Posted by Chris Laverty on October 19, 2009 Starring: Jack Nicholson, Faye Dunaway, John Huston Directed by: Roman Polanski This bleak detective noir follows luxuriously suited P.I. or ’snoop’ (he gathers evidence on cheating spouses) J.J. ‘Jake’ Gittes (Jack Nicolson) as he investigates corrupt water rights and Evelyn Mulwray’s (Faye Dunaway) dark family secrets in 1930s Los Angeles. More… Posted by Chris Laverty on July 1, 2009 Starring: Johnny Depp, Christian Bale, Marion Cotillard Directed by: Michael Mann Public Enemies is polished movie Depression, but it is also authentic. Graham Thompson, the Chicago based hat maker who produced 75 custom hats for the movie (fedoras mainly, boaters and tribys) concurs…

Posted by Chris Laverty on October 16, 2009 Director Peter Jackson’s new movie The Lovely Bones has been chosen for this year’s Royal Gala screening at London’s Leicester Square in late November. This is a world charity premiere in aid of the Cinema and Television Benevolent Fund set two months before the scheduled release date. Now this may not mean much unless you have a ticket, but it does give us an excuse to revisit the film’s trailer. Watch it HERE More… Posted by Chris Laverty on October 13, 2009 Featuring couture as cool and disaffecting its protagonist, Belle de Jour (1967, directed by Luis Buñuel) has much to say…

Posted by Chris Laverty on October 21, 2009 Angelina Jolie is apparently being courted by Ridley Scott to star in ‘Gucci’; a film charting internal power struggles to control the fashion empire. Would love to see the costume budget for this one. During the 1970s-80’s the Gucci brand nearly collapsed amidst a bitter family feud; a feud that ended with Maurizio, grandson of founder Guccio Gucci, being assassinated outside his Milan apartment in 1995. Jolie is in talks to play Patrizia Reggiani, Maurizio’s ex-wife, currently banged-up in prison for plotting his murder. Leonardo DiCaprio is another name thrown about as a possible sign-up. Should he ever commit, DiCaprio will likely…

Posted by Chris Laverty on June 3, 2009 Eastern Promises (2007). The setting: London. The location: burger joint. The outfit: Viggo Mortensen’s gorgeously cut black double breasted suit. It is simply exquisite. Black wool four-on-one double breasted suit with flap hip pockets, white cotton-poplin turn-down collar shirt, black knitted tie. More…

Posted by Chris Laverty on June 3, 2009 Eastern Promises (2007). The setting: London. The location: burger joint. The outfit: Viggo Mortensen’s gorgeously cut black double breasted suit. It is simply exquisite. Black wool four-on-one double breasted suit with flap hip pockets, white cotton-poplin turn-down collar shirt, black knitted tie. Mortensen’s mob infiltrator Nikolai is surely the best dressed Russki knuckle duster in the capital? On Viggo’s tall, slim frame the jacket appears elongated, helped by the high four on one button configuration (four buttons on the front of the jacket, one that fastens bellow the lapel line). It seems almost as though it should be a six on two,…

Posted by Chris Laverty on June 3, 2009 Eastern Promises (2007). The setting: London. The location: burger joint. The outfit: Viggo Mortensen’s gorgeously cut black double breasted suit. It is simply exquisite. Black wool four-on-one double breasted suit with flap hip pockets, white cotton-poplin turn-down collar shirt, black knitted tie. More…

Posted by Chris Laverty on September 9, 2009 In an interview with The New York Times, director Oliver Stone has confirmed Charlie Sheen is to return as disgraced trader Bud Fox for Wall Street sequel Wall Street 2: Money Never Sleeps (sounding a bit like the title of an episode of The Naked Gun). Good news then for those who enjoyed Bud’s evolution from button-down shirts and plain suits to striped ‘Gekko shirts’ and red braces. Of course Michael Douglas as Gordon Gekko pioneered his namesake shirt, but Bud was aping the infamous embezzler all the way. More… Posted by Chris Laverty on June 3, 2009 Eastern Promises (2007). The…

Posted by Chris Laverty on June 6, 2009 Starring: Bradley Cooper, Ed Helms, Zach Galifianakis Directed by: Todd Phillips The Hangover (2009) is hilarious. The Vegas bachelor party gone wrong premise is nothing new, but the story itself progresses so fast and with so many witty one-liners that the crowd of boozy lads this film is clearly aiming at should have a cracking time. Costume (by Louise Mingenbach) plays a big part in The Hangover. The gang: groom Doug (Justin Bartha), best mates Phil (Bradley Cooper) and Stu (Ed Helms), and the groom’s impending brother-in-law Alan (Zach Galifianakis), assemble themselves – suited and booted – for a spectacular night out.…

Posted by Chris Laverty on June 3, 2009 Eastern Promises (2007). The setting: London. The location: burger joint. The outfit: Viggo Mortensen’s gorgeously cut black double breasted suit. It is simply exquisite. Black wool four-on-one double breasted suit with flap hip pockets, white cotton-poplin turn-down collar shirt, black knitted tie. More…

Posted by Chris Laverty on October 23, 2009 After her flimsy pink slip on Skull Island, this is the second most significant outfit Naomi Watts wears as Ann Darrow in King Kong (2005). As simple as evening wear gets (though strictly in the context of the film it is stage wear), Ann’s white gown is authentically period accurate; 1930s was the couture decade that introduced the evening dress in its now familiar form. That a plain cut-on-the-bias dress such as Ann’s could be worn at any formal function today without raising so much as a martini glass demonstrates the far-reaching influence of thirties designers; major names such as Gilbert Adrian…