Starring: Alan Arkin, James Caan, Loretta Swit Directed by: Richard Rush Freebie and the Bean (1974) is the ultimate buddy movie. The constantly shifting dynamic of the two leads, the realistic, erratic inconsistency in their behaviour defines this sub-genre. Not by chemistry, but by sheer unpredictability. Although Bean (Alan Arkin) is the smartly dressed one, buttoned up in a 1960s rug salesman’s suit, he can be just as wild as Freebie (James Caan). Like his partner, Freebie is a borderline corrupt cop (he hooks free threads, they both indulge in police brutality); unlike his partner, Freebie likes trashing cars and dressing as a honky pimp. He tends to be first…

A few of the week’s costume titbits. The Butler Costume designer Ruth Carter explains her work on The Butler. Honest, with lots of detail – absolutely worth a read. …and Oprah’s ‘fashion evolution’ in the film. T-shirts “Kiss me I’m Polish”. Cool Supercuts video: a history of t-shirts in movies. As enjoyable as it sounds, i.e. very. Evil Dead Presenting the Evil Dead bikini. It’s hell on your crotch. Kristen M. Burke Wonder what costume design veteran and all round hero Kristin Burke has been up to recently? She’s been making cock socks, that’s what – cock socks designed to under loincloths worn by Mohawk Indians. No rude business, thank…

Award winners from the CDG are in for a celebratory weekend. Monique Prudhomme’s sensational costumes for The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus won in the ‘Excellence in Fantasy Film’ category, once again leaving fellow nominee, and all round big hitter, Avatar, out in the cold. Other recipients at the 12th Annual Costume Designers Guild Awards included Doug Hall for Crazy Heart in the ‘Contemporary’ section, eclipsing our prediction Marina Draghici for Precious, which is unfortunately off the Academy’s list on March 7th as well. In television, Janie Bryant took the prize for her continually exciting work on Mad Men in ‘Period/Fantasy’. While ‘Mini-series’ saw Catherine Marie Thomas get the nod for…

If you haven’t already watched the blistering new trailer for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1, do not delay any longer. It should draw in even the most fervent detractor of the popular fantasy series. The only problem now is we expect the film to be nothing short of AMAZING. Following on from the costume snippets glimpsed in the teaser trailer (among the endless giant captions zooming towards the screen), here we get to see even more of Harry Potter (Daniel Radcliffe) and co in their ‘civvie’ attire. Further coverage of Hermione (Emma Watson) in a very pretty deep red dress is a highlight, as is seeing Harry…

Moxy Creative has designed an extraordinary collection of movie posters based on iconic male costume. Whet your appetite here then pop over to EveryGuyed to view the rest. They are all superb, but our personal favourite is this one for Dumb and Dumber (1994). A vastly overlooked film in terms of costume design; Mary Zophres’ barmy formal attire for Lloyd Christmas (Jim Carrey) and Harry Dunne (Jeff Daniels) is hilarious. This poster uses just a pair of plain black Derby shoes – an obvious nod to Verbal Kint’s (Kevin Spacey) costume as created by Louise Mingenbach for The Usual Suspects (1995). With one shoe cocked to the side, nothing more…

Interesting costume design stories you might have missed this week. Anna Nicole ‘A rags to riches tale of a pretty but plain girl growing up in small town Texas’, so says the strapline. Deborah Everton discusses her costuming of Agnes Bruckner as the tragic title character. Mad Men Janie Bryant looks back on season six and picks some choice cuts. …and responds to questions on Twitter House of Cards Tom Broecker gives THR the lowdown on costuming Robin Wright and Kevin Spacey in the acclaimed (and brilliant) Netflix show. A nice companion piece to own our article HERE. Christies auction Check out the costume lots. $6,746 for Timothy Dalton’s top…

Neatly illustrating the previous post with Kirsten Dunst donning Chanel inspired sailor pants as part of her 1920s pyjama beachwear in The Cats Meow is elegant French actress Audrey Tautou wearing the real deal. In this new advertisement for Coco Chanel’s now 84 year old perfume Chanel No.5 directed by Amélie’s Jean-Pierre Jeunet, Audrey Tautou slips on a stylish pair of black silk-satin sailor pants coupled with black spaghetti straps fitted bodice for just a few seconds of screen-time. The whole ad is filled with stunning Chanel creations (now under the creative leadership of Karl Lagerfeld) and is worth watching over and over again for this very reason. In fact…

These are not great photos, well they are not official photos, but they do at least confirm that Anne Hathaway is playing Catwoman in The Dark Knight Rises and not just Selina Kyle. That is definitely a Catwoman costume. Perhaps the biggest surprise with director Christopher Nolan and costume designer Lindy Hemming’s version of the costume is thigh high leather boots with steel spike heels and wedge soles. In Nolan’s (comparatively) realistic Batman universe, these boots seem more akin to an ironic S&M club than for scaling buildings as a cat burglar. Hathaway’s long steel heels are distinctly visible. Then again, they certainly add sex appeal. Ditto the feline Alice…

Subtitled ‘Birds of Paradise’, the third Fashion in Film Festival will take place in three London venues on 1st – 12th December. There is plenty to see and digest too, including a wealth of rare UK screenings for films such as Red Heels (Dir. Michael Curtiz, 1925) and Ziegfeld Girl (Robert Z. Leonard, 1941). The festival investigates costume in European and American film as cinematic spectacle. Specifically an analysis of theme, form, texture and colour – those movies that foreground costume as an enrichment of the viewing experience. Unashamedly analytical, there are obscure screenings, some experimental, some features; from the silent era (Orientalist) to the 1970s (conspicuous display) and incorporating…

This is an effortlessly chic touch from the 1960s; the subtle way in which Mad Men costume designer Janie Bryant sets Joan Holloway (Christina Hendricks) apart from the pack. A straightforward loosely tied scarf around the handbag and Joan is the most stylish woman in the world’s most sexist office: Black leather frame handbag with burnt orange lucite handle. Front decorative flap pocket. Gold tone frame and clasp. Silk orange, red and purple geometric print scarf knotted around the handle. The bag could be very dark green, or blue, it is difficult to tell. The quality matt finish would suggest genuine leather, maybe even pigskin. Gold tone is gold coloured…