Clothes encounters
Sally Field brings out old outfits at costume guild awards
BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. — Wonder Woman’s gilded bustier, the spangled skating dresses in I, Tonya and the subdued shades of the 1960s as shown in The Shape of Water were among the finest costumes of the year, says the Costume Designers Guild.
The union celebrated the year’s outstanding work in film and television at the Beverly Hilton Hotel on Tuesday night at its 20th annual awards show. Hosted by actress Gina Rodriguez, the evening included special honours for Guillermo del Toro and Kerry Washington, and concluded with Sally Field bringing a tote bag of movie memorabilia onstage.
The Oscar-winning actress was on hand to present a career achievement award to costume designer Joanna Johnston, whose many credits include Saving Private Ryan, Love Actually, The Sixth Sense and two collaborations with Field: Forrest Gump and Lincoln.
Field pulled a fuzzy pink sweater from her tote bag before introducing the honoree. It was a handmade piece that Mrs. Gump wore when she told Forrest Gump that “life is like a box of chocolates.”
“It’s such a specific choice for such an important scene — Mama Gump’s death — and it speaks in ways words can’t,” Field said.
She also showed off a quilt fashioned from pieces of each of Mary Todd Lincoln’s sweeping gowns that Johnston made her as a souvenir from that 2012 film.
“I will pass it around,” she said. And while she did not, she did pose with it onstage.
“All right, who else is going to pull out their quilt?” Rodriguez asked, playfully going off-script throughout the evening.
While the Oscars and Emmys also recognize costume design, the guild’s awards are broken into categories that highlight the intricacies of contemporary, period and sci-fi or fantasy designs.
Film-wise, Wonder Woman won for sci-fi/fantasy, I, Tonya took the prize for contemporary and The Shape of Water (also up for the costume design Oscar) won for period attire. In television, Game of Thrones won for sci-fi/fantasy, The Crown won for period and The Handmaid’s Tale was the contemporary winner.
As Handmaid’s Tale designer Ane Crabtree accepted her award, she removed the long black gloves she’d been wearing to reveal that she’d written #TimesUp and #MeToo on her palms.
“We are part of the resistance,” she said.
It’s such a specific choice for such an important scene — Mama Gump’s death — and it speaks in ways words can’t.” Sally Field, of a fuzzy pink sweater (pictured) from her performance in Forrest Gump.