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Daily Mail
19-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Tragic fate of 'the world's most beautiful boy': Actor now looks VERY different after cult 70s film that turned him into a sex symbol at 15 ruined his life and plunged him into alcoholism
When he was only 15, Bjorn Andrésen was declared the 'most beautiful boy in the world' after Luchino Visconti cast the unassuming Swedish teen as Tadzio in Death in Venice. The embodiment of 'pure beauty', Bjorn was handpicked by the Italian filmmaker to play the sailor-suited adolescent opposite Dirk Bogarde in one of the world's most famous queer films. His turn as Tadzio, whose youthful, boyish looks drove Bogarde's character - an ailing, ageing composer - to temptation, catapulted Bjorn to stardom and gained him international recognition. The Italian auteur's film also 'f***ed up a lot of things' for Bjorn, whose blond-locked, almost unearthly beauty earned him comparisons to Michelagenelo's David when he was still a child. Bjorn, now in his seventies, condemned Visconti, who died in 1976, as a 'cultural predator' who allegedly exploited his looks and sexualised him to promote the movie -before throwing him to the wolves. The moniker became a millstone around Bjorn's neck, as the actor admitted Death in Venice remained the unmoving grey cloud that totally eclipsed his life. Five decades after Visconti hailed his Tadzio as the world's most beautiful boy, Bjorn was relegated to life of relative obscurity - marked also by a profound personal sadness and mental health struggles. In 2021, it was reported that Bjorn was living alone in a squalid flat, chain smoking and bickering with his long-suffering, on-off girlfriend and getting into trouble with his landlord for leaving his gas stove on. He also looked world's away from the fresh-faced teenager that inspired a generation of manga artists and became one of Japan's first Western idols, with Bjorn now sporting a perpetually nicotine-stained beard and long, flowing white hair. Born in Stockholm, Sweden, Bjorn was 10 when his mother, Barbro, died by suicide before he was sent to live with his maternal grandparents. His bohemian mother had never told him the identity of his father and, before her death, made no secret that she wanted more from life than being mother to Björn and his half-sister. Growing up, Bjorn had no interest in acting and wanted, instead, to be a musician but his grandmother continued to send him to auditions in the hope that at least one of her grandchildren would become famous. That was how Bjorn found himself standing before Visconti, whose search for Tadzio's 'pure beauty' had taken him across Europe - but to no avail. A documentary about Bjorn's life - titled 'The Most Beautiful Boy in the World' - includes black-and-white footage of his audition for Death in Venice in a room full of young boys and casting directors. 'How old is he? Older right?' Visconti asks a Swedish-speaking casting director as Andrésen poses self-consciously for them at a casting call in Stockholm one chilly day in February 1970. 'Yes, a little. He's fifteen,' the casting director replies. 'Fifteen? Very beautiful,' Visconti observes. 'Could you ask him to undress?' Bjorn, visibly taken aback, eventually strips down to his trunks, as a photographer snaps away and a delighted Visconti makes clear he has found exactly what he was looking for. Looking back on his audition, Bjorn told Vanity Fair, Visconti 'sexualised me' and admitted he 'wasn't comfortable' taking his clothes off. 'When they asked me to take off my shirt, I wasn't comfortable,' he said. 'I wasn't prepared for that. 'I remember when he posed me with one foot against the wall, I would never stand like that. When I watch it now, I see how that son of a b**** sexualised me.' The 15-year-old was signed to the film and paid $4,000 for his role in Death in Venice - one that, he had no idea, would define him for the rest of his life. Filming was an incredibly isolating experience, as Visconti reportedly instructed the crew to stay away from Bjorn. In his 1983 memoir, Bogarde, who played the musician enamoured by the young Polish boy in Death in Venice, described the strict rules Visconti imposed on Bjorn to preserve his beauty. He was, Bogarde said, 'never allowed to go into the sun, kick a football with his companions, swim in the polluted sea, or do anything which might have given him the smallest degree of pleasure'. Bjorn 'suffered it all splendidly,' the late British actor revealed. The reason for Visconti's unyielding rules would later be revealed as he unveiled Bjorn as 'the most beautiful boy in the world' at the London premiere of Death in Venice that was attended by Queen Elizabeth II and Princess Anne. A marketing ploy, the remark piqued such interest in Bjorn that he was turned into an overnight celebrity with the world's most fawned-over face. 'It felt like swarms of bats around me. It was a living nightmare,' Andrésen previously of the fame and attention for which he was woefully underprepared. 'I was a sex object - Big Game.' The 2021 documentary about Bjorn's life, which charts his rise to fame and its life-altering consequences, raised unsettling questions about the ethics of a production that has become a cult gay film. Bogarde was openly homosexual as was Visconti, who said his male lovers included Italian director Franco Zeffirelli and Umberto II, the last King of Italy. He was 63 when he made Death In Venice (based on a novella by German writer Thomas Mann, also gay) with a mostly gay crew, too. But Bjorn wasn't gay — and even if he had been, he had only just turned 15 when he auditioned. Far too young to be turned into a sex object whom Visconti took to gay nightclubs and who later became a trophy for rich Paris men who lavished him with presents and meals so they could parade him around. After Death in Venice premiered at the Cannes Film Festival, Visconti and his friends reportedly took Bjorn to a gay nightclub where he felt the waiters and guests leered at him. 'It was extremely uncomfortable,' he described the outing. 'I think [Visconti] was testing me to see if I was gay.' He recalled drinking himself in a stupor 'just to shut it out' but it was too late to turn a blind eye to his newfound status as a sex symbol and - for some - a gay icon. After Death in Venice, the then-young actor was inundated with sackfuls of fan mail from besotted teenagers and grown men alike According to Yokogaomag, Death in Venice sparked an intense wave of Bjorn fandom in Japan that eventually made him one of the country's first Western idols. When Bjorn visited the country to promote the film, before Death in Venice was released across Japan in October 1971, he was met with screaming female fans in scenes comparable to Beatlemania and, in fact, recorded a couple of songs. Hailed as the 'pinnacle of beauty' in Japan, Bjorn's delicate features captured the imagination of legendary manga artists, including Riyoko Ikeda who modelled the character of Lady Oscar in her series 'The Rose of Versailles' on his likeness. Back in Europe, he continued acting but struggled to shake off his 'world's most beautiful boy' moniker. In 1976, he came to Paris for a film. It never came to anything but he stayed a year despite being penniless. His lifestyle was funded by a string of rich men who showered him with expensive meals, gave him a 500-franc weekly allowance and even provided him with a flat, the 2021 documentary revealed, as Bjorn admitted he was 'bloody naive' about their intentions towards him. 'I must have been bloody naive because it was sort of like: 'Wow! Everyone's so nice,' ' he reflected. 'I don't think they treated me out of the kindness of their heart ... I felt like [a] wandering trophy.' While the documentary doesn't explore Bjorn's own sexuality, he previously told The Daily Mail he felt a fleeting confusion about his sexuality in his 20s and had one homosexual experience. 'I did it more or less to be able to say I'd tried it but it's not really my cup of tea. It wasn't more serious than that,' he said at the time. Bjorn has maintained he's always been attracted to women, but struggled to form relationships with them as he grew older. After growing used to clicking his fingers and having girls come running, he admits he never learnt how to flirt. Even so, he married a poet named Suzanna Roman after they had a daughter, Robine, in 1984. However, tragedy again struck three years later when their nine-month-old son Elvin, died. Bjorn had been lying in bed beside him, insensible after a night out drinking, while his wife took their daughter to kindergarten. Bjorn fell into a deep depression after Elvin's death as he blamed himself for being an inadequate father. 'Their diagnosis is sudden infant death syndrome but my diagnosis is lack of love,' he said in the documentary. 'I descended into depression, alcohol, self-destruction in all ways imaginable - it was an ego trip. Poor me, me, me.' He disappeared from public view so completely that some thought he was dead until he re-emerged in 2003, when a photo of him was used to illustrate the front cover of The Beautiful Boy, Germaine Greer's ode to the beauty of young boys. Bjorn publicly complained he'd never given permission and said, having been exposed to it, adult lust - by men or women - for adolescents was nothing to celebrate. According to the documentary, Bjorn still suffered from depression at the time as its makers, Kristina Lindström and Kristian Petri, caught up with the man who was once the world's most beautiful boy. Reflecting on that fateful day that forever altered the course of his life, and Visconti's role in shaping it, the greying Bjorn said: 'Life and career-wise, it f***ed up a lot of things'.
Forbes
08-05-2025
- Forbes
7 Remarkable And Unique Places To Stay In Italy
For the millions of travelers who visit each year, Italy offers thousands of hotels, B&Bs, agriturismos, and rental options ranging from from haute to humble, and reaching from the country's Alpine North to southernmost Sicily. If you want to look beyond traditional lodging for a memorable holiday in an unforgettable setting, here are seven options to check out. These remarkable and unique places to stay in Italy, which include rustic getaways, palace apartments, and even a Palladian villa, come with impressive histories, and often reasonable prices. San Fruttuoso, known for its historic abbey, is located near Portofino in Liguria. A bedroom in Casa de Mar. A few miles from jet-set favorite Portofino, San Fruttuoso offers a very different kind of Riviera experience. In this coastal hideaway, you'll find a photogenic, rustic fishing village, an exquisite tiny cove beach, and a significant medieval abbey (Abbazia di San Fruttuoso), dating from the 10th century. Reachable by hiking paths or boat (and regularly scheduled ferries from nearby towns like Camogli and Rapallo), San Fruttuoso, although busy during the day, becomes an escape-from-it-all retreat in the evening (the village has a population of less than 40). You can enjoy the tranquil setting in a restored two-bedroom, two-level fisherman's cottage called Casa de Mar with sea views, a terrace and tiny garden. The property is managed by FAI (Fondo Ambiente Italiano), a non-profit dedicated to preserving Italy's natural and cultural assets. Book through the The Landmark Trust, the U.K. organization devoted to the conservation and preservation of historic properties. The facade of the Palazzo Lanza Tomasi, which dates from the 17th century. The living area in Apartment 9, one of the deluxe lodging options in the Palazzo Lanza Tomasi. It has sweeping views of the Bay of Palermo. Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa, the author of The Leopard, a novel focusing on the Sicilian aristocracy's decline at the time of Italy's unification, is among the best-selling books in Italian history. (Luchino Visconti directed the now iconic film, Il Gattopardo, and Netflix recently debuted a series, The Leopard, both based on the novel.) The writer, a Sicilian nobleman, lived the final years of his life in Palazzo Lanza Tomasi, a grand 17th-century landmark in the Kalsa district of central Palermo. He bequeathed the palazzo to his relative and adoptive son, Gioacchino Lanza Tomasi, the Duke of Palma, who with his wife Nicoletta Polo, undertook the restoration of the historic structure. On the piano nobile floor there are rooms that serve as a museum to the famous writer's legacy containing his personal library and works, including the manuscript for Il Gattopardo. Apartments ranging in size from studios to two bedrooms, all with kitchens and some with sea views, are located on various floors of the palazzo and are available to book for self-catering holidays. Nicoletta Polo Lanza Tomasi holds highly regarded Sicilian cooking classes in the palazzo called 'A Day Cooking with the Duchess,' which includes a tour of Palermo's famous Il Capo food market and the preparation of a multi-course meal. The lunch in then served in the palazzo dining room. For more information: Palazzo Lanza Tomasi. The Blue Salon in the Palazzo Conte Federico. A bedroom in the Busuemi apartment. The Palazzo Conte Federico is one of Palermo's oldest dwellings, with a 12th century Arab-Norman tower reflecting a unique medieval architectural style blending Eastern and Western design elements. (The Normans not only conquered England in 1066, they came to rule Sicily in roughly the same time period after they seized power from the island's Muslim overlords.) Today, the palace is owned by Conte Alessandro Federico, whose family history also runs very deep; he is a descendant of the Sicilian ruler, Frederick II (1194-1250). Alessandro, his wife Alwine, and their sons live in the historic dwelling, which lies in the centro storico with many of Palermo's attractions within walking distance. Tours of the palace are given in Italian and English by a family member up to four times a day (except Wednesday). There's a lot to see: splendid architectural and decorative elements spanning centuries of Sicilian style, with striking marble staircases, a frescoed ballroom, antique tiled floors, chandeliers and fireplaces, and a rich assortment of period furniture. In one section of the palazzo are apartments that can be booked for holiday stays, ranging in size from studios to two-rooms with kitchenettes or kitchens; a number of them have balconies or terraces. For more information: Palazzo Conte Federico. Villa Saraceno was built in the mid-1500s by Andrea Palladio. A sitting room with frescoes. Andrea Palladio's villas, built for the Venetian nobility in the 1500s, are among Italy's most valuable Renaissance landmarks (they are listed as a Unesco World Heritage Site). While a number of these villas are open to the public for visits, Villa Saraceno, owned and restored by The Landmark Trust, allows you to stay on for a (minimum four-night) holiday. Built over a decade (1545-55), this splendid country retreat near Vicenza is about an hour's drive from Venice. A large three-story residence with eight bedrooms, sleeping 16, and six bathrooms, the villa is well-suited for a multi-generation family trip. Among the unique highlights are the frescoes found in the main entrance hall, sitting room and loggia. For more information: The Landmark Trust. Isola Bella The Delfino Suite, Ortensia. The Via Stretta apartment. The Borromeo Islands, a stunning archipelago floating majestically on the shimmery blue waters of Lake Maggiore, are an exceptional highlight of Italy's Lakes District. The best-known of the islands is Isola Bella, home to the lavishly baroque Palazzo Borromeo, which took four centuries to complete, and is now an important art museum. (The palazzo's elaborate Italian gardens are widely considered among the most beautiful in the world.) Until recently, a visit to Isola Bella meant a day trip, but Terre Borromeo, the company that oversees the archipelago with the Borromeo family, introduced a collection of apartments and suites for overnight (and longer) stays. Two of the dwellings, which can accommodate three to seven people, are located in the palazzo's former guest house, dating from the 1700s, where you'll also find Terre Borromeo's Delfino Restaurant. Other suites are found in nearby fishing cottages, refurbished in classic modern style. The properties were designed to take in the island's impressive views and include kitchens. For more information: Terre Borromeo. Casa Guidi, where the famous Victorian-era poets Robert and Elizabeth Barrett Browning once lived. The Brownings' former apartment is located in a 15th-century palazzo near the Pitti Palace in Florence. If you like to seek out places where literary greats once vacationed (e.g., Ernest Hemingways at the Grand Hotel des Iles Borromees in Stresa, F. Scott Fitzgerald at the villa that's now the Hotel Belle-Rives in Juan-les-Pins), you'll want to consider a booking at Casa Guidi, the Florentine home of two of the 19th century's most celebrated writers, Robert and Elizabeth Barrett Browning (who famously wrote, "How do I love thee? Let me count the ways'). A few steps from the Pitti Palace, the first-floor apartment in a historic 15th-century palazzo, spans ten rooms with three bedrooms accommodating up to five people. Once owned by the Browning Institute, the residence was transferred to Eton College in the early 1990s; Eton worked with the Landmark Trust to restore and refurbish it to reflect the way the rooms looked when the Brownings lived there. The couple made Casa Guidi their home in Florence for 14 years, a time when they produced some of their finest work. For more information: The Landmark Trust. The Masseria ls located outside Toritto, a town that lies between Bari and Matera. Located roughly midway between the Bari airport and Matera, one of southern Italy's most popular destinations, the Masseria Pilapalucci in Toritto resembles a small castle, with high stone walls, an ancient courtyard and a barrel-vaulted dining room that suggests a medieval banqueting hall. The 16th-century masseria is owned by Emilia D'Urso, a descendant of one of Toritto's most prominent families and founder of the Slow Food Presidium, 'Mandorla di Toritto,' which sustainably produces prized gourmet almonds. She manages the farm estate with her husband Domenico Viti, an agriculture professor, whose ancestors played a historic role in the nearby city of Altamura. The dining area, set for a cooking class. You're guaranteed a restful stay at the masseria (Italian for farm house), set amid hectares of almond and olive groves (Toritto is several miles away). The property includes a bed and breakfast with four double bedrooms and one family suite with two bedrooms, furnished with antiques and linens produced in Southern Italy. All the rooms open onto a large stone terrace, which can be used for dining or sunbathing. (There is also a plunge pool.) A lower-level terrace serves as the dining area in good weather. The entire masseria can be rented out for family or group vacations or special events. Renowned chef and cookbook author, Francesco Paldera, oversees the menu, where he reimagines classic Puglia dishes and presents new offerings. The menu changes daily depending on seasonal produce, and often includes the gourmet almonds produced by the estate, for example for pestos or a local version of the frangipane cake The Masseria also conducts cooking classes. For more information: Masseria Pilapalucci.
Yahoo
29-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Chanel Cruise 2026: Celebrating Cinema, Italy and Craft
CERNOBBIO, Italy — Ah, the power of storytelling. Take a storied luxury hotel overlooking Lake Como — the Villa d'Este; a garden in full bloom; a glorious sunny day, and connect the location with a revered movie director, Luchino Visconti, whose Villa Erba home stood nearby, and the unforgettable Romy Schneider wearing Gabrielle Chanel designs in his 1962 movie 'Boccaccio 70' and voilà, it's the perfect scenario for the Chanel cruise 2026 fashion show. More from WWD Halle Berry, Jeremy Strong Join Juliette Binoche on Cannes Film Festival Jury Chanel Closes Atelier Beauté Chanel in SoHo Chanel Continues Celebrations of Its New Chance Fragrance Enthusing about the location, Bruno Pavlovsky, president of fashion and president of Chanel SAS, said Villa d'Este connects the dots between Chanel and the cinema world — and Sofia Coppola celebrated the show with a film set in the exclusive hotel. He was clearly pleased about securing the venue — 'no easy feat,' he admitted, as it is home to prestigious events throughout the year — and underscored that Villa d'Este is also an inspiration for the studio team. 'It helps our storytelling, and the attraction of the location, the fantasy are always quite important,' Pavlovsky said ahead of the two shows held Tuesday. Originally a 16th-century building, Villa d'Este became a hotel in 1873 and is surrounded by a beautiful park covering 25 acres. Over the years the likes of Elizabeth Taylor, Robert De Niro and Al Pacino, not to mention numerous members of the aristocracy, sultans and top politicians, have been drawn to the unique destination. Chanel is in a transition phase as creative director Matthieu Blazy, who joined in April, will present his first collection for the brand in October, and the glamorous location was indeed an influence for the design team. Don't expect a guest at Villa d'Este to wear thong sandals or pareos as she ambles down to the pool. You can just imagine her milling around the hall in a white sequined belted robe or flared below-the-knee pants and embroidered bib shirt. She will surely change for dinner into a cinematic chiffon halter-top gown with elbow-length silk gloves. A Chanel 25 bag will always be at hand, and she will wear patent high-heeled mules and sandals even on the gravel walkway. At the noon show, a smiling Keira Knightley in a floor-length white silk fall 2025 look embellished with macro bows was the embodiment of this woman. However, there was plenty Chanel also offered its Gen Z customers — tweed miniskirts in a beautiful wisteria hue that matched the blooms on the terrace, for example, and short taffeta dresses in a peach or pink color with flounces and ruffles — although at times the frilly effect could have been toned down a bit. A gold Lurex damask trouser suit added a subtle disco vibe. The lake sparkling below was in sync with the mariniere palazzo pants and polo shirts. The team did not ignore the key signature Chanel elements, so it was familiar — and safe — territory. To be sure they were all there — the tweed, the camellias, the jewelry and strings of pearls — and the designers paid tribute to the brand's artisans, with precious embroideries with beads and rhinestones, lacework inspired by the magnolias, rhododendrons and oleanders in the park, and sequin embellishments. But Pavlovsky acknowledged the moment of transition ahead of Blazy's 'new creative energy, which is super interesting for the team.' While staying true to the brand's strategy is key, 'first and foremost, for us it's more about creation,' he continued. 'Everything is working well, but it takes time. Chanel is quite a big and complex brand, and I'm super optimistic for the end result.' Blazy did not attend the shows 'but the team is already working with him on the new collection, so there is continuation.' Chanel has not reported its yearend financial figures yet, but Pavlovsky said he did 'not forecast any unexpected changes. As for the rest of the industry, the difficulties were seen mostly in Asia and China. The business in China has been quite difficult in 2024 but now it's picking up, and we feel a strong, nice energy.' In January, the executive said 2024 revenues would be flat versus 2023. 'We see ups and downs all the time, and that's part of our job. After COVID-19, we had these incredible bubbles with a kind of steady growth for two, three years. But it's not real life; now we are back to real life with ups and downs, and the ones who are investing in the right direction will probably perform.' Asked about President Trump's tariffs, he said Chanel is taking a wait-and-see approach. 'As you know, everything has been postponed for three months, so we have a few weeks in front of us to make a final decision. We are the only luxury brand to be price-harmonized,' he claimed, 'and that's something which is super important, because it's a strong sign that we give to our clients, and even more important, when there is this kind of situation with tariffs or fluctuation in the currencies, so we are looking at that very carefully.' He does not believe that the Chanel customer is insulated from these concerns. 'We have many international clients who are coming from the States to Europe, and we have seen, with the new situation, a slowdown. I think everyone is concerned by this kind of situation, and we cannot say today what will be the real impact, but when you try to slow down international commerce, it's not a good sign,' said Pavlovksy. 'When the first economy in the world is suffering, it's not a good sign for the rest of the world. We have to be very concrete and pragmatic. Let's see what happens, but if the U.S. is still difficult and challenging from an economic point of view, that will have an impact on our business in the U.S., probably, but also out of the U.S.' Asked about the changing landscape of department stores in the U.S., he said Chanel's relationship with the main ones has been 'loyal and long-lasting.' He believes the impact of the changes affects more the fragrance and beauty categories. 'In general, our size of business with them is quite big, and the way to work with them has evolved year after year. We want to keep their vision of distribution, because the experience that we are offering in our boutiques is always a bit different from the one they offer.' Also, department stores help to offer Chanel in the cities where the company does not necessarily want to open monobrand boutiques, he added. Chanel is taking a 'very cautious' approach about expanding its network and is currently focused on the renovation of existing stores. 'I think that after 2024 and what happened in China, we have to be quite careful,' said Pavlovsky. 'We still have our six to eight tactical openings of new boutiques every year, and quite often, when we renovate, we enlarge the size of the boutique to offer a better client experience for our clients. We are super focused on the improvement of the quality of our network.' Most recently, a Chanel boutique opened in Fukuoka, Japan. In Italy, there are eight boutiques, plus three footwear stores and one seasonal unit in Capri. In October 2023, Chanel opened a 'twin' boutique at the corner of Milan's luxury shopping street Via Montenapoleone and Via Verri, combining for the first time in Italy its fashion collection with its watches and fine jewelry. Holding its cruise show at Villa d'Este shortly after acquiring a minority stake in Como-based silk specialist Mantero is serendipity. 'It's a long partnership, we have been working with Mantero for the past 52 years. Sometimes this kind of partnership can go one step further, and we have decided to become a stronger ally for the future with them,' said Pavlovsky. Globally, Chanel is working with more than 2,000 manufacturers and suppliers from raw materials and components to finished goods. In Italy it has around 20 manufacturers in its ecosystem. 'If we want to continue to lead this industry in the next 20 years, we have to ensure their capability to develop and manufacture our collections. Sometimes this development goes through an investment, but sometimes we cofinance a machine, or we support the training of employees. What is important is to find the right way of supporting this incredible network in the pipeline, which is facing changes today, and it has to fit with each of these companies,' the executive said. The range of companies is very different, from a big one such as Mantero to a small factory, so 'I don't want to put them all at the same level, but we have to take care of everything because we can't allow some of these capacities to disappear.' Equally important is that these companies and suppliers are able to work with other brands. 'For me, it's part of their strengths,' he said. Mantero is 123 years old and has worked with Chanel for 52 years. During a tour of the plant organized by the French company ahead of the shows, members of the family's fourth generation, Franco and Lucia Mantero, said the archives include 12,000 Chanel products and 3,000 sketches from the brand. Asked about any potential development after Chanel's acquisition, Franco Mantero said there had been 'no change on a day-by-day basis, but it's very strategic for the future of Mantero.' In addition, it's 'a positive message for the Como silk district, which is also made up of smaller companies. It gives energy to the system and is a vote of confidence.' In the spring of 2023, Chanel and Brunello Cucinelli inked a long-term agreement to each have a 24.5 percent stake in Italian cashmere manufacturer Cariaggi. Pavlovsky said the textile industry 'is more challenged and has suffered quite a lot in the past,' and such a deal allowed Chanel to 'make sure that we can continue to benefit from the best qualities and the best finishings.' Launch Gallery: Chanel Cruise 2026 Collection Best of WWD Windowsen RTW Spring 2022 Louis Shengtao Chen RTW Spring 2022 Vegan Fashion Week Returns to L.A. With Nous Etudions, Vegan Tiger on the Runway
Telegraph
05-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Telegraph
The Leopard, Netflix review: an unashamedly glossy take on a classic novel
I haven't read Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa's 1958 Italian novel Il Gattopardo (The Leopard), nor have I seen Luchino Visconti's Palme d'Or-winning film, starring Burt Lancaster, Alain Delon and Claudia Cardinale. Obviously, that makes me a startling dunce, but I also suspect this may be the ideal position from which to approach Netflix's much-hoopla'd new TV adaptation. In the run-up to its launch, The Leopard has already garnered the sort of opprobrium reserved for much-loved great books that a haughty literati think can only be cheapened by thicko television. This, it hardly needs to be said, is almost always the opprobrium of the haven't-actually-watched-it. Having actually watched The Leopard, the first thing to be said about it is that in television, money talks. Netflix is reported to have spent around £40 million on making 19th-century Sicily look TripAdvisor-ready, and, my, does it show. You barely need to get involved in the political stirrings of Garibaldi's nascent revolution and its effect on the legacy and stability of the Prince of Salina and his family, to enjoy the backdrops. I try to steer clear of epithets involving the words sumptuous or lavish, but The Leopard is just ludicrously luxe. You can imagine it being played simultaneously on every screen in Currys as they show off the stunningly deep blacks in the latest range of Samsung OLEDs. That, of course, is not enough. You need more than fancy wallpaper to get you through six hours of drama, and in this regard The Leopard will divide. It is deliberately – sometimes infuriatingly – old school in its story-telling, happy to rinse out the melodrama where required like a chocolate box Western. The story is a familiar one from 19 th century Europe: the old regime of hereditary landowners living out the last vestiges of feudalism in obstinate luxury must face up to the industrial future. In the case of Il Gattopardo, that means the transfer of power in sunny Sicily from the old Bourbon aristocracy to the new Kingdom of Italy. Heretics, apostates and cutthroats – aka the unscrupulous liberal bourgeoisie – are coming to overthrow the conservative order. You don't have to be a geopolitical buff to note the parallels with current events, but to its credit The Leopard never lectures. Instead, the balance for director Tom Shankland (The Serpent) to strike is one between landscape and character. This is unashamedly a saga of the North and South or indeed the Foryste school. It is gunning for big scenes played against big backdrops amongst big families. At times it overreaches, with just too much ominous music presaging harsh times, too many candles and too much hat doffing, too many bells (literally) tolling. Visuals so sumptuous they make Downton Abbey look like Alan Clarke are wonderful, but they also contribute to a sense of TV trying to justify its budget. Relentless epic-ness can be like eating too many desserts. Against this, The Leopard finds subtlety in performance. Italy's Kim Rossi Stuart (Romanzo Criminale) takes the lead as the Prince of Salina and he has plainly been watching The Sopranos, because his 'principe' is a classic modern, male TV anti-hero. Caught between love for his nephew Tancredi – who is siding against the family with the revolution – and the need to push back against what he knows is the inevitable march of history, the prince's battle, which is the crux of the series, is mostly with himself. It is this that makes The Leopard a modern tale, in spite of all its lavish, sumptuous classical framing.
South China Morning Post
09-02-2025
- Entertainment
- South China Morning Post
20 years of Erdem Moralıoğlu: the London-based designer shares his inspirations
London-based designer Erdem Moralıoğlu is a big fan of the city's cafes, sights and cultural venues. Photo: WireImage Icons and Influencers Born in Canada to a Turkish father and a British mother, Erdem Moralıoğlu is a true citizen of the world. The London-based designer, who is celebrating the 20th year anniversary of his label this year, is known for romantic and beautiful collections that are always highlights of London Fashion Week. His inspirations include the late Duchess of Devonshire Deborah Cavendish and opera singer Maria Callas, while Selena Gomez, Demi Moore and Kate Winslet are all celebrity fans. Here are some of his favourite finds from around the world. What I'm watching The Leopard, directed by Italian Luchino Visconti and starring Alain Delon. Photo: SCMP Archives I've recently been watching all the films by Luchino Visconti. The Leopard is a masterpiece. I also listen to many podcasts. I love Ruthie Rogers' Ruthie's Table 4 and Bad Gays in particular. My Instagram inspo is ... Gay's The Word in London. Photo: Handout My friend and brilliant art director Thomas Persson – I think he's great. I follow Donlon Books and Gay's The Word, two of my favourite bookshops, as well as the National Portrait Gallery and the Maureen Paley, which I think is one of the best galleries in London. A grooming essential I can't live without Vetiver Extraordinaire by Frederic Malle. Photo: Handout I wear Frederic Malle Vetiver Extraordinaire, and I also love Santa Maria Novella's Vetiver Eau de Cologne. My top London spots
