Denim worn by the monsters of American cinema – Reel

3. Denim and fullness

“ THE HARBOR OF ANXIETY ” (HOWARD HAWKS, 1944)

My colleague Jordan introduced his post on the death of the suit by relying on one of its most faithful wearers: Humphrey Bogart. We may know it less, but just like Cary Grant, the American actor has not only worn hats and costumes in his career .

Both men toured with Howard Hawks. If Cary Grant and his flight jacket possibly inspired the future THE BIG BILL ” (STUART HEISLER, 1945)

Here's one that has made more than one dream: Gary Cooper is the model of the “strong silent type” dear to Anthony Soprano. He is also a connoisseur of style and if this 1945 film is not his best, it will show you quite well what the raw denim jacket worn in a western style is.

For some great Gary Cooper films, you can check out “The Train Whistles Three Times” by Fred Zinnemann , “The Man in the Street” by Frank Capra or even all of his films with Ernst Lubitsch - a pure feast for the eyes.

As for “Big Bill”, it is a rather light western with Loretta Young and in which Gary Cooper willingly makes fun of his image: he plays the role of a somewhat naive and non-violent cowboy who finds himself mistaken for a killer.

We can remember Gary Cooper's gestures and sense of self-deprecation. We can also note that the character of Lucky Luke came here to draw inspiration from his famous “ I'm a poor lonesome cowboy ”. But the best find in the film is a very beautiful raw denim jacket like Levi's 506 that Gary Cooper wears open, with the sleeves slightly rolled up . Underneath, a shirt with grain.

To complete: jeans, leather belt, boots and cowboy hat . So much for the classic denim & western outfit, natural and all in all THE INDOMPTABLES ” (NICHOLAS RAY, 1952)

Among the American filmmakers to rediscover: Nicholas Ray. If it is not the best known, “The Indomitables” remains one of his greatest films and features, among others, Susan Hayward, Arthur Kennedy and Robert Mitchum whose style we have already been able to appreciate in a parka or in a shirt.

The year is 1952. “The Indomitable” crosses the lands of Texas or Arizona. It's a modern western: no soldiers, cowboys or Indians here, but a story both intimate and universal which once in a while is not customary around the rodeo. It's about Americana nostalgia, wild horses and bulls, love and the search for a place to call your own.

“ He put on his own pants. He buttons his own shirt. If he knows how to do that, he's got to know enough to run his own life. This is what we can hear here, among other things.

Robert Mitchum stars as a now-worn, has-been rodeo champion. He then meets the couple formed by Susan Hayward and Arthur Kennedy, and as you can imagine, the tidy little life will soon give way to adventure, spectacle and drama.

You will find denim here on most of the characters, whether they are men or women. But the one that interests us the most is none other than that of Robert Mitchum. He has a nice collection of plain or checked western shirts, a Stetson hat, beautiful leather belts and a… Wrangler jeans + denim jacket set .

It's no surprise that the actor here wears an 11MJ jacket and Blue Bell jeans from the brand: it is precisely through western and rodeo stars that Wrangler became known. These models appeared at the end of the 1940s and have since become part of the heritage of American jeans.

From there to saying that the character of Robert Mitchum was in fact at the cutting edge of fashion of his time, there is only one step. Its little extra? His western shirts, a very particular type of shirt that we will find during our last stop on the shoulders of another giant of American cinema: Clark Gable.

“fabulous sequence where the style extends to the children's outfits, who obviously also wear denim in places.

If the era is still largely about suits and felt hats, the youth worn by actors like James Dean or Marlon Brando is bringing denim into the modern age. Nothing will ever be the same again.

8. Denim and its iconic outfit

“ THE FURRY TO LIVE ” (NICHOLAS RAY, 1955)

If we had to keep only one outfit in the cinema with denim in it, it would probably be that of James Dean in “The Fury of Living”. The film was released a month after the actor's death - a tragic accident, recreated by David Cronenberg in "Crash".

We could put the phenomenal success of the film down to this tragedy alone. Except that there are already all the ingredients of the myth in the work of Nicholas Ray and the performance of James Dean. We can thus see the touch of a singular filmmaker and a realistic portrait of the American middle class.

“The Fury of Living” is the most famous film by filmmaker Nicholas Ray, and undoubtedly the most modern and successful of James Dean's all-too-brief career.

Denim at James Dean, you will however also find it in the two frescoes that are “East of Eden” by Elia Kazan or “Giant” by George Stevens, but neither of these two films is as “contemporary " than “The Fury of Living”.

Here we discover the character of Jim Stark played by James Dean, his complicated relationships with his family and his high school friends. Other stars of the big screen like Natalie Wood or Dennis Hopper appear in the credits.

The film tells many of the frustrations of young people in the 1950s with regard to parental, educational or police authority. Therefore, it is not surprising that American youth find in James Dean a role model and a big brother: his outfits will be sources of inspiration.

This is for example the case of THE outfit in the film: a white t-shirt under a red windproof jacket, Lee Rider 101z jeans and a pair of Engineer boots .

Like his idol Marlon Brando before him, James Dean is here a symbol of fragility and rebellion. However, the real rebel in the film is not called James Dean but Plato, like the philosopher .

He wears a blazer, tie or V-neck sweater and his middle finger to the company is none other than a pair of Westerners that have since become legendary, which he combines here with a belt and a Rockmount Ranch Wear western shirt, boots. and cowboy hat . Note that he shares with Alain Delon the same passion for the Tank de Cartier watch. This is a relatively unusual occurrence for such a rustic film character.

If our overview ends with the end of the dream factory, denim has not finished with cinema. Maybe we'll come back to it another time. In the meantime, if like me, all this has made you want films or new denim pieces, as always, head over to the comments.