From Icons to Lexicon

Vol. 1 Issue 6 – 4th May 2024

Watch out

Earlier this week, I had the opportunity to watch an early screening of The Fall Guy, starring Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt, and my unbiased opinion would be that you book your tickets ASAP! Gosling and Blunt, fresh off their Barbenheimer high, are perfect in their roles as a stuntman and film director, their chemistry a definite highlight of the movie. The comedy (physical and verbal), the high-octane action sequences and brilliant cinematography make it an all-round entertainer that will not disappoint.

The kinetic directing style is not much different from David Leitch’s previous project, Bullet Train (which I also recommend you watch), but it works! So no complaints! Aaron Taylor Johnson, and Hannah Waddingham, of Ted Lasso fame, are also aptly cast and lend some great moments. In all, it’s pure fun, and the way Ryan Gosling truly embraces his characters is always a delight to watch. Prayer hands emoji (iykyk).

As for some at-home entertainment, Anne Hathaway and Nicholas Galitzine’s age-gap romance The Idea of You is now streaming on Prime Video. Contrary to popular belief, the inspiration for the movie (or the book it was adapted from) did not come from Harry Styles, but it will still be reminiscent of those boy band days for fangirls.

The Veil, a thriller limited series, by the screenwriter of Peaky Blinders, is streaming on Disney Plus. An international spy show with secret agents and secrets galore, you can watch the first two episodes now, new episodes will drop every Tuesday 12:30PM IST.

The trailer for Mufasa: The Lion King, also dropped this past week. The photo-realistic animated musical drama is a prequel to the 2019 remake of The Lion King. Joining the returning cast is Beyoncé’s daughter, Blue Ivy Carter, playing her mother’s daughter in the movie as well.

---

Talk the talk

Here’s a quick breakdown of the lingo and online trends you may be seeing on your feeds and for you pages at the mo:

• ‘You wouldn’t last an hour in the asylum where they raised me’- As Taylor Swift occupies the first 14(!!!) spots on the Billboard Hot 100, this lyric from her song Who’s Afraid of Little Old Me refers to the circumstances of the music industry she had to face as a child star, so now people are accompanying this line with photos of things they had to endure growing up. From lighthearted takes like TV shows, apps, toys to some rather real trauma like this tweet from Monica Lewinsky.

This tweet (are they still tweets if the platform is called X??) does a wonderful job of combining three separate pop culture moments into one beautifully worded sentence, I’m not even joking. This could be a future ancient scripture, I’m in awe. So let’s start,

• ‘Her body tea’- Quite simply means someone’s physically attractive. Yes, tea would otherwise mean gossip/insider info but, just accept it. An influencer off-handedly said it in a TikTok and it caught on.

• ‘That’s that me espresso’- The hook lyric from Sabrina Carpenter’s song Espresso (that is dominating the Spotify Global, US and UK charts). The strange syntax and catchy melody of the song is why everyone’s repeating this phrase for no rhyme of reason. It just tickles your brain.

• ‘Three tickets to challengers please’- The highly anticipated movie, Challenger’s, starring Zendaya, Josh O’Connor and Mike Faist, is now in theatres, with the central plot point being a love triangle (edging towards throuple?), so people are posting this with a fictional trio of their choice, who would probably watch the film.

• ‘Yapping’- Just means talking, like, a lot. And mostly about nonsensical topics.

---

Sound off

Singles by Gracie Abrams and Kendrick Lamar dropped this week. Gracie’s Risk is her first single from her upcoming sophomore album, The Secret of Us, which will be released on the 21st of June. The song takes a twisted take on romanticism and explores a pop sound that’s new to the singer-songwriter. On the flip side, Kendrick Lamar is thriving in his hater era. Dropping two tracks, Euphoria and 6:16 in LA, both being diss tracks about Drake, adding fuel to their already escalating feud.

Plus, Dua Lipa has come out with her third studio album, Radical Optimism.

---

Haven’t you heard

Circling back to Sabrina Carpenter, two weeks from now she will be the musical guest on Saturday Night Live with host Jake Gyllenhaal 👀 The jokes are flooding in as Jake once dated Sabrina’s friend (and whose tour she was the opener for), Taylor Swift, and famously inspired her song All Too Well.

In other news, the long-awaited (yet highly criticised) movie adaptation of Colleen Hoover’s book It Ends With Us, has a release date of August 9th. Here are some first look pictures, starring Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni.

Speaking of Blake Lively, the Met Gala is just around the corner, taking place on the first Monday in May i.e. the 6th. We can only hope Blake makes an appearance, given her past looks that always hit the mark. Some confirmed attendees are supermodel Gisele Bundchen, star of The Bear Ayo Edibiri, Oscar nominee Lily Gladstone, Rihanna, Olivia Rodrigo, Cara Delevingne, Kendall Jenner, Emma Chamberlain and of course, this year’s co-hosts, Zendaya, Bad bunny, JLo and Chris Hemsworth. I can’t wait to see everyone’s nature and time adjacent ‘fits (and minimal black tuxes on the men, PLEASE). To learn more about this year’s theme and dress code, read my last issue here!

Apart from the Met, fashion is also taking centre stage at movie premieres, as theme dressing is in vogue. Margot Robbie did it for her Barbie promo all of summer 2023, Zendaya revived the trend from the 90s with her stylist Law Roach back in 2017 for The Greatest Showman and is adding to it with her recent outings for Spider-Man, Dune and Challengers, and Anya Taylor Joy has been no stranger to it either. From Emma to Super Mario Bros, she too has been dressing on theme for a while, continuing to partake in it for her new movie, Furiosa.

Another fashion icon, Bella Hadid has launched her own oil-based body perfume range called Orebella! Currently, the brand has three genderless scents — BLOOMING FIRE, WINDOW2SOUL, and SALTED MUSE. These are retailing for 35, 72 and 100 US dollars for 10, 50 and 100mL respectively.

---

Gift guide

Last week I reminded you to buy your gifts for Mother’s Day, which is coming up on the 12th of May. So here are some recs to help you make your decision.
A 3-wick candle or body care set from Bath and Body Works is a no-brainer, just pick a scent you know your mom will love. For other skincare or wellness gift sets, you could also browse through Nykaa’s gifting category. If your mom is into fitness, these wrist/ankle weights would be the perfect addition to her workout routine, to upgrade her yoga/jogging/gym sessions. And to wind down from all the hard work she does, a neck and back massager would do the trick! But if you want to elevate your gifts this year, you could opt for a gadget like a Kindle or a bougie piece of accessory, like a Swarovski necklace! If not, you can always rely on the classic bouquet of flowers she is bound to love 💗

---