The 12 Movie Characters That Inspired My Style (Part 1)

In last weeks piece we looked at the television character that most inspired my sense of style and wardrobe through the years. This week, it's the turn of the cinema.

The wardrobe choices of a character can tell you who they are without a word of dialogue, an instantly recognisable outfit can make dressing for Halloween easy, and film can not only reflect the fashions of a decade, but dictate them. 

Some films have costumes which become famous purely because they’re so beautiful. Some are memorable for other reasons – a beautifully cut but otherwise perfectly ordinary white halterneck became the most famous dress in history when Marilyn stood over a subway vent, proving that it really is the way you wear it that makes all the difference. (Although it boasts the most enduring cinematic image EVER, The Seven Year Itch got squeezed out of my list, because really, the guy who turned on the fan did the most important work and although I loved the scene, the dress didn't inspire me as such.)

Fashion and film have always gone hand in hand, whether it’s a designer taking inspiration from a movie’s story or a leading lady sporting the latest runway looks. Movies have also helped to reinforce timeless styles and bring back fashion trends of yesteryears. For instance, Audrey Hepburn and her now famous Little Black Dress in Breakfast at Tiffany’s comes to mind.

There’s no shame in taking inspiration from your favourite movie or TV character to mix up your look, If your wardrobe could use a dash of movie magic why not take it from your favourite character? Over the next two weeks we will look at 15 films whose costume design inspired me from childhood through to adulthood.

1. Bonnie and Clyde

Designer: Theadora Van Runkle

Faye Dunaway as Bonnie Parker

Faye Dunaway and Warren Beatty as Bonnie and Clyde are considered one of the most stylish couples ever; Warren’s snappy suits and nifty fedoras made dressing like a gangster cool back when the word was spelt with an 'er' and a sharp suit was imperative to join the gang. The film was Dunaway’s big break, and her sullen sultriness, long blonde bob and beret have inspired many who wanted a to copy her 20's cool without a flapper dress in sight.

It might seem improbable that killers on the run would have a ready collection of glamorous outfits, but the real-life couple were actually known for their “fancy clothes” – many of the film’s iconic moments were modelled on photographs they had posed. The initial costume designs were dismissed as being too faithful to the depression era; the final outfits had an added hint of glamour and New Wave style and they in turn influenced the rest of the 1960s.

 Making "outlaw style" a thing, Bonnie's on-the-run wardrobe of chic berets, bandanas, sweaters, and coats were a force to be reckoned with on their own.

2. Claire, The Breakfast Club

Designer, Marilyn Vance

Molly Ringwald as Claire Standish

One of my favorite movies from the ’80s is The Breakfast Club, and it’s the perfect source of fashion inspiration for those school days.

In case you’ve been living under a rock, here’s the basic plot: five high schoolers are held captive in detention one Saturday, and throughout the course of the day, their struggles and similarities are revealed.

This film is as iconic to the eighties as Madonna and hair bands.

Famously consisting of a brain, an athlete, a basket case, a princess and a criminal, the five members of the Breakfast Club packed in a whole lot of style references. And, for a film where each character only wears one outfit throughout – with the exception of that makeover – it has had a pretty massive fashion influence.

For me it was all about Molly Ringwald's Claire Standish - The Princess.

Claire, the most popular girl in school, is actually sent to detention for cutting class — to shop! Her pink and brown Ralph Lauren ensemble is girly and sophisticated, perfect for any occasion.Her combo of scrub-type blouse, midi skirt and knee-high brown equestrian boots is high-80s style at it’s best. In the final scene she gifts her diamond earring to Judd Nelson, melting teenage hearts everywhere.

Styled by costume designer Marilyn Vance, the entire film is played out over one day, meaning that all costume changes revolve around each individual outfit. As the film progresses and the characters grow closer to one another, they shed their layers. “Each layer is a little piece of the person,” explained Vance in 1999. “All their hang-ups are discarded as they start becoming relaxed with each other.” With its prophetic one-liners and raw honesty, the film changed how Hollywood portrayed teenagers forever.

3 Grease (1978)

Designer: Albert Wolsky

Kennickie, Sandy, Danny and Rizzo, celebrating Sandy's makeover.

Barring perhaps the skintight spandex of Sandy’s triumphant reinvention, this is a pretty spot-on depiction of the way teens looked in 1950s America (even if some of the teens here appear to have been in school for several decades). It was a time when Elvis’s swivelling hips were a cause for censorship; a mix of innocence and sauciness which the film encapsulates with its wardrobe of pedal pushers, gingham shorts, and cheerleader skirts which reach mid-calf.

The boys emulate their heroes with slicked-back hair and blue jeans, and while those naughty Pink ladies are all about tight pencil skirts, bustier tops and the classic scarf-tied-at-the-neck look, Sandy is demure in pastels and full swing skirts. Until, of course, the movie makes use of the universal rule that black leather equals BAD girl…

Sandy’s style in the film starts out sweet and innocent, with full skirts and sweater sets, but turns bad girl chic by the ending credits. Her look is definitely inspiring! However, Sandy is not the only one with great style in this film — the four Pink Ladies each have their own individual look and it was the Pink Ladies whose style I loved the most -  particularly their matching outfits - the fitted pencil skirts, cropped pants, cat-eyed glasses and, of course, their signature pink jackets.

And of course, what could be more iconic and memorable than Sandy's tough biker-chic transformation for the final scene of Grease. The off-the-shoulder top and high-waisted belted trousers (which Olivia Newton-John had to be sewn into) sparked the design of many modern-day fashion pieces, most notably the disco pant which American Apparell until recently copied in every conceivable colour. In fact, if you count the famous prom scene, which was a riot of colourful 50s swirling skirts, Grease had so many iconic looks to pick from it's no wonder it still inspires runway looks today.

4. Mia Wallace Pulp Fiction 

Costume Designer, Betsy Wallace.

Uma Thurman as Mia Wallace

A white shirt and a pair of black trousers surely can't look that good. Uma Thurman begs to differ. 

Though simple and classic, Mia Wallace's execution of a crisp white button-down, black pants, and blunt bob was impeccable—and remain recognizable to this day.  But what is it about this very simple look, that made it so very memorable, so iconic?

The white button-down has been a classic piece forever, but Mia Wallace makes it a fashion-forward statement when she wears hers in Pulp Fiction. When she goes to the diner, she wears her outfit with a brown trench coat, a blazer and ballet flats which she kicks off for the dance scene, revealing her impeccable manicure. Pots of Chanel's Rouge Noir nail varnish sold out all over the country. All classic staples in every wardrobe.

Let's be honest, there’s nothing really all that special about the look. It’s just a pair of simple black slacks and a crisp white button-down shirt. It’s fairly standard. It’s incredibly simple. It’s what a business man might wear to work or what a university kid might wear for a catering gig. Black bottoms, white top.Standard waiter fare. And yet, when Uma Thurman wears this outfit in Pulp Fiction, she became immediately transformed into one of modern cinema’s most iconic characters: Mia Wallace. Costume designer Betsy Wallace has some of the answers:

"First of all, Mia Wallace is a female version of a Reservoir Dog. The culture and history behind these [Quentin Tarantino] films started with Reservoir Dogs. I created the look for that movie, too, and then mentioned to Quentin—and he agreed with me—that Vince and Jules were both Reservoir Dogs. You know, I think that Lauren Bacall was a Reservoir Dog, in her own right. Think back to the fact that she wore those very tailored suits—just like the men. I think Mia's look was true to the iconic history of broads in movies, and of femme fatales in movies.

It started with the pants. We had no money, as usual, on Pulp Fiction, and Uma's very tall. All of the black trousers that I liked were a little bit short, so I made the executive decision. I said, 'Well, let's just cut them off,' and make a proportional statement. You know, I kind of brought back the cropped pant—or rather, reinvented the cropped pant, because they weren't in fashion at that time. So I cut the pants off, which made them hers, as opposed to what was out there, and then I just put these gold Chanel slippers on her feet to accentuate the fact that she was the mob boss's wife.

As for the white shirt, it was a version of a man's shirt that we made a little bit sexier. The whole thing was my custom design: the larger collar and long cuffs feminized the look, as did the suppressed waist. I wanted there to be this tension because we know that Marsellus is a scary guy. She's the boss's wife—a do-not-touch item—and yet, she's hot and a bit of a bad girl. Those are the parameters I was working with. So I envisioned her sitting there having the milkshake with Vincent, being a little seductive with that black wig—Quentin's vision was that Mia would look like the old silent movie star, which she very much did, of course—and I'm thinking, 'Well, you want a little cleavage.' We also want to see, if it happens naturally, the bandeau top underneath. Because later Vincent's gonna rip that shirt off and plunge the needle into her."

So, Mia's wardrobe is determined by her character's strength and what her choice of clothing communicates about her rank.

The choice of Quentin Tarantino to dress a female character in the same crisp suits as his heroes serves as a visual clue to her prominence. It indicates to the spectator that she is a match for Vincent Vega and that she is a character on a par with any in Tarantino's canon. While she is dressed like a powerful guy, there are enough feminine details in her costume to indicate femininity. To begin, she is not dressed in a tie. The shirt is cut in a way that emphasises her curves, while the pants are cropped at the ankle in a way that conjures a sophisticated Parisian flair. Her entire ensemble communicates that she has appropriated a man's style of doing things and made it her own. She is the most powerful woman in a male-dominated universe; she has the ability to force a cold-blooded hitman  to dance the twist at her command. 

Mia Wallace does not require her clothing to speak for her; she is capable of doing it on her own. 

Dressing with a white shirt and black trousers is not a accident. It's a significant fashion statement. It is a proclamation by a woman that she is comparable to Mia Wallace — or that she aspires to be like to Mia Wallace. 

Mia Wallace is a femme fatale who is intriguing, powerful, with a bad girl streak a mile wide.. She does not require a slinky red gown to capture your attention, nor does she need to be covered in bling to show off her wealth. (In fact, her only jewellery is in the movie poster -  a simple silver choker style necklace with an oval pendant with a blood red stone -unflashy, classic and super 90s). She only need a crisp white shirt and black trousers. Her ensemble is not legendary  because it is unique. It is legendary because she is.

5 Michelle Burroughs, Dazed and Confused

Costume Designer, Kathy Dover

Milla Jovovic as Michelle Burroughs

According to the film’s costume designer, Katherine “Kathy” Dover, the looks were true to their era and were all vintage, except for one. “There was a blouse by Betsey Johnson,” she says. “A little peasant blouse with a piece of elastic at the waist. But it was clearly that feeling of the period.” Beyond that lone fresh-from-the-runway top, she sourced the other pieces from warehouses in Los Angeles and vintage shops in Texas.

Special details were incorporated into each of the characters’ outfits to show which cliques they belonged to. Those lovable stoners, including Rory Cochrane’s slow-drawl character Ron Slater (who also sported hair extensions), were made to appear just a little bit lazy. “Their clothes were a little more layered just to make it look not sloppy but comfy,” says Dover. “They were a little more relaxed and shapeless.” As in any high school, there were also a few geeky outsiders. One included tomboy Cynthia Dunn, played by Marissa Ribisi. For her, Dover paid attention to color coordination. “Her hair was very much an orange Afro, and it worked so well with the printed blouses I gave her. 

Coincidentally, my favourite character for style inspiration was also Dover’s favourite character to dress - 17-year-old Milla Jovovich’s guitar-strumming, joint-between-her-lips dream girl Michelle Burroughs. “The long leather vest and her tube top and her jeans,” reminisces Dover of Jovovich’s look. “Wherever she was, she had a light shining on her.”

Milla Jovovich played the iconic Michelle Burroughs in 1993's Dazed & Confused, a movie which takes place in 1976. Michelle gave us the run down on how to dress like it's still the 70s without looking like it's Halloween: tight tanks, suede fringe, patched and washed-out denim, and plenty of rad ethnic silver jewellery. In my opinion, she was the coolest girl in school, breezing through the movie like a true free spirt. If only I were that cool in school. Sigh...

6 Jennifer Parker, Back to the Future

Costume Designer, Deborah Scott

Jennifer Parker in the original B2TF

Not a lot has been written about Jennifer Parker's outfit in the original Back to the Future. Bob Gale said that costume designer Deborah Scott found nearly all the clothing for the film in the studio's wardrobe department; they didn't have the budget for her to make many original itemss.Marty McFly's outfit is iconic - the rust orange puffa jacket, the Levis doutble denim and check shirt and the Nike Burins are a uniform you could recognise a mile away. But his girlfriend's outfit outside of cosplay circles doesn't really register. To an 8 year old me however, this was the girl I wanted to dress like. This was an American Hollywood fantasy world I wanted to live in, and Jennifer Parker is who I wanted to be - pastel pink denim jacket, flowery shirt and jeans. in fact, her most iconic outfit is from Back to the Future 2, but it's the original that had my young self dreaming...

Jennifer Parker, in her more famous outfit B2TF2

7 Edie Sedgwick, Factory Girl

Designer: John Dunn

Sienna Miller as Edie Sedgwick and Edie Sedgwick.

Movies made years later often do a better job of depicting fashions than films made at the time because period costume is exaggerated: we’re shown a general population who ALL dressed in whatever was in vogue, when in reality there were probably loads of nerds still hanging out in last decade’s twinsets and poodle skirts.

Factory Girl does a great job of summing up the chaotic atmosphere of the 1960s along with the clashing patterns, sooty eyes, and bohemian attitude of the pop art socialite.

Edie Sedgwick was (and still is) a style icon, and the fashion in Factory Girl represents her unique taste in clothing. A trailblazer in the ’60s Mod scene, Edie was a fan of clean lines, geometric prints and bold make up. 

Edie is one of those underground style icons whose brief presence so impacted the cultural zeitgeist of her time that her unique look has only become more mainstream over the years. The California socialite made her way to New York City in the '60s from a privileged but troubled homelife in California and quickly became a regular at Andy Warhol's Factory. As an artist, Sedgwick starred in several of his films and became recognized for her silverry pixie hairdo — cut and dyed to look like Warhol's own mop of hair — and her black eye makeup with huge fluttery lashes.

She was not afraid to be bold and make a statement with accessories. Her love of oversized chandalier earrings became a key part of her signature style and  perfectly complemented her pixie cut. She said of them once, “I'll have to put more earrings on. I bet that someone could analyse me and tell my condition by my earrings.” Add to this big sunglasses, tall boots and you get a look that defined 1960s and mod style. She wore ballet leotards and T-shirts for her dance training which she practised for hours daily and teamed them with '60s leopard print coats and kitten heels or Mary Jane's for a day to night out look – a trend that spread like wildfire. When feeling more exuberant, she would dress up in feather boas, metallic minidresses, layering prints and adorning her looks with lavish jewellery and fur coats. 

The aesthetic she cultivated was so original and so intriguing at the time, that she continues to serve as a reference for the youthquake fashion scene.

Unfortunately, like many troubled stars of her day, Edie died before she hit 30 after years of drug abuse, anorexia and the mental trauma of her past. Part of what made her so interesting, also proved to be her undoing. A talented artist, unafraid of experimenting, constantly evolving, and living life at 1000 miles an hour, perhaps she described herself best when she mused: "It's not that I'm rebelling, I'm just trying to find another way." 

8 Sloane Peterson, Ferris Bueller's Day Off

Costume Designer, Marilyn Vance

Sloane Peterson (centre) takes a stroll in Ferris Bueller's Day Off.

Ferris Bueller is another in the canon of John Hughes films which encapsulated a certain laid back American 80s high school charm that living in England, we imagined all American high schools were like, but very likely weren't. Ferris Bueller has the kind of kooky retro style that cries out to be copied by adoring teens the world over. As a pre-teen girl, I was enamoured by his effortlessly beautiful and stylish girlfriend, Sloane Peterson. 

Played by Mia Sara, Sloane was and always will be the coolest girl in school. It's crazy to think that Sara only wore one outfit in her role as Sloane Peterson, but oh, what a magnificent outfit it was: 

Not unlike Farris, whose leopard print vest and Letterman retro jacket are the most cool and memorable pieces to his costume, Sloane's outfit also, is all about the jacket. In her case, it's white, slightly cropped and vaguely Western-inspired, with a fringe trim wrapping around the chest and back. Though so many of Hughes' pictures have since become an archetype of '80s style and pop culture, "Ferris Bueller"'s aesthetic holds up, even when I watch it today. That's not to say that there aren't elements of Sloane's look that scream 1986!, like her oversize Bermuda shorts and slouchy white riding boots, but you only have to think of Chloe Sevigny and Rachel Bilsson, to remember that boots and Bermuda shorts combo has come and gone again several times since the film was made. The jacket, though, is the very essence of Sloane: distinctive, slightly retro (even for when the movie was made) and unfairly, disgustingly cool. 

Throughout the movie, Sloane is seen wearing this jacket with grey above-the-knee shorts and beaded white boots to match the jacket. The cowgirl-meets-Los Angeles aesthetic is completed by Sloane’s Wayfarer sunglasses, lightweight, light brown leather crossbody bag, Western belt, and the Cartier Must de Cartier watch that sits on her wrist alongside a delicate bracelet. Combining this ensemble with the demeanour of the character that Sara plays ensured Sloane’s status as an 80s teen movie icon.

 In theory, the combination of Bermuda-shorts-and-boots street style trend, seems improbable and awkward, but given the right proportions — which Sloane proves to be loose-fitting, tailored shorts and mid-rise, slouchy boots — it can look so darn cool. In fact, it was probably the fact that it was so unusual a combination that makes it such a memorable choice for Sloane.