Because I refuse to be a slave to timeliness, I'm writing about a fantastic movie I saw about two months ago. I wish I could be like "oh, it's this charming little indie film that I sought out," but An Education is fairly mainstream, and I saw it at AMC with KMC. Yup. I included the location and my moviemate just for the similar initials.
It deserves a post for three reasons: 1) Peter Sarsgaard is the love of my fantasy life, 2) Alfred Molina is my illicit lover in the aforementioned fantasy life, and 3) This is a super-stylish film with some of the most gorgeous costumes in the history of ever.
Now, as much as I love going thrifting for hilarious clothing, I do appreciate well-made, sophisticated clothes as well--especially when they come from another decade. I don't care much for, say, a well-tailored dress at Macy's (GOD I HATE MACY'S. MARSHALL FIELDS 4 LIFE.), but if you show me a well-tailored dress from the '60s, I'll probably go nuts for it. I just like the idea of clothing with some history behind it.
Well, looky here. An Education is set in the 1960s! How fitting!
So, the clothing in this here movie. I DIE. While I wish I could post every still from this movie, that's rather impractical, so I've chosen two photos that I feel epitomize its' structured elegance and impeccable attention to detail. First of all, can we talk about the slip in the middle picture? CLICK ON IT TO ENLARGE. Like, right now. Look at that bodice! I should just say "look at her boobs!" Because they're bedazzled in an extremely tasteful way, and nothing says "let's lose my virginity in France" like wearing a floor-length nude-colored slip with sparkles.
Oh, spoiler alert. They have sex. In France. You see it coming, trust me. But this is what I love about vintage clothing that I feel is slightly lost in more modern wears--the simple details. Yes, this is coming from someone who likes rhinestone shoulder pads, but there is too much to be said about the delicacy of a ribbon detail or a smaller explosion of sequins.
Alright, let's have a peek at the picture where they're cradling each other's faces. Somehow, I feel like if I tried to do that it would take FOREVER to get in the appropriate position. But I digress. You know the drill. Click to enlarge the foto. Now, Carey Mulligan (the adorable actress who plays Jenny) is an extremely svelte girl. Let's just call her skinny. So, she can pull off a ruffled hip on a dress without looking disproportionately large. But I'd like anyone who thinks they can't wear a printed dress in a classy way to take some inspiration from this shot--the dress itself is a fairly basic silhouette, so the print doesn't look all that overpowering.
A quick note to the men of the world: wear what Peter (first-name basis, obviously) is wearing to every formal occasion you ever go to. OK, maybe not every one, but at least 90% of them. As long as we're on the "details are awesome!" topic, wear a tie bar because it looks really, really cool. See how fun ties that don't have pointed ends are? Super fun.
An Education was the embodiment of '60s style, or at least my rose-colored understanding of it. Lovely silhouettes, unapologetic femininity, and interesting details. I can't wait to own this so I can wear dirty sweatpants and squeal at how much better everyone looks that me. Oh, and the first picture? I just wanted to have a picture of Carey Mulligan sans '60s attire. Still gorgeous and lookin' like vaguely pissed-off Aphrodite in that Grecian-style dress.
2 comments:
lol @ Macy's. Now you guys know how it feels. We used to have a chain in Detroit called Hudson's, which had been around since 1881. Then in the late 90's, Marshall Fields took it over, and when people in Detroit complained, the reaction was basically "Chicago is better than Detroit, suck our collective department store dick."
Then Marshall Field's got taken over by Macy's, and when people in Chicago complained, the reaction was basically "New York is better than Chicago, suck our collective department store dick."
True story.
Ooo, so fun! I had planned on watching An Education tonight. Now I'm even more excited and will probably notice the costumes 1000x more than I would have otherwise... Lovely to read Vin.
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