Posts tagged New York

onlylookthatmatters:

I’m so glad you asked!

When it comes to Looks That Matter, The Warriors is in the celestial heights with the rarified company of such films as Barbarella and Valley of the Dolls. Something worthwhile in damn near every frame, but I’ll try to boil it down to a few of my favorites.

Matching embroidered satin jackets is a look that matters.

The Warriors breaks a lot of new ground as far as matching gang uniforms go, but you absolutely can’t go wrong with this old chestnut. I’ll advocate for the ol’ greyscale ‘til I die, but this is a look that demands color, so GIVE IT WHAT IT WANTS.

Nightmare baseball clown is a look that matters. The Baseball Furies are my favorite Warriors gang (sorry, the actual Warriors), and they have a lot to teach us about a look that is more than the sum of its parts. Elements that would be silly individually are intimidating in combination. A baseball player with a baseball bat isn’t threatening—who better to actually have a baseball bat? But a clown with a baseball bat is terrifying. For sheer intimidation, the Furies take it.

On the other end of it, 1950s hoodlums who haven’t done laundry in years is a look that matters. The Orphans are supposed to be the sad sack gang of New York City, but I absolutely love what they’re wearing. Look at these skinny little street toughs—they’re like the Ramones before they bought jackets! Fit and filth are the key words here; these would be dad jeans if they weren’t worn to oblivion and fitted within an inch of their lives. Shirts tucked in, for heaven’s sake. If you’re committing to the higher waist, you have to go all the way (or half and half! half and half works). Great look for tattoos. 

Late ’70s post-prom teens is a look that matters. A signature era for promwear (see also: Carrie), it’s a more is more look. Big lapels, lots of ruffles, which makes it look great out of context. This is actually the measure of a good prom look. Prom clothes are not for looking good at the prom; they are for looking good at the mantlepiece where your parents are taking pictures of you and for looking good at the fast food restaurant you go to before the after party. These are collars for tucking paper napkins into and devouring cheeseburgers with great care to keep your fancy ‘dos out of the ketchup, skirts for hiking up in the back seat of a limo. This is how you play the game.

What the cat dragged in is a look that matters. A flexible look, too—it can be almost anything, as long as it provokes someone to ask “What the hell happened to you?” All you have to do in response is grin (because you’ll have a missing tooth, right?).

The Canadian Tuxedo is a look that matters. Look at this beautiful lumberjack of a woman. You can do it with either the denim jacket or a tucked in denim shirt, but the jeans are definitely high-waisted. Love the neckerchief, the mug should be metal, though.

Your friends are a look that matters (that’s kind of what this whole movie is about, come to think of it). These two girls look so much cooler standing next to each other than they would alone. I love that The Lizzies aren’t immediately obvious as a gang (except to the audience) because their uniform (the diagonal tie-dyed t-shirt) is buried under a variety of cool jackets and fun hairstyles.

And speaking of fun hairstyles, big hair is a look that matters, and The Warriors has it for days.

You can even put a headband around it! I’m waiting for a big hair renaissance. We’re about due, no?