This Thanksgiving Weekend, San Francisco any many other cities will get a chance to see perhaps one of the most iconic, ironic and interesting films of 2013: The Great Beauty. They are calling La Grande Bellezza a shoo-in for the best foreign film at the Academy Awards. It looks spectacular and the reviews match the hype. Here are some articles and reviews on the film, that are worth reading. I am assuming you folks read the big papers like the New York Times:
- The New Fellini: Paolo Sorrentino’s The Great Beauty [Daily Beast]
- Is Paolo Sorrentino like Fellini? Even Better. [The New Republic]
- Paolo Sorrentino talks “The Great Beauty.” [Wild Magazine]
- Roman Holidays. [The Nation]
- Bella Italia [The Oxford Student]
Needless to say that I will be going to see this movie. One thing that caught my eye when checking out the publicity stills and watching the trailers was the quality of the outfits worn by lead character, Jep Gambardella played by Toni Servillo. The character is a writer — so less formal than bankers and business men. Jep in older — 65. He is a lothario, and a bit of a peacock. And yet the outfits he wore were subtle and sophisticated.
Fantastically tailored and resplendent sports jackets, pocket squares that contrasted well with those jackets, shirts in basic whites, great shoes and matching pants. The sports costs are really Neapolitan jackets made by Cesare Attolini, probably one of the best menswear tailors in the world.
What is the difference between classic (say British) sports coats and Neapolitan jackets?
Neapolitan jackets have a wonderful the soft shoulder (with no or minimal canvas lining) that is much like a shirt shoulder, have larger arms, winder lapels and are shorter than say a British jacket. They have a boat shaped breast pocket with double stitch and jackets also support patch packets. They have buttons that can be unbuttoned.
They are lighter, softer and airier and feel more casual. If I can afford to buy them, I would only wear those every day — especially now as I am entering the grown up phase of my life. The whole look supported by Toni Servillo makes perfect sense for anyone who is lucky enough to live in mostly Mediterranean climate. But I think it would work in Northern California as well — get a light coat for the evenings.
Check out these fantastic photos — courtesy of Janus Films.
Bellisima!