Three movies that illustrate how movie costumes aren't about actual history but rather modern ideas (whether those modern ideas are about modern or historical fashion) are _Brigadoon_, _Rob Roy_, and TFWNSNBU**. <snip> Interestingly, _Brigadoon_, for all its straight out of the 1950s women's clothing, actually manages to get it's Scottish men's clothing a lot more historically accurate than Mel "They really did that" Gibson's flick, despite the much hyped (and publicized) specially woven tartans and similar promotional copy efforts. <snip> Sharon
**That Film Whose Name Shall Not Be Uttered -- that is, the one with Mel Gibson supposedly portraying William Wallace. >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> That is what really bugs me, when a production claims to be historically accurate but so glaringly misses the mark. Also I have mellowed a bit with age and at times can grudgingly forgive a production that does not claim to be historically accurate. In part this is probably because I have also recently been exposed to some of the theatrical attitudes about period costuming. I helped costume a production of Moliere's The Miser this summer for one of our oldest community theaters. I knew we couldn't afford to be period (and in fact pushed it out about 100 years for pattern availability) so I was calling it period 'style'. The director still insisted on calling it period costumeing and we had several good natured arguments about the semantics of our chosen terminologies :). And another worst costume movie: the 1953 version of 'Knights of the Round Table'. Hmmmm, another Robert Taylor movie..... Catherine _______________________________________________ h-costume mailing list [email protected] http://mail.indra.com/mailman/listinfo/h-costume
