Cinema is one of my passions and my love for it goes hand in hand with my love for fashion. Watching a film (or a tv series) is still one of my favorite ways to relax and if it involves beautiful clothes or costumes, it’s even better.
Cinema and fashion have always been strictly tied.
The costumes worn by a character define him/her but many people don’t know how much work there is behind a color, the cut of a jacket, an accessory.
Sometimes it happens that films set trends, consciously or not.
Many actresses are considered true icons because of their on-screen unforgettable style: Marlene Dietrich, Audrey Hepburn, Grace Kelly, Catherine Deneuve and Romy Schneider, just to name few.
These women are still a source of inspiration and their eternal charm was a creation of costume designers like Adrian, Travis Banton, Edith Head, Helen Rose.
Fashion designers also dressed actors. The partnership between Audrey Hepburn and Hubert de Givenchy is still legendary. Could “Sabrina” be such a big success without the super chic wardrobe of Sabrina Fairchild?
Audrey Hepburn in “Sabrina” – Screenshot from Pinterest
Catherine Deneuve was dressed by Yves Saint Laurent in “Belle de Jour” and they established a relationship that lasted until the death of the French designer, who also dressed Romy Schneider in “César et Rosalie”, a film by Claude Sautet (1972).
Romy Schneider in “César et Rosalie” – Screenshot from The Red List
Today, everything is more “studied”. Sometimes designers kind of take over costume designers aiming to promote their collections. An example? “The Counselor”, where Michael Fassbender and Penelope Cruz are dressed Emporio Armani, Javier Bardem wears some vintage Versace pieces and Cameron Diaz’s wardrobe is by Thomas Wylde. As Marilyn Vance (the costume designer of “Pretty Woman”) said during an interview “most of the time now, it’s all styling”.
Michael Fassbender and Javier Bardem in “The Counselor” – Screenshot from Rotten Tomatoes
Talking about recent films, the success of “The Hunger Games” series is certainly due to the love of the public for Jennifer Lawrence’s character Katniss Everdeen, but who would deny that the costumes worn by the cast aren’t absolutely noteworthy?
Elizabeth Banks in “The Hunger Games: Catching Fire” – Screenshot from Enews photo by Lionsgate
Sometimes one dress, one garment, one accessory is enough to make a film or a character/actor iconic. The green gown worn by Keira Knightley in “Atonement” (years ago voted the most beautiful costume from a film), the white pleated halter dress worn by Marilyn Monroe in “The Seven Year Itch”, the Herald Tribune t-shirt worn by Jean Seberg in “Breathless”, Diane Keaton’s manly outfit in “Annie Hall”.
Jean-Paul Belmondo and Jean Seberg in “Breathless” – Screenshot from Pinterest
My love for fashion and costumes was probably born watching films like “Gone With The Wind” (I found out that most of all the costumes worn by Scarlett O’Hara are completely invented) and “Dangerous Liaisons” (I know this film is not suitable for children, but I watched it anyway, I was more interested in the beautiful costumes and fabrics than in the shady plots of the Marquise de Merteuil and the Viscount of Valmont, played by Glenn Close and John Malkovich).
Clark Gable and Vivienne Leigh in “Gone with the Wind” – Screenshot from Pinterest
I am so fascinated by the detail of a costume, by the creative work behind it. The beauty of some details kind of moves me. After all, God is in the details, right?
So, I decided to start a new series of posts dedicated to films with a memorable wardrobe department, and to the unforgettable style of some divas; films that a true fashionista should watch, at least once, (mentally) taking style notes.
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