Tagged: Green Long-sleeve Polo Shirt
Tony Soprano’s Depressed Dad Duds in “Isabella”
James Gandolfini as Tony Soprano on The Sopranos (Episode 1.12: “Isabella”)
Vitals
James Gandolfini as Tony Soprano, depressed New Jersey mob chief
Montclair, New Jersey, Fall 1998
Series: The Sopranos
Episode: “Isabella” (Episode 1.12)
Air Date: March 28, 1999
Director: Allen Coulter
Creator: David Chase
Costume Designer: Juliet Polcsa
WARNING! Spoilers ahead!
Background
Since 1949, May has been observed as Mental Health Awareness Month. The first day of May aligning with the informal BAMF Style observance of “Mafia Monday” feels fortuitous as it was The Sopranos that helped me get more in touch with my own anxiety and depression.
I was starting college when I first watched The Sopranos, just months after the final episode stymied audiences when it cut to black. I had long loved movies like Goodfellas, Casino, and The Godfather, so I was excited when my roommate introduced me to this acclaimed HBO series centered around the mob… and I was instantly intrigued when it pulled me into a deeper exploration of identity, masculinity, and mental health. Tony’s psychiatric treatment with Dr. Melfi helped me recognize symptoms that I thought were just “normal” sadness as brought me to a point where—with the added help of real-life professionals (of course!)—I was more comfortable with healthy expression than repression.
The twelfth episode, “Isabella”, arguably presents Tony Soprano at his lowest point—heavily medicated to the point of hallucination, barely dressing himself, and hardly enough wits to fight back during an attempted assassination as two gunmen corner him on Bloomfield Avenue in Montclair. Continue reading
Donnie Brasco’s Brown Leather Jacket
Johnny Depp as Joe Pistone, aka Donnie Brasco, with his clothing undergoing Al Pacino’s scrutiny in Donnie Brasco.
Vitals
Johnny Depp as Joe Pistone, aka “Donnie Brasco”, undercover FBI agent infiltrating the Mafia
New York City, November 1978
Film: Donnie Brasco
Release Date: February 28, 1997
Director: Mike Newell
Costume Designer: Aude Bronson-Howard & David C. Robinson
Background
I try to respond to all requests, though unfortunately not in as timely a fashion as I would prefer. However, last December, BAMF Style had a request from Max to cover the leather from Donnie Brasco. Anyone who has seen the film knows that this is a wise suggestion as Donnie Brasco, and Depp’s titular character in particular, showcases a great array of ’70s leather in the great era before everyone was wearing ugly neon windbreakers, as I assume everyone in the ’80s did.
Depp wears three leather jackets during the film, the first being this everyday brown car coat. He follows it with another brown leather jacket, styled like a sports coat. By the end of the film, and in time for his transformation over to the “dark side”, he is wearing an all-black leather jacket.
What’d He Wear?
Through the beginning of the film, as Donnie quickly rises with Lefty and Sonny Black’s crew, the main staple of his wardrobe is a very ‘70s and very cool brown textured leather car coat. The color is a reddish brown, closer to saddle brown than russet. Continue reading