Costuming the Most Personal Characters
One night a year, actors get to play the stars they like best: themselves. Only some of them walking down the red carpet at the Academy Awards on Sunday night were out of character.
When Angelina Jolie, who won an Oscar for best supporting actress, appeared in her black Versace gown, onlookers outside the Shrine Auditorium variously murmured, “Morticia,” “Elvira” or “Who is she?” Her dyed-black, hip-length hair and skull ring may have been Oscar’s latest glimpse of Goth.
But black dresses are great foils that let a person’s character shine. Chloe Sevigny, with her signature red lips and a belted V-neck by Yves Saint Laurent, was a standout in a sea of beads and baubles. And black dresses are great backdrops for interesting jewelry: Witness Drew Barrymore’s multi-strand green necklace and Cate Blanchett’s mix of new and vintage Indian jewels and black Jean-Paul Gaultier sheath.
Playing yourself isn’t nearly as fun as spoofing someone else and the Oscar frenzy for fashion. “South Park’s” Trey Parker, Matt Stone and Marc Shaiman dressed in drag: Parker in a version of Jennifer Lopez’s famously low-cut Grammy Awards Versace dress, Stone in Gwyneth Paltrow’s pink gown of last year and Shaiman in a white leisure suit and aqua fur wrap.
Mena Suvari stepped out of her “American Beauty” high school character to look like a well-preserved matron. The silver Escada dress worked, but the high Jacqueline Susann hair didn’t.
As long as she keeps wearing those towering headdresses, Erykah Badu will always be spotted in a crowd. Her green leather and yellow raffia patchwork dress by New York designer Charlene Shepherd guaranteed it.
Trends Include Colorful Clothes, Big Jewelry
Oscar’s big fashion trends? Colorful clothes, big diamond jewelry, matching accessories, jeweled minaudieres and twirled, upswept hair. But vividly colored evening wear, like Keith Richards, doesn’t age well.
Ten years from now when we look back at Oscar 2000, we may recoil at Uma Thurman’s pleated rose sheath by Alberta Ferretti, or the bright lavender Valentino gown on Ashley Judd (who wore lavender glitter eye shadow) or the terra cotta Vera Wang slip dress on Charlize Theron. But for now, the colors and the dresses worked perfectly because the dresses were so flattering.
Bright red worked for Gloria Estefan, in a vivid glove-button Richard Tyler gown, and for Lucy Liu. “It was the first and only dress I looked at,” Liu said of her custom-made, one-shoulder beaded Versace sheath.
Queen Latifah brought along her pearl gray dress’ designer, Kara Saun, who pointed out the beading along the lining.
Salma Hayek’s pale lavender gown brought attention to a new-to-Oscar designer, Eric Gaskins of New York.
Gold Reigns; Swank Blossoms
Some actresses wore as much gold as Oscar, notably Nicole Kidman in a shiny Christian Dior and Pauletta Washington in a fan-top dress by Carmen Marc Valvo.
Best actress Hilary Swank blossomed into regal beauty in an iridescent olive ball gown by Randolph Duke and a stunning Asprey & Garrard 17th century diamond necklace. Maria Shriver looked fresh in a pink embroidered Valentino slip dress.
Most men went for simple tuxedos, bow ties and jeweled shirt studs. But Samuel L. Jackson’s purple velvet jacket by Giorgio Armani competed with “Genghis Blues’ ” Kongar-ol Ondar’s native costume for most outrageous menswear.
While everyone was busy guessing which famous designer made which dress, Gabrielle Anwar surprised everyone when she confessed she was her own seamstress.
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Times staff writer Barbara Thomas contributed to this story.
