The Fantabulous Style of "Birds of Prey"

by Cláudio Alves

There was a time when super-hero movies were colorful circuses of artifice and joy. Remember the pop iconography of Christopher Reeves' Superman, Tim Burton's Batman or the Punk stylings of Tank Girl? It all changed with the dawn of the 21st century. X-Men brought on an era of heroes dressed in many tedious iterations of leather jumpsuits, while Christopher Nolan's Dark Knight trilogy made grittiness cool again. Explosions of poppy color were out and grim pseudo-realism was in.

The DC Comics flicks took the trend to its desaturated limit, but even the MCU is guilty of indulging in this aesthetic stagnation. Fortunately, some films break the convention, be it the Afrofuturistic haute couture of Black Panther or Aquaman's glitzy excess. We can add Birds of Prey to that elite club of stylish super-hero flicks…

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Crimson Peak: An Ecstasy of Gothic Style

by Cláudio Alves

Some films age like fine wine, others like milk. Guillermo del Toro's predecessor to one of the weirdest Best Picture winners ever is closer to grape juice than dairy. If you don't believe it, check out Crimson Peak, which is newly available on HBO Now. The film wasn't particularly well-received upon its 2015 release, but the years have been kind to it, highlighting its best elements while dulling the impact of its less impressive aspects. Its intoxicating visuals are of particular magnificence, resurrecting the iconography of classic Hammer-style horror philtered through the showmanship of Guillermo del Toro's imagination. Some may say this is a case of style over substance, though nothing couldn't be farther from the truth. After all, Crimson Peak is a production where style is substance…

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The modernity of Little Women's costumes

by Cláudio Alves

Last Sunday, the great Jacqueline Durran became a two-time Academy Award winner thanks to Little Women. As the umpteenth costume designer to tackle Louisa May Alcott's classic tale, Durran had the challenge of dressing these well-known characters in a bold reinterpretation. Eschewing the strict historical accuracy with which Collen Atwood tackled the subject in 1994, Jacqueline Durran evoked the fashions of the 1860s by infusing them with character-specific idiosyncrasies and a general sense of 21st-century modernity.

Her designs are not as bound to their filmmaker's contemporary styles as the Little Women of 1933 or 1949. However, there's no denying that the current iteration of the March sisters is filtered through the sensibilities of artists living in the 2010s… 

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Justice For Horror Movie Costumes!

by Jason Adams

Outside of the sort of sex parties lovingly depicted by Stanley Kubrick in Eyes Wide Shut the majority of us only get to dress up in costumes once per year, on the high unholy night of Halloween. And like Lindsay Lohan in Mean Girls I am personally of the mind that bloody brides are the only way to go -- forget Sexy Pirates or Princess Dresses, I wanna be Frankenstein's Monster! I wanna be Freddy Krueger. I wanna be the May Queen from Midsommar or the Untethered from Us.

Which brings me to a realization I had during last night's Oscar ceremony's opening number with Janelle Monae... 

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Defending The Irishman's costumes

by Cláudio Alves

While we may love to criticize the Academy, sometimes we're also a little bit to blame for the perpetuation of their prejudices. For instance, Oscar watchers love to deride the way voters confuse "Best" with "Most". This is especially true in Best Costume Design, where period work rules and contemporary styles are locked out. Still, when a movie is nominated for a wardrobe that's not very glamorous or showy, that prioritizes male attire instead of women's fashion, the grumblings take on another color. Suddenly, it's as if such design work is lesser because it isn't showy.

It's not erroneous to criticize the costume branch for being so myopic this year, having only singled out Best Picture nominees. However, to look at the costumes of The Irishman and say they're unworthy of praise is utter nonsense…

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