Last night we were lucky enough to be a guest at the Elle Magazine 18th annual Women in Hollywood gala.  Presented by Calvin Klein, and L’Oreal, honorees Naomi Watts, Freida Pinto and Elizabeth Olsen all wore Calvin, designed by Francisco Costa.

 

MORE…

In addition to the incredible music line up, SSD favorites include; Arcade Fire, Cold War Kids, Chemical Brothers, Kings of Leon, The Strokes, Black Keys, Interpol, She Wants Revenge, DJ Sven Vath, Kayne West and also Isabel Lucas’  boyfriends rocker Angus Stone, the scene was all about Coachella style.   While running around drinking VeeV in hand, we were able to dance to these amazing musicans, while also scoping out the fashion scene.

The most popular designers on at the festival were Zadig & Voltare, Current Elliott, Aldo Shoes, Joie, and Rag & Bone. Despite Lacoste, Mulberry and Burberry all having events on hand, the sights at the festival were less familiar this year than others, some up and coming Jeremy Scott designs as well as Camilla & Marc made their way onto girls, along with good old American brand Gap and tons of swimsuits by H&M, Zara and Roxy.

Victoria’s Secret Angel, and recent mother, was dancing to the music with some friends and her fiance Jamie Mazur. She wore a white Rebecca Taylor dress, Tolani Chakra scarf and Benjamin Eyewear Nicole sunglasses.

Kate Bosworth, who was with her boyfriend Alexander Skarsgard, wore a Topshop American Flag tank top, paired with Current Elliott shorts and that eve changed into a flowing black Theyskens Theory Damia Dress with Joie shoes.  Every day she rocked her Ray-Ban aviator style sunglasses and loose hair.

Nicole Richie attended the Mulberry luncheon, wearing denim shorts paired with Mulberry “Annie” blouse and her very own House of Harlow 1960 “Jordana” sunglasses,  “Veronika” strappy wedges and a Mulberry small Heritage Bayswater bag.

Rihanna was in the audience during  Arcade Fire’s performance, wearing a camouflage jacket,  black top and jean shorts. Rihanna Tweeted: “Coachella! Fun times… Arcade Fire, u f**kin blew my mind! Felt like a kid again! U rock!!” And later that night attended Brent Bolthouse, 944 and Armani Exchange’s Carnival party off site.

“Twilight” actress Ashley Greene was with new boyfriend Jared Followill’s best friend, wearing a blue Hermanny by Vix sliding halter bikini top underneath an AllSaints Milla stripe vest with Garage  blue boyfriend shorts, and carried a Hobo Davina vintage leather handbag.

Katy Perry, perhaps the most elegant of all Coachella goers, wore a white vintage D&G lace long dress with a Mercy Delta Marylebone scarf and sunglasses.

Sucker Punch Films lead Vanessa Hudgens wore a crocheted Unif Birkin skirt with Kettle black double wrap belt and a blue Jen’s Pirate booty  tube top, along with a Tori Praver tie, a Natalie B. Tibet turquoise coral pendant necklace and Love Child chain drop three feather earring.

And our friend Just Jared reported and snapped Isabel Lucas and Angus Stone in their Coachella gear, check out justjared.com for more details on their looks.

Overall Coachella has once again proved to be an incredible weekend of music, sun and fun, other Hollywood land attending were musican Kenna, athelte Shawn White, entrepreuner Sean Parker (who threw parties everynight till 5am!), Clint Eastwood, Stephen Dorff, hotlier Jason Pomeranc, producers Alan & Gabe Polsky, Hautelook founder Adam Bernhard and many many more!

We can’t wait for next year.

We all need some down time, and depending on your mood, we took the work out of the choice for you, one less thing to worry about. Below are our top picks:

A great date movie: The Tourist ” The Perfect Trip, The Perfect Trap” gives you a luxurious glimpse of Venice with two of the most beautiful people on earth, Johnny Depp and Angelina Jolie, this action/Thomas Crown type mystery/comedy/romance follows Depp, aka, Frank, an American tourist in Venice who’s trip brings him Jolie aka Elise, a beautiful, mysterious woman, who seemingly is interested in him, but little does he know its a trap as she is just trying to connect with Alexander Pearce her lover, who is wanted by both the law and the Russian mob for stealing billions of dollars, the almost Hitchcock feel to the filming creates something unique that both men and woman can appreciate. “It should make people feel good. It’s got lovely twists and turns,” Jolie said. “It’s a throwback in a way to old school thrillers,” said Depp.

To see someone else frustrated with their mom and finally get your boyfriend to enjoy some form of ballet: escape with a thriller of illusions and racy scenes, with Black Swan. Natalie Portman plays uber innocenet Nina who lands the coveted dual role of the Swan queen in Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake, she is the quintessential White Swan, but has to work insanely hard to exude the darkness of the Black Swan. Mila Kunis plays Lily, another, more sensual dancer, vieing for the same role and “friends” with Vincent Cassel’s character who of course plays the Director. Winona Ryder also makes an apperance as the Black Swan retiring. Like all of Darren Aronofsky’s movies, this psycho-thriller was shot in an edgy way that really stands out. Portman went through intense ballet training for a solid year for the film. “it’s so vicious on the body. And you never see it. It’s like you see those beautiful images and underneath it is some really really grotesque detail,” Portman said. Amy Westcott, costume designer, does an incredible job.

If silence is what you seek, learn to appreciate the art of acting with few lines to speak and the potential sadness of a lifestyle that the tabloids all make seem so glamorus. Stephen Dorff does a great job of covincing us his riches do not nearly fulfill his life, and seems to only find real happiness with his daughter, played by Elle Fanning. Shot at the famous Chateau Marmont, Sophia Coppola wrote and directed this film which, like Lost in Translation, approaches film making from more of an artistic subtle style, forcing the actors to really focus on their body and facial expressions as the verbal language is slim. Somewhere won the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival and premiered in both LA and NY last week.

Girls Night Out: For a healthy dose of love, laughter and tears, see “Love And Other Drugs” this movie follows Jake Gyllenhaal who plays a cocky sales rep who meets a terminally ill patient while posing as a doctor, the firey bohemian patient is portrayed by Anne Hathaway, their relationship grows into something neither of them expected, while reminding us what loving someone really means.

Guys Night Out: The Fighter, based on the true story of the early years of boxer “Irish” Micky Ward (Mark Whalberg) and his brother (Christian Bale) who helped train him before going pro in the mid 1980s, Amy Adams plays Micky’s smalltown sweetheart. It is well, very Rocky like, but it is a beautiful story for the boys and Bale’s perforamce is surely one to snag him an Oscar.

If you want a little Country in your life, check out Country Strong, its a story about a rising country-music songwriter (Garrett Hedlund, also stars in TRON) who sparks with a country legend who lost her way (Gwen Paltrow). Together, they mount his ascent and her comeback, which leads to romantic complications involving her husband/manager (Tim McGraw) and a beauty queen-turned-singer (Leighton Meester). Gwen sounds incredible singing, while we always fall for Tim McGraw.

And if you feel like giving up, this will make you think twice, 127 Hours is the true story of mountain climber Aron Ralston’s incredible journey to save himself after a fallen boulder crashes and traps him in a canyon in Utah. For five days, Ralston aka James Franco, discovers if he has the courage to extricate himself by any means necessary, he scales a 65 foot wall and hikes over eight miles. Throughout his survival, he reflects on his life prior to his accident and you will find yourself counting your blessings for how lucky we all really are. Franco’s performance is Oscar worthy.

For more information and listings in your area try www.moviephone.com

Labor Day weekend is a big deal in Italy, its time for the 67th Annual Venice Film Festival and this year we were blown away by one independent film premiering there, “Somewhere” by Sophia Coppola.  Not only does she look incredible in her Louis Vuitton dress and shoes, but her film is the most talked about and liked picture of the festival.  Elle Fanning, younger sister to actress Dakota Fanning, makes a precious performance in the film and on the carpet, stood out in her Marc Jacobs gown, the dress is a perfect choice for a young girl.

“Somewhere” also marks an exciting new phase in the real life career of actor Stephen Dorff, who originally made his mark in the film world playing Deacon Frost in many guys favorite film “Blade“, despite having been a successful actor for ten years by that time, including the film released one year before “Blood & Wine” where he co-starred with Jack Nicholson.

Last year we saw Stephen alongside of Johnny Depp in “Public Enemies” playing a bad boy robber, but “Somewhere” shows a side of the actor that has gone unseen till now, he plays Johnny Marco – a young successful actor who lives at SSD’s real life favorite Hollywood spot The Chateau Marmont Hotel,  the Sunset Boulevard icon of Hollywood often known for excess and impermanence.

Every vice is easily available to Johnny: parties, women, sex, booze, drugs, fame, but he is always dissatisfied. Sudden change comes in the form of his 11-year-old daughter (Elle Fanning), who comes to stay with him after his ex-wife (Michelle Monaghan) leaves her at his doorstep.

“I think the movie is about his becoming a man,” Dorff said at the press conference at the festival.  “A lot of characters I’m interested in are at a transition in life,” Coppola said. “Elle’s character is something real in a world not based on real things.” She said. “When I was first writing the script, Stephen came to mind.”  Dorff praised Coppola and described making the film as “one of the most incredible experiences I’ve had. It made me really sad when it ended.” Dorff went on to add, “The one thing I found very realistic … there is an isolation that happens to an actor when a film is finished, for film actors, we work together three months, then the movie ends. I don’t go to an office every day. I am kind of left with not knowing what I am going to do, until the next movie arrives.”

Coppola said she wanted to do “a portrait of today’s L.A.” and the idea for the movie took shape while she was living in France after finishing “Marie Antoinette,” her last film, and viewing Los Angeles from a distance through the pages of tabloids brought by visiting friends.  The 39-year-old director gives a fresh and often wry twist to the excesses of showbiz fame.  We believe this is exactly the type of role that will bring Stephen Dorff the accolades he deserves and the insight to know not to let it all go to his head.

Coppola said she got her inspiration for the story from growing up with her father, director Francis Ford Coppola, who serves as one of the film’s executive producers. “I spent a lot of time living in hotels while on location with my dad,” she recalled. “They are an impermanent place filled with characters in transition.

”We hope “Somewhere” wins The Golden Lion – the award all Venice Festival Particpiants hope to get – and is announced September 11th this year. And we are cheering Stephen on as his career takes on a new style. Watch for him in the upcoming movies; “Born to Be A Star”, Adam Sandler‘s comedy with Don Johnson and Christina Ricci as well as “Immortals” a Greek titan film where he was cast along side of Mickey Rouke, Kellan Lutz, Frida Pinto, and Isabel Lucas.

Natalie Portman & Jessica Alba Promote Black Swan & Machete In Venice