Twelve of the dozens of brilliant costumes worn in the award-winning film “Poor Things» his Giorgos Lanthimos host until September 29 Benaki Museum (Koumbari 1), which presents one of the most interesting summer exhibitions, which launched a few days ago by the President of the Republic, Katerina Sakellaropoulou.
The exhibition, titled ‘Poor Things: The Costumes’, features twelve of costume designer Holly Waddington’s original handmade costumes worn by the film’s protagonists. It arrived in Greece after the Benaki Museum’s contacts with the producers, after the first presentation in 2023 at the Barbican Center in London. “I know the number of costumes and the specific room of the Benaki Museum where they will be displayed and, thus, I expressed my feelings from the film about the scene. So, I wanted something that organic with strange walls and a slope or curve. I thought of including these costumes in a dark, but at the same time organic space, which will embrace them”, says now in “S” the exhibition designer, set designer-costume designer Pavlos Thanopoulos.
Bella’s six costmes are arranged in the exhibition in a way that explains the development of the film, but also of the woman.
The genius of the film’s costumes lies in the beautiful balance between the period costumes in which the action is set and the modern elements in which the costume designer places his creations, in constant conversation with director George Lanthimos. “We pushed ideas to the limit, following George’s prompting for a storm of creativity,” Waddington said in an interview.
Of the twelve costumes in the exhibition, six are wearing the characters of Godwin Baxter (Willem Dafoe), Duncan Wedderburn (Mark Ruffalo), Max McCandles (Ramy Youssef), Harry Astley (Jerrod Carmichael), Madam Swiney (Kathryn Hunter) and Mrs. Prim (Vicki Pepperdine). The remaining six are worn by Emma Stone, who plays the film’s protagonist, Bella Baxter, and charts her character’s evolution over the course of this incredible story. “The hardest thing for me when working on ‘Poor Things’ was finding a way to change the costumes and make sure they followed Bella’s journey,” Holly Waddington said in an interview.
The six Bella costumes that will be admired by the public at the exhibition in Athens highlight the magical way in which this difficulty was overcome
“The suits are made from some very good fabrics, such as silk satin, woven, crepe and so on. They are very well made, with a lot of attention, shiny, intended for the cinema. If the lens will- zoom, all the details should be perfect. Up close, the visitor of the exhibition sees the details that he did not understand when he saw the film, but it is very visible in the installation of the costumes Bella in the exhibition has a chronological development. From the first suit seen in the film to the others we see as we move into the hall. They are positioned in a way to explain the development of the film, but also of the woman ,” said Mr. Thanopoulos.
Based on the acclaimed novel by Alasdair Gray – brought to the big screen by Giorgos Lanthimos, the award-winning director of ‘The Favorite’ and ‘The Lobster’ – ‘Poor Things’ tells the fantastical evolution of Bella Baxter (played by Emma Stone, who won an Oscar for this performance), is a young woman revived by the brilliant and unorthodox scientist Dr. Godwin Baxter (Willem Dafoe). Eager to learn and experience all that life has to offer, Bella targets Duncan Wedderburn (Mark Ruffalo), a passionate and corrupt lawyer, on a crazy adventure across continents. Despite the prejudices of her time, Bella dedicated herself to her cause, to be a model of equality and liberation for women.
“Poor Things” was awarded the Golden Lion for Best Film at the 2023 Venice Film Festival, while also picking up four Academy Awards and five BAFTA Awards, including a Costume Design Award for Holly Waddington.