Moulin Rouge
In 2001, for my sixteenth birthday, I went along with several school friends to see Moulin Rouge. A month or so later, its influence on fashion had taken full force - the high street was awash with faux-corset tops, lace and skyscraper heels. Looking like a lady of the night had never been so chic. But my obsession with Moulin Rouge and its unmistakable style continued far beyond flimsy basques teamed with skinny jeans (don't do it, please!)
I am a fan of musicals - not all of them, but I do have my absolute favourites, and Moulin Rouge came completely out of the blue for me, a burgeoning goth with a penchant for period costume dramas. It is, by and large, not a traditional musical at all - whilst the score and a select few compositions are fully original, many of the most memorable numbers are mash-ups of contemporary music. The soundtrack is a milkshake of Madonna, Nirvana, U2 and Bowie, topped off with French dancehall and straining violins. This admittedly unique approach provides a perfect setting for the amusing, romantic and tragic story that unfolds in the legendary Parisian nightclub.
As such, I was glued to the cinema screen from the word go. There are a few unnerving early moments, which the director Baz Luhrmann has alluded to in interviews, wherein the audience must choose whether the opening of the film seems far too crazy, or that they should stick with it and give it a chance. Power through the first five minutes and you are rewarded with a sumptuous story, stricken with true love and true loss.
For the more aesthetically minded of us, there's another treat. The costuming and scenery both feed the sartorial beast and combine to create a gorgeous vision of something exquisite. This is captured in the sense of decadence and decay, tattered silk, powdered faces and blood-red lips.
When I think of Moulin Rouge, a flurry of images flash before my eyes, and describing them would exhaust the dictionary.
The female lead, Satine (Nicole Kidman) is a statuesque porcelain doll, alternately swathed in red satin, rhinestones and black lace.
But the glory of Moulin Rouge's inspiration lies in everything it portrays - the lowly prostitutes of Montmartre are intoxicating enough in themselves. During one of the most striking sequences in the movie, El Tango de Roxanne, they dance with the men dressed in dishevelled lingerie, their smudged, kohl-lined eyes and rouged cheeks seductive though soiled.
Despite it almost paling into insignificance amid the splendour of everything else, I always take note of Christian's (Ewan McGregor) outfits, particularly when he is suited up for his first encounter with Satine. It's safe to say that this look, the dapper gentleman of 1900, may not have had quite the same effect on the fashion world as the courtesan, but top hat and tails is always a winner in my book.
I used to watch certain scenes from the film on repeat, discovering new fetishes every single time. Ideas thrive in every frame and it's one of the most creative and beautiful pictures I own, for the extremities of humour against tragedy, and the reality amongst fantasy.
When asked about my most cherished films, Moulin Rouge is not usually the first that comes to mind. However, it never fails to give me chills down my spine, and a fond realisation that actually, it is near the top of my list.
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