Halston was the US’s first
haute couturier to be taken seriously.
From milliner to revered iconic fashion designer in a very short this
flamboyant and fun-loving man firmly put his sartorial stamp on everything in the
Studio 54 era so that his ‘star’ on Fashion’s
Walk of Fame in NY rightly proclaims ‘The 70’s Belonged to Halston’.
haute couturier to be taken seriously.
From milliner to revered iconic fashion designer in a very short this
flamboyant and fun-loving man firmly put his sartorial stamp on everything in the
Studio 54 era so that his ‘star’ on Fashion’s
Walk of Fame in NY rightly proclaims ‘The 70’s Belonged to Halston’.
Sadly
this ill-conceived movie by a narcissistic spoilt socialite Whitney Smith, does
not do the great man justice. Smith totally
unversed in fashion manages to scores some interviews with industry luminaries such
as Andre Leon Tally, Diane von Furstenberg and Stephen Burrows but allows his own
personal agenda to waste these great opportunities. With an ego that manages to make Liza
Minnelli seem positively sane, he even fails to listen when she pleads with him
to go do some research into her best friend’s life and work.
this ill-conceived movie by a narcissistic spoilt socialite Whitney Smith, does
not do the great man justice. Smith totally
unversed in fashion manages to scores some interviews with industry luminaries such
as Andre Leon Tally, Diane von Furstenberg and Stephen Burrows but allows his own
personal agenda to waste these great opportunities. With an ego that manages to make Liza
Minnelli seem positively sane, he even fails to listen when she pleads with him
to go do some research into her best friend’s life and work.
Nevertheless
Halston’s legacy still shines through with some wonderful archival footage that
totally shocked me when it revealed exactly how truly wonderful the clothes he created
were. In his very public private life
Halston was a dedicated party goer and showman that ran with a very fast crowd,
but the innovative and elegant fashion that he produced on the Runway was stunningly chic and
totally wearable. The fact that he was dressing a young Jacqueline Kennedy as
First Lady at the same time as he clothed society’s dowagers and also all the
party girls at Studio 54 at the same time speaks volumes of his talent.
Halston’s legacy still shines through with some wonderful archival footage that
totally shocked me when it revealed exactly how truly wonderful the clothes he created
were. In his very public private life
Halston was a dedicated party goer and showman that ran with a very fast crowd,
but the innovative and elegant fashion that he produced on the Runway was stunningly chic and
totally wearable. The fact that he was dressing a young Jacqueline Kennedy as
First Lady at the same time as he clothed society’s dowagers and also all the
party girls at Studio 54 at the same time speaks volumes of his talent.
It
seemed appropriate that he be chosen to be the first high-end designer to make
a mass market collection for J C Penney’s which sadly failed but it did pave the way for all the designers of today
who cannot wait to do work for the likes of Target and H + M.
seemed appropriate that he be chosen to be the first high-end designer to make
a mass market collection for J C Penney’s which sadly failed but it did pave the way for all the designers of today
who cannot wait to do work for the likes of Target and H + M.
The
fact that he loved life to the fullest, having the most strikingly beautiful
contemporary house designed and built in Manhattan, and was spending some $100000 a year on
orchids alone added another dimension. His boyfriend Victor Hugo was from all accounts, the craziest of his
circle, and when Whitney Smith actually allowed his interviewees to speak, it
was great hearing of all their exploits.
Makes life now seem so tame.
fact that he loved life to the fullest, having the most strikingly beautiful
contemporary house designed and built in Manhattan, and was spending some $100000 a year on
orchids alone added another dimension. His boyfriend Victor Hugo was from all accounts, the craziest of his
circle, and when Whitney Smith actually allowed his interviewees to speak, it
was great hearing of all their exploits.
Makes life now seem so tame.
The
story ended in tears with greedy corporations who bought and sold Halston’s
business several times and thus denying the man himself the right to use the
very talents that they had paid big bucks for. And then Halston became one of
the first casualties of the AIDS epidemic in 1990.
story ended in tears with greedy corporations who bought and sold Halston’s
business several times and thus denying the man himself the right to use the
very talents that they had paid big bucks for. And then Halston became one of
the first casualties of the AIDS epidemic in 1990.
This
film will have to do until a real filmmaker pays proper homage to the man who
really did make the 1970’s his very own.
film will have to do until a real filmmaker pays proper homage to the man who
really did make the 1970’s his very own.
P.S.
The Company that bears his name is headed up some rather over-made-up woman
(whose name escapes me) who was interviewed in her home (Versailles meets
Housewives of New Jersey) and yet has
dumped Halston’s archives to a Bible College in Tennessee who keep then in
boxes in a storeroom! Urgh!!!!
The Company that bears his name is headed up some rather over-made-up woman
(whose name escapes me) who was interviewed in her home (Versailles meets
Housewives of New Jersey) and yet has
dumped Halston’s archives to a Bible College in Tennessee who keep then in
boxes in a storeroom! Urgh!!!!
★★★★★★★★ ( for the man himself)
Labels: biography, documentary
