Suzy Benzinger, the costume designer of Blue Jasmine, chose iconic brands like Hermès, Louis Vuitton, and Missoni to serve as visual shorthand of what the modern-day wealthy socialite wears, but it is the white Chanel jacket that follows Jasmine from the beginning of the movie to the end which tells its own tale of what is happening to its owner. When we first see Jasmine (Cate Blanchett) she is flying first-class from New York to San Francisco to see her sister Ginger (Sally Hawkins). On the flight she dazzles a fellow passenger with the story of how she met her wealthy businessman husband Hal (Alec Baldwin). Or so she thinks.…

In this abridged version of a feature originally published in Moviescope magazine in December 2010, Clothes on Film take an overview look at how to ‘read’ costume design. Costume design remains one of the most misunderstood and underappreciated filmmaking arts. Far in excess of merely ‘dressing’ an actor for their role, costume design is discourse. A film can be read via costume; sometimes overtly, sometimes subtextually. Not just conspicuous sci-fi or period, but contemporary stories set within a familiar world in familiar attire. On screen even the most rudimentary item of clothing can take on meaning. 2010 was a boundary crossing year for costume. Beyond the typical crop of historical…

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…

Surely we all know Michael Kaplan by now? Flashdance (1983), Fight Club (1999), Burlesque (2010), Star Trek (2009), and the biggest of the big, Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Versatile is not a generous enough word for his talent; he is literally one of the best in the business, as his CDG (Costume Designers Guild) nomination for Star Wars goes some way to proving. I spoke to Mr Kaplan just after Christmas about his work for The Force Awakens, but due to unforeseen circumstances (basically Clothes on Film HQ flooding), this interview is only being posted now. Still much to enjoy though, and plenty of costume titbits to sift through.…

Note from the Editor: You may have noticed that Clothes on Film has not been updated as frequently recently. We’ve had some excellent analysis and a few strong interviews, but in general content has been considerably lighter than usual. Well there is a reason for this… I have recently signed my first publishing deal to produce a book about, unsurprisingly, clothes in film. Specifically this will be a book about fashion in film. Apologies if this reads a tad vague; I promise more details will follow in the coming months. I will say now, however, that it is not just another tome describing pretty dresses or sharp suits in movies,…

The final outfit for analysis from To Catch a Thief (1954, directed by Alfred Hitchcock) encompasses and challenges the absolute femininity of Grace Kelly, here playing wilful blueblood Frances Stevens. After suffering an embarrassing verbal defeat by mademoiselle Danielle Foussard (Brigitte Auber), in simply donning a coral pink top and pleated skirt with driving gloves, Frances is back in control. This particular ensemble, or rather the skirt, was a request by Grace to the film’s costume designer Edith Head. Keen at this point in the story to restore what she saw as a more ‘womanly’ inference to Frances, trousers, or even Capri pants, were not considered enough. Yet this is…

For contemporary set spy thriller The Tourist starring Angelina Jolie and Johnny Depp, Oscar winning costume designer Colleen Atwood took a break from historical and fantasy to create a modern yet playfully retro collection of gorgeous gowns and impeccable suits. We asked her a few questions about the film’s lavish look and how it evolves throughout. Playing classy mystery woman Elise Ward, Angelina Jolie dons twelve outfits in total, most created from the ground up by Colleen Atwood and inspired by current or vintage pieces. The soft, fitted grey dress she wears was actually a Charles James original. Her shoes, towering heels mostly, were all Salvatore Ferragamo. Floor length in…

In the very opening scene of Rocky (1976, costume designer Robert Cambel), we see the title character in the ring, bare chested, hands encased in boxing gloves, the picture of sporting violence and masculinity. But this is no more than a surface assumption. Not two minutes later, we see Rocky Balboa (Sylvester Stallone) shrug on his faded brown towelling dressing gown, with “The Italian Stallion” embroidered on the back, and things start to shift. This is not a macho film concerned with the fight alone, but an exploration of masculinity in all its guises – the assumptions, the pretence and the reality. Clothes play an important part in this, both…

After Earth is Amy Westcott’s first attempt at a sci-fi feature. Her M.O tends to be contemporary costume, such as The Wrestler (2008) and award winning work on Black Swan (2010). But even then she seeks out subtext amongst typical genre interpretation. Black Swan for example is a psychological horror whereby costume reflects the inner workings of the protagonist’s mind so actually becomes part of the narrative. After Earth is similar in this respect because the film’s primary ensemble, the ‘life suit’ worn by Kitai Raige (Jaden Smith) is synthetic in construction yet organically synched with the human body. Without his suit, Kitai could not survive Earth’s hazardous environment; his…

Welsh born costume designer Lindy Hemming started her career in the theatre, conceding she hardly watched any movies at all until moving to London. Yet several decades later Ms. Hemming has designed for such hugely successful features as Four Weddings and a Funeral (1994), Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002) and won an Academy Award for Topsy Turvy (1999). Of course her tenure with Pierce Brosnan as James Bond (and one for Daniel Craig) is well known, much like her role as Christopher Nolan’s regular costumer for his Dark Knight trilogy. Having long been intrigued by Nolan’s unique vision, particularly after Memento (2000), Ms. Hemming was thrilled to…