© 2012, Warner Bros. Pictures 16 Nov ’12 In many ways Argo is a love letter to the 1970s; through genre, production design, hair and make-up, and especially costume. This is a vivid reconstruction of the era by costume designer Jacqueline West (The Social Network, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button) complete with flares, kipper ties and silk scarves, yet it never strays into parody Anchorman territory. Director and star Ben Affleck’s intelligence agent Tony Mendez is dressed throughout in pseudo cowboy attire: high-waist boot-cut jeans, big buckle belt, Cuban heel boots and sports jacket. He is the enigmatic stranger who strolls into town and solves everybody’s problems and then…

© 2012, Warner Bros. Pictures 16 Nov ’12 In many ways Argo is a love letter to the 1970s; through genre, production design, hair and make-up, and especially costume. This is a vivid reconstruction of the era by costume designer Jacqueline West (The Social Network, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button) complete with flares, kipper ties and silk scarves, yet it never strays into parody Anchorman territory. Director and star Ben Affleck’s intelligence agent Tony Mendez is dressed throughout in pseudo cowboy attire: high-waist boot-cut jeans, big buckle belt, Cuban heel boots and sports jacket. He is the enigmatic stranger who strolls into town and solves everybody’s problems and then…

© 2012, Warner Bros. Pictures 16 Nov ’12 In many ways Argo is a love letter to the 1970s; through genre, production design, hair and make-up, and especially costume. This is a vivid reconstruction of the era by costume designer Jacqueline West (The Social Network, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button) complete with flares, kipper ties and silk scarves, yet it never strays into parody Anchorman territory. Director and star Ben Affleck’s intelligence agent Tony Mendez is dressed throughout in pseudo cowboy attire: high-waist boot-cut jeans, big buckle belt, Cuban heel boots and sports jacket. He is the enigmatic stranger who strolls into town and solves everybody’s problems and then…

© 2012, Warner Bros. Pictures 16 Nov ’12 In many ways Argo is a love letter to the 1970s; through genre, production design, hair and make-up, and especially costume. This is a vivid reconstruction of the era by costume designer Jacqueline West (The Social Network, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button) complete with flares, kipper ties and silk scarves, yet it never strays into parody Anchorman territory. Director and star Ben Affleck’s intelligence agent Tony Mendez is dressed throughout in pseudo cowboy attire: high-waist boot-cut jeans, big buckle belt, Cuban heel boots and sports jacket. He is the enigmatic stranger who strolls into town and solves everybody’s problems and then…

Public Enemies (2009, directed by Michael Mann) is chock full of accurately recreated and as such eminently covetable, early 1930s era garments, as designed by multi Oscar winner Colleen Atwood. Perhaps most enticing of all, however, is how one particular garment, a plain wool overcoat, actually powers the narrative of the film. It is the coat that killed John Dillinger. When we meet John Dillinger (played by Johnny Depp), his criminal career, primarily as a bank robber, is in full swing. He is wearing that conspicuous badge of honour for all those in his ‘gentlemen’s’ fraternity – expensive clothes. They were the ‘bling’ of their day and tended to be…

© 2011, Clothes on Film 5 Apr ’11 This is the most conspicuous outfit Grace Kelly as Frances Stevens wears in To Catch a Thief (1954), principally because there is little narrative justification for it being so elaborate. Her 18th century lamé gown, for example, is deliberately ostentatious. It is costume designer Edith Head’s show stopping finale, intended to throw all attention onto Frances as part of her and John Robie’s (Cary Grant) elaborate ruse. This exotic beach wear, however, is jarringly visible for no other reason than because Frances enjoys attention; far from ingratiating her to Robie, or us, she is presented as self-admiring and rather childish. Note how…

It may not warrant scholarly interest, but National Treasure 2 is an enjoyable enough adventure, with globetrotting locations, a zippy script and trendy Diane Kruger, back again to show how contemporary fashion with a plot is far more fun than a flick through Vogue. After creating an eye-catching (and cleverly ironic) ball gown for Diane Kruger as Abigail Chase in the original film, Judianna Makovsky returned to design for sequel National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets (2007, directed Jon Turteltaub). Most of the principal cast returned too, including Nicolas Cage as treasure hunter Ben Gates. Although, again, it is Diane Kruger who draws most of our attention. National Treasure 2…

It may not warrant scholarly interest, but National Treasure 2 is an enjoyable enough adventure, with globetrotting locations, a zippy script and trendy Diane Kruger, back again to show how contemporary fashion with a plot is far more fun than a flick through Vogue. After creating an eye-catching (and cleverly ironic) ball gown for Diane Kruger as Abigail Chase in the original film, Judianna Makovsky returned to design for sequel National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets (2007, directed Jon Turteltaub). Most of the principal cast returned too, including Nicolas Cage as treasure hunter Ben Gates. Although, again, it is Diane Kruger who draws most of our attention. National Treasure 2…

© 2011, Clothes on Film 5 Apr ’11 This is the most conspicuous outfit Grace Kelly as Frances Stevens wears in To Catch a Thief (1954), principally because there is little narrative justification for it being so elaborate. Her 18th century lamé gown, for example, is deliberately ostentatious. It is costume designer Edith Head’s show stopping finale, intended to throw all attention onto Frances as part of her and John Robie’s (Cary Grant) elaborate ruse. This exotic beach wear, however, is jarringly visible for no other reason than because Frances enjoys attention; far from ingratiating her to Robie, or us, she is presented as self-admiring and rather childish. Note how…

It may not warrant scholarly interest, but National Treasure 2 is an enjoyable enough adventure, with globetrotting locations, a zippy script and trendy Diane Kruger, back again to show how contemporary fashion with a plot is far more fun than a flick through Vogue. After creating an eye-catching (and cleverly ironic) ball gown for Diane Kruger as Abigail Chase in the original film, Judianna Makovsky returned to design for sequel National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets (2007, directed Jon Turteltaub). Most of the principal cast returned too, including Nicolas Cage as treasure hunter Ben Gates. Although, again, it is Diane Kruger who draws most of our attention. National Treasure 2…