They Wear It Well

The Movie: “Sugar Hill.”

The Setup: Brothers Roemello (Wesley Snipes, pictured at left) and Raynathan (Michael Wright, pictured with Snipes) Skuggs seem destined to become Harlem drug lords, but Roemello seeks another life.

The Costume Designer: Eduardo Castro, whose previous credits include the series “Miami Vice” and the movie “Bird on a Wire.”

The Look: Coolly crafted images of modern guys who make big bucks, not fashion cliches of Harlem’s underworld. Bankrolled with their illicit torrents of cash, no doubt, the brothers favor the unusual shapes and produce-section colors characteristic of Italian and Japanese tailoring. Some looks work better than others, and the most seductive are the inky black leather coats and jackets worn by virtually every principal character, male and female.

Trend Watch: High-testosterone types should consider looking for a new emblem--there’s not a pierced earlobe in sight.

Trivia: It’s not visible on camera, but Snipes chose to wear an African bracelet of silver and amber to “help him with his performance,” Castro said. “In Harlem, now and then you see people wearing touches of African culture.”

Miss: Roemello’s suit of preference is a dark and conservative Armani that goes overboard in the name of refined fashion sensibility. Even worse, he wears these lawyerly looking threads with a silk shirt.

Quoted: “I was kind of tired of the baseball hat going backward, the hooded shirts, the baggy pants and the big vulgar jewelry. I saw the script as a classic Greek tragedy about a bad and good brother, so I wanted to make a more baroque statement,” Castro said.

Inspiration: Visits to Harlem, men’s fashion magazines.

Sources: Roemello’s and Raynathan’s jacket labels include Versace, Issey Miyake and Yohji Yamamoto. Leather coats are from Claude Montana, among others. Roemello’s overcoats are Hugo Boss and New York’s Charivari boutique private label. Castro designed Roemello’s suede jacket.