"Garbomania"

Next Monday i have to present in front of my classmates and my tutor my "Favorite Hollywood Star/Actress" and for those who din't already get it, mine will be the legendary Greta Garbo! 

Greta Garbo is one of Hollywood’s greatest stars - a legendary screen actress – and remains one of the most fascinating women in history. She had a talent that few actresses or actors possess: in close-ups she gave the impression, the illusion of great movement. Her eyes expressed a limited but intense emotional range and this is the reason why Garbo was an international superstar even in silent era – she didn’t have to speak! Of all the other stars none had such magnetism and mystique equal to Garbo's and arguably she is one of the most amazing and most provocative characters of classical Hollywood. Her acting and, even, her accent are not only unique and memorable, but also a reference for the generations of actresses that followed.  

Undoubtedly, the movie stars of the ‘30s were “the center of the Hollywood system” and, more than anything else, the audience starved to see them. The film industry of the time had two prevailing representatives holding the leading roles. On the one side, the “Divine” Greta Garbo created the profile of a mysterious and quite melancholic diva. On the other side, the “mask-like-face” of Marlen Dietrich and her androgynous style couldn’t pass unnoticed. Personally, I am a fan of the first one. In my opinion, Garbo’s image was that of a real star, carefully created and also supported by an unquestionable talent. Greta Garbo was close and distant at the same time. She even managed to turn her imperfect English into an advantage and within a few years to establish herself among “the giants” of the cinema history. 

But, i am not here to present a typical post on Garbo's biography that anyone can find through google; instead of this, i would like to focus my post on "Mata Hari", one of Garbo's grossing films and my favorite one!

Greta Garbo in "Mata Hari" film 

Woman, dancer, performer, artist, spy, symbol, icon, inspiration and desire, all these characteristics concentrated in one person, in one role, in one film “Mata Hari” (1931) played by Greta Garbo. In my opinion “Mata Hari” is one of the most distinguished film noir movies of the 20^th century; not only for its deliberate representation and execution of the script, but mostly due to its very particular and ample artistic approach. Despite the fact that the “Mata Hari” movie was screened in 1931, it refers to Word War 1, a 4-year period between 1914 and 1918. This means that the film contains styling elements and influences taken from approximately 3 different decades. First of all, at the early 1910s, “Orientalism” was the new trend that came to prevail. Western designers adopted exotic stylish details, patterns and lines from different Asian cultures. “All things oriental” was the norm! The outbreak of war in August 1914 forced ordinary women to seek utility, comfort and simplicity in fashion. By 1918 waistlines had dropped to just above the hip. 1920s’ artist trend called “Art Deco” influenced the whole period, since it managed not only to combine architecture, graphic arts, industrial design, decoration and fashion, but also to successfully blend the old with the absolutely modern. In the end of the 1920s and with a new decade rising, designers worked in order to create an androgynous dress code, “one that would broaden the discussion of the relationship between the sexes”.

Greta Garbo as the seductive dancer-spy "Mata Hari"

In this point i have to make clear that Mata Hari’s style is very specific and should not be confused with the 1910s general look. The film presents both aspects of Mata Hari’s life; the seductive dancer and the woman-spy. For her performances, Hari is dressed in a metal breastplate decorated with Oriental and Indonesian ornaments, beaded bracelets and luxury rings adorned her fingers and wrists, elaborate jeweled headdress and impressive fancy turbans with additional long earrings decorated her head in order to demonstrate her special personality and unique style. As a woman-spy, Hari’s style was distinctive compared to this of the rest ordinary women of her period. During the film, Mata Hari appears with outfits, which combine elements from quite different sources and time periods. 1910s’ Orientalism constitutes the strongest influence; we see Hari repeatedly wearing different designs of ornately jeweled tunics combined with leggings covered by sarongs fastened with elaborate belts. The fact that Mata Hari wears this particular kind of leggings and harem-style pants, which were first introduced to Paris by Poiret in 1922, confirms not only her strong personality, but it also implies an androgynous silhouette that affected women during the ‘30s. Moreover, apart from Orientalism, Mata Hari’s long-torso dresses, capes and barrel shaped coats follow the 1920s general trend, without losing their unique character. Even today her total black finale dress remains remarkably elegant. Last of all, we cannot neglect her eyebrows’ thin line, quite mismatched with 1910s’ trend, but absolutely compatible with ‘30s general look and Garbo’s personal image. 

Greta Garbo in "Mata Hari's" outfit

Film’s costume designer, Adrian, did exceptional work and managed to create a fashion reference point for the next designing generations. Over the years that followed, Mata Hari’s style as it emerged through Great Garbo’s interpretation proved a source of inspiration in a great range of ways. Fashion designers all over the world reproduced and renovated Mata Hari’s style based on 1931’s classical movie.

First among the leading ones, Thierry Mugler, the designer that was distinguished for his avant-garde designs and reigned during the 1990s decade, almost always used clear references to “Mata Hari” film. For example, his autumn/winter 1997-1998 Haute Couture collection and the amazing outfit he created for the campaign of his perfume “Alien” (spring 2009), which looks like a modern-cyber Mata Hari, are only some evidence to confirm it.

Thierry Mugler's "Alien" perfume campaign

John Galliano frequently shows his preference to the earlier decades of the 20^th century. His spring/summer 1997 collection is influenced by various eastern cultures and especially his evening outfits and the styling are addressed to a modern Mata Hari.

From John Galliano's Spring/Summer 1997 collection

Moreover, a great number of Alexander McQueen’s autumn/winter 2007-2008 collection creations are undoubtedly inspired by “Mata Hari” film. McQueen’s gold toilets and overall jumpsuits could equally replace Adrian’s ones in Mata Hari’s movie. 

From McQueen's autumn/winter 2007-2008 collection

Jean Paul Gaultier also experimented with Mata Hari’s style, but in his case, he incorporated bohemian and gipsy elements into it. His fall/winter 2010-2011 ready-to-wear collection was full of elaborate huge turbans and Mata Hari style accessories.

From JPG's fall/winter 2010-2011 RTW collection

La_Dolce_Vita OR when_Fellini_met_Balenciaga

And here i am my dear followers, from now on i am officially a UK resident! It took me a week to get organized and put myself together, but i believe that i have created the ideal writing/working space. Would you like to have a look into my new flat?

Flat A103 / Room B @ Emily Bowes Court Halls of Residence

I know that my tittle looks a bit weird, but i am ready to explain it! As you can understand my MA just begun, to be honest the induction week started 2 days ago and this means that there is still some time available for blogging, chatting and can i say facebook-ing? On Monday i had the great idea to download a classical movie and at the same time relaxing with a glass of wine. And that movie was Federico Fellini's La Dolce Vita (1960); fot those who are unfamiliar with the italian language (bad for you people) the title means "the sweet life" or "the good life".

La dolce vita  is a 1960 comedy-drama film written and directed by the critically acclaimed director Federico Fellini. The film is a story of a passive journalist's week in Rome, and his search for both happiness and love that will never come. Generally cited as the film that marks the transition between Fellini's earlier neo-realist films and his later art films, it is widely considered one of the great achievements in world cinema. The only thing i would like to point out is that in 2010, the film was ranked #11 in Empire magazine's "The 100 Best Films Of World Cinema" and, of course, it possesses a place in other kind of lists like this.  

I think that there is no need to say anything about the plot of the film, you can google it after all. I would only like to point out a few things that make this film a distinctive one; not only for its innovative structure, but also for its extravagant costumes. Moreover, Fellini's film managed to create a particular kind of "film-culture" available and widely used by the generations that followed. 

Structure._ :

Based on the most common interpretation of the storyline, the film can be divided into a prologue, seven major episodes interrupted by an intermezzo, and an epilogue. If the evenings of each episode were joined with the morning of the respective preceding episode together as a day, they would form seven consecutive days. That kind of structure gives the film its innovative and symmetrically symbolic structure. The evocations are obvious: seven deadly sins, seven sacraments, seven virtues and, of course, seven were the days of creation! I will only mention the film's opening scene, where a statue of Christ suspended by cables from an helicopter flies over the ruins of ancient Rome. The symbolism of Christ, arms outstretched as if blessing all of Rome as it flies overhead, is soon replaced by the profane lifestyle and neomodern architecture of the "new" Rome founded on the economic miracle of the late 1950s. In this point, it is necessary to point out that perceived by the Catholic Church as a parody of Christ's second coming, the scene and the entire film were condemned by the Vatican newspaper L'Observatore Romano in 1960. The film was characterized as "shameful" and banned in Spain until 1975. 

Costumes._ :

Although critics have often commented on the extravagant costumes used throughout Fellini's films, few realized that the origin behind La dolce vita was the sack dress, introduced by the designer Balenciaga in 1957. In various interviews, Fellini claimed that the film's initial inspiration was in fact this particular style. Brunello Rondi, Fellini's co-screenwriter and long-time collaborator, confirmed this view explaining that "the fashion of women's sack dresses which possessed that sense of luxurious butterflying out around a body that might be physically beautiful but not morally so; these sack dresses struck Fellini because they rendered a woman very gorgeous who could, instead, be a skeleton of squalor and solitude inside." 

Culture._ :

The film has influenced or else been referenced in contemporary films, television shows, and songs. In Sofia Coppola's Lost in Translation (2003), Charlotte (Scarlett Johansson) and Bob (Bill Murray) meet in the middle of the night and watch the famous Trevi Fountain sequence while drinking sake.  Coppola said, "I saw that movie on TV when I was in Japan. It's not plot-driven, it's about them wandering around. And there was something with the Japanese subtitles and them speaking Italian - it had a truly enchanting quality".

In Goodbye Lenin (2003), directed by Wolfgang Becker, a statue of Lenin is flown across Berlin, recalling the opening scene of Fellini's film. 

The title of Korean film,  A Bittersweet Life (2005), is a pun on the English translation of La dolce vita  and the restaurant that the protagonist enforces for the mob is called La Dolce Vita. 

The two protagonists of Marcos Carnevale's Elsa y Fred (2005) recreate the scene in the Fontana di Trevi performed originally by Ekberg and Mastroianni. 

In Simon Pegg's How to Lose Friends & Alienate People (2008), Alison (Kirsten Dunst) cites La dolce vita as her favourite movie. 

Woody Allen's Celebrity (1998) is a New York-set re-working of La dolce vita with Kenneth Branagh taking up Mastroianni's role, and Goldie Hawn and Charlize Theron taking on the roles held by Anouk Aimée and Anita Ekberg, respectively.

* Last, but not least i have to admit that Marcello Mastroianni was definitely a beautiful man!