costumes Tagged Articles at Cinematical

We've already covered some of the clothing inspired by Where the Wild Things Are that you can buy at Urban Outfitters, both for us normal people who buy t-shirts and stuff and for the people who can afford insanely awesome suits designed by Christian Joy, who is most well-known for creating costumes for Yeah Yeah Yeahs' Karen O.

Well, they're not the only ones gunning for your hard earned money this Halloween. (Actually, any time of the year is a fine time to dress up like a Wild Thing or Max, if you ask me. Or furries.) The ultra-hip and expensive store Opening Ceremony collaborated with Spike Jonze and a number of designers for an entire line of Wild Things-inspired clothes, with the crowning touch being a super-cuddly pajamas outfit just like Max. It's also available as a sweater (with gloves that have cut off fingers!).

Do you think the Wild Things hype has gotten out of control? Or are you lusting after these crazy outfits too? How many Maxes and Wild Things do you think we'll see this Halloween?

Comic-Con 2009 has come to a close, and we've already begun the countdown to next year. But what were some of the highlights and lowlights? Cinematical sent three writers to cover the Con this year, Elisabeth Rappe, Todd GIlchrist, and myself, and we all three had very different experiences: Todd was locked in Hall H for most of the show watching the giant panel presentations, Elisabeth spent time moving from the floor to the press area to smaller panels, and I was upstairs covering video press lines and interviews, so we all saw a very different slice of the Con.

Listen to the podcast embedded below to hear what we thought of the Con, what our favorite moments were, and what kind of swag we went home with. It's probably a very different experience than that of a regular fan attendee, and we're very envious of the people who were able to attend for fun and not work. But enough of my yakkin'. Give a listen and chime in with your own Comic-Con thoughts below.



And check out the rest of our Comic-Con coverage over here

One of the most impressive parts of Comic-Con are all of the fans who dress up in costume and walk around the show floor. It's like attending a normal trade show where everyone is dressed up in suits, except in this case the suits are Spider-man and Supergirl outfits. That's some hardcore fandom right there. It takes guts (and in some cases these comic fans have an ample supply of those) to wear spandex and walk around like that in public, and these video interviews are a salute to you.

Our own Elisabeth Rappe is no stranger to dressing up and walking the floor, as she's done it for the last two years. Her account of dressing up as Lara Croft last year and showing off her guns (and pistols, as well) can be read right here. You can also see her interviewing two very lovely Age of Conan costumed girls from Florida right here. Our friend Chris Glenn joined us for interviews on Sunday, and you can watch all of those out after the break. We spoke to everyone from Wonder Woman to Waldo, so be sure and check it out!

While perusing my RSS feed, I came across a post from the NY Post that has sent me into a fit of giggles. It seems that in their piles upon piles of of media-influenced wardrobes, Rubie's has Watchmen costumes which are just about the funniest damned things I've ever seen.

Some aren't bad, like the Dr. Manhattan mask or the Rorschach getup, but really, it's hard to mess up the latter. But oh, how about some poofy pants on the big-size version of Nite Owl? Or the utterly ridiculous Ozymandias that sends me into scary memories of Chris O'Donnell's Robin? I'm thinking that these guys must be camping it up as much as possible, because the Elvisesque snarl on the guy masquerading as The Comedian can't be anything but purposefully ridiculous. Check out images of these costumes in the gallery below.

Will you pick up one of these saucy costumes for your trip to the theater? Or Halloween. Or better yet -- are you planning to whip up something yourself?

Along with the fall foliage, crisp weather, and carved pumpkins comes the quest and stress over making costumes and Halloween plans. Some people carefully plan their Halloween alter-ego well in advance, but most of us don't get out butts into gear until the last minute. Luckily, there's the world of movies -- they not only provide us with entertainment, but make for the absolute best fount of costume and party possibilities -- we've seen them on the screen, they're easily recognizable, easy to mimic, and often a heck of a lot cheaper than rental costumes.

I realized this years ago, when I was broke and looking for a super-cheap, yet super-clever costume. I didn't want to follow the bandwagons of cereal killers and people suffering "My Name is..." identity crises. I spotted a big pile of large, clear trash bags and realized that they'd make the perfect costume -- I would be Laura Palmer, dead, and wrapped in plastic. Only one person recognized me that night, even with her secret diary tucked in the folds of the plastic, but it was still great to be something different than the hordes of vampires, zombies, and other Halloween main-stays. The next year, my friend's dog was getting injections so of course, all I needed was a wig to make myself Mrs. Mia Wallace.

Cinema is not only useful for personal theming and scheming, but groups as well. They're perfect for costuming you and your friends for a night out on the town or a local house party. After scheming up a good theme, all you have to do is apply it to the munchies and decor, and suddenly your boring party becomes a den of movie mojo. After the jump, you'll find seven easy-to-tackle groups, starting you off on cinema's many possibilities. We're film fans after all, so this is our chance to jump into the worlds we see on the big screen. There's only so many options I can hit with this list, so share your ideas and let the brainstorming begin!

Today is actress Evelyn Keyes' birthday; her year of birth seems to be disputed (1916 or 1919), but so far as I can tell, she's still with us. Keyes was born in Port Arthur, Texas, which some of you might recognize as also being the birthplace of Janis Joplin. Keyes arrived in Hollywood in the 1930s and acted in films and on TV until well into the late 1980s. She was sometimes a leading lady in 1940s films like Here Comes Mr. Jordan, The Jolson Story, and Mrs. Mike, and later played Tom Ewell's wife in The Seven Year Itch. She's been married four times, most notably to director John Huston and bandleader Artie Shaw. However, Keyes is most remembered for her small role as Suellen O'Hara, Scarlett's pill of a sister in Gone with the Wind. In fact, Keyes' autobiography, written in the 1970s, is titled Scarlett O'Hara's Younger Sister.

I'm not the fan of Gone with the Wind that I was in high school. Over the years, the racial stereotyping has started to bother me more, and I'm less convinced by Clark Gable's performance as Rhett Butler. Also, it is difficult to love a four-hour film. However, I still love reading about the making of Gone with the Wind -- the huge and lavish production, David O. Selznick's baby, has generated many fascinating stories. Looking at my bookshelf, I realize I own at least four books related to the making of the movie (including the above-mentioned Keyes bio). I also love the costumes by Walter Plunkett, especially Scarlett's dresses. The Harry Ransom Center in Austin has Selznick's archives and a lot of other material from the movie, including faithful reproductions of Scarlett's most gorgeous dresses. Take a look at the HRC online exhibition of Gone with the Wind, especially the Costumes and Makeup section. You can see pictures of all the dresses, the "makeup stills" taken of most of the cast members, including Keyes. Every photo or description is accompanied by memos from Selznick about what he wanted (or didn't like) -- he was a notorious memo writer. Many of the memos are collected in a book called Memo from David O. Selznick ... yes, I own that one too.