Not being a clothing expert, I will pose this question to those who enjoy the material culture of clothing.

What movies have well done clothing for the period they represent? I hear "Master and Commander" was one as was "Ride with the Devil." "Gods and Generals" and Goofys..I mean "Gettysburg" were not.  "Birth of a Nation," had all original stuff.

Please share your knowledge with a neophyte. I know there were no sewing machines during the Rev. War.

i dont recall seeing a movie that had it all done right. they get various parts right, such as the shape of the dress, but then they put the older woman in a working dress with short sleeves, or they put polyester lace on the dress.

something that drives me crazy is when im reading a book and they call things by the wrong name...like during this time period they are drawers, yet a book i was reading kept referring to them as pantaletes.

I thought Wicked Spring was pretty well on the mark.  Of course it makes a difference when a lot of authentic reenactors and historians help make the movie.  The last time I saw Brian I called him a movie star.  He asked if I actually watched that crap.  Kind of modest coming from the star.  Yeah, the acting was suspect, but I did think the wardrobe was great.

Tony Richardson's 1968 version of "The Charge of the Light Brigade" was pretty amazingly well done, right down to dialog and period hair styles.  Shot long before digital special effects, the final charge scene actually used 670 horsemen.

http://www.amazon.com/Charge-Light-Brigade-Trevor-Howard/dp/B000062XEW/ref=sr_1_2/102-1753586-1149742?ie=UTF8&s=dvd&qid=1189777526&sr=1-2

The problem with so many Hollywood productions isn't really the costumes, but how they are worn.  This is true across the board, but it becomes more pronounced the further back in time the film is set.

Here is an example:  Name any American film set prior to 1820 filmed in the past 30 years.  You can state the following with little chance of being wrong--

1. The hero will take every possible opportunity to go without a coat and hat.

2.  If possible, the hero will go without a waistcoat or, if required, it will be unbuttoned.

3.  Ditto for his shirt.  Better still, he should go about as much as possible with his shirt undone and his chest exposed.

4.  Women's clothing can be a bit more correct, so long as the heroine looks hot.  She can wear a cute little hat on occasion, but NEVER a bonnet.  As much as possible, she should have her hair loose, cascading around her shoulders.

5.  None of these rules apply to villains.  You can always tell who the bad guy is-- he's properly dressed.

Overall, I think the standard of costuming has improved very slightly.  This is, alas, more than offset by the requirements of the new conventions-- Heroes never dressed "like that" and women (at least young, hot ones) were all spunky proto-feminists who always look sexy in an approved 21st century way.

I hate to admit this, but the French can do one thing right-- historical costume dramas.

I agree with "Charge of the Light Brigade".  Amazing costumes and, for the first time in a major film, most filming was done with available light.  

Speaking of the French, has anyone else seen Abel Gance's "Napoleon"?  Great silent epic -- I got to see it once at the Kennedy Center with a live orchestra, but it's been on TV and is supposed to be out on DVD at some point:  http://www.amazon.com/Napoleon-Annabella/dp/B00005JMVP/ref=sr_1_1/102-1753586-1149742?ie=UTF8&s=dvd&qid=1190292104&sr=1-1

Anyway, not only are the costumes and hair styles pretty well done, but there's a sequence shot in the office of the Terror that gives a wonderful picture of clerks working up the death warrants, including an old fellow using a kind of dumb waiter to hoist himself up a ten or fifteen foot high rack of pigeon holes to retrieve a file.  Now that's my idea of a rousing action picture...

Quote :

Michael Schaffner wrote : There's a sequence shot in the office of the Terror that gives a wonderful picture of clerks working up the death warrants, including an old fellow using a kind of dumb waiter to hoist himself up a ten or fifteen foot high rack of pigeon holes to retrieve a file.  Now that's my idea of a rousing action picture...

Mike,

You are a sick puppy. I like that in a person.