The life of surveillance expert, Harry Caul (Gene Hackman) in The Conversation (1974, directed by Francis Ford Coppola) is one of ritual, fear and obsession. This man of many facets is identifiable by the clothes he wears, specifically because of their bland anonymity and repetition. His plastic raincoat in particular, a rudimentary raglan slip-on, provides recognisable iconography for the character. With exclusive insight from The Conversation costume designer, Aggie Guerard Rodgers, we analyse just why this coat is so important to Harry’s journey. Stumbling on a murder plot during a routine, if technically accomplished clandestine recording, Harry becomes obsessed with subduing his Catholic guilt over past deeds. Harry lives alone…

This quite brilliant video is available exclusively on the Hardy Amies website. It discusses the famous designer’s (he was once Royal outfitter to Queen Elizabeth II) involvement creating costumes for Stanley Kubrick’s masterpiece 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968). SEE THE VIDEO HERE We could go into details, though frankly you would be better off just watching the video for yourself. It is around 16 minutes long and worth every second. Look out for some very interesting titbits concerning the famous Pan-Am ‘grip shoes’, where Amies gathered inspiration and how scary but talented milliner Freddie Fox (also The Queen’s outfitter) created those wonderful egg-shaped helmets. Incidentally, an exhibition of Hardy Amies’…

Catch up with the costume gossip you’ve missed. Godzilla “Contemporary in design with a multitude of uniforms”, says costume designer Sharen Davis. We remember chatting to Ms. Davis about her work on Godzilla during an interview for Django Unchained – she was so stoked to be working with director Gareth Edwards. X-Men: Days of Future Past Q&A with ace Louise Mingenbach which we haven’t read because we haven’t seen the movie yet. Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom For the film’s 30th birthday an enticing look back at Anthony Powell’s costume design by Tim Pelan for Cinetropolis. Game of Thrones More secrets in the costumes, unless you want to…

Though really nothing more than an extended, backlit music promo, Flashdance (1983, directed by Adrian Lyne) has garnered a considerable cult following in recent years. Savaged by poor reviews on its release, the film is now embraced as a musical and stylistic record of the second most hedonistic decade in western history. In this respect it is actually a stronger movie than, say, Wall Street (1986), and Flashdance even has a biracial woman as its star; unusual at the time, we should perhaps be grateful producers Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer didn’t opt for Goldie Hawn instead. The clothing in Flashdance can be separated into two categories: dance wear and…

Neo-noir is an unusual genre from a costume perspective because although rooted in reality it is generally not specific to one era or setting. This means a variety of influences fill the screen incorporating past, present and future suggesting a particular story could be told anywhere at any time. Yet with noir’s literary and cinematic heyday belonging to 1940s, certain period details are necessary in order to satisfy that vital element of the genre and its all subsidiaries: atmosphere. The Grifters (1990, directed by Stephen Frears) is about as bleak as noir gets. Its central characters are shysters; they live on the wrong side of the law, fleece the innocent…

This is part 2 (part 1 HERE) of 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. We rejoin Charlie and his ragtag crew at the big meeting when the gang are all introduced to each other. It had to be a Doug Hayward moment and thankfully does not disappoint. In actual fact it is probably Michael Caine’s best fitting suit in the whole movie: Dark blue worsted wool suit; double breasted jacket, wide peaked lapels, 6 on 2 fastening, slanted hip pockets, ticket…

Outfits worn specifically by female actors on film SPOILERS If you’ve heard anything about Phantom Thread (2017, directed by Paul Thomas Anderson), you are bound to uncover a multitude of thoughts on the astounding Academy Award winning costume work of Mark Bridges or[…] 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[…] Costume designer Ann Roth, arguably one of the greatest of her craft still working in Hollywood, has costumed director Steven Spielberg’s latest The Post, and by the looks of this first trailer…

The near future romance Her, written and directed by Spike Jonze, whose widely diverse resume ranges from the world of music videos to MTV’s Jackass to major motion pictures, brought together a creative team that costume designer Casey Storm refers to as “friends first, and co-workers second.” Storm and production designer K.K. Barrett create a soft, comfortable world of tomorrow. Shot on location around Los Angeles and Shanghai, Barrett avoided familiar locations to create a world that is accessible but not overtly recognisable. Our first introduction to the world feels very familiar. Seated in an office in a simple button up, Joaquin Phoenix’s character, Theodore Twombly, dictates a letter to…

Costume’s big week. Every dress worn by Best Actress Academy Award Winners We featured this lovely infographic by Mediarun on our Facebook page. Roll on Sunday! Funny Face Good article on the classic film by Pamela Hutchinson, including a telling quote summing up just how little Audrey Hepburn really understood about costume design: “His (Givenchy) are the only clothes on which I am myself.” Bobi Garland Bobi Garland is Director of the Research Library and Costume Archive at Western Costume. You are about to find out why she is indispensible to the industry. Costume Designers Guild Awards Ladies and gentlemen, the winners. Toy Story An enthralling theory on the true…

Clothes on Film talks exclusively to Anna Sheppard about her work on Captain America: The First Avenger, covering sartorial recreation of 1940s wartime, development of a superhero costume and the difficulties of working from someone else’s original designs. Anna B. Sheppard is one of the best known and respected costume designers in the business. Based in London but working internationally, she has created costumes for directors Steven Spielberg, Michael Mann and Quentin Tarantino, plus been Academy Award nominated twice, for Spielberg’s Schindler’s List (1993) and The Pianist (2002). Captain America is something of a departure for Sheppard as she is effectively working from a 70 year old design template. The…