Whip It (2009) is Drew Barrymore’s directorial debut, and by all accounts it’s very good too. Set in the literally hard-hitting world of roller derby, Whip It tells the tale of Bliss Cavendar (Ellen Page) and her struggle to find acceptance in this merciless contact game along with some meaning in her life. We have already covered the costumes in a short piece looking at the ‘vogue’ of roller derby (HERE) with its totally original mix of sporting attire and fashion customisation. If Whip It had been a bigger hit in the States, possibly via more accurate marketing from its distributor, then this look would be all over the fashion…

MINOR SPOILERS There are already lots of good interviews with Star Wars: The Last Jedi (2017) costume designer Michael Kaplan on the internet (we recommend this one in particular), so for Clothes on Film we kept it brief and fresh. We caught up with Kaplan, who is also responsible for Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015), Star Trek (2009), Fight Club (1999) and Blade Runner (1982), for a little chat about what’s new for episode 8 of the ever evolving space saga. Clothes on Film: Let’s kick off by asking you about the best new costume in the film, the Elite Praetorian Guard… Michael Kaplan: They are my favourite costumes……

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…

On the eve of Boardwalk Empire: Season 2 commencing at HBO, we have had a chat with the show’s costume designers, Emmy nominated John Dunn and Lisa Padovani about what is in store for dandy gangster Nucky Thompson, sourcing vintage dresses and upcoming trends of the 1920s. Clothes on Film, Chris: What do you have planned for Boardwalk Empire Season 2? John Dunn: In Season 2 we will be continuing to explore the decade as our characters and their pasts are further revealed. We are also introducing some of the new currents in fashion as the 20’s begin to unfold and our characters’ situations shift. The big trends of the…

Here’s a bit of justified promotion for an event you will absolutely want to see: fashion historian, DJ for Jazz FM, author and Clothes on Film contributor, Amber Jane Butchart, teams up with your very own editor, Christopher Laverty, for an exquisite evening entitled on 28th March in London. Taking place at the sumptuous, gorgeous, you-really-should-have-been-there-by-now British Library, Amber and Christopher present two separate talks pertaining to the 1920/30’s Jazz Era before coming together to answer questions from the audience. After that, there will be cocktails and period frivolities courtesy of The Vintage Mafia. It all starts at 6.30 pm and finishes around 10.30, so plenty of time to be…

The following is an expanded article Clothes on Film editor Christopher Laverty wrote for men’s style resource MR PORTER analysing Michael Caine’s suits in The Italian Job. This post covers all the costumes he wore during the film. If The Italian Job (1969) needs any introduction at all it might be possible you’ve been in a coma for the past 40 years. It’s so well known and so well loved that were it not for the fact that no-one has really delved into the sartorial details of Michael Caine’s suits there would be nothing left to talk about. As it happens we have spent time studying and researching The Italian…

First look at Jenny Beavan’s late Victorian-with-a-twist costumes in action. Our first Dual Analysis with Costumer’s Guide. To kick off, here is what Chris from Clothes on Film had to say.

Starring: Kirsten Dunst, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Kiefer Sutherland Directed By: Lars von Trier The most exquisite fashion promo ever made. Only a demeaning statement if you consider fashion a frivolous construct of self-expression; Lars von Trier does not. Kirsten Dunst plays Justine, a despondent soul who cannot face the enforced happiness of her bourgeois wedding day yet can passively accept the annihilation of earth due to its collision with the planet ‘Melancholia’. Obviously the destruction of all mankind is a situation beyond her control, so she all but welcomes it. As someone who spends every single day trying to think of a reason to live, Justine is thankful the decision has…

Moon (2009) is a love letter to the science fiction movies that director Duncan Jones grew up watching. He stated his intention was, “to create something which felt comfortable within that canon of those science fiction films from the sort of late seventies to the early eighties”*. Jones’ eerie story of a moon base worker who discovers uncomfortable truths about himself during a three year solo mission certainly achieved that. One of the central reasons the film succeeds, attests blogger Dallas King is its subtly readable costume design by Jane Petrie. Petrie’s only previous science fiction credit was in the costume department for Star Wars: Episode 1: The Phantom Menace…

The latest book by fashion historian, and now TV presenter Amber Butchart (A Stitch in Time on BBC 4 – second season please), is a comprehensively researched stroll through the best dressed folk ever to exist on the planet. The Fashion Chronicles: The Style Stories of History’s Best Dressed is laid out to be effortlessly readable, split into sections ranging from Ancient (and we mean ancient; basically like the first clothes ever) to 20th and 21st Century. Each entry gets a couple of pages of engaging historical notes and background justifying their inclusion along with a photo / picture or two. It works; it doesn’t feel like study or revision,…