The Sunset Limited

via Barnes and Noble

Get it on Netflix NOW

I have watched "The Sunset Limited" Three times now.  I hope I get to watch it three more times.  I like the play written by Cormac McCarthy for many reasons: It deals with universal human topics including religiosity, sin, humanities relationships toward one another and God, and the frailty of the human condition.  If you are interested in this conversation then prepare yourself for this HBO production directed by Tommy Lee Jones.  Jones also stars in the movie along with Samual L. Jackson.  Their performances are top notch but remember that it is a movie production of a play.  Don't expect any fancy action scenes etc.  There is one set and two actors; that is all.  If that doesn't bother you, then you will also find this movie worth your while.
Without ruining the movie for you, (not that I could) the plot involves an atheist professor who has decided to take his own life by jumping off the platform at a train station into the tracks of an oncoming train, the "Sunset Limited."   His attempt is foiled when an ex- convict saves his life and takes him to his apartment for a serious talk...

Unless you have something much better to do this summer, I beg you to watch this!  I don't think you will regret it.


On a lighter note, how about some seriously glamorous vintage train-travel fashion?

 Even if your mind is in a whirl of existential thoughts, or a bad-guy is trailing you, or you are tragically in love, why not look terrific as you step aboard (or fall off) a train near you??

Cary Grant in "North by North West"
Cary Grant has a problem which requires him to skulk around this train, but doesn't
 he look fantastic?

In this Hitchcock movie, Suspicion, the scene where Grant and Fontaine's characters first meet is on a train.  It is obvious that he is no good but how can she help herself?  

via once upon a screen
One of my favorite Hitchcock movies is Shadow of a Doubt.  Joseph Cotton is dashing and dangerous; he tries to throw his niece off a train because she knows too much...but, oh my, he looks nice!

Funny Face
One of the most beautiful pictures from a movie about taking pictures.  Here Fred Astaire sets the scene of a tragic romance for Hepburn's character but he fails to realize that what he says is true.  Just look at her: sadness is written on her face but she is dressed impeccably, so things can't be all that bad.

This Vogue shoot with Sean Combs and Natalia Vodianova perfectly captures that retro, romantic, train-travel vibe.  

via Vogue

via Vogue

via Rovaness


via the preppy times

via visualizeus
Don't jump!  I love your train case!!!

Ah, so much glamour.  But I do hope you will give "The Sunset Limited" a look!

The Road

Movie still from Cinemaisdope

Desolate, Lonely Landscape by The Lazy Photographer

Since this is the month that we typically celebrate all of the things that go bump in the night, I thought I'd share my pick for one of the most terrifying stories of our time. 

The Road by Cormac McCarthy

It has been awhile (one, maybe even two years) since I read The Road by Cormac McCarthy, but I have found that this book really resonates with me.  It is the story of a father and son and their journey to survive.  The setting is post apocalyptic America, and it is truly haunting.  The book is so well done that I still, all this time later, find my mind sometimes drifting back to it, thinking about various scenes and episodes and the feelings that accompany them.  I have friends who read the book and did not like it because too much was left unexplained (what caused this post-apocalyptic nightmare reality?  What are the names of the main characters?). While it is understandable that one might wonder about these issues, the reader must remember that McCarthy purposely left them out.  McCarthy is a very deliberate writer, choosing his words, spelling and syntax to enhance the story and add to the experience of reading it.  The unanswered questions allow us to focus on what is important.
 It isn't about what happened to cause humanity to slip into this futuristic hell; it is about the love a parent has for his child.  It is heartbreaking and lonely and full of despair, but there is also hope. This book is haunting.  So much so that I will not watch the movie.  I have images enough of what went on in this nightmare world without seeing them manifest on the big screen.  There are not too many books that capture my attention to the point that I think of them, years later, out of the blue.  This book, even in recall, has the same effect on me that it did as I was reading it.  Perhaps the connection comes from the fact that I have my own child.  Perhaps it is because I find the idea that humans could so easily slip into depravity truly terrifying.  What I find especially interesting is the way a piece of  literature can impact a person so profoundly, and can stay with someone long after the book has been placed onto a shelf or passed along to someone else.  For me, The Road is one of those books.  If you're looking for a truly haunting experience this Halloween, I suggest opening up a copy of McCarthy's award winning, best selling novel.  It's better than any slasher/zombie flick.  Trust me.

by our favorite professor, Dr. Frye

Post apocalyptic inspired clothing was displayed for fall and winter fashion, from Chanel to Vivienne Westwood to Alexander McQueen. Just because you're busy fighting for survival doesn't mean you can't look good doing it.

Chanel

Vivienne Westwood

Alexander McQueen

leather pants from All Saints
(why not be a little badass
at the end of the world?)



Steve Madden Tropador, available at Nordstrom
(great for running, stomping, and kicking)
 

Lafayette 148 New York Cape
(you'll need to stay warm, but this way your
 hands are free for sudden combat)


   

        ~Lori