The Uncommon Oscar

The other day I had another look at the dresses of the past award season. Going through them and still standing by my decision that Octavia Spencer's Oscar dress was the most well-chosen dress of the  entire award season, I realised that this year was pretty short of risk-takers on the red carpet. This prompted me to compile a list mini-list of my favourite Oscar unusual dress choices.

First on my list and rivaling Martha Plimpton for the spot as my absolute favourite is Carey Mulligan's 2010 choice of a strapless Prada gown adorned with miniature kitchen utensils. When Mulligan, who had been tipped for Best Actress, arrived, few people knowing what to make of her cutlery adorned frock with the Huffington post claiming that she wore "a long black Prada number bejeweled with flowers, studs ... and what looks like nuts, bolts, forks and knives".  

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The Ricardo Tisci for Givenchy dress that Cate Blancett sported at the 2011 Oscars was the subject of some debate. This Japanese warrior costume inspired dress is from what is quite probably my favourite couture collection ever (alongside YSL's Spring 2002 career retrospective) so I am possibly a little biased. Still though I think that Blancett's risky choice deserves a lot of kudos. The intricate beading and brazen colour pop showed that being 40 plus shouldn't deter Hollywood women for making a fashionable statement. This is aided hugely by the fact that Cate Blancett looks like Cate Blancett and could therefore wear a potato sack and still be utterly gorgeous.

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When a dress can be described as mermaid-meets-Vegas bride it does not inspire confidence in the either the wearer or designer. However when Marion Cotillard arrived at the 2008 Oscar ceremony (at which she won Best Actress for her role as Édith Piaf in La Vie En Rose) in this Jean Paul Gaultier number, mermaid-meets-Vegas bride suddenly did not sound so bad. Although I would have forgone the navel-length necklace, I do think this dress is a show-stopper. With a nigh-on Veronica Lake hairstyle and the rosy lips, Cotillard definitely scored highly for this one.

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Diane Keaton's 2004 Oscars outfit caused quite a stir. While I probably wouldn't wear this Ralph Lauren morning suit and bowler hat myself, the reason this has landed itself on my list is because of the absolute balls it took to wear this outfit on any red carpet not just at the Academy Awards. I'd like to see any actress today attempt to wear this, as nowadays it seems like that in 2012 a 'red-carpet risk' involves shock tactics rather than the attempt to be innovative or fashion forward. Like it or not though, you cannot deny that Miss Keaton is undoubtedly pulling it off. She became the queen of menswear with the release of Annie Hall back in 1977 and still is an icon of androgyny and even though this is a little too chancy for my liking, Keaton proves that with a confident smile and a bit of a nonchalant attitude, you can pull off pretty much anything.

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Now to my personal favourite.

In 1989, River Phoenix was nominated for an Oscar for his part in the movie Running on Empty. To the Oscar ceremony, he brought his nineteen year old co-star and current girlfriend Martha Plimpton. Late 80s fashion was a time of experimentation, and apparently it seemed like a good idea to conduct these experiments on the red carpet. If you don't believe me just look at Demi Moore self-designed tapestry/bicycle shorts fiasco. Martha Plimpton however got it just right. Mixing one of the most glamourous items of clothing of all time - a 1940s style bias-cut dress, a favourite of the likes of Jean Harlow - with the androgyny of slicked back hair, Plimpton put a new spin on the a classic Hollywood look. Completely unadorned with jewellery, the main focus of the Plimpton's look was how an iconic Hollywood starlet dress can be juxtaposed by a nod to the emergence of the Grunge subculture in the late 80s and early 90s. A definite unexpected look at the Oscars and one that Rooney Mara, in her post Dragon Tattoo glow, seems to be channelling. 

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Cheers for reading,

Jane