Initiated in 1993 by Steven Spielberg, the “Jurassic Park” saga changed its name and casting in 2015. If dinosaurs are more present than ever, something has changed in the way we approach clothing. As a new page is written with “Jurassic World”, we wonder: is the fall of the style underway?
(Cover photo credit: “Jurassic Park” by Steven Spielberg, 1993 - Photo Universal/Getty Images)
THE PITCH: ONE TYRANNOSAURUS REX CAN HIDE ANOTHER
“Life always finds a way” . Under the leadership of billionaire John Hammond, geneticists have brought back to life animals that have been extinct for millennia. The dinosaurs are back.
They live on a lost island at the end of the world, and the amusement parks are about to have a new member: Jurassic Park. But scientists Alan Grant, Ellie Sattler and Ian Malcom are far from enthusiastic about this idea...
20 years and a few disasters later, the Disneyland of dinosaurs is called Jurassic World. We are now capable of creating new, even more spectacular species. The new kid, Indominus Rex, is terrifying and it won't be long before he escapes, massacring everything in his path.
This is how the adventure of “Jurassic World” begins for the very chic park manager Claire Dearing and the former soldier Owen Grady, who has become nothing less than a velociraptor tamer… Science fiction?
Directed in 1993 by filmmaker Steven Spielberg, “Jurassic Park” brings together Sam Neill, Laura Dern and Jeff Goldblum. The film is a huge success. But of course, this isn't exactly the first time we've seen dinosaurs on screen.
For example, we discover some of them in the always fantastic “King Kong” from 1933. If it is not the pioneer of the genre, Spielberg's film nonetheless remains a true classic.
The American filmmaker shot a sequel a few years later, with a renewed cast, all-black style at Jeff Goldblum and beige and khaki everywhere else. “The Lost World: Jurassic Park” is an unloved film, very geeky and full of nods to cinema.
Steven Spielberg will hand over with “Jurassic Park 3”. It is directed by Joe Johnston, best known for films like “Honey, I Shrunk the Kids” and “Jumanji”. There are also some interesting little things there in terms of style, in continuity with the first two.
“Jurassic World” is the fourth film inspired by the universe created by novelist Michael Crichton: new casting, new team, this time supervised by Colin Trevorrow. We discover the first steps of Bryce Dallas Howard and Chris Pratt in the main roles. They will reprise them in the following film, released in 2018.
Note that French actor Omar Sy plays a small role in “Jurassic World”. Among other things, he wears the pink shirt.
As for what's next, it's in a few days: the return of part of the original cast and a film that is being announced as an event. “Jurassic World: The World After” could therefore well reshuffle the cards. Or just confirm what you are going to read now.
WHAT YOU NEED TO SEE IN STYLE…
The first “Jurassic Park” was released in 1993, the first “Jurassic World” in 2015. If more than 20 years separate them, from one film to another there is still talk of dinosaurs and style universes inspired by American workwear . However, a lot of things have changed between the two films.
The differences are not only cinematic and technological. Fashion and its representation on screen have also changed in 20 years. If you watch all of the films in the saga in succession, you will see something of a stylistic break from “Jurassic World” .
Granted, the costumes are the work of different people. But it's not so much a story of style or brands as it is about cuts and silhouettes . What does this say about our relationship to clothing? Here are three good reasons to rewatch these dinosaur adventures:
From the Sam Neill/Laura Dern duo of “Jurassic Park” to the one formed by Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard in “Jurassic World”, it is an entire epic of US clothing that parades on the screen : beige chinos, cotton shirt denim, checkered patterns, western inspirations, workwear or military, etc. All this will certainly remind you of some other cinematic adventures.
Because if the most recent films draw their stylistic inspirations from a very contemporary register, Steven Spielberg is for his part an informed cinephile who does not hesitate to delve into the archives: the history of cinema in general, and his own in particular. .
For example, watching “King Kong” by Merian C. Cooper and Ernest B. Schoedsack, released in 1933, may have given him a taste for loose-fitting clothing for his own dinosaur adventures. The imprint of the film can in any case be felt in “The Lost World: Jurassic Park” from 1997, when the filmmaker has fun making his creatures wander around town.
But in 1993, when the character played by Sam Neill appeared on screen, it was above all a famous character from the Spielberg galaxy that we thought of. Necessarily. Same type of fedora hat, same attraction for archaeological digs: Alan Grant is a distant cousin of Indiana Jones . This is not the only wink you will come across on this road. But if ever, a little reminder of a stylish adventurer here:
2. BRANDS FOR THE MOST ACCESSIBLE TO ALL
The other particularity of the “Jurassic Park” saga is that its wardrobe is certainly made up of tailor-made pieces but also of brands that are, if not very accessible, at least popular, such as Gap , Banana Republic, Filson , Ray Ban or Ralph Lauren. .
Does this mean that you can be stylish without investing more than that in your clothes or spending your time finding confidential brands? Yes. But as always, everything depends on your selection criteria.
The main characters do not necessarily wear the brands that we recommend at BonneGueule . Laura Dern's has, for example , Gap shirts or Guess leather boots. This one from Chris Pratt from Diesel jeans. Those who are closely interested in beautiful materials, questions of ethics and sustainability will likely find what they are looking for elsewhere.
However, and this is especially true in the first films, the characters' outfits do not lack a certain panache . We are thinking here in particular of those of Laura Dern or Sam Neill, to whom we will return a little later.
Note that we find in the films many other brands such as Lucky Brand, Carhartt . Casio , OD Green, Orvis or even Eastland. To go further on questions of quality, style and price , our advice here:
3. ANOTHER VISION OF THE BODY AND CLOTHING
Last point, and not least: the “Jurassic Park” saga is fascinating in that it allows us to glimpse a certain evolution of fashion and the body in clothing in the cinema. The first films thus gave pride of place to straight cuts and loose shirts . The bodies were breathing. We were good. A little fun touch: workwear boots are almost always worn with white socks.
The most recent films show a trend from the 2000s which is still widely used today: wearing clothes that are much closer to the body . The typical example is none other than the very badass character of Chris Pratt: Chelsea boots, jeans, well-fitted shirt or henley , military-inspired vest to conclude. It's ready for asphalt. Not sure it's the most breathable outfit given the adventure that awaits.
But, and this is one of the notable new features of “Jurassic World”, this outfit advantageously highlights Chris Pratt's musculature. The silhouette here becomes an aesthetic of the worked body . In another register, we can note a similar phenomenon in his on-screen partner Bryce Dallas Howard.
Should clothing literally be a second skin? The characters are in any case more openly sexualized from “Jurassic World”. Their outfits are also duller, more urban and fitted, which is not without giving rise to some sometimes surprising stylistic choices.
The discrepancy between the outfits of certain characters and their environment culminates with Bryce Dallas Howard's white suit and heels in the jungle - a wish apparently of the actress.
Is this to better underline the change in attitude and outfit of his character afterwards? Still, this pair of heels gave rise to some controversy, just like the first part of the film, which was rather clumsily stereotyped for the purposes of the script.
In the meantime, we can point out that dinosaurs also work on their lines and their image over the years. Is it a coincidence? Maybe not. Digital corrects, embellishes and... also standardizes. Look for example here how monotonous everything is:
Certain artisan filmmakers like the Portuguese Pedro Costa are saddened by the control of digital technology and the disappearance of colors in cinema . To better understand this point, you can measure the difference by taking a look at the work of a master of color like director Vincente Minnelli. As for clothes, it's of course here .
Brief. All of this brings us directly to the question raised in the title. We can now say: yes, the return of dinosaurs from “Jurassic World” coincides with a certain fall in style. We can why not put it in relation to a standardization of clothing in contemporary society .
To do this, for example, look around you, at those for whom clothing is not that important anymore. In a way, the style printed by “Jurassic World” is only a reflection of what we can observe every day while walking in the streets .
Is this a bad thing though? No, of course. Because all this makes the love of brands, materials and textile know-how that we all have in common here all the more precious .
This is where a parallel between clothing and cinema perhaps comes into play: the question of heritage and transmission , so that both can continue to make their passion heard in all its richness. and its diversity. From then on, nothing prevents us from hoping that through sharing, cinema becomes just as wonderfully cyclical as fashion:
… TO CREATE INSPIRING OUTFITS
You will certainly find here and there things likely to inspire your daily wardrobe throughout the “Jurassic Park” saga. With almost six films on the clock, there's plenty to do - and plenty to watch.
However, you can search: the most successful outfits are definitely in the original film. For example in the characters of Sam Neill or Laura Dern. These are outfits that are easy to reproduce or adapt.
© Universal/Getty Images
Richard Attenborough, Martin Ferrero, Sam Neill, Jeff Goldblum and Laura Dern in “Jurassic Park”, 1993.
These are also outfits that you can build in part with collections that you know very well.
At Sam Neil, for example, imagine a beige chino, straight and with pleats combined with a denim shirt or, for an even more advanced style, a chambray overshirt with flap pocket and Cuban collar. Brown belt, light fedora hat and camel leather boots to complete the look. The bandana is only if you are ready:
As for Laura Dern's outfit revisited, imagine workwear boots, pleated shorts, a T-shirt or tank top slipped under a loose shirt tied at the waist .
Another interesting outfit: an even simpler ensemble, all in shades of blue and composed of rather high-waisted jeans and a western shirt. Are you visualizing the looks, the pieces and the style that goes with them? The dinosaurs had better watch out.
