Minimalist running: is less really best? November 26, 2012 Minimalist SHOES are having quite the moment right now, helped, in part, by the success of the Vibram Five Finger shoe. The “barefoot” running shoe has appeared on the feet of high flyers, most notably actor Shailene Woodley, who ill advisedly sported a pair with a designer frock at this year’s Golden Globes. Their popularity, [...]
Find sanctuary from the Indian bustle November 25, 2012 ENSCONCED in a luxury yoga hotel in the Himalayas, or in a resort matrix like Goa, you might just be able to avoid the clanging, overwhelming reality of India as you go about your daily business. Not in the cities. No matter how luxurious your hotel, enclave, or colony (as certain leafy districts are known), [...]
Mr Hare ushers in a new era for luxury men’s footwear November 22, 2012 Standing IN Marc Hare’s much talked about new store on Stafford Street, Mayfair, it’s hard to fathom that his life was far from rosy this time four years ago. Back in 2008 the designer was going through a divorce, had broken his leg and lost his job: and all in the same week. But his [...]
End of Watch is a wild ride November 22, 2012 FILM END OF WATCH Cert 15 **** Plaudits are deserved by anyone who manages to do something new with the guns and drugs cop movie. Director David Ayer’s documentary-style camera work, combined with excellent central performances, ensure that End of Watch makes a fresh contribution to a tired genre. It begins with Brian Taylor (Jake [...]
Few Silver Linings in this average rom-com November 22, 2012 FILM SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK Cert 15 *** It’s refreshing to have a mainstream movie with mental illness as its central tenet, especially when Hollywood’s usual treatment of the issue amounts to little more than: “Look! a crazy person! Aren’t they funny!” (Me, Myself and Irene springs to mind). At its best, Silver Linings Playbook is [...]
Gambit is an unforgivably dull carnival of grotesque stereotypes November 22, 2012 FILM GAMBIT Cert 12A ** Culture clash comedies risk falling into the trap of reducing their characters to dull stereotypes. Gambit does not fall into this trap – it gleefully dives into it with suicidal abandon. Colin Firth plays Harry Deane, the long-suffering art buyer for misanthropic mogul, Lord Shabandar (Alan Rickman). Financially hard up [...]
David Tennant fails to lift a family flop November 22, 2012 FILM NATIVITY 2: DANGER IN THE MANGER Cert U | * David Tennant must have something against car-producing cities in the West Midlands. Only this would explain his descent from playing Hamlet and Dr Who to starring in this 101 minute insult to the city of Coventry. Tennant plays Mr Peterson, a teacher who has [...]
Tablets that don’t cost the earth November 21, 2012 AMAZON KINDLE FIRE HD Amazon.co.uk, £129 (seven inch) The Kindle Fire was hailed as the first serious challenger to Apple’s domination of the tablet market – a colour e-reader with access to the web that seamlessly integrated with your Amazon account. In reality it was too heavy and too ugly to ever set the tablet [...]
Terminator 2 has shown us why robots should not kill November 21, 2012 Should robots be allowed to kill people?” It’s a question anyone who has seen Terminator 2 shouldn’t have to think about for long. Killer robots are not, science fiction has taught us, a very good idea. Give a robot a gun and a modicum of intelligence and it won’t be long before it is scheming [...]
Ultimate luxury – but at what cost? November 20, 2012 How much is too much? How much should a flagship luxurious saloon car cost? What about the world’s most luxurious Jag? At £120,000, Jaguar’s XJ Ultimate isn’t cheap. Powered by JLR’s 5.0-litre V8 supercharged petrol engine, this limo is capable of 0-62mph in just 4.9 seconds and a top speed of 155mph. From the outside [...]