Best Costume Design: Ranking Every 96th Academy Award Nominee
Written by Andreas Babiolakis
This article is a part of the Academy Awards Project, where Andreas Babiolakis from Films Fatale ranks every Oscar nominee from worst to best, and goes through every category once a day five days a week.
We’re at the second of the three design-based categories, and now we’re observing what characters are wearing. Yes, folks. We’ve reached Best Costume Design. I’m not a fashion designer by any means, but I’d like to think I have taste (even though I rely on snapbacks and graphic tees like they’re ketchup and mustard on a hotdog). To me, great costume design has to look believable, first and foremost. Any film where the stars look like they’re wearing costumes has lost me. I need to fall for the illusion set by costume designers that these are authentic outfits within these cinematic realities, or I at least shouldn’t be distracted by the clothes that I see. Secondly, I think details are crucial; these can’t be clothes that actors just yanked off of a garment rack, I need to feel like these clothes have been worn before and are personalized via accessories and wear-and-tear by those who wear them. Finally, creativity is usually nice as well. I’m a bit of a sucker for fashion events (despite not walking the walk myself), and I like seeing what I’m not used to seeing, especially if the outfit actually succeeds in its ambitions.
Here are your nominees for Best Costume Design ranked from worst to best.
Biggest Snub: Priscilla
I know Priscilla wasn’t on many radars, but the fact that it didn’t gain a single nomination is a little questionable. I don’t expect this film to land with everybody, but I can’t imagine a single soul thinking that the film was lacking in the costume department. The era-specific garments (the film spans over the course of many years) are so accurate that the magic of being transported to a different time period works quite well. Then there are all of the fashionable choices by the lead characters in the film, particularly Priscilla Presley herself. In fact, a large portion of the film’s nostalgic blissfulness comes from the jaw-dropping outfits that are paraded throughout the film, as they gauge Priscilla’s rise in fame, fortune, and love (and the falls from Graceland, too).
5. Oppenheimer-Ellen Mirojnick
I’ve had Oppenheimer ranking highly on quite a few of these lists, but here it is ranked last. As good as the costume design here is, it shouldn’t really be a surprise when you compare it to the other other nominees. The costumes are believable, and each character’s wardrobe suits their personalities quite well. That’s pretty much it, though. Outside of Oppenheimer’s signature hat, I can’t think of a single outfit that stands out enough to make me feel like the costumes are a major highlight of the film (whereas I’d argue that the costume design of the other four nominees is a standout trait). I won’t get cynical and insist that the costumes in Oppenheimer are bad, because they’re not, but they really don’t compare with the other nominees because these other four films boast some of the best costume designing of the year in film.
4. Napoleon-Janty Yates and Dave Crossman
Time to take a leap in quality with the costume design in Napoleon, which is quite strong. Even if the people within these garments are miscast or feel as though they aren’t from the appropriate time period, the costumes themselves are so authentic. They have that dirt in their folds and the rust in their metals to pretend that they aren’t brand-new clothes. Each costume is garnished in little details that make each person feel unique. The film goes all out with fancier clothes when we cut to sequences off of the battlefield as well. No question about it: Napoleon’s got some great clothes. I think the other nominees got to be a little more free in terms of imagination and originality, but Napoleon fits in with the other nominees here.
3. Barbie-Jacqueline Durran
Don’t get angry. I know this will likely be first on many lists, and I can easily see why. Let me get into the winning elements of Barbie’s costume design. The accuracy of each and every Barbie-related costume is spot on. You can go through a Mattel encyclopedia and find every single costume from this film within it. Not only that, but these don’t feel like costumes either. Somehow, despite how bright, retro, and pink everything is, these outfits still don’t feel fake. So, why do I have this film as low as I do? Only because the costumes in the other two films that I’ve ranked higher felt ever so slightly stronger to me. Barbie is fantastic in this department, don’t get it twisted. I just personally think that two other films wowed me a little more.
2. Killers of the Flower Moon-Jacqueline West
Much of what is important to the success of Killers of the Flower Moon is how believable the people within the film are. Sure, Killers of the Flower Moon is stacked with great actors, but they are clothed in some terrific costumes that tell their own stories. From the authentic indigenous outfits (particularly the fancier getups) to the wardrobes of those who infiltrate the town, there is so much to look at whenever you see a new outfit on screen. I insist that a majority of the costumes in Killers of the Flower Moon are subtly fantastic and memorable, while the remainder are breathtaking designs that steal the entire show. No question about it. Killers of the Flower Moon feels slept on in this category.
1. Poor Things-Holly Waddington
For me, no film had better costume designs last year than Poor Things. Oh my goodness. Every character — even if they were on screen for five seconds — looked like a brilliant steampunk caricature and much of this comes from the clothing that they wear. Bella Baxter’s outfits are always so odd and peculiar, but they each tell a major story or showcase important themes. Every character’s wardrobes fulfil the same traits. I was always looking forward to what Bella would wear next, or what new characters would be donning whenever they graced the screen. Part of the challenge of making a fantasy world is being equal parts inventive and believable; you don’t want to aim too low and be dull in a genre that guarantees creativity, but you also don’t want to be too out there to the point of being impossible to take seriously). Poor Things crushes this challenge with flying colours. I think it has the best costume designs of the year.
Who I Want To Win: I’d be chuffed with either Poor Things, Barbie, or Killers of the Flower Moon winning this Oscar. I think these three films are spectacular regarding their costume design.
Who I Think Will Win: I think this is hands down going to be a Barbie win, but there’s a chance that Poor Things can work its way up the award season ladder and swoop in for a win here. Killers of the Flower Moon feels like a dark horse, though. For now, I’m selecting Barbie.
The Academy Awards Project will continue tomorrow with another category. We’re going to rank every single nominee in every single category, Monday through Friday. You don’t want to miss it!
Andreas Babiolakis has a Masters degree in Film and Photography Preservation and Collections Management from Ryerson University, as well as a Bachelors degree in Cinema Studies from York University. His favourite times of year are the Criterion Collection flash sales and the annual Toronto International Film Festival.