Clothes on film

After Christopher tragically died in a kayaking accident in late 2021, this website and its monumental volume of work went offline and the domain hijacker by nefarious operators. In honour of Christopher, it has now been brought back online as well as has been possible, though sadly not on the original domain. You can find Chris recorded shortly before his passing on the Garmology podcast at Season 2, episode 15, available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and the usual podcast feeds. Or via the WellDressedDad blog here. A touching post by his wife, Gilly Laverty can be read here courtesy of The Costume Designers Guild. A tribute from the MI6-HQ website.…

Starring: Mia Wasikowska, Michael Fassbender, Judi Dench Directed By: Cary Fukunaga Clothes on Film were lucky enough to be invited to a special screening by Volkswagen See Film Differently of Jane Eyre (2011) at Haddon Hall, where much of the movie was shot doubling for Thornfield Hall in the novel. It is an extraordinary location framing a contently methodical love story. This is the beauty of Jane Eyre; conflict lies foremost with the central characters; the complex emotions which drive them. Costume design by Michael O’Connor, Oscar winner for The Duchess in 2008 provides an impeccable gloss on the film. Characteristic of gothic Victorian dress circa 1840, no longer romantic…

Clothes from films set 2000-now A new trailer for Christopher Nolan’s Tenet has dropped and it’s undoubtedly going to be the best film EVER. Contributor Birdie McAra explores the fantabulously non-male gazey world of Birds of Prey. Join Clothes on Film editor Christopher Laverty for a special Oscars Red Carpet Livestream. You better believe he’s wearing a custom made crown. We chat about why James Bond wearing a Tom Ford suit is almost a waste of time for the From Tailors with Love podcast. The final trailer for The Rhythm Section features more costume changes than a Lady Gaga concert. The leggy lure of Bombshell. The latest MCU smash-hit, Spider-Man:…

Starring: Tom Cruise, Paula Patton, Jeremy Renner Directed By: Brad Bird Ghost Protocol surges close to the complex spy shenanigans and intricate set pieces of the original film but comes up frustratingly short overall. Yet, even if this feels less a complete story and more an extended episode of television, it is still enjoyably daft fare with enough sci-fi tech and desirable clobber to keep you cooing until the credits. Even with Tom Cruise’s star draw as agent Ethan Hunt, the Mission: Impossible movies have always been about the team. Mainly because Ethan is not nearly as interesting a spy as James Bond or Jason Bourne, a point reflected by…

In Blake Edwards’ Breakfast at Tiffany’s (1961, costume supervisor Edith Head), based on the novella by Truman Capote, we get to know Holly Golightly, a mysterious woman-child with a troubled past who refuses to belong to anyone or anywhere. The film reveals much about Holly’s character through its allusions via costume, attests Lisa Magnuson. Holly is presented as young, frightened and damaged; someone who, like a cat, lashes out when others get too close. Holly’s iconic Givenchy dress seen in the opening scene with its thick, cumbersome necklace and yoked back, arguably the most famous costume in film history, represents Holly’s current status as a call girl. The dress consumes…

Clothes on Film has been featured in publications all over the world, on TV, radio and newspapers, plus has a strong social media presence. Check out my Twitter feed, Facebook page and Instagram. There’s also a Pinterest page but honestly it’s not updated much anymore. Two big stories that I was proud Clothes on Film ‘broke’ was the revelation that despite what they had been telling the press, Rodarte were not the costume designers of Black Swan. It took a frank interview with the actual costume designer of the film, Amy Westcott, to clarify that. This story was picked up everywhere from The Guardian to The New York Times. I’m…

Quite deliberately, We Need to Talk About Kevin (2011) provokes discussion. Why is Kevin evil? Was he born that way? Did his mother make him that way by withholding love? Is he a manifestation of his mother’s own hatred toward humanity? Questions one could argue that director Lynne Ramsay and screenwriter Rory Kinnear (adapted from Lionel Shriver’s novel) never intended their audience to be able to answer satisfactorily. To describe the film as ‘arty’ would be doing everyone involved a disservice, but there is no getting away from its obvious stylisation. Cinematographer Seamus McGarvey, production designer Judy Becker and costume designer Catherine George deserve credit for combing their talents to…

A totally non-grainy version of The A-Team movie teaser trailer has hit the net. Either you or your older brother or your dad will be very excited. Watch the HD trailer HERE UPDATE! (01/05) New full trailer online HERE. For our money it’s dafter, but better. In the early-mid 1980s, The A-Team was the action adventure television show for all prepubescent boys who owned a plastic AK-47 and rode a BMX (later mountain bike). It told the story of a group of mercenaries, or ‘soldiers of fortune’ as the voiceover man told us, who were available to hire for good deeds like foiling corrupt landowners or liberating small American towns…

In the season 3 episode ‘Souvenir’, Betty Draper (January Jones) undergoes a dramatic style transformation. Following an impromptu trip to Rome, she temporarily drops the pinched, pretty; near-outmoded late fifties style dresses to instead don the very latest in European chic, specifically a colourful maxi dress that belongs in sleepy Ossining just about as much as she does. Betty accompanying Don (Jon Hamm) on his business trip likely had two intentions: to run away from her feelings for Henry Francis and to rekindle desire with her husband. In such a romantic setting, away from the kids and free to role play, the latter prevails – at least in the short…

Adèle Blanc-Sec is a comic strip heroine created by Jacques Tardi, perhaps little known outside of her native France but thanks to director Luc Besson and actress Louise Bourgoin, now bought vividly to life for the screen. Her world is akin to a fantasy Belle Époque. Period accurate 1910s attire by costume designer Olivier Bériot dotted among reanimated corpses and a giant winged lizard. Despite Les aventures extraordinaires d’Adèle Blanc-Sec’s (The Extraordinary Adventures of Adèle Blanc-Sec) fabricated setting, Paris, 1912, at the time of the dinosaurs, Bériot has paid meticulous attention to ensuring costumes function within a historical context. He really understands the rigid formality of the era, making few…