The Girl Most Likely To (1973) is a little seen made-for-TV film for all those who have been laughed at, dumped on or felt in any way degraded because of their looks. Originally shown as the ABC Movie of the Week, this revengeful black comedy penned by Joan Rivers has rightfully garnered somewhat of a cult following due to its subject matter to which so many can relate. Stockard Channing plays Miriam Knight, “a beautiful person who had been kidnapped by an ugly body”. Even before physical features are taken into account, her clothes say it all. The whole concoction for her first day at her new university is like…

Filmmaker and costume designer Sophie Black recounts her personal interpretation of Heathers, a film defined by vivid visual interpretation. It is just a coincidence that the first time I saw Michael Lehmann’s Heathers (1988) was within hours of the first time I saw David Lynch’s Blue Velvet (1986), and I immediately made comparisons between the two films which I may have not noticed otherwise. More people are quick to compare Heathers to the work of Tim Burton, because of the associates he had on the film (producer Denise Di Novi and star Winona Ryder, to name but two) and the fact that the candy-coloured suburban setting mirrors that of Edward…

WARNING: MAJOR SPOILERS FROM THE OUTSET All the main characters in director/screenwriter Shane Black’s brave and exciting Iron Man 3 wear a suit. By his own admission, Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) is “cocooned” in his. He retreats inside the Iron Man suit, now up to an almost unfathomably expensive Mark 42, because it is the only place he feels safe. Those around Stark, be they on the side of right or wrong, wear their own suit. The suit hides their true self and it is only by removing this disguise that they can reveal it. Iron Man 3 mocks the notion of re-invention; Stark can build all the iron…

Catch up with the week’s costume links. Fashion Fall Trends From big screen and small, Nathalie Atkinson analyses – with typical and unrelenting brilliance – inspiration for the fall fashion season. Ken Van Duyne, Assistant Costume Designer Chats about his way into the business and working with Julie Weiss. Piero Tosi The Italian costume designer (Death in Venice, The Night Porter) has been given an honorary Oscar. Well done, sir. Costume designers as brands Cassy Salyer looks at the increasing (and potentially controversial) trend for costume designers to produce capsule versions for the high street. The Bling Ring Video: The Cut meet costume designer Stacey Battat. Sleepy Hollow Costume designer…

Catch up with the week’s costume links. Fashion Fall Trends From big screen and small, Nathalie Atkinson analyses – with typical and unrelenting brilliance – inspiration for the fall fashion season. Ken Van Duyne, Assistant Costume Designer Chats about his way into the business and working with Julie Weiss. Piero Tosi The Italian costume designer (Death in Venice, The Night Porter) has been given an honorary Oscar. Well done, sir. Costume designers as brands Cassy Salyer looks at the increasing (and potentially controversial) trend for costume designers to produce capsule versions for the high street. The Bling Ring Video: The Cut meet costume designer Stacey Battat. Sleepy Hollow Costume designer…

The merest glimpse at Seth Rogen’s costume for The Green Hornet has turned up online. And it is a glimpse. For those unfamiliar with The Green Hornet, and let’s be honest he is perhaps not that well known outside of fan circles, the premise is classic crime fighter lore. Brett Reid is a newspaper publisher by day, but by night he dons an eye mask and leather gloves to become vigilante ‘The Green Hornet’, ably aided by his chop-socky manservant Kato. The Hornet possesses no superpowers and is not even that strong in a fight. Though he does have a couple of gadgets, namely a gun that fires knock out…

Jacqueline Oknaian has costumed Ugly Betty (2008-10), Sex and the City 2 (2010) and The Big C (2012-13), so it might be fair to say contemporary clothing is her forte. For The Intern she dressed Anne Hathaway and Robert De Niro in that most tricky of cinematic costume: ‘office attire’. Fashion and practicality collide in what needs to be stylish but relatable clothing inside a believable setting. Here Ms Oknaian chats exclusively about her work on the film. Anne Hathaway has the perfect office wardrobe, where did you get your inspiration for her smart, but chic looks? I related to her character personally because I’m a mother and I’ve worked…

It was late November, 2016 when I visited the set of The Conjuring 2 (directed by James Wan). The reason I never wrote about it for Clothes on Film or anywhere else was because of my official role on the day: I was playing an extra (or background artist if you like) during the film’s Maida Vale pub scene. Specifically this is the moment when real life husband and wife paranormal investigator team, Lorraine (Vera Farmiga) and Ed Warren (Patrick Wilson) meet with noted experts in their field to discuss the validity of their current case, aka the Enfield poltergeist. I made the finished cut, by the skin of my…

She arrives at the support group just as the hugging begins. “This is cancer, right?” she asks, her pallid skin and sunken eyes suggesting she could well be a sufferer. Except this is a support group for testicular cancer and Marla doesn’t have any balls, not the kind that can be removed by surgery anyway. Mischievous Marla Singer: black fur coat, sunglasses, squashed black hat and breathing through a cigarette. On the surface Marla looks like a femme fatale, though in truth she is not manipulative enough to fit the mould. In Tyler Durden’s words she is “rock bottom”. Once mislaid, now gone for good. As an embodiment of affected…

Securing perhaps the biggest costume job going at the moment, Michael Kaplan has officially been chosen as costume designer for Star Wars Episode VII. It was on his IMDb page for a short while (later removed), but now the appointment has been corroborated by the man himself. “I am very excited to be working on Star Wars” Kaplan confirms to Clothes on Film “I’m so looking forward to collaborating, once again, with JJ.” Kaplan is now director J.J. Abrams’ regular costume designer having worked with him on Mission Impossible – Ghost Protocol, Star Trek and Star Trek Into Darkness. Evidently after two terms with Abrams on Star Trek, Kaplan has…