Clothes on Film

The study of costume design in cinema and television. Featuring exclusive articles, news, interviews, videos, podcasts, essays and competitions.

  • About, Editor and Contributors
  • Archive
  • Press
  • Ads
  • Contact
  • About, Editor and Contributors
  • Archive
  • Press
  • Ads
  • Contact

Socials

  • twitter
  • facebook
  • youtube
  • instagram
  • Clothes from 1960s,  Clothes from 2000-10,  Girls in Films,  Premium

    Beautiful Oppression: Tilda Swinton in I am Love

    5 Jun ’15 /

    From stills of this film alone you could easily be forgiven in thinking that I am Love (Io sono l’amore, 2009) was set during the 1960s. The designer clothes draped worn by lead members of the Recchi family, as selected by costumer Antonella Cannarozzi, are generally minimalist, in plain colours with little embellishment. I am Love is actually set in Europe around 2000, but its central characters are trapped as the well-heeled repressed of the sixties. Just as sexual, artistic and cultural expression was blossoming, the old guard struggled to make sense of this new world so regressed even more vehemently into their old one. The Recchi’s seem to live…

    read more
    Lord Christopher Laverty Comments Off on Beautiful Oppression: Tilda Swinton in I am Love

    You May Also Like

    2001 and Hardy Amies: When Fashion and Film Collide

    21 Dec ’12

    Rosemary’s Baby: Chris and KB Chat About the Film

    4 Jan ’10

    Beyond Biba, Beyond Fashion

    12 Nov ’10
  • Clothes from Fantasy & Sci-fi,  Girls in Films,  Guys in Films,  Interviews,  Premium

    Interview with 47 Ronin Costume Designer Penny Rose

    2 Jun ’14 /

    Where to start with Penny Rose? Pirates of the Caribbean? Evita? King Arthur? Most recently of course 47 Ronin (directed by Carl Rinsch). You do not hire Penny Rose for something small. This is not to say she won’t work on independent and low budget projects, just that her CV is becoming increasingly packed with huge scale period and/or fantasy studio movies – basically the kind of pictures that would make most costume designers weep. Multiples, armour, uniforms, plus Ms. Rose practically always builds from scratch. Not a fan of ‘shopping’ or even slightly interested in fashion, Penny Rose is old-school hands on, no-nonsense and no fear. Nonetheless, there is…

    read more
    Lord Christopher Laverty Comments Off on Interview with 47 Ronin Costume Designer Penny Rose

    You May Also Like

    Anne Hathaway’s Catwoman Costume: Full Paparazzi Reveal

    26 Sep ’11

    2001 and Hardy Amies: When Fashion and Film Collide

    21 Dec ’12

    After Earth: Costume Designer Amy Westcott Explains Life Suit

    14 Jun ’13
  • Girls in Films,  Guys in Films,  Interviews,  Premium

    Trish Summerville: The Hunger Games Changer

    21 Mar ’14 /

    For this month’s Fabric of Cinema column in pan-India publication Arts Illustrated, Clothes on Film editor Christopher Laverty discussed the game changing costume design work of Trish Summerville. This makes that terrible title pun you’ve just read almost acceptable. The theme of the issue was women, specifically women approaching their role in society with a powerful, fresh perspective. This is sex rather than gender based, as none of the women featured conform to pre-established definitions of masculine or feminine. They are creatives achieving wonderful things not because of their sex, or in spite of it, but because of raw, unabashed talent. Costume designer Trish Summerville is this month’s Arts Illustrated…

    read more
    Lord Christopher Laverty Comments Off on Trish Summerville: The Hunger Games Changer

    You May Also Like

    Film Review: Iron Man 2

    3 May ’10

    Rear Window: Grace Kelly’s Paris Dress

    5 May ’09

    Costume Clues Reveal All in The Cabin in the Woods

    14 Dec ’12
  • Clothes from Fantasy & Sci-fi,  Clothes from now,  Girls in Films,  Interviews

    Why is Miss Piggy Wearing a Vivienne Westwood Wedding Dress?

    11 Feb ’14 /

    When Clothes on Film visited The Muppets Most Wanted set back in March of 2013, we were given a tour of the bustling ‘wardrobe’ (their words) department, as overseen by costume designer Rahel Afiley. You can read more about that HERE, but after chasing Ms. Afiley around the room while she was trying to work, we managed to get a bit more out of her about using designer fashion, i.e. Vivienne Westwood, in the film. As always we are pushing the same old costume/fashion debate, though in this instance hearing from a costume designer on the front line is rather enlightening. Focusing specifically on Miss Piggy, for she is the…

    read more
    Lord Christopher Laverty Comments Off on Why is Miss Piggy Wearing a Vivienne Westwood Wedding Dress?

    You May Also Like

    Become The Babadook

    28 Oct ’14

    Brigbsy Bear: Interview with Costume Designer Sarah Mae Burton

    14 Aug ’17

    Game of Thrones Costume Analysis: Cersei Lannister

    6 Sep ’13
  • Clothes from now,  Girls in Films,  Interviews

    Hanging by a Thread: Cate Blanchett in Blue Jasmine

    31 Jan ’14 /

    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.…

    read more
    Lord Christopher Laverty Comments Off on Hanging by a Thread: Cate Blanchett in Blue Jasmine

    You May Also Like

    The Tourist: Colleen Atwood Talks Exclusively About Costumes

    9 Dec ’10

    Review: The American

    15 Oct ’10

    Win a Breaking Bad Mobile Lab T-shirt

    5 Jun ’13
  • Clothes from now,  Interviews,  Premium

    The Muppets Most Wanted: Set and Costume Visit

    9 Jan ’14 /

    ‘Disney’s Muppets Most Wanted takes the entire Muppets gang on a global tour, selling out grand theatres in some of Europe’s most exciting destinations, including Berlin, Madrid, Dublin and London. But mayhem follows the Muppets overseas, as they find themselves unwittingly entangled in an international crime caper headed by Constantine—the World’s Number One Criminal and a dead ringer for Kermit the Frog—and his dastardly sidekick Dominic, aka Number Two, portrayed by Ricky Gervais. The film stars Ty Burrell as Interpol agent Jean Pierre Napoleon, and Tina Fey as Nadya, a feisty prison guard.‘ That is the boilerplate pitch for The Muppets Most Wanted. Verbatim. If you think that sounds like…

    read more
    Lord Christopher Laverty 2 Comments

    You May Also Like

    National Treasure: Diane Kruger, a Dress for Action

    27 Nov ’09

    The Bourne Ultimatum: Paddy Considine Wears a Man Bag

    3 Aug ’10

    Short Film Costume: Ashes, Inside the Captive Mind

    24 Jul ’13
  • Clothes from 1980s,  Guys in Films,  Premium

    American Gigolo: Armani Gere

    5 May ’12 /

    American Gigolo is not about its protagonist, it is about what he wears. American Gigolo is about Armani.

    read more
    Lord Christopher Laverty 13 Comments

    You May Also Like

    Awesome Lack of Taste: Style Lessons from Hot Tub Time Machine

    11 May ’10

    Style & Identity in Do the Right Thing

    17 Feb ’12

    Hot Tub Time Machine Trailer: Colourful Past

    25 Dec ’09
  • Clothes from 1980s,  Girls in Films,  Premium

    Gena Rowlands in Gloria: Gangster’s Ex Wears a Skirt Suit

    9 Mar ’12 /

    Gena Rowlands' costumes as Gloria evocate character through a fashionable capsule wardrobe.

    read more
    Contributor 1 Comment

    You May Also Like

    Dual Analysis: Beetle Juice – Chris’ Thoughts

    27 Oct ’09

    Alien Anthology: A Revolution in Sci-Fi Costume Design – PT2

    26 Oct ’10

    Reading Costume Design in No Country for Old Men

    5 Apr ’13
  • Clothes from 1920s,  Clothes from now,  Girls in Films,  Guys in Films,  Premium

    Midnight in Paris: Nostalgia Fashion

    3 Feb ’12 /

    Sonia Grande’s costume design for Midnight in Paris offers everything we expect of 1920s Paris and the contemporary nouveau riche.

    read more
    Lord Christopher Laverty 4 Comments

    You May Also Like

    Audrey Tautou Chanel Sailor Pants For Perfume Advertisement

    9 May ’09

    Tom Hardy in Lawless: The Knitwear Anti-Hero

    21 Sep ’12

    Clothes on Film talks Boardwalk Empire Costumes on HBO

    12 Sep ’11
  • Clothes from Fantasy & Sci-fi,  Clothes from now,  Film Reviews,  Girls in Films

    Review: Melancholia

    21 Oct ’11 /

    The most exquisite fashion promo ever made.

    read more
    Lord Christopher Laverty 6 Comments

    You May Also Like

    Costume Designer Michael Kaplan Confirmed for Star Wars VII

    19 May ’13

    The Pure Nerd-Joy of Mysterio’s Costume in Spider-Man: Far From Home

    22 Jul ’19

    Gore Verbinski Leaves Steampunk World of BioShock…

    24 Aug ’09
  • Clothes from now,  Guys in Films,  Premium

    Anuvahood: Urban Wear Swagger

    11 Jul ’11 /

    Anuvahood showcases urban wear swagger. If you want to belong, you must fit in.

    read more
    Lord Christopher Laverty 5 Comments

    You May Also Like

    Contemporary Costume: Where Have the Aloha Shirts Gone?

    20 Jun ’14

    The Intern: Jacqueline Oknaian Costume Interview

    2 Oct ’15

    Exclusive Interview with Toy Story 3 Director Lee Unkrich

    19 Jul ’10
  • Clothes from Fantasy & Sci-fi,  Film Reviews,  Girls in Films,  Guys in Films

    Review: Scott Pilgrim vs. the World

    24 Aug ’10 /

    Tarantino, without the extraneous dialogue.

    read more
    Lord Christopher Laverty 2 Comments

    You May Also Like

    This is Jinsy: Costume Insanity

    23 Sep ’11

    Superfly Solo

    18 Jun ’18

    Inception Revisited with Costume Designer Jeffrey Kurland

    17 Jul ’20
 Older Posts