A MAGAZINE ABOUT STYLISH CINEMA
A monthly focus on the profound impact of film. Creative director, fashion editor and shoe designer Tabitha Simmons selects her three titles
'British born Tabitha Simmons graduated with honours from Kingston University with a degree in set design and film. While working as a Saturday girl in Joseph she was discovered by a model scout, Tabitha went on to model for a few years but quickly became interested in wardrobe styling. Today, Tabitha is a contributing fashion editor at American Vogue and collaborates with other magazines. In autumn of 2009, Tabitha launched her eponymous shoe collection earning the “Launch of the Year” Award by Footwear News and has been recognised by the industry through numerous honours including a British Fashion Award, a Footwear News Achievement Award, a CFDA Swarovski Award for Accessory Design and a CFDA Accessory Designer of the Year Award.' (Streeters)
FILM PICKS WITH
TABITHA SIMMONS
The Cook, the Thief, His Wife & Her Lover (1989) Peter Greenaway
"Greenaway’s grisly, colour-coded fugue built on themes of gluttony, adultery, fashion, art, and retaliation makes this his most deliciously nefarious venture. The film’s blend of violence, eroticism, melancholia, and satire recalls a classic Jacobean revenge play, but the look is pure Rembrandt meets Gaultier. The film may be read as political commentary on Thatcher’s Britain, visual commentary on the intersection of artistic practices in painting, architecture, and design, or as social commentary on the very status of the human soul in barbarous times." (Harvard Film Archive)
True Romance (1993) Tony Scott
‘True Romance’ is nothing less than a modern classic: a rocket-fuel romance that rattles from Detroit to Hollywood as Slater’s comic-book geek and Arquette’s hooker with a heart steal a case of cocaine and hit the road. The script is close to flawless: from the big speeches to a string of genius one-liners . It’s so funny you can forgive Tarantino’s sleazy strain of nerd-boy wish-fulfilment. But it’s Scott’s direction that sets the whole thing on fire, lunging from heart-meltingly sweet to unbearably violent without breaking stride. And ‘True Romance’ contains more crunchy punch-ups, genius casting choices (let’s not forget stoner Brad Pitt) and moments of real, honest emotion than Tarantino’s entire post-‘Pulp’ output put together. Giddy and glorious." (Time Out)
Wild at Heart (1990) David Lynch
"In career-defining roles, Nicolas Cage and Laura Dern star as Sailor and Lula, lovers on the run from a hitman enlisted hired by Lula’s ‘wicked witch’ mother, in David Lynch’s violent, sexy and surreal road movie. With liberal references to The Wizard of Oz and Elvis, and an iconic role for Sailor’s treasured snakeskin jacket – which he believes symbolises his ‘individuality and belief in personal freedom’ – Wild at Heart won the Palme d’Or for best film at the 1990 Cannes Film Festival.” (BFI)