You've been waiting for it for a long time: our new denim jacket is here and with it, a whole part of American culture is told. We have already set the scene for our inspirations through our shootings: Ford Mustang, Californian road and full sun, enough to make you want to write your own road movie. That's good: that's the subject of this Surprise Reel dedicated... to the denim jacket!
(Cover photo credit: Martin Sheen in “The Wild Ride” by Terrence Malick, 1973 - Christophel Collection / IMAGO / Prod.DB)
If one film were enough to make you want to wear jeans and a denim jacket , I would happily bet on “The Wild Ride” by Terrence Malick with Martin Sheen and Sissy Spacek. This is a good example of how clothing can change the way we watch a film . But as we are among curious people, I offer you not one but several walks in the slightly fantasized world of the US-inspired road movie.
1. WHAT IS THE LINK BETWEEN ROAD-MOVIE AND THE DENIM JACKET?
Let's go back in time. As you can imagine, denim and cinema are a story that is not new . In Bobine, we launched for the first time with some big names in Hollywood cinema like John Wayne, Gary Cooper and James Stewart. The American dream, in short. It started in the 1930s. Among other things, it was about horses, westerns and historic brands like Levi's , Lee or Wrangler :
And then we stopped there. It was because we had to take the time to assimilate all these images, to get (back) into denim and let it patina a little . The last film discussed in this article was “The Unhinged” by John Huston.
Or the unforgettable meeting of Clark Gable, Montgomery Clift and Marilyn Monroe. We wore Lee's Storm Rider denim jacket, or Wrangler's MJ11 model , like Montgomery Clift here with belt, boots and western shirt :
It was beautiful, it stood on its own and it smelled of both life and dust. But the history of the denim jacket does not stop with the western or the sacred monsters of Hollywood . Not even on movie sets. Take a look, for example, at what actor Steve McQueen could do with a Lee jacket and white jeans in 1960, in everyday life:
The camera is not rotating. It's just for fun. We could find many other examples. However, if we return to the studios, we will find the denim jacket in plain sight, particularly in a cinematographic genre
This thirst for freedom and wide open spaces specific to road movies is even found in the advertisements of certain historic brands of jeans - above, Wrangler and its message "live free" in 1969. Behind the commercial argument, there is a significant part of the truth.
In cinema, denim is, for example, quite inseparable from the conquest of the West and successive waves of youth emancipation . The denim jacket is somehow part of this long American history - a mixture of style, traditions and cultural revolutions .
Emblematic of the road movie genre and American counter-culture, the film “ Easy Rider ” takes place at the end of the 1960s: it is Dennis Hopper's first feature film and he takes to the road on a motorbike with Peter Fonda, in search of freedom and experiences of all kinds.
In the collective imagination, it is the birth of a genre in its own right even if some film buffs will tell you that there is already a road movie in
© IMAGO / Everett Collection
Dennis Hopper, on the set of "The Last Movie", 1971.
Still, from “Easy Rider” onwards, American roads became the regular scene of stories of escapes and cinema. In this environment dedicated to nature, asphalt and existential reflections, the denim jacket has its small role to play.
2. WAS THERE A LIFE FOR THE DENIM JACKET IN THE 70S?
Yes, and fortunately! In 1970, for example, we discovered her on the shoulders of Jack Nicholson in “ Five Easy Pieces ” by Bob Rafelson. The film also tells the story of a journey from California to North America. His wardrobe is full of inspiring things: turtleneck , velvet blazer, short jacket... and denim jacket , here probably a Lee 101J worn with jeans, shirt and workwear boots :
You've noticed: we're starting to accumulate examples of outfits that combine two denim pieces together . What do you do if you're neither a cowboy nor a Steve McQueen or Jack Nicholson lookalike? David makes some suggestions in this article:
Imagine that it is also disarmingly simple: a Levi's 507 jacket, a white round-neck t-shirt, Levi's 501 jeans and cowboy boots . We can legitimately think that we have never done better. But of course we can do otherwise. By the way, a little history of the white t-shirt here:
3. WHAT IN THE 80S?
Since the 1970s, the road movie has been exported well beyond the borders of America. In particular, it made the German filmmaker Wim Wenders dream more than once. In 1984, he signed one of the masterpieces of the genre: “Paris, Texas”, alongside Harry Dean Stanton, Dean Stockwell and Nastassja Kinski. We discover a man lost in the desert, in a cap and dusty suit :
From “Paris Texas”, we remember, among other things, the music of Ry Cooder and the pink knit of Nastassja Kinski. But if you're interested in denim, the character played by Harry Dean Stanton deserves your attention.
First because he is wearing Levi's jeans combined with a brown belt and a checked shirt . The inspirations are openly western, although this is a model with flap pockets :
Then because the indigo piece that you see in the photograph above, on the ground, is a denim jacket, very probably also from Levi's . If you add a pair of brown boots and an old car lost in the middle of nowhere, it gives this kind of image:
Closer, you can notice the turn-up at the bottom of the leg and the way the jacket is worn: buttoned all the way up, with the collar turned up. There are no rules with the denim jacket, you wear it as you want: open, closed, loose or more fitted . The older models, however, have more overtly boxy cuts.
Obviously, this way of wearing the denim jacket reveals many stylistic possibilities . What if this piece lent itself, for example, to My Own Private Idaho ” by Gus Vant Sant in 1991, with Keanu Reeves and River Phoenix.
The film's wardrobe is particularly rich. If you want to have a little fun with the denim jacket, imagine it for example slipped between the black Perfecto and the ecru hoodie of Keenu Reeves, here on the right in the photograph above:
Do you see the idea? In contrast to layering, Keenu Reeves reveals in “My Own Private Idaho” another possibility, which has the merit of existing even if it is not truly comfortable: the denim jacket next to the skin . Same spirit as for knitwear , with less softness and added leather accessories:
Obviously, this track is for informational purposes. A more pragmatic approach will always lead you to slip an item of clothing between the denim jacket and you: a t-shirt, a shirt, a A True Story ” by David Lynch in 1999, “ Little Miss Sunshine ” by Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris in 2006 or even “ Into The Wild ” by Sean Penn in 2007. The car is not the sine qua none condition of the genre - but the journey, the journey or the crossing is.
4. WHAT ABOUT THE DENIM JACKET FOR WOMEN?
It goes without saying that the denim jacket is also in the spotlight among women. The best example, to stay only in the films mentioned so far, is of course Marilyn Monroe. She is here in jeans, a white shirt and a Lee Storm Rider jacket on the set of John Huston's 1960 film “ Les Desaxés ”:
Years later, even though the denim jacket is more popular than ever, it continues to symbolize a certain spirit of freedom . Take, for example, the timeless “ Thelma & Louise ” by Ridley Scott in 1991:
© IMAGO / Everett Collection
Geena Davis and her denim jacket, in “Thelma & Louise” by Ridley Scott, 1991.
Geena Davis and Susan Sarandon are the heroines of an adventure that will take them from Arkansas to Colorado. Denim is an integral part of their wardrobe, whether in the form of jeans, shirts or jackets . There are brands like Jett Paris, Guess, Lee and Levi's:
Notice to our readers: For inspiration, you can dive back into the outfits from “Thelma & Louise”, particularly if you are passionate about the trends of the 80s and 90s. Another idea for a road movie, more recent and to leave the USA: “ Drive My Car ” by the Japanese Ryusuke Hamaguchi, the opportunity to remind us if necessary that denim is not just an American story .
You already know what we think of Japanese denim at BonneGueule: it's a real passion. If ever, a little reminder in this video . Ryusuke Hamaguchi's film is not particularly focused on denim but you can find more contemporary style inspiration, half workwear, half streetwear in actress Tōko Miura's outfit below:
For example: don't change anything about the outfit, simply replace the light blue jacket with a bleach denim jacket. Generally speaking, if you like a look but you don't have all the pieces on hand, know that it is often possible to keep the spirit of it by substituting a piece here and there . Finally, to complete, do not hesitate to look among the basics selected by Nawal for other ideas for associations:
© IMAGO / Ronald Grant
Ryan Gosling in “Drive”, 2011.
Certainly, “ Drive ” is not strictly speaking a road movie. No wide open spaces. No crazy trek across the plain or even any real hope of another life. But the road is omnipresent, urban and nocturnal. The action takes place in Los Angeles and like road movie characters, the couple played by Ryan Gosling and Carey Mulligan are trying as best they can to escape something.
In addition to the very particular jacket of the taciturn driver played by Ryan Gosling, we can also see in his wardrobe a vintage Levi's denim jacket, combined with Henley, Acne Studios jeans and Stacy Adams Madison boots .
Not really the level of leather quality that we praise at BonneGueule, but the main thing is elsewhere: what you see there is a jacket with a resolutely timeless style, which can accompany you everywhere, all the time. If this almost philosophical subject intrigues you, Nicolò has worked on the question here:
6. WHERE TO FIND A DENIM JACKET OTHER THAN AT THE CINEMA?
Most of the jackets presented here come from historic denim brands. You can find them almost everywhere, especially in thrift stores for not very expensive, for those of you who like vintage.
Other brand leads here as needed. If, however, you are looking for the great thrill of denim, the great classics can be found in brands like Momotaro , Rogue Territory or even Oni Denim . More accessible :
