Style Crush: Favorite Fashion Moments From Quentin Tarantino's 'Once Upon A Time In Hollywood'

Marena's MixTape

Aug 6

I’m going to let you all in on a little secret. Okay… so maybe it’s not really that much of a secret for those who have known me for awhile. But for those who don’t… I love movies. Always have, always will, and one of the many things I appreciate them is good costume design.

Costumes are one of the many tools a director has to tell the story. They can help communicate little details about a character’s personality to the audience, and they can help an actor transform into someone else onscreen. Costumes can also help influence someone’s personal style. I know that’s been true for me. Case in point, I’ve been looking for the ‘perfect’ black jumpsuit ever since I saw Xanadu back in the day. If you don’t know what I’m talking about, I’m sure I’ll be writing about my jumpsuit obsession at some point, but until then click here to see what I’m talking about.

I saw Quentin Tarantino’s Once Upon A Time In Hollywood recently. The star-stacked cast features Leonardo DiCaprio, Brad Pitt and Margot Robbie, along with a lot of other familiar faces sprinkled throughout. The movie has gotten mixed reviews, but regardless of what you thought about the film itself, it’s hard to argue with all the period-accurate details capturing L.A. in 1969 — right down to the fashion.

Tarantino movies have featured many iconic costumes over the years. (Remember Mia Wallace in her black capris and white shirt?) Once Upon a Time in Hollywood joins the list as far as I’m concerned, thanks in large part to Academy Award-nominated costume designer, Arianne Phillips who kept the cast looking on point in vintage denim, leather, and mod party wear.

I’m kicking off what is going to be a regular feature here on Fashion and Fandom called Style Crush — taking a closer look at some of the memorable fashion moments from movies, television, and pop culture that have inspired me. So let’s get this party started with some of the best fashion looks from Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, and let me know what your favorite costume is in the comments below!

Dancing the night away

A party at the Playboy mansion demands a tiny two-piece outfit that allows for maximum dancing — preferably in a sunny, Southern California yellow that you see a lot in the costumes for this movie. In an interview with Fashionista Phillips said:

For me, yellow is a happy color and a very California color. Quentin and I both responded to it. When I think of the '60s, I think of a lot of yellow and orange, and yellow looked great on Margot. It just felt like a breath of fresh air, really, and it really was vibrant in the way that Sharon was.

Vintage Leather Perfection

Both vintage and custom leather pieces were used in the film. I’ll be honest, I’m not sure if this is vintage or one of the custom pieces, and I don’t care. It reminds me of a jacket my dad had that I am still trying to find (I think one of my sisters got to it first). I would totally wear this now.

I’m all about this sunshine yellow Hawaiian shirt

A Hawaiian shirt was written into the script for the character of Cliff, the aging stuntman. The ones Brad wore in the film were custom-made and digitally printed in a sunny yellow — a color seen throughout the costumes in the film.

Did I mention there’s a lot of yellow in this movie?

Not only does Leonardo DiCaprio’s, Rick Dalton character clean up well in a suit, but his backup dancers’ mock neck sweaters and pleated skirts with yellow accents are 60’s vintage cute.

Pretty in Python

I mean… come ON! If a yellow-tinted python coat dress doesn’t absolutely scream glamorous I don’t know what does. Sharon Tate was a fashion icon in the late 60’s. She wore an Ossie Clark-designed floor-dusting snakeskin coat to the Rosemary’s Baby premiere with her husband, Roman Polanski in 1968. Phillips had it recreated for a scene in the movie.

Fancy head wear

I included this look because I have always been big Luke Perry fan, and it’s still hard to believe he’s gone. In his final film appearance, Perry plays a real actor named Wayne Maunder, who portrayed the character Scotty Lancer on a CBS Western TV show called Lancer. He shares a scene with Rick (DiCaprio) — and wears a truly arresting hat with a leopard-print band while he does it.

Nothing says 1960s style more than a mini skirt, turtleneck and mid-calf boots

Sharon Tate (Robbie) catches a matinee of one of her own films (The Wrecking Crew) wearing a long-sleeved black top, white miniskirt and matching boots. It’s mod perfection.