FILM REVIEW: This Means War

   

       This Means War (12A) directed by McG, the man behind Charlie’s Angels, has the action-romcom down 

       to a tee. It is over the top, silly and predictable.

       The film follows CIA operatives and best friends FDR (Chris Pine) and Tuck (Tom Hardy) who fall into

        a ridiculous love triangle with Lauren (Reese Witherspoon) who is unaware that the two men she is 

        leading on know each other.

      Did their scripts get mixed up in the post? Hardy, who plays the sweet, sensitive Tuck, is best known for 

      his ‘hard man’ role in Layer Cake while Pine, who plays smooth talking lady’s man FDR, plays Kirk in 

      Star Trek and romantic roles in Just my luck and The princess diaries. Perhaps they would have been better

      suited playing each other’s roles.

      It was all too repetitive and familiar. There’s the infamous microphone scene – previously seen on St 

      Trinian’s – where Pine tries to impress Witherspoon with his knowledge about artist, Gustav Klimt, which 

      to our surprise his microphone disconnects and he mishears the information leading to a technological 

      disaster.

      It is worrying that the highlight of the film was watching ditzy Witherspoon dancing around in her kitchen 

      to, Montell Jordan’s “This is how we do it,” whilst being spied on by the boys.

      The film deserves 3/5 – the short action scene at the beginning for the boys and the comical love triangle 

      for the girls makes it the perfect date film. Just don’t watch it expecting to see something new. 

OPINION: Crocs

Crocs are possibly the most controversial shoe of the century.

Founded in 2002 by three friends, the company primarily aimed to produce a foam clog spa shoe.

Shortly after, the clogs rapidly spread like a disease and it became the norm to see people with things on their feet that resemble holey hooves.

Fans of Crocs love the shoes because of their comfort - my dad being one of them.

The shoes are ventilated for cooling and are slip resistant and prevent marking.

The built-in arch support, circulation nubs and an orthotic heel cup support and protect the heel, illustrating that the shoes are designed to be good to feet.

Unfortunately for my father, he rarely got to experience these qualities because being a fashion conscious daughter, I refused to be seen with him when he wore them.

First of all, they don’t look like shoes. They look more like hooves and they make your feet look twice as large as they actually are. Who wants big feet? And they are covered in holes which make the shoes even more of an eyesore.

They are impossible to pull off and don’t look good with anything - they destroy your entire outfit.

It appears that the company attempted to tackle this issue by introducing ‘cool’ characters to embellish the holes in order to show off the owner’s individuality and ‘personal flair’.

However it just made a bad situation worse. Fair enough this could be fun for kids. But when adults customise their Crocs it’s a completely different story. (Thankfully my dad never did this.)

Luckily it appears that the Croc craze has quietened down, I haven’t seen anyone wearing a pair for a while. Hopefully the shoes will fizz out all together.

OPINION: Festivals

Got £200 to spare? Why not go to a festival? The season may have only just ended but tickets for next year are already set to be released kicking off with Glastonbury on October 7.  

Your ticket will give you access to a shanty-like town with a sea of tents packed so tightly together you will not be able to walk anywhere and people will be walking around in fancy dress as though it is deemed normality.

At night your earplugs will be tested to the maximum, as you will be bombarded with the sounds of shouting, fighting and the repetitive beats from the DJ tents.

You will wake up feeling tired and moody and this will get worse as the days go on… along with the stench of the toilets.

That is if you can call them toilets – they are literally a box of wood with a hole in them.

But of course the main reason you will be attending the festival is for the live music.

After a 15-minute battle through the mud you will reach the stage where you and 30,000 others, who have not showered for three days, will try to sardine under a tent to see your favourite artist.

If you can’t fit under the tent don’t worry. You can watch the artist perform on a TV screen outside in the rain, which you could have just done in the comfort of your own home.

Sound appealing? Spend your £200. But don’t say I didn’t warn you.

The Dip Hem Skirt

Band of Gypsies at Asos

It’s time to find your inner mermaid as this season is all about the dip hem skirt.

Inspired by the ocean trends at Chanel, the fishtail asymmetric skirt is all you need to think about this summer. If you only plan on buying one thing this season, this is it.

A skirt which is longer at the back may sound daunting at first but the draped, floaty back is extremely flattering and easy to wear.

Team it with a simple jersey vest and sandals for the day, or wear with a shirt and platforms for evening glamour.

Here are our favourites:

Zara

Goldie at Topshop

Fashion East at LFW

Fashion East hits London Fashion Week like a storm with three very unique looks all made to perfection.

First to hit the runway was the romantic look with pastel blues and whites with the occasional pink floral print. Silk shirts and pretty plaits suggests femininity but when combined with a blazer it creates mystery and confusion with the contradiction of the masculine structure.

Next up was the return of the 80’s grunge with mucky shades of green and black. The model’s hair were put in a centre parting and made to look wet and greasy. Trousers were ripped, tops were backless and trainers were teamed with socks making the homeless look fashionable.

The show ended on a glamorous note with shimmery pink trousers, fluffy up-dos, fur, leather and knits – it appears that casual is now clean and glam.

Fashion East is a non-profit initiative established by the Old Truman Brewery in 2000 to help emerging young designers through the difficult early stages of their career, receiving sponsorship funding from Topshop, TOPMANand The London Development Agency.

Three womenswear and three menswear designers each year get the chance to present a catwalk collection to international press and buyers at London Fashion Week.

Previous successes include Richard Nicholl, Holly Fulton, Jonathan Saunders, House of Holland, Gareth Pugh, Marios Schwab, Louise Goldin, Roksanda Ilincic and Meadham Kirchhoff.

Take a look at the collections from the latest talent below.