Fashionable Movies

The popularity of shows like America’s Next Top Model and Project Runway made us think about doing a post on fashionable movies. But the way I dress made me and everyone else think that I was the last person who should be doing a post on fashionable movies. So I asked Heather (who you might remember from such posts as this one) for her assistance again.

Movies and fashion have been wedded since long before the Academy Awards first started handing out statues for costume design in 1948. We look to actors and actresses — and sometimes even the movies themselves — to inspire style and set trends. The following are some of my favorite movies for fashion.

Breakfast at Tiffany’s and Funny Face
In Funny Face, the fashion industry is the backdrop for the love story between Audrey Hepburn’s bookish beauty and Fred Astaire’s fashion photographer. Holly Golightly, Hepburn’s character from Breakfast at Tiffany’s, is the flip side of Funny Face’s Jo. Flighty and street smart, Holly had effortless style. Both films’ costumes were designed by Edith Head with Givenchy pieces. What to watch for: The original LBD (little black dress), oversize accessories, beatnik aesthetic (the original hipsters), exquisite couture dresses.

Marie Antoinette
The frothy fashions by Milena Canonero looked every bit as delicate as the confections made by Ladurée for the film. What to watch for: Two words — the shoes. To be more specific, Rococo-inspired Manolo Blahniks.

Down With Love
If Marie Antoinette is handcrafted Parisian macaroons and petit fours, Down With Love is a big bag of colorful saltwater taffy. Daniel Orlandi has perfectly captured a fantasy version of 1960s New York, more Mod than Mad Men. What to watch for: Candy-colored shift and mini dresses, mid-century modern accessories and furniture.

The Aviator
Costume designer Sandy Powell won an Oscar for what was basically a love note to early Hollywood glamour written on art deco stationary. The actresses portraying their predecessors Jean Harlow, Ava Gardner and Katherine Hepburn looked like they stepped out of an Erte illustration. What to watch for: Hepburn’s sophisticated pantsuits, Harlow’s slip dress, and Howard Hughes’ Fair Isle sweater vest.

Moulin Rouge
Another Oscar winner, this time in 2001 for Catherine Martin and Angus Strathie, Moulin Rouge is a jeweled diorama of 19th Century Montmatre. As its centerpieces are Satine’s corsets and stage costumes. What to watch for: Layers upon layers of ruffled petticoats, French lace lingerie, and detailed corsets.

For more on movie couture, check out our Fashion Week List.