Jane Birkin at seventy
Jane Birkin turned seventy last December. She has resurfaced occasionally after the crushing loss of her eldest daughter at the end of 2013. Birkin remarked that she "did not leave the house for a year", grieving in private.
In spring of 2016 she was one of the faces of a Hedi Slimane St. Laurent campaign for Le Smoking, the suit that delivers a dash of insouciance to every woman wearing one. The professional shot makes the most of her natural beauty, and it's classic Jane, that warmth and nonchalance more appealing than the clothes.
This past fall, when photographed with her daughter Lou Doillon, Birkin had a fuller face and figure, which may be due to medication; she has mentioned that she had been "very ill".
Jane currently stars in what she says is her last film, the 30-minute "La Femme et le TGV" (The Railroad Lady), which received an Oscar nomination for Best Short Film. She's still 'Jane', showing a bare (well, for a film) face that's lived-in and wise.
Birkin, unlike few stars of her era (and a generation before) has not gone the surgery route. She said in an interview last year that not having begun those procedures decades before, she felt it was too late now—the change would be too dramatic.
I recalled what Carrie Fisher said: that when she signed her Star Wars contract she did not realize she was agreeing to look the same for the next forty years.
That wasn't Jane's deal. Adored for her nonchalant sexiness when young, celebrated in countless posts for a Levis-and-baskets raffishness as she matured, she now brings her presence and radiant smile to a last screen appearance.
Youthful beauty fades for everyone; intelligence and character persevere. I only hope, as Birkin steps from the stage, other women actors follow her, and let their unaltered faces travel along with us.
In spring of 2016 she was one of the faces of a Hedi Slimane St. Laurent campaign for Le Smoking, the suit that delivers a dash of insouciance to every woman wearing one. The professional shot makes the most of her natural beauty, and it's classic Jane, that warmth and nonchalance more appealing than the clothes.
This past fall, when photographed with her daughter Lou Doillon, Birkin had a fuller face and figure, which may be due to medication; she has mentioned that she had been "very ill".
Jane currently stars in what she says is her last film, the 30-minute "La Femme et le TGV" (The Railroad Lady), which received an Oscar nomination for Best Short Film. She's still 'Jane', showing a bare (well, for a film) face that's lived-in and wise.
Birkin, unlike few stars of her era (and a generation before) has not gone the surgery route. She said in an interview last year that not having begun those procedures decades before, she felt it was too late now—the change would be too dramatic.
I recalled what Carrie Fisher said: that when she signed her Star Wars contract she did not realize she was agreeing to look the same for the next forty years.
That wasn't Jane's deal. Adored for her nonchalant sexiness when young, celebrated in countless posts for a Levis-and-baskets raffishness as she matured, she now brings her presence and radiant smile to a last screen appearance.
Youthful beauty fades for everyone; intelligence and character persevere. I only hope, as Birkin steps from the stage, other women actors follow her, and let their unaltered faces travel along with us.
Comments
But I am writing about the majority of women 50 and older, the ones who are told daily via ads for this or that cosmetic produce, procedure and for surgery that they are deficient just because they do not look 25 anymore.
I know plenty of women who have had procedures including full face lifts. Only one says it was for vanity and I admire her candour. The others say it is to attract a partner, or to be considered still employable. The majority look look damn good- except for one who died.
hugs,
Janice
http://www.cnewsmatin.fr/culture/2013-08-31/jane-birkin-ma-bretagne-523549 Her ties with Britanny, where her father did heroic service in the Royal Navy helping the Resistance maquis there.
Obit of her mum: http://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/judy-campbell-730550.html
She looks very puffy in those pictures; that looks like medication side-effects, not normal weight gain. Hope she is feeling better after all her trials.
I can't imagine going under the knife for cosmetic reasons; however after losing some postmenopausal weight that I wanted to lose, "I hate my neck". Other than that, I really can't complain about wrinkles.
There is a very real pressure on older workers, especially women, to take all kinds of measures to look younger, and sadly, they don't always deliver the hoped-for good, steady employment.