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The costumes of Mrs. Maisel
Feb. 23rd, 2019 09:19 pmDon’t mind me; I’m just going to obsess a bit more on the costumes of The Marvelous Mrs- Maisel. The costume designer is Donna Zakowska and she’s done a wonderful job! Costume design is close to my heart; at one point I considered it as a career choice and even though I didn’t go that path, I used to design costumes for amateur plays and operas. It was a lot of fun but also very hard work, and when the kid came along I decided I wanted to make clothes for me and got into historical re-enactment instead.
Good costume enhances characters and storylines. A super easy example is Darth Vader and Princess Leia who are introduced in black and white and you really don’t have to spend any time at all in wondering who is good and bad. When it comes to historical costumes the bit about historical accuracy is added. No movie ever is 100% historically accurate, and I don’t think that is what should be aimed at either. But I do feel it’s important to have respect for the source period and not just throw things together to look history-ish. You have to understand the period you are aiming for, and then add and subtract to please the storyline, directors, and producers. Hats, for example, are often discarded if the fashion was for wide brims because it limits the angles you can film in. Or, very common, women go bareheaded because the producers are afraid it will diminish the sex appeal.
I could go on and on, but I will limit myself to go on about Mrs. Masiel. The costumes are very 50s in cut and colours, but they are not necessarily the exact fashions of the year 1958 and 59 and they don’t need to be to set the tone. The same goes for hair and make-up. Midge, for example, favours a hairstyle that is more early 50s than late.
( VERY picture heavy )
Good costume enhances characters and storylines. A super easy example is Darth Vader and Princess Leia who are introduced in black and white and you really don’t have to spend any time at all in wondering who is good and bad. When it comes to historical costumes the bit about historical accuracy is added. No movie ever is 100% historically accurate, and I don’t think that is what should be aimed at either. But I do feel it’s important to have respect for the source period and not just throw things together to look history-ish. You have to understand the period you are aiming for, and then add and subtract to please the storyline, directors, and producers. Hats, for example, are often discarded if the fashion was for wide brims because it limits the angles you can film in. Or, very common, women go bareheaded because the producers are afraid it will diminish the sex appeal.
I could go on and on, but I will limit myself to go on about Mrs. Masiel. The costumes are very 50s in cut and colours, but they are not necessarily the exact fashions of the year 1958 and 59 and they don’t need to be to set the tone. The same goes for hair and make-up. Midge, for example, favours a hairstyle that is more early 50s than late.
( VERY picture heavy )
