GLITZ, GLAMOUR, GATSBY
Fittingly, fashion’s emphasis in both the movie and the marketing campaign is on menswear
Summer film puts a new emphasis on menswear,
Last summer, when word went out that the release of Baz Luhrmann’s lavish 3D version of The Great Gatsby, originally skedded for Christmas 2012, was being pushed back, it may have been taken as an ominous sign.
Hell, no. Opening in theatres on May 10, the latest film adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel arrives on a wave of publicity, with a lot of the hoopla generated by fashion.
“Can’t repeat the past? . . . Why of course you can!” insists Jay Gatsby, and his faith seems well-founded.
Last time the book was turned into a major motion picture was in 1974. The men’s wardrobe was by Ralph Lauren, jewels from Cartier.
This time, Brooks Brothers dressed the male characters, and Tiffany & Co. provided the bling.
In both cases, a fever of interest was stoked by marketing.
In 1974, Time magazine carried a cover story — headlined “The Great Gatsby Supersell” — that talked about product tie-ins, among them, Ballantine Scotch and a line of Teflon cookware, which provoked Fitzgerald’s daughter to complain, “You have turned The Great Gatsby into pots and pans.”
Today, you can visit Huffington Post online, and enjoy a video which offers the recipe for a Gatsby-esque sandwich from the author of Savory Bites: Meals You Can Make in your Cupcake Pan.
While that amusing hiccup of history might be merely accidental, highly deliberated campaigns have gone into promoting the movie’s connections to fashion.
As it was with the 1974 version, Women’s Wear Daily began talking about Gatsby looks even as the movie was being made.
Fittingly, since Gatsby was a man whose beautiful shirts could bring a woman to tears — and Daisy didn’t just cry, she cried “stormily” — much of the talk has been of menswear. Not only did Brooks Brothers collaborate with costume designer Catherine Martin on the clothes in the movie, the company is also offering In 1974, is also offering a limited-edition, Jazz Age-inspired collection at retail.
While there is not much difference to be seen between the shawlcollared cardigan that Tom Buchanan wore in 1974 and the one that Nick Carraway has on in 2013 — or the one that’s on sale at Brooks Brothers — fashion, unlike Jay Gatsby, doesn’t aim merely to repeat the past. Compared to the jackets worn by Robert Redford as Gatsby in 1974, those worn by Leonardo DiCaprio as Gatsby are tighter and shorter, which is the mode of this moment.
Not that DiCaprio’s director, Baz Luhrmann, has ever confined himself to authentic period dress. In his 1996 version of Romeo and Juliet, Romeo, a Montague, wears a wedding suit by Prada, while the Capulet boys’ wardrobe was provided by Dolce & Gabbana.
For The Great Gatsby, Catherine Martin worked with Miuccia Prada who designed 40 background dresses for party scenes as well as a show-stopping beaded frock worn with a fur collar by Carey Mulligan as Daisy Buchanan.
To top it off, Daisy wears a headband with detachable brooch, made from diamonds and pearls by Tiffany & Co., who collaborated with Martin on the jewelry in the film. For public consumption, Tiffany has a range it calls the Ziegfeld Collection that includes long flapperish pearl necklaces and an onyx signet ring for guys, like Gatsby, who make the most of identity issues.
“All of the brand partnerships that we’ve had on this film have been about helping to tell the story,” explains Catherine Martin, in a video featured on the website of Fogal, the hosiery company responsible for the legwear in The Great Gatsby as well as the Gatsby-inspired collection on sale at its Bloor St. W Yorkville. Styles include stockings with rhinestoned seams and mesh knee-highs, such as are worn in the movie by Myrtle Wilson.
Wilson, a floozie from the wrong side of the tracks; Tom Buchanan, an abusive bigot; Jordan Baker, a jaunty cheat; Daisy Buchanan, the beautiful, but bitter, fool; Jay Gatsby, anti-hero — it’s not as if the characters in The Great Gatsby are role models. So why would we want their looks? It might be that fashion tells bigger lies, sells bigger dreams than you find even in fiction.