CNTM: Carnival is Bacchanal

via CNTM
Treveen photographed by Kerron Riley

Oh my darling biddies, I'm sorry to say that I missed everything but the judging this week, so I have little to say about the models' interpersonal drama. Unfortunately that means that this week, I'll have to base this review exclusively on the their performance in the photoshoot. I know! Comment très ennuyeux! But that can't be helped. Let's get on with it.

 It seems Treveen has once again found herself at the top of the pack and with good reason! This
shot has all the Charima Uniquness Nerve and Talent you could ask for. Treveen is engaged with her body and in her face, she's interacting with the other characters in frame, and she still manages to stand out amongst all the feathers. I can easily see this as an ad for Trinidad Carnival, as it fantastically captures the idea of interacting with a new culture, while also being wary of it. In this shot, Treveen has accomplished the near impossible: she looks demure in a Carnival costume. That takes serious skill. So congratulations again, Treveen. You clearly plan to go very far in this competition.

[Movie Review] Django Unchained: Spaghetti Westerns And Absurdist History

via Afrobella

With all the controversy surrounding Django Unchained upon its release, I purposely waited until after awards season to watch and review the movie. As much as I love getting into the thick of things, I'd already  seen and read so much about the merits and failings of Quentin Tarantino's latest offering that I knew that there was no way I could love or hate it in a void. I needed distance. So now, two weeks after the airing of the 85th Annual Academy Awards (at which Django won for Best Original Screenplay), I'm finally sitting down to ruminate on how I felt about this movie.

I almost don't know what to say about Django Unchained, but I will say this: I didn't hate it.

I've never seen any of Quentin Tarantino's other films. From the trailers alone , he seems to specialize in a kind of overwrought, violent camp that does not appeal to me. But Django was his first directorial credit since 2009's Inglorious Bastards, the film featured several actors that I loved, the buzz was deafening, and it was literally the movie on everyone's lips,so I decided to make an exception and see it.

My conclusions? It wasn't necessarily worth all the hype. It was not a bad movie, and I'll even say that I mostly enjoyed it. I was amused at the choice to shoot so much of it spaghetti western style (since I hate westerns with a passion), and I loved Christopher Waltz's performance as the gun happy, dentist-cum-bounty hunter Dr. King Schultz. Jaime Foxx gave possibly one of the best performances of his career, and it became clear to me that whether he plays a house slave or the Director of S.H.I.E.L.D., nobody fucks with motherfucking Sam Jackson.

CNTM: Flounder or Flourish?

via CNTM
This week's winning photograph
Treveen photographed by Andros Belfonte

Firstly: I TOLD YOU BITCHES IT WOULD GET BETTER! This week we saw improvements in almost every aspect of the show (except the damn sound editing. *shakes fist*) from the judging sets, to the girls' house, to the girls themselves in the form of makeovers. Sadly, Wendy was still gorgeous and still boring, and the final call-out order was an absolute mess, but we did finally get a clear picture of the prizes: a US$50K contract with bmoblie, a cover and feature spread in Caribbean Belle Magazine and a modelling contract with Factor Women.

But it was makeover week, so naturally there were tears and complaints, but other than Kendra, no one seemed to have any serious traumatic experiences. In general the makeovers were pretty great, but the colours were mostly atrocious. None were truly terrible, but there were only a handful of standouts. (See Treveen, Trudy, Lisa, Susan) Everyone else looked different, but not necessarily better. (See: Sedia, Kendra, Ashley). But as usual, the makeovers added a new element to the competition, where we got to see which girls were literally resting on pretty, and which girls understand what modelling is all about.

When it comes to Treveen, it was clear that this makeover was incredibly needed. She didn't love it, and she cried, and she stalled, and she whined, but at the end of the day, her makeover marked the biggest improvement. I appreciated that she took the time to talk herself into accepting it and having a good attitude. It sucks to feel like you don't look your best, but modelling is about looking the way the client wants you to look, so I'm glad it didn't take her too long to recognize that fact.

The great thing is that her picture seriously benefited from her attitude adjustment. It was clear going in to the shoot that she still wasn't completely sold on her look, but she took the time to mentally set her reservations aside and get the job done. This shot is amazing. She is giving face, and angles, and sass, and attitude, and pretty much everything you could ask for in a portrait shoot. She deserved the praise she got for this shot, but I'm mostly impressed with how well she was able to set aside her personal feelings and do her job.

Editorial: Barbara Palvin by Simon Emmett for Glamour UK

via fashion gone rogue

Barbara Palvin by Simon Emmett

It's been a while since I posted any beauty, but these shots were so glamourous that I couldn't help myself. I think the strength in a good beauty shot is to enhance the model's natural looks, rather try to recreate them in a different way. It's so much better to see a face at its best, rather than done up beyond recognition. 

CNTM: Beginners, Bullies and Buck-Toothed Bitches

via CNTM
The Winning Photograph, featuring Trudy and Susan photographed by David Wears

So… almost an entire week has passed and I’m just getting to this review. It’s a little bit laziness and being busy at work, but it’s mostly my complete and utter inability to make heads or tails of what happened on Monday. 

And I’m not talking about what happened in the episode.

But first, the task at hand: A few minutes in, Rachel opted to leave to take a job she had interviewed for prior to making it into the competition. Power to you girl. Go make that money. Modelling may seem glamorous and fun, but it can take years before you hit a stride and make the kind of living you want. In the spirit of fairness, model hopeful Lisa was invited to take her place. With that all sorted, the journey continued.

There was some screaming, two gorgeous male models, arrival at their new accommodations (a drastic, minimal, military style barracks) and commentary on who is or isn’t “real”, who causes comess, and who is a lesbian. 

More on that in a bit.