Jennifer Garner’s costumes in 13 Going On 30 (2004) are some of the most fun for a romantic comedy of recent years. In a plot which sees gawky teenager Jenna Rink (Garner) flash thirteen years into the future to find herself editor of Poise fashion magazine, it is unsurprising if the clothes she wears are somewhat…ahem….‘colourful’. At the start of the film, when Jenna is indeed 13, there is an array of 1980s fashions on show, including pale dyed denims, bejewelled off-the-shoulder tops and colours so bright they are practically luminous. Costume designer Susie DeSanto (Miss Congeniality, 2000) really went to town. When time jumps forward, however, and Jenna is…

Exclusive to Clothes on Film, Leesa Evans explains the tricky art of dressing six very different comic characters in Bridesmaids, i.e not overselling the humour. Leaning primarily to comedy, Leesa Evans has been lead costume designer on over twenty films, including American Pie (1999) and Josie and the Pussycats (2001). She has also worked with producer Judd Apatow several times, e.g. Forgetting Sarah Marshall (2008), Get Him to the Greek (2010) and now Bridesmaids (2011, directed by Paul Feig). “I have a great working relationship with Judd Apatow,” Evans confirms “When he asked me to design the film I was thrilled to do it”. Crammed with about as much riotous…

A preview of Clothes on Film editor Christopher Laverty’s article on the vibrant costume design of Dick Tracy for Arts Illustrated magazine. Truly unique, Dick Tracy is as close to a comic strip brought to life as any film before or since. This was director and star Warren Beatty’s goal; not to interpret the comic, but to paint it directly onto a cinematic canvas. He achieved this by embracing the superficial qualities of the painted page, the bright colours, exaggerated structures, madcap caricatures, and placing them front and centre. Dick Tracy is an all knowing pantomime. The original Dick Tracy comic strip first published in the United States in 1931,…

Starring: Hugh Jackman, Russell Crowe, Anne Hathaway Directed By: Tom Hooper Lingering death scenes, honourable gentlemen with puffed out chests, a little girl in rags sweeping the floor; to say Les Misérables takes itself very, very seriously is an understatement. Victor Hugo’s original novel is not known for its slapstick either (the clue is in the title), yet director Tom Hooper’s adaptation is so earnest as to verge on parody. This is Carol Reed’s Oliver! only with a good deal more rain and tears, and a lot less Oom-Pah-Pah. To Hooper’s credit, Les Misérables never strives to be something it is not. Dramatic musical theatre on a grand scale should…

Starring: Kathy Bates, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Judy Parfitt Directed By: Taylor Hackford Dolores Claiborne (1995) is gripping and meticulously structured, its multiple subplots held together by yet another screen bursting performance from Kathy Bates. House maid Dolores’ (Kathy Bates) arrest for the apparent murder of her elderly, cankerous and wealthy employer Vera (Judy Parfitt) provides the premise, though the actual story branches off to incorporate several different subplots, principally one involving the return of Dolores’ estranged daughter, New York journalist Selena (Jennifer Jason Leigh) after fifteen years of absence, and the suggestion that her beleaguered mother may have already killed before. Shay Cunliffe’s costumes infuse the atmospheric cross-cutting of Taylor…

Watch the Lady Dior film HERE David Lynch has premiered his sixteen minute commercial for Lady Dior and it is every bit as ‘Lynch’ as you might expect. Apparently David Lynch was allowed to do pretty much what he liked when creating this mini-movie providing it featured Old Shanghai, the Oriental Pearl Tower (incidentally Lynch did not know what this was beforehand) and, of course, the swish Lady Dior bag itself. Inspiration came from his own short poem. The rich and moody film entitled Lady Blue Shanghai is third in the Lady Dior advertising series, or chapter, or saga – or is it art? What’s obvious is that you do…

Directed by: Mike Newell Starring: Jake Gyllenhaal, Gemma Arterton, Ben Kingsley Ridiculous, colourful, cringeworthy and loud enough to make a roadie wince, Prince of Persia has nearly all the ingredients to be the new Pirates, and it just about cooks up a hit. What might fail to initially register with Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time is the extraordinarily detailed costume design by Penny Rose. This is mainly because for the most part the film is good at its job. Thanks to Mike Newell’s fidgety direction, it moves at such a pace that clothes become part of the fabric as it were. For example, who would know that shady…

On Tuesday 13th September, Clothes on Film makes its debut on U.S. television. Specifically, site editor Chris Laverty chats about the amazing costume design of Boardwalk Empire for a documentary entitled ‘The Money Decade’ at 9.45 pm on HBO (may differ for regional variations). Of course we do not want to blow our own trumpet too much, but this was surely worth a mention. Tune in if you can. It is actually an interesting programme covering Burlesque, the Jazz era and fashion trends of the early 1920s. Apart from Clothes on Film, you will find contributions from Boardwalk Empire costume designers John Dunn & Lisa Padovani, in addition to a…

To many costume fans Grease is the best movie ever, and who are we to argue? So in celebration of Grease Sing-a-Long coming to selected Vue cinemas this month, we have FIVE goodie bags to give away. Go Rydell! If you in any doubt as to the legacy of Grease then check out our costume articles beginning with ‘The Pink Ladies’ HERE (it’s not all about the poodle skirt). This newly restored print of the film promises to reveal every inch of Danny’s attitude and Sandy’s sewn-in stretchy pants as the gang revel their way into cinema history. The best thing about this Sing-a-Long version? The clue is in the…

Certain films come along where costume design is so essential to character and narrative, that to alter it even slightly would change the tone and perception of the story. Drive (2011, costume design by Erin Benach) is one example of this. The white satin scorpion jacket, tight indigo jeans and most importantly, leather driving gloves. Gloves were symbolic of The Driver’s intentions; when he slipped on the gloves he became himself. Stoker (2013, costume design by Kurt Swanson and Bart Mueller, aka ‘Kurt and Bart’) employs a similar concept – a costume sign – only here it is all about shoes. India Stoker (Mia Wasikowska) is something becoming. It is…