Movie Costumes

I have a thing for the estethic part of movie making; the art direction, set decoration, the cinematography, the makeup and the costume design. It can be a bit tricky to show you the art direction, the cinematography and set direction when it comes to pictures, so I will show you some of my makeup and costume design favorites instead
(and then you can look for the rest yourself).
I love how the costumes capture an era and a persons identity on screen,
and which era is better to start with then the mid-1950s:


Revolutionary Road (2008)
Costume designer: Albert Wolsky

The style is light, easy but still elegant and sleek-looking.
You can see a huge difference between the white dress April Wheeler (Kate Winslet) is wearing in the first picture and the more homely clothes she is using in the other pictures.
She is a dreamer, but still a housewife.
When it comes to Frank Wheeler (Leonardo Dicaprio), he wears more formal clothes at his office, with highwasted trousers, a tie and a hat. At home he looks more laidback.

pictures from allmoviephoto

...since I am reading for one of the subjects I am studying (Literature and Anatomy), I thought I could share with you one of the poems I read and truly liked:


As in some countries far remote from hence
The wretched creature destined to die,
Having the judgement due to his offence,
By surgeons begged, their art on him to try,
Which, on the living, work without remorse,
First make incision on each mastering vein,
Then staunch the bleeding, then trasnpierce the corse,
And with their balms recure the wounds again,
Then poison and with physic him restore;
Not that they fear the hopeless man to kill,
But their experience to increase the more;
Even so my mistress works upon my ill,
By curing me and killing me each hour,
Only to show her beauty's sovereign power.

"Sonett L" by Michael Drayton
(1563-1631)

Movie Classics

It Happened One Night (1934)

Runtime: 105min
Director: Frank Capra
Actors: Clark Gable, Claudette Colbert



Ellie Andrews (Claudette Colbert) runs away from her controlling father to get back to her beloved King Wesley, a man she was married to before her father annulled their marriage. She jumps on a bus heading for New York, and is seated beside Peter Warne (Clark Gable). Warne is a reporter who recognises and blackmails Ellie. She has to stick with him to give him a story to write, and in return he promises to protect her and not to blow her cover. In the meantime Ellie's father has handed out a reward for those who have any information about his daughter.


Here follows complication and unexpected love. Both Clark Gable and Claudette Colbert are excellent in their performances. They are fun and charismatic, and they have a chemistry to die for. I also have to say that Colberts costumes are adorable! Many people can find old movies abit heavy or too cheasy, but this one is a perfect introduction to the old classics. It's a sweet and pleasant comedy: fun, romantic and light, and an adventure from the beginning to the end.

"
I proved once and for all that the limb is mightier than the thumb"

Retro inspired catwalk #1

The Louis Vuitton ready-to-wear collection (created by Marc Jacobs)
for the fall 2010 is obviously inspired by the 50s-60s style
(as seen in Mad Men) with it's small waists,
circle skirts and retro inspired accessories.


models:
Rasa Zukauskaite, Patricia van de Vliet, Lara Stone, Jessica Miller,
Iselin Steiro, Elle Macpherson, Illvie Witteka, Hindi Sahli,
Alessandra Ambrosio and Bregje Heinen


pictures from style.com

School starts again, and I have to say I dread it. Not because of the school or what I'm studying (because I love to study), but because the summer is over and the autumn and winter is coming closer. Those two seasons would have been lovely if I could just stay inside reading and relaxing, but I know that I will not have a holiday until next summer. The pressure of the exams is in my thoughts all autumn, I become antisocial, cranky and depressed, and I just want to stay in my bed all the time.

Then the winter arrives, and all I want is to spend it at home with my family doing christmassy things, but I have to work most of the time (that is the price to pay when you work in a record store.) So, here I am, school starts tomorrow and I can't even enjoy my last day in this fine weather. This autumn I will try and spend most of my weekdays doing schoolwork, and keep the weekend free from schoolwork and schoolthoughts. And even though I have plenty of schoolbooks to read, I will try and read some other books as well... and watch a bunch of old movies.

Do you have some good tips of how to keep oneself happy in the autumn/winter?

Here are some old pictures of my lovely grandmother.
The second half of the best grandparents in the world.

Please don't take any of these pictures without permission

Entry number 100

This is my entry number 100, and I just want to thank the few of you who take the time to comment and the others who follow this blog (is there anybody out there?) I do appreciate it! I made this blog to have a place to keep all the things I love, because honestly; if I don't write it down, I'm affraid to lose it.

There has been a series of entries I have been terrible to follow up (the "best of" lists and the "decade of music" list), but it was simply too much job (I hate to feel that I have to write something). I wanted to keep up the interior entries, but unfortunatly I lost all the interior pics I had on my computer.

I've been writing more this month than I have ever done in any other month. I don't think I can keep that up now that the school starts again, but I will try.

So, a little message to the people who do follow this blog and any other who manage to come across this blog:

Movie Classics

The Red Shoes (1948)
Runtime: 133min
Directors: Michael Powell & Emeric Pressburger
Actors: Moira Shearer, Anton Walbrook, Marius Goring


Victoria "Vicky" Page's (Moira Shearer) greatest passion is to dance, and she is given an opportunity to dance for the Ballet Lermontov by the impresario Boris Lermontov (Anton Walbrook). Lermontov soon sees her talent and after he looses his prima ballerina to marriage, she becomes the lead dancer for the company. Lermontov belives in full devotion to dancing and to him, so a problem arrises when Page is cast as the leading role in The Red Shoes and falls in love with the music composer Julian Craster (Marius Goring). She is torn between her passion for dancing and her love for the composer, and Lermontov shows his real character as a ruthless and jealous impresario.


The movie is a work of art and is visually stunning in every way. The cinematography, the set, the costumes and Moira Shearer is so beautifull to look at. No wonder that Martit Scorsese calls it one of his favorite movies. Not only is the plot exciting, but Shearer gives a stunning and memorable performance as the torn dancer driven to madness by the unsympathetic character of Walbrook, who also gives a wonderfull and realistic performance.

I saw this radio in Gothenburg, but it was too expencive.
I never listen to the radio, but I desperatly want this... just to look at
... and so many lovely colors as well

Here are some pictures from Trädgårdsforeningen