This movie is one of my favorite genres of film, it was you all along! What I call the “it was you all along” genre is any movie with a twist that the main character is COMPLETELY oblivious to even though said twist involves them inherently. Examples of films that fit into this genre are, Memento, The Sixth Sense, Secret Window, Fight Club, The Others…you get the gist.
Read MoreFirst, a quick summary. Please note: SPOILERS AHEAD!
Picture it, we’re in the African kingdom of Dahomey, in the early 1800s and we’re protected by an all-female army lead by General Nanisca (played by Auntie Viola). There’s an opposing group called the Oyo who link up with the Portuguese slave traders. Nanisca’s gals not only protect Dahomey, they free slaves too.
Read MoreI’ve been doing Costume Remixes for a while now to pay tribute to all the amazing designers who inspire me. After 30 remixes, I’m adding to elevating these posts by also doing a review of the film and a rendering. Flashdance will be my first Review, Remix and Rendering.
Read MoreLeft Hand Lacey is the character you love to hate and his style borders on the absurd. That said, I have always been in love with the spin on a spectacle chain that he wears. He has glasses that don’t have arms, but instead have a chain and that chain connects to a single earring. BRILLIANT! Ruth E. Carter strikes again.
Read MoreOut of Africa is an amazing example of a film that is firing on all cylinders. It is a great story, beautiful cinematography, “ass-off” acting and direction and, my personal favorite, costumes that help mold these characters. All of that aside, this movie is worth the two hours and 41 minutes just for that hair washing scene.
Read MoreGet On Up follows James Brown’s meteoric rise from poverty to super stardom. He is the poster child for pulling one’s self up by their own boot straps. I have always been in awe of his costume choices throughout his life and thought the costumes that Sharen Davis created for the film were beautiful. And I considered remixing one of his jumpsuits. But after rewatching this film for the umpteenth time, I decided to take a stab at one of Little James’ costumes, his brown overalls.
Read MoreI love Denzel Washington. I love Walter Mosley. I love Sharen Davis. I love Easy Rawlins. Ergo I love Devil in a Blue Dress. I think the choices that Sharen made when dressing this 1940s vet turned private dick, were brilliant. My favorite piece is not the blue dress that Daphne wears, although it’s beautiful. No, my favorite piece is Easy’s gaberdine zip up jacket.
Read MoreI think one of the hardest genres of film has to be comedy. Right after that I would list contemporary films. A Simple Favor fits into both of those categories. The choices made by Renee Ehrlich Kalfus, the film’s designer, might feel wacky. But they’re perfect if you ask me.
Read MoreThe Gentlemen features some of the most fun costumes I’ve seen in a long time. Michael Wilkinson is always doing the most with his designs and I love him for it.
Read MoreThe Karate Kid franchise is ripe with amazing costumes to try to replicate or remix. But I’ve always been drawn to the gis worn by the martial artists. The gi worn Chozen Toguchi and designed by Mary Malin is my all-time favorite. You can tell that he came to show TF out. Is that quilting on your gi? You bet your sweet ass it is!
Read MoreWhen I started making this piece, I wasn’t originally trying to remix a costume piece from a film. This dress began in the fall of 2019 in my pattern drafting class at LACC. I found a vintage dress in our stock that I wanted to create a pattern for. Because the dress had deteriorated and couldn’t be used in any productions, being able to create patterns for vintage pieces like this was important for the future of period productions.
Read MoreAs a baby costume designer, I’m so eager to learn and enhance my craft and I spend a lot of time studying other artists’ work. I am always inspired by the costume pieces from some of my favorite films. So, I decided to start trying to recreate, and in some cases, revamp or put my own spin on some famous and not so famous pieces from these films.
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