The most memorable musical number ever captured on film, and Ginger Rogers’ dress contributes to this greatly.

SPOILERS Ahead of a detailed interview with Star Wars: The Force Awakens costume designer Michael Kaplan (currently hard at work on Episode VIII), we take a brief look at his undeniable achievement in bringing the 1970s – early 80’s back to life right here in the present. How do you make the now look old when paradoxically it is supposed to be the new? Well, you go simple. We say simple, but we mean ‘back to basics’. This is not the prequels; The Force Awakens takes place thirty years after the Rebellion defeated the Empire. Now both sides are in state of rebuilding so there is little call for Padmae’s……

On the surface the Babadook is just another bogeyman: prickly, sinewy, all arched limbs and spiky digits. And this is the point: he is just another bogeyman; it is what he represents that really matters. Without spoiling too much, The Babadook is larger than life because he is the exaggerated physical manifestation of our demons. In this respect he could look like anyone – wherever our fears lead. Nonetheless for the purposes of dressing up as the Babadook for this Halloween, and having anyone actually guess who you are, the following is required: top hat, cape and some pointy things to stick on your fingers. To achieve maximum scare, however,…

Does Japanese period costume reflect on contemporary fashion? We appraise the hipster style of Norwegian Wood. Beautiful and affecting, even if it does collapse under the weight of its own earnestness at times.

The most memorable musical number ever captured on film, and Ginger Rogers’ dress contributes to this greatly.

Django Unchained costume designer Sharen Davis exclusively explains her work on the film. Lord Christopher Laverty 9 Comments 31 May ’17 8 Feb ’13 22 Jun ’12 Costume designer Sharen Davis finds a good fit with Tarantino; their Deep South bounty hunter Django is a visibly memorable protagonist crying out for a sequel. Lord Christopher Laverty Comments Off on Review: Django Unchained 23 Oct ’12 31 May ’17 16 Jan ’12

Beautiful and affecting, even if it does collapse under the weight of its own earnestness at times. Lord Christopher Laverty Comments Off on Review: Norwegian Wood 13 Oct ’09 21 May ’12 6 Jun ’18

As Get on Up, director Tate Taylor’s look at the life of singing legend James Brown, hits UK screens we have some fantastic sketches to share of the film’s costuming. Costume designer for Get on Up is the one and only Sharen Davis, who previously worked with Taylor on The Help, although you may know her better for Devil in a Blue Dress, Dreamgirls, Ray and Django Unchained. Davis is absurdly talented and every single project she undertakes should be greeted with cheers by any costume fan. Get on Up with its collective of lowly, stage and civvie ensembles worn by Chadwick Boseman as adult James Joseph Brown (60+changes) is……

For a big budget movie about a lone astronaut who gets stranded on Mars, the spacesuits in The Martian are surprisingly sober in terms of design. There is an attempt here to make everything seem as plausible as possible, costume design especially. Director Ridley Scott’s regular costumer Janty Yates has created possibly the sexiest spacesuits ever seen on screen, and what’s more they are functional. To paraphrase a line in the film, she had to “science the shit out of them”. Yates collaborated with NASA looking specifically at their Z1 and Z2 prototypes to create an EVA (‘Extravehicular Activity’ – any time the crew must go outside) suit and surface……

Doris Day’s last hurrah for 1950s fashion wearing some of the most exquisite costumes ever seen on screen. Lord Christopher Laverty 8 Comments 19 Jun ’10 1 Jul ’10 9 Feb ’15