Some Like It Hot!
1959
Some Like It Hot (1959) is one of the most hilarious films of its time. It is a clever combination of; a 1920's gangster film with period costumes, romance and comedy, deceptive identities, reversed sex roles and cross-dressing. One of the film's major themes is disguise and masquerade e.g., the drag costumes of the two male musicians; Joe's disguise as Josephine and Jerry as Daphne.
After witnessing a gang massacre in Chicago and being chased by the mob, Jerry and Joe, 20s jazz musicians; played by Jack Lemmon and Tony Curtis, dress up as women in order to get a few weeks of work in ‘Sweet Sues’ all-women’s dance band headed for Florida. They meet Sugar Kane, played by Marilyn Monroe, the band’s singer and ukulele player. Both men fall for her good looks and try to pursue her.
It is a black and white film, filled with non-stop action e.g., the murder and car chase towards the beginning, slapstick, and one-liners throughout, and more gangster gunshots at the end. It is a remake of an earlier Bob Hope film called ‘Not Tonight, Josephine!’ (1939) a line used in the remake.
When the comedy was released Orry-Kelly, the fashion designer for the film, designed costumes that helped to make the film iconic in terms of fashion. The costumes offended so many viewers, that it prompted a ban in Kansas and an ‘adult entertainment’ restriction in Memphis, Tennessee. This was because the film’s plot is of the two men cross-dressing, and ‘Sugar’ Marilyn Monroe, wears a dress that is the same colour as her skin, is sheer at the top and only just covers her assets with sparkly jewels, the back of the dress is completely bare and stops just at the small of her back, to put it simply it was very revealing. She wore this dress matched with a fur shawl in a raunchy scene with ‘Joe,’ and had the same dress in black which she wore whilst singing about giving up love.
Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon were given clothes from the supply at Western Costume and ended up with costumes from Debbie Reynolds and Norma Shearer. The dresses were altered to fit the men and the 1920s setting of the film. The baggy dresses paired with hats acted as good disguises, but even cross-dressing for comedy was too distressing for some poeple. Male actors had worn dresses in movies before, but other actors didn’t seem to embrace it as much as Curtis and Lemmon did, and this resulted in a ban.
Top costume designer Orry-Kelly managed to dress Marilyn so well that audiences didn’t notice that she was pregnant, her make-up artist ‘Whitey’ also did an amazing job at disguising the fact that she was 10 years older than her character’s 24 years. In its review of the film, the New York Times said, “Monroe’s figure simply cannot be overlooked.” And especially in the scene where she wears an almost transparent dress whilst singing ‘I want to be loved by you.’
Allan "Whitey" Snyder, born August 7, 1914 and died April 16, 1994, was an American Hollywood make-up artist and was the personal make-up artist of Marilyn Monroe. Agnes Flanagan and Alice Monte were the hair stylists for the film, and Emile LaVigne was the make-up artist for all the actors except Marilyn.
I think the hair and make-up artists did well to mirror the 1920’s setting. For a film made in the 50’s they were still able to capture the 20’s style of hair and make-up for all the characters; pail faces, puckered and painted lips with dark mascara and eye shadow, short but wavy hair flattened on the sides of their faces, accessorised with hats and veils. Billy Wilder decided the film should be set in black and white, due to the displeasing look of Curtis and Lemmon dressed and made up as women. I think the silver screen also complimented the make-up of all the characters, especially Marilyn; it increases the pail look to their faces and adds to the dark make-up, such as eyes and lips.
Marilyn Monroe hasn't aged into an icon, a citizen of the past, but still seems to be inventing herself as we watch her. Already a ‘fashionista’, following trends and fashion designers that weren’t established yet; she didn’t need any help from the film to become a fashion icon, much the other way around. She has the desired figure, and clothes always flatter and manage to accentuate her good looks. A quote from one of the fashion designers who have worked with her, William Travilla; “Marilyn has the most fantastically perfect figure in the world,” he told Screen Life in 1954. “No matter how you dress her, she looks sexy.” artsandcollectionsartical.com.
I think ‘Some like it hot’ is an iconic film in terms of fashion and stye, because the makers have managed to recreate a 1920’s setting, and chosen the perfect make-up and costume designers to match. Orry-Kelly managed to capture the look of 20’s stylish women, and the actresses wore the dresses with the right attitude and confidence of these women, young and in a band, including ‘Josephine’ and ‘Daphne.’ Marilyn Monroe was perfect for the part of ‘Sugar,’ it was said that she could easily switch from Norma Jeane to Marilyn, and played a Marilyn type character for her role as Sugar. Some of the dresses, to really show the curves of the women, where made by tying a string around the top of the actresses legs and then sewing the frock on, this made each actress look more hourglass, especially Marilyn. It caused a ban and an adult entertainment restriction in american due to it’s daring and raunchy style of fashion acting and modern humour, this I think is enough to prove an icon.
References:
Picture of characters Sugar, Josephine and Daphne: explore.bfi.org
Information and facts:
- Book, ‘Fashion, the ultimate book on fashion and style’ by author DK
