All American Antoinette : Film Review: Sofia Coppola's "The Beguiled"

Hi Everyone! “Why”, you may be asking yourself “is All American Antoinette writing a blog entry after 6 months of absence? And also, why is it about costumes from the Victorian period / American Civil war?”

No good answer about the blog- I mean if someone isn’t paying you and other stuff comes up then a blog is just a blog. But I’m sorry if that helps?

As for the time shift- I feel like this is a place where all historical costuming is welcome (even if I tend to prefer other time periods). Plus, Sofia Coppola is one of the main reasons I fell in love with HA costuming. From “The Virgin Suicides” 1970’s dreamy maxi dresses to the 2006 over the top Rococo fantasy that is “Marie Antoinette”. How could I resist her latest historical romp “The Beguiled”?

My boyfriend and I were able to make it to a preview screening, which was exciting enough- until I realized there were costumes from the film in the theatre! My first assumption was these would be from costume master Milena Canonero. I couldn’t stop shrieking. Took me a hot minute to realize Stacey Battat was the costume designer. But after pouring over the costumes I was pleasantly surprised to see many historically accurate elements: buttons instead of zippers, hand finish on the collars, and no back lacing (thank God). Battat was trying to go for clothing “that was old flowy and mossy with an airiness to the clothes”.

Back to my earlier admission that I’m not a fan of Civil War outfits. The necklines, sleeves, and silhouettes just don’t seem flattering no matter who’s wearing it. But I still appreciate and understand what goes into making a HA 1863 dress.

So did Battat’s vision work?
Well for most modern audiences Yes. But for those of us who twitch when presented with woman from 1863 with their hair down, or bite our tongue when a corset is probably more 1904 than 1863, or almost throw popcorn at the screen when there is not a chemise to be seen (and sooooo many pantaloons)- it’s a bit heart breaking. Honestly most of the costumes were beautiful and spot on except for (spoiler alert) Kirsten Dunst wearing a dress that looked like something out of a Macy’s prom catalog. But enough gabbing- here are some pictures of the dresses: