Costume design is one of the most important, yet overlooked factors when it comes to making a film. Along with color grading, set, and post-production magic, they're what make a film tonally cohesive. A director works closely with a director of photography, production designer and costume designers to create a color palette that fits the story of the film. Costume is obviously most often used to convey a sense of time within the created world, but they can make the characters more interesting and believable, convey certain feelings, and greatly influence (even if it's at a subconscious level) how the audience sees the people that wear them. Costume can make a boring film memorable for its beauty, and work to draw focus towards important characters, but that's a delicate balance that can go horribly wrong (never forget the Bat Suit with nipples.). Let's start with some examples:
Here's a pivotal moment from The Departed. This shot is pretty cold, isn't it? Take a look at it with cohesion in mind, then imagine if Matt Damon or Leonardo Dicaprio was wearing a bright color, or even something less neutral than their navy blue. The shot wouldn’t look correct, it would be disjointed and wrong because the costumes wouldn’t match the background, the elevator walls. This is all more than a coincidence, it's been carefully selected to make sure there is a visual in-sync-ness tying the characters to the environment. Everything you see needs to be appealing to the eye, so you don’t question its validity.
What we're most familiar with using costume for is to signify when the movie takes place and to inject some level of realism into the piece. Most modern period pieces have chosen to blend this element with contemporary style though, resulting in a beautiful, but not always historically accurate product. Overall, though, the tone emitted from the pieces are more important than accuracy. For example, in Memoirs of a Geisha, Sayuri's kimonos are in a more modern style, and as for makeup, they have forgone the white face paint to create a more classical beauty. In Baz Luhrmann's The Great Gatsby, Daisy's dresses are definitely in 1920's style, but much of her character is influenced by modern standards- her makeup is more natural than 20's de rigeur, and she's definitely fuller-figured than the style at the time.
Costume can also be used to not only give the audience its bearings in what time period the movie is in, but to give a sense of time within that time period. It sounds confusing, but look at the above example from Michel Gondy's Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. It's a non-linear narrative told chiefly through flashbacks, but to keep it from getting too confusing, Clementine's hair color gives us some signal as to what point in the relationship we are at.
Communication via costume can be employed to break the fourth wall and gently tap the audience on the shoulder. Let's take Edgar Wright's Scott Pilgrim vs. the World. In it, Scott Pilgrim is forced to fight his girlfriend Ramona Flowers' seven evil exes if he wants to be with her. The above picture is hardly a subtle example of costume's importance in this film, Todd Ingram being the third evil ex, but all of the other exes wear a number to denote their position within the villains’ hierarchy. For example, Lucas Lee, ex number two, has two ‘Xs’ embossed on his belt and a number 2 on his neck. Matthew Patel, evil ex number one, has an Alpha on the arm of his jacket, the first letter in the alphabet. This is a message for the audience, adding little easter eggs and subconscious factors into the viewing experience.
And finally, costumes can help give visual cues that provide insight into the character. There are nearly endless examples, but for a lightning-round look at some noteworthy ones:
And finally, costumes can help give visual cues that provide insight into the character. There are nearly endless examples, but for a lightning-round look at some noteworthy ones:
Margot Tenenbaum's coat is nothing but a big security blanket.
Mark Zuckerberg is distanced from his partners and peers through costume, he is always relaxed in hoodies, sweatshirts, and sandals while the people surrounding him wear well-tailored suits and button-downs. Eduardo Saverin is part of said group, trying to dress just as smartly as the elite he aspires to someday join. And Fincher's eye for detail is impeccable in this movie. According to Zuckerberg: "Every single shirt and fleece they had in that movie is actually a shirt or fleece that I own."
American Beauty is one of the rare examples where the significance of costume is explicitly mentioned within the movie. When describing his wife Carolyn, Lester Burnham says: "See the way the handle on those pruning shears matches her gardening clogs? That's not an accident." Carolyn believes that to succeed, one must project an image of success at all times, and this philosophy is reflected in her carefully chosen, immaculately controlled clothing.
Even when Jasmine is in shambles, she still looks incredible, for the most part trying to hold on to the glamorous life that has left her behind. For god's sake, she literally has Louis Vuitton baggage. The costume budget for Blue Jasmine was a mere $35,000. The Hermès bag that Jasmine carries (shown above) was worth more than the entire budget and was borrowed, as were most of the designer outfits.