why are the costumes in movies so distracting lately?

yes, i saw it ends with us

i’m going to start this out by saying, i think we should all be going to the movies more. my love of going to the movies started when i first got my license and could drive my little brother and i to the theatre on any random night we wanted, the freedom felt exhilarating and it allowed my brother talk to me on the way home, slightly cracked open from his silent teenage phase. in college i would light up at the suggestion of going to the syracuse movie tavern as opposed drinking sugary jungle juice in a dilapidated basement for the 5th consecutive night in a row, we would all sit like ducks in a row in our sweatshirts, laughing at moments that were not funny because we were so perpetually delirious from studying and partying. since i moved, i’ve been seeing a lot of movies alone, it’s maybe my favorite thing to do in the entire world. i love the ritual of it all, picking out the right clothes to wear making sure to always bring a sweatshirt or sweater because of every theater’s blaring ac. i love sneaking twizzlers in in my favorite bag that is perfectly sized for inconspicuously smuggling candy. i love getting a large fountain soda and mixing the perfect combination of 3 parts caffeine free diet coke, 2 parts diet coke with ginger lemon, and 1 part diet coke vanilla (this is amc specific as they are a coca-cola theatre). i love watching the trailers and hearing people around me discuss whether or not they would want to see that full movie, their excitement or disdain palpable. i love turning off my phone and putting it in my bag which makes me momentarily forget it is unfortunately the center of my world. i love hearing people laugh at things you wouldn’t normally have thought twice about if you were alone on your couch. i love seeing couples on first dates noticeably aware of their body language next to each other. i love walking out to go to the bathroom as people from different theatres do the same, listening the symphonies of horror screams and gunshots and laughter from various films that momentarily draws you out of the insular experience you were bathing in. i love walking home, feeling slightly different than before.

i love “good” movies and i love “bad” movies, the biggest soapbox that i stand on is that i don’t believe we should attach morality to the things we enjoy which sometimes means a frothy rom-com and sometimes means an oscar-winning masterpiece. trying to over-intellectualize your taste, which should be designed for pleasure, is the lamest thing you can do in my eyes. last week i went to see it ends with us because i read the book years ago (i’m a girl in my twenties who was at the beach, please refrain from judgement), all my friends saw it and i am deeply engrossed in the blake lively drama surrounding it. i was actually pleasantly surprised, i personally thought the acting was better than i expected, it was well cast (thank god for jenny slate), and i can say i was thoroughly engaged the entire time (which is sometimes all you want!!!!!!). i definitely did not think it was a “good” movie, but i enjoyed my experience even if that included me laughing at parts that were not meant to be funny. let’s be clear, the protagonist’s name is lily blossom bloom, she coincidentally she owned a flower shop, and her two love interests are named RYLE and ATLAS. i knew what i was getting into and my expectations were low. i assumed this would be a movie that mean girls from my high school who are probably nurses would love (which i am sure they did), but if this movie spreads any awareness for domestic violence that is a net positive in my eyes. (i could talk about the press tour, the tone-deaf marketing and the missed opportunity to spread meaningful awareness for domestic violence for hours… but that’s a whole separate newsletter- if you want to chat about it, please feel free to DM me).

the one thing i could not get over that had me twitching in my seat was lily’s (blake lively’s) choice of clothing. i shrieked so loudly when she came out in a camo blazer that i had to apologize to the person next to me. the lore has it that blake lively herself had a heavy hand in her character’s looks which was blaringly clear. what bothered me was not that the clothes were bad (they were) it was that they were distracting and disjointed from the character. lily blossom bloom (hahhahah) would wear a black doen dress to her father’s funeral not a PLEATHER BLAZER AND PANT SET. if she was going to a formal birthday party, she would wear those steve madden strappy heels every woman between the ages of 28-35 has, not SPARKLY FISHNET BOOTS. there is no universe where you could convince me that this character would wear an oversized carhartt jacket over a SEQUIN GOWN intentionally as a styling detail.

walking back to my apartment blinking to adjust to the daylight, i was brought back to when sydney and i were watching the idea of you on her couch a few months ago and collectively screamed when we saw nicholas galitzine in a fuzzy cardigan with his HANDS in the pocket of the flimsy sweater. not only was this extremely ick-inducing but this character simply would not dress like that, he would probably just be wearing a buck mason white t-shirt. this also made me think about how people discussed the perceived disaster (sorry) that is the 2024 remake of mean girls. this is where i admit that i actually never saw the movie, i was planning to for research for this piece but i simply could not bring myself to do it (i’m way too deep into the sopranos at the moment). so, while my judgement is hindered what i can say is that from the stills i’ve seen from the movie, regina’s (reneé rapp’s) clothes are completely wrong, distracting, glaringly fast fashion and frankly, attainable in a bad way. wayyyyyyy too many corsets. the frustrating thing is that all three of these movies (it ends with us, the idea of you and mean girls (2024)) are not “highbrow” movies, yet people still want to see them…. why do the clothes have to be bad? why is it that only movies lately that are perceived as “good” have decent costumes that are not distracting from the plot? this only furthers the narrative that rom-com films targeted to women shouldn’t be taken seriously because they feel ridiculous.

i’ve always been extremely fascinated by costume choices in movies, i don’t know if we acknowledge just how make or break they are. clothes set the tone and communicate truths about the interiority of a character that we would never be able to see off screen. one small detail such as an ill-placed fuzzy cardigan can rip the viewer from this world that has been so carefully crafted… that’s why i feel so disappointed when either the clothes in films/tv are unintentionally OR intentionally unrealistic. a lot of wardrobe choices have been heavily influenced by sex and the city, which has probably the most unrealistic styling ever to exist, yet the costume designer, patricia fields, somehow hit upon an unrealistic yet aspirational and deeply entertaining mark at a certain period of time that i have never seen replicated in another piece of content as much as it has been exhaustingly attempted.

lately i’ve been thinking a lot about the “if you know you know” value proposition in all industries. those subtle signs that you are imbedded in the pulse of culture and more importantly understand your target audience so well you probably could guess what they had for breakfast. it seems like more and more people in high places lack the instinct and trust in those who have it. in music, this is exemplified as charli xcx “getting it” this summer and katy perry’s rebrand just simply missing the mark in all aspects. the best example i can think of as it pertains to film/tv is how prestige show runners use fashion winks to silently communicate to viewers that they understand their characters: the thom browne chef coats in the bear, yasmin in industry carrying the row margeaux bag and lest we forget the ludicrously capacious burberry tote from succession (this last one is less of a wink and more of a shout but you know what i mean). i think that’s why it feels so blaring obvious that movies like it ends with us and shows like emily in paris just do not get it. while sex and the city was outrageous and unrealistic, every girl still wanted a pair of manolo blaniks, the prada lipstick skirt charlotte wore when she first met trey and carrie’s abs in season 3. nobody wants emily cooper’s fuck ass berets or lily blossom bloom’s weird pants that she tucks into boots. ultimately, i just want to see movies/tv with clothes that make sense for the characters and allow me to comfortably sit in a world where i am not thinking about how i need to vacuum my living room or change my ac filter, and i want those who make decisions to put in the effort to empower creative talent who actually understand the audience they so desperate to capture.

APPENDIX: my favorite movies (in no particular order)

some of these i related to, some of these moved me, some of these i saw during a particular moment in my life that i like to experience again in some textural way, and some of these i just simply enjoyed.

• clueless

• poor things

• paris, texas

• frances ha

• tàr

• roman holiday

• eloise at christmas time

• call me by your name

• dirty dancing

• the devil wears prada

• romeo and juliet (1968)

• romeo + juliet (1996)

• marie antoinette

• 13 going on 30

• the parent trap

• party girl

• the graduate

• my fair lady

• uptown girls

• lady bird

• phantom thread

• worst person in the world

• father of the bride

• it’s complicated

• psycho

• how to have sex

• aftersun

• parasite

• palo alto

• project x

• amelie

• the royal tenenbaums

• carrie

• the virgin suicides

• la piscine

  

I HOPE THIS MADE YOU WANT TO GO TO THE MOVIES <3

my friend ellen disagrees with a lot of my generous takes on it ends with us so if you want more sophisticated movie content, subscribe to her substack, she is one of my favorite people to talk about movies with.

this was different than a lot of things i tend to write, but i really enjoyed writing it- please let me know if you enjoyed reading it

thank you thank you thank you.

xoxoxoxo