Thank you!! I have nothing but respect for ppl who are super into meticulous costuming accuracy, particularly cosplayers & reenacters, but from a storytelling perspective I do think aesthetic "accuracy" is kind of irrelevant, and arguably a nonsensical concept. Glad you enjoyed the video!

Focusing on accuracy while ignoring the storytelling purpose behind costuming choices can be annoying, but I think what really rankles folks is when: (1) it's clear that research actually wasn't done; (2) the motive for the choices was "for teh SEXY"; or (3) there was a better choice available, if the creators had thought a little more. I've never seen a professional costumer take issue with The Favorite or Marie Antoinette or A Knight's Tale because the choices to eschew historical accuracy were clearly deliberate and thought out. The main argument I've seen against, e.g. Little Women (2019) is that greater historical accuracy would have improved the visual storytelling by showing the passage of time and changes in status. Most of (3) tends to involve films buying in to the myth that corsets were always, invariably highly restrictive and terrible, when that is not only false, but a itself a creation of the patriarchy. For example, in Pirates of the Caribbean: Yes, Elizabeth should already have been wearing a corset for years and be perfectly comfortable with it, but it's supposed to tie into the theme of how confining her life is and how pirates represent freedom. That being said, they could have avoided making every historical costumer, theater kid, and corset-wearer's eyes roll out of their head by just thinking a little harder. Maybe the dress is too small because it was ordered so long ago and Elizabeth has grown, so she has to lace tighter than usual to fit into it, and that's why she faints. Maybe the fabric is too thick/heavy because her father just ordered "the thing that is fashionable in London", and forgot that there is a huge climate difference. You can get the same storytelling without the stupid, if you care enough to do so.

@@BlackCanary87 i get what you are saying the use of corsets in historical fiction to symbolize constriction and the narrow roles defined for women is extremely played out and kind of a tired cliche and like yeah honestly i can believe that the corset was probably not the least comfortable part of wearing like 3 layers of fabric with a heavy decorated outer layer and like huge piles of fabric keeping your skirt looking nice but i really do wish we could expand beyond that as the main focus of critiques of historical accuracy i just wish that a bit more attention was paid towards how these movies and portrayals of the past are often like romanticized versions of an ideal life of the white upper classes and how the total erasure of almost any other experience from that time influences how we see history which frankly feels like its presenting a far more inaccurate view of the past than the idea lots of women were out here fainting from corsets like where did the fabric come from where did the wealth that supported such ostentatious clothing come from who are the people paying rent to live on their land that supports their lavish lifestyles like i think even extremely historically accurate movies also seem to enjoy like elevating the level of wealth their characters seem to possess like the recent Emma movie has painfully accurate outfits but they change new clothes almost every single scene like it may portray an accurate visual but not really anything about the accuracy of actual life like its also something i dont really care as much about dwelling on since its like thats kind of the point of the whole historical romance genre and the costumes do wonderful visual storytelling but i think its just something for historical purists to consider

I know I am kind of randomly asking but do anybody know a good place to stream new series online ?

@Ronnie Randy flixportal xD

thank you!! there's always such a varying attitude to historical accuracy in any project - meticulously accurate costumes vs fictionalized narrative, etc.

@@behindtheseams300 I’m looking forward to more of your synthetic approach (no pun intended) to movie costumes. I used to like following KZfaq dress and vintage community but I grew tired of them always wanting the dresses to be accurate to a stitch rather than express creativity or guide the modern audience through the narrative. Like no, a Disney princess is never going to wear a white dress even if would be the most accurate choice for her time period, because little girls would see her and think she is a bride.

thank you!!

thank you! hope you enjoy the rest of the series!

That's an interesting distinction between Keira's best roles vs best films! I've seen relatively few of her contemporary movies, in fact. And thank you, I'm glad you liked the episode! I have a lot of complicated thoughts about historical accuracy, as you can probably tell from this video... on the whole I think it's an imposible goal, and audiences & filmmakers should probably have more flexibility about considering what "needs" to be "accurate," and what doesn't.

I like Laggies (aka Say When) a lot. She's really good in it even if her American accent is not flawless

Thank you! And yes, that's right - the 2005 edition is set a few decades earlier than the book, which means the women's costumes are a different shape, altho not different enough to be notably jarring. Joe Wright was interested in exploring the changing class divides during a period closer to the French Revolution. I think I was going to say this in an earlier version of the video script, but I cut it because it didn't really feel relevant to the topics at hand re: gritty realism vs idealised costuming. :)

@@behindtheseams300 Austen wrote her first drafts of Pride & Prejudice in the 1790s, and the novel doesn't really give us a year, so it could take place before the turn of the 19th century. That said--"gritty" isn't always "realistic"! For me seeing livestock in the Bennet household pings as startling and implausible, while I'm guessing someone who likes the movie would see it as earthy and unpretentious; but either way, it doesn't seem to have any particular historical basis.

yay, thank you! and yes, i really like that adaptation of macbeth, especially the costumes & music. it's really atmospheric and they manage to balance a kind of ~historical atmosphere~ with a theatrical tone, instead of trying to make it all gritty and realistic.

thank you so much! :) glad you liked the episode.

very good points! the direct link between wealth and "beauty" is especially obvious in the historical genre.

LOVE The Lighthouse!!! Not exactly a typical historical drama tho, lol.

Yeah, cultural appropriation & poor research is a problem across the board, but it tends to be even more glaring in a lot of historical films...

For sure, look at this year's Mulan... and Disney marketed is as an extremely well researched and respectful production. Didn't exactly work out.

i'm pretty sure i counted that as contemporary!

Well, good news: I have plenty of episodes lined up for contemporary movies! Moreso than historical films, in fact. :)

@@behindtheseams300 OH! I thought of a costume movie. My Fair Lady! Everything she wears in that movie is fantastic.

Maybe! I've got a few more contemporary eps lined up already, but I should tackle some vintage movies at some point.

I haven't actually seen that movie! I remember it was criticized for being inaccurate to Turing's life and de-emphasizing his sexuality, though.

lollll

thanks for subscribing! and yes, i'm definitely going to release more eps on contemporary movies. as you can probably tell, i like keira knightley a lot, but i also have complicated feelings about her place in pop culture in general. to me, she feels a lot like a glamorous Old Hollywood star, onscreen if not in her daily life. her image & roles don't necessarily need to be transformative or edgy to succeed, but that isn't to everyone's tastes.

haha yes, it's still video! and thank you! i'm glad you enjoyed the show.