Bad:
To watch or not to watch:
Do you enjoy Project Runway? Do you enjoy Queer Eye? Then you’ll enjoy this. Best to watch with someone who can be judgy and have fun picking apart the judges opinions and the fashions on the show. Also be prepared for so much name dropping. Might be a fun drinking game: every time a celebrity is mentioned, take a drink! Last thought: I like Project Runway better. I’m looking forward to Making the Cut which is Heidi Klum and Tim Gunn’s new show on Prime. |
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