Tagged: Chambray Shirt
Cagney’s Cardigan in The Public Enemy
James Cagney as Tom Powers in The Public Enemy (1931)
Vitals
James Cagney as Tom Powers, petty criminal
Chicago, Fall 1915
Film: The Public Enemy
Release Date: April 23, 1931
Director: William A. Wellman
Costume Designer: Edward Stevenson
Wardrobe Credit: Earl Luick
Background
In the waning years of Prohibition, Warner Brothers met the public demand for bringing the violent daily headlines to the screen with a succession of films that firmly established the genre of American gangster cinema. One of the most enduring of these pre-Code hits is The Public Enemy, the 1931 movie that made an instant star out of James Cagney.
Cool Hand Luke
Paul Newman in Cool Hand Luke (1967)
Vitals
Paul Newman as Lucas “Luke” Jackson, chain gang inmate, war veteran, and “natural-born world-shaker”
Florida Road Prison 36, summer, early 1950s
Film: Cool Hand Luke
Release Date: November 1, 1967
Director: Stuart Rosenberg
Costume Designer: Howard Shoup
Background
What we’ve got here is… failure to communicate. Some men you just can’t reach.
The iconic “failure to communicate” line in Cool Hand Luke is first uttered by Strother Martin as the stern, insensitive captain in charge of Road Prison 36 where most of the film is set. Lucas “Luke” Jackson (Paul Newman), recently sentenced to the facility after a drunken night of vandalizing parking meters, is proud to be one of the men that the captain can’t reach.
Just in time for the stifling midsummer heat, I’m focusing on Cool Hand Luke, voted one of the sweatiest movies of all time by the patrons of Cheers… in addition to various other accolades.
True Detective – Ray Velcoro’s Dark Western-Yoked Jacket
Colin Farrell as Ray Velcoro on the second season of True Detective (after ditching the mustache and bolo tie that defined the character’s early-season look.)
Vitals
Colin Farrell as Ray Velcoro, troubled and crooked Vinci PD detective
Ventura County, California, fall 2014 to spring 2015
Series: True Detective
Season: 2
Air Dates: June 21, 2015 – August 9, 2015
Creator: Nic Pizzolatto
Costume Designer: Alix Friedberg
WARNING! Spoilers ahead!
Background
The second season of HBO’s True Detective is, in my opinion, better judged when on its own than against its masterful and delightfully idiosyncratic first season. The second season brought together Colin Farrell, Rachel McAdams, Taylor Kitsch, and Vince Vaughn in an acid neo-noir more in the pulp crime tradition of Dashiell Hammett and Raymond Chandler’s worlds than that of Rust Cohle and Marty Hart.
Even the show’s fictional and corrupt berg of Vinci, California, shares some undeniable similarities with the Bay City of Chandler’s Philip Marlowe novels, though it was indeed based on the rough industrial city of Vernon, where it was partially filmed.
Our self-destructive, repressed, and expendable cop protagonists, portrayed by the Farrell-McAdams-Kitsch triad, practice maverick techniques that border on impropriety but their ideals and values align them with the incorruptible Philip Marlowe and Sam Spade… naturally leading to the straight-out-of-pulp “last stand” holed up in a secluded motel room with seemingly endless bottles of whiskey. Continue reading
Jaws – Robert Shaw as Quint
Robert Shaw was born 90 years ago today, August 9, 1927. To celebrate the birth of this iconic actor and writer, BAMF Style presents another contributor post submitted by BAMF Style reader “W.T. Hatch”. Enjoy!
Robert Shaw as Quint in Jaws (1975)
Vitals
Robert Shaw as Quint, grizzled and tough shark hunter and U.S. Navy veteran
Amity Island, July 1974
Film: Jaws
Release Date: June 20, 1975
Director: Steven Spielberg
Costume Design: Louise Clark, Robert Ellsworth, and Irwin Rose
Background
Y’all know me. Know how I earn a livin’. I’ll catch this bird for you, but it ain’t gonna be easy.
In 1975, director Steven Spielberg scared the bejesus out of America with the summer blockbuster hit Jaws. Based upon author Peter Benchley’s novel of the same name, Jaws is the harrowing tale of a 25′ man-eating shark which terrorizes the small beach community of Amity Island. Technical problems forced Spielberg to largely abandon the mechanical shark, dubbed “Bruce” after his attorney, instead using mood, music, and a set of yellow barrels to suggest the beast’s on-screen presence. One viewing of the film is enough to make even the bravest soul think twice before taking a swim in the ocean.
But one other persona in the movie is more frightening than the shark. I speak of the shark’s archenemy known only by the name of Quint. No doubt inspired by another single-minded sea captain, namely Ahab of Moby Dick, Quint is one of cinema’s most enigmatic, famous, and all-around badass characters. Continue reading
Justified – Raylan Givens’ Tan Suede Jacket
Timothy Olyphant as Deputy U.S. Marshal Raylan Givens, armed with his BlackBerry and a Glock in this promotional still from Justified (Episode 1.02: “Riverbrook”)
Vitals
Timothy Olyphant as Raylan Givens, old school Deputy U.S. Marshal
Harlan County, Kentucky, Spring 2010
Series: Justified
Episodes:
– “Riverbrook” (Episode 1.02, Director: Michael Dinner, Air Date: March 23, 2010)
– “The Collection” (Episode 1.06, Director: Rod Holcomb, Air Date: April 20, 2010)
– “Veterans” (Episode 1.11, Director: Tony Goldwyn, Air Date: May 25, 2010)
Creator: Graham Yost
Costume Designer: Ane Crabtree Continue reading
Harrison Ford’s Tweed Jacket in The Fugitive
Harrison Ford as Dr. Richard Kimble in The Fugitive (1993).
Vitals
Harrison Ford as Dr. Richard Kimble, fugitive and former doctor trying to clear his name
Chicago, Spring 1993
Film: The Fugitive
Release Date: August 6, 1993
Director: Andrew Davis
Costume Designer: Aggie Guerard Rodgers
WARNING! Spoilers ahead!
Background
In addition to being one of the best modern thrillers, The Fugitive is also one of the best TV-to-movie adaptations, seamlessly updating the characters and story to transform four seasons of a 1960s TV show into a compelling and suspenseful 1990s action flick. Continue reading
Justified – Boyd Crowder’s Gray Corded Jacket
Walton Goggins as Boyd Crowder on FX’s Justified.
Vitals
Walton Goggins as Boyd Crowder, scrappy Harlan County criminal and ex-miner
Harlan County, Kentucky, Fall 2010
Series: Justified
Episodes:
– “The Hammer” (Episode 1.10, Director: John Dahl, Air Date: May 18, 2010)
– “Veterans” (Episode 1.11, Director: Tony Goldwyn, Air Date: May 25, 2010)
Costume Designer: Ane Crabtree
Background
Fresh out of prison, Harlan County’s wiliest and wittiest criminal mastermind Boyd Crowder finds himself in the backwoods of his old Kentucky home, teaching his particular brand of religion to a congregation of redneck drug slingers. Not satisfied with having shot him in the chest earlier that year, Deputy U.S. Marshal Raylan Givens shows up and rubs proverbial salt in Boyd’s wound by reminding the “congregation” that there is a standing $50,000 reward for anyone who can provide information sending their new leader back to prison. Continue reading
