48 Hours in… Panama City August 1, 2014 Where to stay Panama City isn’t exactly lacking in hotels but the five star Bristol stands out among a wealth of good options. With 125 comfortable rooms offering views of Panama City’s great architecture, it’s the ultimate choice if money is no object. Visit thebristol.com Where to go With the Pacific to the west [...]
Film review: Mood Indigo July 31, 2014 ★★★☆☆ Mood Indigo is a return to form for the tirelessly creative French director Michel Gondry, albeit one with some rather large caveats. The surreal, densely-packed opus combines the DIY aesthetic of his Be Kind Rewind with the darker, more psychological tone of the sublime Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (and, thankfully, nothing at [...]
Film review: A Promise July 31, 2014 ★★☆☆☆ Director Patrice Leconte’s A Promise is an implausible, often ridiculous period drama revolving around a predictably doomed love affair. Richard Madden stars as brooding Friedrich, an ambitious clerk in a steelworks in early 20th century Germany. He catches the eye of the boss Herr Hoffmeister, played by an austere Alan Rickman, who recruits Friedrich [...]
Film review: Guardians of the Galaxy July 31, 2014 ★★★★★ The Guardians of the Galaxy marketing team have been flogging their horse so long and hard it’s a wonder it’s not already dead. With hype so merciless and protracted, the latest Marvel movie seemed destined to disappoint. Factor in that it’s based on a relatively minor branch of the Marvel comics universe and stars [...]
Theatre review: A Streetcar Named Desire July 31, 2014 ★★★★★ Is there room in that hot, sweaty, studio-flat for more than one great performance? Gillian Anderson runs away with it in this, Benedict Andrews’ brilliant, sultry, disorientating, modern dress production. There are strong supporting turns from Vanessa Kirby and Ben Foster but Anderson owns the stage with a captivating interpretation of the fantasist Blanche [...]
The future of the commute July 30, 2014 Driverless cars are poised to go mainstream. But what of the other modes of transport beloved of science fiction? DRIVERLESS CARS (likelihood: 100%) Science-fiction writer Isaac Asimov wrote a short story in 1953 called Sally that takes place in 2057 and features cars controlled by “positronic” brains. The cars don’t require human drivers and communicate [...]
Why Bartholomew Beal is set be a future master July 29, 2014 Figures stand isolated, lost in unfinished landscapes of saturated planes and floating shapes. Bartholomew Beal’s paintings are as open-ended as they are dramatic, as lurid as they are dark, as rich with meaning as they are ill-defined. At only 24, Beal is already a master of ambiguity. It should come as no surprise, then, that [...]
The godfather of fashion photography July 29, 2014 With a life spanning the whole of the 20th century, Horst P Horst (1906-1999) documented a number of momentous changes in the worlds of photography and style. One of the first fashion photographers to perfect the use of colour, the German-American also charted the glory days of haute couture in pre-war Paris and the explosion [...]
The world’s most exclusive shirt July 29, 2014 You would expect a company called Billionaire to pull out all the stops with the launch of its new made to measure service, but the Italian menswear label still manages to surprise you with the sheer opulence of its offering. Not content with fine tailoring, it allows customers to incorporate details including wool infused with [...]
The limited edition Longines pocket watch July 29, 2014 This limited edition Longines pocket watch has been created to commemorate the Chinese year of the horse. The timepiece is a re-issue of a stunning 1927 creation which is on display at the Longines museum. The detailed carving of a horse flying over a fence on the back of the watch is a nod to [...]