THE REVIEW

April might have started with fools day, but it ended with smarts and sophistication.

Here's what went down in this fierce and fiery month!

BRAND MARKETING

Various brands used April fools' day to create video's that promoted fake and outlandish products. In this day and age-it's hard not to believe that they could actually be the next big thing! Oh, the signs of the times.

Out of various, here's a few that made us chuckle.

T Mobile. The "all-in" onesie.

Google "Gnomes" what's best for your yard

Zappos zaps box thievery!

FASHION

Ikea and Balenciaga are totes hard to tell apart!

Twitter users absolutely lost it this month when news outlets pointed to the design similarities between Balenciaga’s new “Arena” tote and the beloved cult-favorite Ikea shopping bag. Side-by-side comparisons were made, memes were concocted, and morning TV shows were aghast at the price differences. But those taking aim at Balenciaga should remember this: Marrying high-low fashion in ways obvious and not is a key part of what designer Demna Gvasalia does. Brands like Champion, Eastpak, and Levi’s lined up to collaborate with his other label Vetements last year. As bothered as everyone else on the Internet seems to be, Ikea, like the other brands, hasn’t lost any sleep over it.

The company’s initial response was: “We are deeply flattered that the Balenciaga tote bag resembles the Ikea iconic sustainable blue bag for 99 cents. Nothing beats the versatility of a great big blue bag!”

Ikea’s latest statement is one with prankster undertones. The marketing team put together a quick-fire ad that’s been running on the Ikea websites and its social media channels. It features a picture of the shiny blue shopping bag and the words, “How to identify an original Ikea Frakta bag.” Below, there’s a numbered list: “1) Shake it. If it rustles, it’s the real deal. 2) Multifunctional. It can carry hockey gear, bricks, and even water. 3) Throw it in the dirt. A true Frakta is simply rinsed off with a garden hose when dirty. 4) Price tag. Only $0.99.”

The good news is that you get to decide which blue is for you, and how much green you want to spend. Now wouldn't it be great if all luxury products could have such a colorful price tag choice? Depends who you ask of course.

Either way-it's all a great illustration of the value of the "B" in a brand name like Be-lanciaga and the "A" in affordable by Ikea.

Johan Holmgren, the creative director of Acne agency, which created the ad, praised Gvasalia’s design and told the press that he liked the “flirt” from Balenciaga and wanted to “flirt back.”

MUSIC

COACHELLA HAPPENED AND THE WORLD KNEW ABOUT IT

Anchored by Lady Gaga, who stepped in for expectant superstar Beyoncé, this year's Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival featured headliner Radiohead and Kendrick Lamar closed the weekends as headliner. Lorde, DJ Khaled, Hans Zimmer also performed. Wait ... Hans Zimmer? Yep and he was a highlight.

So how did this supersize Coachella go down? There were some growing pains.

Coachella’s growth seems to be in development, as is the music industry and so it goes.

A few artists to mention:

RADIOHEAD

Radiohead encountered a serious technical difficulty — a rarity at this carefully executed production — when the sound system cut out repeatedly during the British art-rock band’s headlining set Friday night.

After exiting the stage in frustration, frontman Thom Yorke returned and addressed the mishap with his signature deadpan humor.

“Can you actually hear me now?” he asked. “I’d love to tell you a joke, lighten the mood, something like that. But this is Radiohead.” Then he added an unprintable phrase reminding us that lightening the mood isn’t in the nature of a group whose music is haunted by thoughts of technology turning against its makers.

Though the sound system held out from then on, Radiohead never quite recovered from the distraction. The band’s performance, filled with oldies like “Creep” and “Paranoid Android,” felt deflated, as though Yorke and his mates had lost their nerve.

HANS ZIMMER

A packed, totally enthralled crowd flooding the Outdoor Stage. Thundering drums, ethereal vocals, a surprise Pharrell Williams cameo.

A triumphant turn from an EDM superstar? Nope. Just film composer Hans Zimmer absolutely devastating a Coachella crowd that had no idea what it was in for.

When the Coachella lineup was announced this year, Zimmer's presence was the one chin-scratcher. His scores have, for three decades, set the tone for some of the biggest blockbuster films of our time. "The Dark Knight," "Inception," "The Lion King," for starters. The resume speaks for itself.

But how would it play at Coachella? Would a millennial crowd more used to DJ Khaled's Snapchat missives take to an orchestra playing instrumentals from movies they may not have seen?

Oh, lord(e), did they ever.

Maybe Zimmer had a hunch that Coachella rewards bigness of all stripes. That's why he toted out a dozens-strong orchestra to bring his compositions to total, exacting fruition.

Nothing like it has ever happened at Coachella before, from the virtuosity of the players to the ambient, instrumental nature of the material. After a weekend in which a surprise Migos cameo was as expected as sunburns and flower crowns, Zimmer had the good fortune to be doing something both totally recognizable and completely new at Coachella.

It was a stroke of mad genius to put him out here at primetime, and the literal squeals of delight coming from teenage ravers when they recognized his film themes rivaled any reaction to anything else all weekend.

Even Williams' cameo on "Freedom," which would have been a highlight of any other set, felt more like alms-paying than spotlight-stealing. The two have worked together at length, but here, even a pop star like Williams couldn't compete with the 59-year-old German composer willing this ridiculous leviathan of a set into existence.

GAGA

"Don’t be scared — I’ve done this before,” Lady Gaga told the massive crowd gathered for her Saturday night headlining set at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival. And, sure, this was hardly the Super Bowl halftime veteran’s first experience before a live audience numbering in the tens of thousands.

It opened a new chapter for Coachella, which has long hesitated to book a current pop superstar for its gigantic main stage.

Once known for presenting edgy alternative rock and dance music, the annual desert blowout has moved gradually toward the mainstream as its size, prestige and reputation as an upscale celebrity magnet have grown. Madonna famously performed in one of the festival’s tents in 2006, and last year Rihanna dropped in for a surprise appearance with the EDM star Calvin Harris.

Yet for this year’s edition — Coachella’s deep-pocketed promoter, the AEG-owned Goldenvoice, dramatically expanded the scale of its flagship event, adding 20 acres to the festival site and getting the OK from city officials to boost capacity from 99,000 to 125,000 people. (Tickets, which sold for a minimum of $399 each, sold out well in advance.)

As a result, perhaps organizers felt they needed an especially splashy name to meet the demands of those dimensions.

After starting very powerfully with a series of tunes — “John Wayne,” “Born This Way,” “Sexxx Dreams” — that vividly expressed her cartoon-rebel intensity, the singer then sat down behind a keyboard and transformed her ecstatic “The Edge of Glory” into a piano ballad.

Others from the lineup to special mention:

LORDE

Lorde opened her set on Coachella's main stage Sunday night with an expert troll, blasting a recording of Kate Bush's "Running Up That Hill" -- a winking reference, it seemed, to recent reports -- since refuted -- that the festival's founder had refused to book Bush (a clear Lorde influence) because people wouldn't understand her act.

Almost as soon as Lorde's set got going, though, the young New Zealander cleaved to established Coachella tradition, promising she had some surprises in store.

Judging by the crowd's enthusiastic reaction, many fans assumed that meant a guest star or two -- maybe her pal Taylor Swift?

In fact, the surprise turned out to be a performance of a new song from her upcoming album, "Melodrama," which she said is about "the ups and downs of being a twentysomething."

The track is called "Homemade Dynamite," she added, and it appeared to tell the tale of an explosive night out.

EVENTS, FILM & ART

COACHELLA EVENTS

Down an unpaved street just off the desert highway, designer Jeremy Scott hosted his annual Coachella party, a brightly lit desert oasis that seemed as unreal as a mirage.

The Candy Crush-themed bash (in honor of Scott's upcoming capsule collection inspired by the mobile app) featured performances by rappers Lil Yachty and Lil Uzi Vert that were livestreamed by entertainment platform Tidal. At the end of the night, Katy Perry and Scott started a dance party onstage along to DJ Mia Moretti's set.

Among the stars in attendance were Kylie Jenner, Kristen Stewart, rapper Travis Scott, model Emily Ratajkowski and singers Kehlani and Rita Ora.

Before Scott's party, Levi's hosted a brunch at Sparrows Lodge with Solange Knowles, Ratajkowski, model Poppy Delevingne and actress Jamie Chung, among others.

Guests attend a family-style meal at Levi's Coachella brunch in Palm Springs on Saturday.

(Eric Charbonneau for Levi's)

Virgil Abloh, creative designer of the fashion label Off-White, provided the music at the brunch, where guests were able to purchase and customize Levi's denim jackets and jeans with onsite airbrushing and embroidery stations, plus pins and patches.

A view of Popsugar's Cabana Club pool party at Colony Palms Hotel in Palm Springs on April 15. (Getty Images)

Media brand Popsugar also hosted a brunch Saturday afternoon, immediately followed by a Cabana Club pool party at the Colony Palms Hotel.

Actresses Victoria Justice, Yara Shahidi, Aja Naomi King, Chung and "Teen Wolf" star Tyler Posey attended the party, with guests treated to beauty swag from Nordstrom and Ulta. Grammy winner Daya performed at the event where hair styling and beauty DIY stations were also available.

Katy Perry held an Easter Sunday recovery brunch in Thermal to promote her footwear line. (Rony Alwin)

On Sunday morning, Perry hosted her own Easter Sunday brunch, complete with an oxygen bar, facial and massage station, and Easter decorations including a tree covered in brightly painted eggs. There was even a cameo by a stumbling drunk Easter bunny carrying a half-full bottle of Jack Daniel's whiskey.

The "recovery" brunch was held in promotion of Perry's footwear line and guests were treated to vitamin elixirs, an Easter egg hunt, kombucha on tap and a DJ set by Moretti.

TRIBECCA FILM FESTIVAL

The 16th Tribeca Film Festival announced the winners of its competition categories at the awards ceremony at BMCC Tribeca Performing Arts Center. Top awards went to Keep the Change for Best U.S. Narrative, Son of Sofia for Best International Narrative, and Bobbi Jene for Best Documentary. The Festival, presented by AT&T, ran through April 30, 2017.

Awards were distributed in the following feature film competition categories: U.S. Narrative, International Narrative, Documentary, New Narrative Director, The Albert Maysles New Documentary Director, and the Nora Ephron Prize, honoring a woman writer or director. Awards were also given in the short film categories: Narrative, Documentary, Student Visionary and Animation.

For the fifth year, Tribeca awarded innovation in storytelling through its Storyscapes Award for immersive storytelling, which went to TREEHUGGER : WAWONA.

Rachel Israel's KEEP THE CHANGE, winner of Best U.S. Narrative Feature at Tribeca 2017.

“It is more important than ever to celebrate artists both in front of and behind the camera who have the unique ability to share different viewpoints to inspire, challenge and entertain us,” said Jane Rosenthal, Executive Chair and Co-Founder, Tribeca Film Festival. “The winning creators from across the Festival program shared stories that did exactly that, and we are honored to recognize them tonight. And how wonderful is it that the top awards in all five feature film categories were directed by women.” This year’s Festival included 97 feature length films, 57 short films, and 30 immersive storytelling projects from 41 countries.

The Festival’s competition categories continue to incorporate storytelling in all its forms with two awards that were given out earlier in the week, the Tribeca X Award, a juried section recognizing the intersection of advertising and entertainment, and the first Tribeca Snapchat Short Award, a new official category.

The 2017 Tribeca Film Festival came to a close Saturday with the announcement of the two winners for the Audience Awards, sponsored by AT&T.

"The Divine Order," directed and written by Petra Volpe, won the narrative award for its tale of Swiss suffrage in the 1970s.

Winning the documentary award was "Hondros," which was directed by Greg Campbell and written by Campbell and Jenny Golden, about the life of Pulitzer Prize-winning photojournalist Chris Hondros, who died in Libya in 2011.

"It is always exciting to see what resonates most with the audience, and this year, both the narrative and documentary winners represent smart filmmaking and impactful storytelling," Paula Weinstein, one of the founders of the festival, said in a statement.

"On behalf of the Tribeca team, we congratulate 'The Divine Order' and 'Hondros' as the 2017 Audience Award winners, and hope moviegoers worldwide get to experience these powerful films."

In addition to cash awards and in-kind services provided by sponsors including AT&T, CHANEL, CNN Films, Netflix, and Nutella, the Festival presented the winners with original pieces of art created by contemporary artists: Urs Fischer, Walton Ford, John Giorno, Ella Kruglyanskaya, Jorge Pardo, R.H. Quaytman, Sterling Ruby, Aurel Schmidt, Ryan Sullivan, as well as longtime supporter Stephen Hannock.

Elina Psykou's SON OF SOFIA, winner of the Best International Narrative Feature Award at Tribeca 2017.

THE GODFATHER CAST CLOSES OUT THE FESTIVAL

After all these years, they are still a family.

The cast of "The Godfather" and "The Godfather: Part II," including Al Pacino as Michael Corleone, Robert De Niro (young Vito), Diane Keaton (Kay), Talia Shire (Connie), James Caan (Sonny), Robert Duvall (Tom) and director Francis Ford Coppola reunited on Saturday at Radio City Music Hall to close out the Tribeca Film Festival and discuss the landmark films — and moderator Taylor Hackford rightfully called it a historic night.

ART

KORAKRIT ARUNANONDCHAI AT CLEARING GALLERY

The artist Korakrit Arunanondchai was talking a mile a minute recently about “with history in a room filled with people with funny names 4,” his video-and-sculpture show at Clearing, a gallery in Bushwick, Brooklyn.

“I put all of myself, physically and emotionally, into this,” said the amped-up Mr. Arunanondchai, 30, whose friends call him Krit. His dark hair pulled back, he was seated on a couch in a back room at Clearing, explaining how he surfs among different media and combines them.

“Instead of the video being the final product, I think of a film more as a sculpture,” said Mr. Arunanondchai, who will appear in a live performance on May 7.

The show features a 23-minute film accompanied by two separate installations, one a grotesque fantasy landscape with lights and fountains — shells are embedded in the floor — and one a more demure display of his grandmother’s possessions.

There is a man-sized rat suit sitting in one corner, worn by Mr. Arunanondchai and others in the film. He said that the character was inspired by the rat’s prominence in Elizabeth Kolbert’s book “The Sixth Extinction,” which addresses the mass disappearance of species.

“It would be a dominant species after we’re gone,” said Mr. Arunanondchai, who said he often contemplates “the collapse of nature.” He mixes the rat images with footage of his grandparents, looking back with uncertainty about the world’s future.

“I’m from Thailand, and I’m always thinking about Buddhism,” he said. “When you talk about life, it’s always about transforming.”

After growing up in Bangkok, Mr. Arunanondchai moved to the United States to attend the Rhode Island School of Design, then earned an M.F.A. from Columbia. Now he lives in Chinatown and keeps a studio in Ridgewood, Queens.

His multimedia approach has been successful, with a solo show at MoMA PS1 in 2014. Klaus Biesenbach, the director there, calls Mr. Arunanondchai a “synesthetic” artist. “He combines music, sound, fashion, painting, sculpture, cinema in a plot that is both cinematic and biographic,” Mr. Biesenbach explained. “In his live performances, you nearly have the impression you can hear the colors.”

In contrast to his personality, Mr. Arunanondchai’s films are relatively slow and dreamlike — “meditative,” he said. He uses a lot of footage taken by drones, which he calls “a spirit viewpoint,” like the garuda, a divine bird in Buddhist mythology that can change into human form.

THE ANTARCTIC AT COACHELLA

Coachella has never lacked for mind-altering things to look at, but a new digital art installation, was meant to completely overwhelm viewers.

Intro: The Antarctic: a planetarium-style dome near the main entrance. Outside, it looked like a normal white tent, but the interior was rigged like a ravey James Turrell installation.

If you look up from one of the 500 or so bean-bag-like chairs during during each 15-minute session, your entire field of vision was consumed with cosmic images and drippy animations.

The film whips around the cosmos, into DNA strands and through a cubist fantasia of light, color and heavy bass drones.

It looks to be a hit for the San Francisco creative studio Obscura Digital.

Not just a visual but rather an all over experience made this one a wow.

FOOD AND BEVERAGE, HOSPITALITY & LIFESTYLE

FAST CASUAL IS ON THE RISE AND MADE NICE

Daniel Humm and Will Guidara are set to launch Made Nice, their first fast-casual dining concept which will open on West 28th Street, New York - right next to their Nomad hotel.

Humm and Guidara are hot off the back of being named number one on the World’s 50 Best Restaurants list for their Eleven Madison Park restaurant and promise Made Nice will serve a collection of “composed dishes built on recipes that have been developed over decades of learning and experience.”

The new menu borrows from classics dishes, techniques and combinations perfected at Eleven Madison Park and the Nomad restaurant, with a focus on creating delicious, quick and accessible food.

Dishes include: Pork and carrots, curry cauliflower, chicken rice, salmon rosti and a new take on Humm’s famous ‘Milk and Honey’ dessert. Prices for mains range from around $11 to $15 and the most expensive dish on the menu, a dinner item of chicken frites, is priced at $22 for a roasted half chicken, lemon-parmesan stuffing, herb fries and a pickled vegetable salad.

This opening is part of growing movement across the U.S where many chefs and restauranteurs are stepping into the fast-casual market.

Below you can see a first look at some of the dishes from Made Nice - all pics are taken by Evan Sung.

ENTERTAINMENT

NICKELODEON AND VIACOM GOT DIRTY FOR EARTH DAY

Ilyse Terri, Llc, a subsidiary of I Group Ventures, Inc. and founder of The Review, Inc. is a full service incubator and creative agency with satellite offices in NYC and Miami Beach and various industry disruptive projects currently in development.

This month, the company helped to produce activations for Nickelodeon’s “Get Dirty!” environmental initiative that kicked-off on Earth Day and marks a year-long partnership with the National Environmental Education Foundation.

The multifaceted partnership includes a grants program and the development of a digital Get Dirty toolkit, giving kids across the country the opportunity to participate in environmental expeditions in their communities.

In addition, the casts of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Game Shakers lead Get Dirty expeditions in the Southern California area, revisiting a school in Pasadena where they planted an interfaith Peace Garden with Muslim and Jewish students in 2012, and the Pacific Marine Mammal Center in Laguna Beach, helping rehabilitated seals and sea lions.

Turns out getting dirty is a good thing and as always, we commend the network for doing such important and innovative work.

May has already begun with The infamous Met Gala and we will be bringing you all the good stuff from that event and many more.

IN OTHER NEWS: WE'RE GOING TO PRINT!

The Review is proud to announce that a printed version of our online magazine and blog is currently in production.

It will be the first ever printed edition of the magazine and will be absolutely beautiful inside and out with ample news and inspiration for our readers.

Samples of new products will also be included in each edition of the magazine!

With this in mind, please feel free to subscribe to our e-mail list at ilyseterri.com to receive your complimentary first edition copy or e-mail us at info@ilyseterri.com to pre-order a personally addressed copy instead.

If you would like your company's product/samples to be included in our mag, shoot us an e-mail at info@thereviewinc.com with information about your company and the sample product you would like us to include.

Many thanks for all of your continued support and comments.

Please keep them coming and as always WATCH THIS SPACE.