Tagged: Black Jeans
Wild at Heart: Nicolas Cage’s Snakeskin Jacket as Sailor Ripley
Nicolas Cage as Sailor Ripley in Wild at Heart (1990)
Vitals
Nicolas Cage as Sailor Ripley, an A #1-certified manslaughterer who just broke parole
Cape Fear to Texas via New Orleans, Fall 1989
Film: Wild at Heart
Release Date: August 17, 1990
Director: David Lynch
Costume Designer: Amy Stofsky
WARNING! Spoilers ahead!
Background
This week continues to explore unconventional style from David Lynch movies with a long-overdue look at Nic Cage’s snakeskin jacket as the swaggering Sailor Ripley in Wild at Heart, Lynch’s darkly comic adaptation of Barry Gifford’s 1989 novel of the same name. The film premiered at the 1990 Cannes Film Festival where it garnered some controversy for winning the Palme d’Or, three months prior to its wider North American release in August 1990.
Specifically considered for the role after Lynch read Gifford’s novel, Cage described Sailor as “a kind of romantic Southern outlaw,” reunited with his girlfriend Lula Fortune (Laura Dern) after spending 22 months and 18 days in the Pee Dee Correctional Institution for fatally defending himself—and Lula’s honor—against an attacker hired by Lula’s domineering mama Marietta (Dern’s real-life mother Diane Ladd) after Sailor spurned her drunken advances. Two years has done little to dampen Marietta’s dislike for Sailor, who again sends paid killers on Sailor’s trail as he and Lula flee Cape Fear on their way west to sunny California. Continue reading
Manhunter: William Petersen’s Dark Sport Jackets as Will Graham
William Petersen as Will Graham in Manhunter (1986)
Vitals
William Petersen as Will Graham, tortured FBI criminal profiler
Across the United States, Fall 1986
Film: Manhunter
Release Date: August 15, 1986
Director: Michael Mann
Costume Designer: Colleen Atwood
WARNING! Spoilers ahead!
Background
While the Oscar-winning The Silence of the Lambs is a deservedly great movie that brought Thomas Harris’ fictional killer psychiatrist Hannibal Lecter to widespread public attention, the cannibalistic murderer had actually made his cinematic debut a half-decade earlier when Brian Cox portrayed the renamed Dr. Lecktor in Manhunter. Adapted by writer/director Michael Mann from Harris’ 1981 novel Red Dragon (with its title changed by producer Dino De Laurentiis), Manhunter was released 40 years ago this week on August 15, 1986.
Cox starred opposite William Petersen as FBI agent Will Graham, establishing the characters’ antagonistically layered screen dynamic that would be repeated in the 2002 remake Red Dragon and the NBC TV adaptation Hannibal. Continue reading
Rocky: Sylvester Stallone’s Black Leather Jacket
Sylvester Stallone in Rocky (1976)
Vitals
Sylvester Stallone as Robert “Rocky” Balboa, ambitious boxer and mob enforcer
Philadelphia, Fall/Winter 1975
Film: Rocky
Release Date: December 3, 1976
Director: John G. Avildsen
Costumer: Robert Campbel
WARNING! Spoilers ahead!
Background
Happy New Year! Fifty years ago tonight, scrappy southpaw Rocky Balboa went the distance against the heavyweight champ, turning a Philadelphia club fighter into an American myth—so, in the spirit of “new year, new you”—let’s punch into the style of Sylvester Stallone’s era-defining breakthrough role. Continue reading
Taffin: Pierce Brosnan’s Leather U-Boat Coat and Black Jeans
Pierce Brosnan in Taffin (1988)
Vitals
Pierce Brosnan as Mark Taffin, debt collector
Ballymoran, Ireland, Fall 1987
Film: Taffin
Release Date: February 26, 1988
Director: Francis Megahy
Costume Designer: Imogen Magnus
WARNING! Spoilers ahead!
Background
In the years between his career-defining roles as Remington Steele and James Bond, Pierce Brosnan’s career spanned a variety of roles, from classic adventurer Phileas Fogg in a TV production of Around the World in 80 Days to spurned lovers in Love Affair (1994) and Mrs. Doubtfire (1993)—losing his love interest to Warren Beatty (makes sense) and Robin Williams dressed as a fussy old British woman (oh!), respectively.
For the 00-7th of October today, let’s look at one of Brosnan’s more Bond-like roles during this period, portraying the title character in Taffin, adapted from Lyndon Mallet’s book series of the same name. Mallet reportedly balked at the casting choice as his literary Mark Taffin was described as overweight and unattractive—two words which would not describe Pierce Brosnan.
Taffin works as a debt collector in his small Irish hometown, filmed in County Wicklow, where his popularity ranges based on whether he’s helped you recover your debts… or had him knocking at your door on someone else’s behalf. Despite his cynical attitude and less-than-reputable profession, Taffin emerges as the town’s de facto defender, working against the developers who’ll stop at nothing to capitalize on the land. Continue reading
Bob Dylan’s Black Leather Jacket at Newport 1965: Timothée Chalamet in A Complete Unknown
Timothée Chalamet as Bob Dylan in A Complete Unknown (2024). Photo by Macall Polay.
Vitals
Timothée Chalamet as Bob Dylan, folk singer-songwriter
Newport, Rhode Island, Summer 1965
Film: A Complete Unknown
Release Date: December 25, 2024
Director: James Mangold
Costume Designer: Arianne Phillips
Jacket Maker: Jimmy McBride
WARNING! Spoilers ahead!
Background
Sixty years ago tonight, Bob Dylan closed out his third consecutive appearance at the annual Newport Folk Festival by taking the stage with a backing band, signaling a seismic shift in music that stunned and polarized the attendees.
The controversial Sunday night set became the climactic scene in James Mangold’s acclaimed A Complete Unknown, starring Timothée Chalamet as Dylan alongside Ed Norton as Pete Seeger and Monica Barbaro as Joan Baez. Continue reading
La Collectionneuse: Patrick Bauchau’s Slate Sweater and Swimwear
Patrick Bauchau and Haydée Politoff in La Collectionneuse (1967)
Vitals
Patrick Bauchau as Adrien, art gallery owner
French Riviera, Summer 1966
Film: The Collector
(French title: La Collectionneuse)
Release Date: March 2, 1967
Director: Éric Rohmer
WARNING! Spoilers ahead!
Background
Bastille Day feels like a fitting occasion to celebrate French director Éric Rohmer’s first color film, the 1967 drama La Collectionneuse, which has recently resurfaced across summer mood boards. No surprise, given its sun-drenched palette courtesy of cinematographer Néstor Almendros, a frequent Rohmer collaborator who also shot aesthetically satisfying masterpieces like Days of Heaven.
Considered the fourth entry in Rohmer’s “Six Moral Tales”, La Collectionneuse was made with extreme efficiency while the director waited for Jean-Louis Trintignant’s availability to shoot My Night at Maud’s. Rohmer and Almendros worked with a minimal crew, relying on natural light and long takes to ground the characters in their idyllic—and quietly volatile—setting.
La Collectionneuse was also the first starring role for Belgian actor Patrick Bauchau, who had appeared uncredited in Rohmer’s La Carrière de Suzanne four years earlier and would later be known to 007 fans as the henchman Scarpine in Roger Moore’s final James Bond film, A View to a Kill. Here, he plays the narcissistic gallery owner Adrien, who intends to take advantage of the monastic conditions at his rich friend Rodolphe’s rented villa near Saint-Tropez to enjoy “a real vacation” in peace and solitude:
I even tried not to think. I was face-to-face alone with the sea, far from cruises and beaches, fulfilling a childhood dream put off year after year. I lost myself completely in the play of shadow and light, sinking into a lethargy heightened by the water. That state of passivity, of complete availability, promised to last much longer than the euphoria of one’s first summer dip into the ocean. I could easily see myself spending a whole month this summer this way.
However, this peace and solitude are threatened by the feisty young Haydée (Haydée Politoff), unexpectedly staying at the villa. Adrien and his friend Daniel (Daniel Pommereulle) are initially distrustful of the girl who brings a different lover to the villa every night, but he gradually comes to appreciate her company when she joins him on his early morning swims. Continue reading
Succession: Kendall’s Brown Leather Tom Ford Jacket
Jeremy Strong as Kendall Roy on Succession (Episode 4.07: “Tailgate Party”). Photo credit: David Russell.
Vitals
Jeremy Strong as Kendall Roy, ousted media conglomerate exec and self-described defender of democracy
New York City, Fall 2020
Series: Succession
Episode: “Tailgate Party” (Episode 4.07)
Air Date: May 7, 2023
Directed by: Shari Springer Berman & Robert Pulcini
Creator: Jesse Armstrong
Costume Designer: Michelle Matland
WARNING! Spoilers ahead!
Background
It’s Election Day in America—a tense, centuries-old national tradition determining the fate of all those in the country not privileged enough to see politics as a mere game… which is exactly how the billionare Roy family experiences it on Succession, hosting their usual pre-election “tailgate party” fueled by money, gossip, and flag-waving finger foods.
Hosted at the apartment shared by Siobhan “Shiv” Roy (Sarah Snook) and her sleepy husband Tom Wambsgans (Matthew Macfadyen), the party provides an opportunity for the Roys to rub elbows with political insiders and industry bigwigs to position themselves for success over the next four years.
“They’re not all crypto-fascist and right-wing nutjobs, we also have some venture capital Dems and centrist ghouls,” Kendall (Jeremy Strong) observes of their late father’s guest list. “Dad’s ideological range was… wide.” Continue reading
The Limey: Terence Stamp’s Harrington Jacket and Black Jeans
Terence Stamp as Wilson in The Limey (1999)
Vitals
Terence Stamp as David Wilson, hardened English professional criminal
Los Angeles to Big Sur, California, Fall 1998
Film: The Limey
Release Date: October 8, 1999
Director: Steven Soderbergh
Costume Designer: Louise Frogley
WARNING! Spoilers ahead!
Background
The Limey was released 25 years ago today on October 8, 1999, months after its debut at the 52nd Cannes Film Festival. Terence Stamp stars as the titular Englishman, a crook known simply as Wilson*, who arrives in Los Angeles to investigate his own suspicions after his daughter Jenny’s death in a mysterious car accident. Continue reading
Sam Elliott’s Black Clothes in Road House
Sam Elliott in Road House (1989)
Vitals
Sam Elliott as Wade Garrett, reliable bouncer
Jasper, Missouri, Spring 1988
Film: Road House
Release Date: May 19, 1989
Director: Rowdy Herrington
Costume Designer: Marilyn Vance
WARNING! Spoilers ahead!
Background
Today is the 80th birthday of Sam Elliott, the prolific actor who has brought his commanding voice and distinguished mustache to a variety of roles from his breakthrough performance in Lifeguard (1976) to hits like Mask (1985), Tombstone (1993), The Big Lebowski (1998), and A Star is Born (2018), to name just a few.
The first time I saw Road House, I was surprised to see that Elliott had shaved his signature soup-strainer to portray Wade Garrett, the tough and trusted bouncer that professional cooler Dalton (Patrick Swayze) calls to the small town of Jasper, Missouri, where local crime boss Brad Wesley (Ben Gazzara) is making his task of taming the Double Deuce more of a challenge than he hoped. Continue reading
National Treasure: Nic Cage’s Urban Outfitters Outfit
Nicolas Cage in National Treasure (2004)
Vitals
Nicolas Cage as Benjamin Franklin Gates, treasure hunter and cryptographer
Philadelphia to New York City, Fall 2004
Film: National Treasure
Release Date: November 19, 2004
Director: Jon Turteltaub
Costume Designer: Judianna Makovsky
WARNING! Spoilers ahead!
Background
Happy 4th of July to my fellow Americans!
On this day in 1776, the Second Continental Congress unanimously ratified the Declaration of Independence that announced the separation of the thirteen American colonies from British rule. Primarily drafted by Thomas Jefferson, the Declaration remains one of the most sacred and influential documents in global history and underwent centuries of preservation and protection until it was ultimately stolen by Nicolas Cage in 2004.
At least he warned us first.
Appropriately titled given Mr. Cage’s reputation, National Treasure was released 20 years ago this November and centers around a historically informed search for a long-buried Freemason treasure trove. A rumored map on the back of the Declaration of Independence provides guidance to Cage’s well-meaning treasure-hunter Benjamin Franklin Gates as well as his assistant Riley Poole (Justin Bartha) and the lovely government archivist Dr. Abigail Chase (Diane Kruger) reluctantly roped into their mission.
Unfortunately for our heroes, Ben’s rival Ian Howe (Sean Bean) is also in pursuit of the treasure… but Ian is British, so one can only imagine the disrespect he would show the Declaration if he were the one to steal it first.
What’d He Wear?
The morning after Ben and Riley successfully liberate the Declaration during a gala event at the National Archives, they follow the early-00s product placement gods to an Urban Outfitters in Philadelphia (actually Pasadena), where they can purchase clothes more appropriate for evading detection while on the run in the City of Brotherly Love than their formal fits. Continue reading
You must be logged in to post a comment.