21 Feb Fashion in Classic Film Noir: Laura (1944)

This would have been a long one thanks to the exceptionally beautiful Gene Tierney playing the title role of advertising executive (!!!), Laura Hunt, with 28 Bonnie Cashin-designed costume changes (yes, you read that correctly). But, I’m not going into all of them, as half of those are only shown on screen for about 2 seconds each. Still, there’s some lovely pieces worth looking at in this not-quite-a-film-noir film noir.

Laura tells the story of police detective Mark McPherson (Dana Andrews) who falls in love with the woman whose murder he’s investigating. It may be more accurate to say, however, that it is a story about a bunch of crooked people and their obsession with this particular woman, Laura, that could lead literally any of them to be the one whodunit.

The most significant thing to note about Laura’s outfits is that they allow her to be all things to all the people in her life, because each of these different characters who are obsessed with her, are obsessed with different things about her and seek to manipulate her into what it is they want from/of her.

Above, the first time we see Laura, she’s every bit a working girl, modest and innocent in a wool sweater dress with matching jacket and hat. Below, more sophisticated and with a new hair-do, is after Laura becomes friends with Waldo Lydecker (Clifton Webb), the possessive, narcissistic writer who treats her mainly as a doll or an accessory to escort around town and tend to his need to be listened to and admired.

In the film, Lydecker says: “Wherever we went, she stood out.” And, of course, we can believe it because her wardrobe is fantastic and diverse, and it helps that Gene Tierney is one of the most beautiful faces ever to grace the silver screen (but let me digress before I gush any further.)

Yet, in terms of outfits, she doesn’t much stand out from the other female characters in the film. It is this fact that makes this film so interesting. It is because Laura is dressed so unremarkably and not tragically different from everyone else that makes her relatable, and that same trait enables us, just like the other characters in the film, to make her into what we see fit.

Laura’s wardrobe works because of her position and her being groomed by Lydecker. The height of his “influence” over her is felt in this party scene (above and below) where Laura wears a Grecian-style white gown with an elegantly draped neck and back.

The floppy cloche hat, below, is very different from anything you would see in this time period. I’m not entirely sure why she’s still got it on while sitting at a table, either. It makes me think it’s function is to protect her from manipulative characters like Shelby Carpenter (Vincent Price).

Next is a rather modern-looking striped peplum shirt and pencil skirt (below). This outfit illustrates her sophistication, just like all the other outfits in scenes when she’s with Lydecker.

Notice how different this one is even from the previous outfit when she’s instead with Carpenter. This is because that is the image Lydecker has of her. In his words, “She had warmth, vitality. She had authentic magnetism.” On the other hand, Carpenter sees her as sweet, innocent, almost girlish (though her most attractive quality in his eyes is of course her money).

1940s outfits are generally more tailored, but Laura’s outfits are much looser and unstructured.

Find below another floppy cloche hat with a very large trench coat in the scene where McPherson wakes up thinks he’s seen a ghost—the mystery woman he’s been obsessing over suddenly appears in front of him. The trench coat, obscuring her, illustrates she’s still a mystery to McPherson (though at this point he’s been combing through her house for days.)

By the time Laura has returned from “thinking things through” she starts to dress a bit more mature, as evidenced by both tied-waist outfits above, with the white wool pencil midi skirt, and below with a kimono-style top and palazzo pants. Might this not also be showing the different way in which McPherson sees her?

I want to end on an interesting quotation from Fashion in Film, by Ula Lukszo, who states that “…clothes of the noir film-part of the noir Look-are essential to the nostalgia and fascination we associate with these films.”

The fascination with noir is the unreality of it, the excitement of danger and intrigue that goes hand-in-hand with these types of films.

That’s a critical consideration, and I’m noting it here because the costumes in Laura are not your typical 1940s fashion—as you’ve hopefully noticed—however, they are essential in providing characterization and insight, as in all films. I’ve tried to give evidence here that the characterization of Laura is different depending on who she is with and what they want her to be. This is a film about obsession, after all.

Sources:

• Fashion in Film by Ula Lukszo