Of course I was immediately entranced by the mass six-pack clad army of men parading around the screen and I can't deny that I greatly appreciated their rather skimpy gladiator gear - who knew a cape could be so sexy? However, what really excited me was the wardrobe of Queen Gorgo. Her strength of character, defiance in the face of political instability and her unyielding dedication to her husband is cast in stark contrast to the wispy, delicate dresses that loosely adorn her body, creating an interesting dynamic. Queen Gorgo is staunchly and impeccably put together both in character and in wardrobe. Her body is to be appreciated and looked upon but the apparent fragility conveyed through her clothing, or at times, lack there-of, is not to be taken as weakness as Theron violently discovers. The swathes of fabric that surround her body create an angelic quality that only acts to mask her power.
I struggled to find many pictures depicting her dresses but it is well worth watching the film to see what I'm making such a fuss about!
Now I'm not saying that I'll be emulating this look exactly. I don't think a bed sheet would really combat against these gale force winds too well! But I love the play between ferocity and coyness, sexiness and practicality, fabric and flesh, warrior and woman. I'd love to see how I could adapt this into my everyday dressing, plus you can't deny how beautiful the dresses are, the drapery hugs her body in the most flattering of ways, something every woman longs to achieve from their clothing.
However, for me someone else stole the fashion spot-light - the tyrannical 'god' King Xerxes. The introductory scene of Xerxes displays him being carried on a gigantic golden platform by his army of slaves. The camera pans up revealing Xerxes to be entirely adorned in golden chains and rings. Move over Anna Dello-Russo, I have a new fashion crush!
As I have admitted in previous posts, I am a complete magpie, anything sequinned or bejewelled immediately ticks my fashion box and Xerxes is an embodiment of gold and glitter. I thought that I'd seen every way and every place jewellery could be worn: ear chains, ear chains that link to eyebrows, ear piercings, lip piercings, body harnesses, anklets, bracelets, bicep chains, toe rings, hand rings, the list goes on. What captured my attention is the way in which the wardrobe team captured the essence of otherworldliness, wealth, power, pain and in my opinion total bad ass-ness just through the use of golden chain links.
We've all seen the Guinness World Record book with the pictures of 'most pierced man/woman' but the construction of Xerxes image is mixed with something undeniably fashionable. He is completely chained up, every inch of his body is covered with some form of golden jangly thing and this really speaks to me. Aren't we all constrained by some form of materialism? His image is a powerful one to me, he is both awe inspiring in his towering form yet totally limited. His human flesh and thus fragility remains and cannot be hidden behind or beneath his jewels and what they represent, mainly his attempt to gain complete power.
I imagine reinterpreting my vision of him through metallic outfits off-set with armfuls and armfuls of various sized chains - I'll skip on the cheek piercings though!
I hope the second part of the film offers up just as much fashion deliciousness as this one has. Watch this space for my future musings on ancient Greek dressing, I knew my Ancient History A-Level would come in handy one day…
(None of the photos are my own unless stated)
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