Best Costume Design: Ranking Every Oscar Nominee
Written by Andreas Babiolakis
Last year’s winner: Little Women.
It’s a bit premature to say, but it’s time to get dressed up for the Academy Awards! Well, at least for the sake of the Best Costume Design category. Usually the stomping ground for period pieces or fantasy tales, this group houses the greatest fashion statements and concepts of the year, and I’d argue the Academy usually gets it right, here. This year is no different, with five stellar nominees. Let’s see how they will fare out. Here are your nominees.
Biggest Snub: Enola Holmes
Even though the following five films are stacked, I couldn’t help but wonder why Enola Holmes wasn’t here. It’s got the period piece element down really well, and a large variety of characters and outfits to boot. Toss in the disguises of the titular character, and you’ve got quite a strong candidate for costume design that got fully abandoned during the awards season.
5. Pinocchio
Massima Cantini Parrini
Even though Pinocchio topped my ranking for Best Makeup and Hairstyling, it’s going to have to be last here. Its costume work is great, but the clear focus of the creation of these characters is on how the creatures themselves look, not how they dress. Still, I love the attention to detail in these garments, including worn-out fabrics, because these little flourishes feel like the finishing touches for making these characters and their fashion blend together.
4. Mulan
Bina Daigeler
In any other year, Mulan could even have a high chance of winning, but it’s going up against some beloved nominees. Still, I appreciate Mulan being here, because its costume work was most definitely part of its strengths. The countless examples of battle attire, as well as the clothing of civilians, are all unique and able to carry their own personal statements. Clearly much care went into the way each character looks.
3. Mank
Truth Summerville
Now Mank is a huge closet of many outfits of the Golden Age of Hollywood, and every single one of them is a sight to behold. This is such a treat for any fashion obsessive to watch, especially if you’re a film buff, because of how much personality each outfit possesses, indicative of whoever is wearing it. No complaints here. Well, okay, there’s one: I’m sad that Mank won’t win this category, because the year is extremely tough.
2. Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
Ann Roth
Like I said with my Makeup and Hairstyling ranking, all of the costume work in Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom is great (even stronger in this category, actually), but it’s really the wardrobe of Ma Rainey herself that is the winner above and beyond. Even in the little we get to see, we can only imagine an entire wardrobe of hers, since the taste that we get is just so expressive, vibrant, and impeccably designed. Sure, everyone else is dressed extremely well, but this film is Ma Rainey’s for sure.
1. Emma.
Alexandra Byrne
Everything I said about Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom is true. Now, apply it to all of Emma., and you can see why I have ranked it first. Wow. What a masterclass in costume design. Every single outfit is full of the tiniest little details, and so flawlessly made. Then you have the amount of them to pick from; who can even decide which is the best outfit? So, we have the strongest designs and the amount to boot. Yeah. For me, Emma. is the clear winner, even in such a tricky category.
Who I want to win: I’ll be happy if any of these nominees won, but I’m still rooting for Emma. regardless.
Who I think will win: Presently, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom is the favourite to win this category, and I don’t know if that will change anytime soon.
Tune in tomorrow for our next Academy Award category! We’re reviewing every single nominee.
Andreas Babiolakis has a Masters degree in Film and Photography Preservation and Collections Management from Ryerson University, as well as a Bachelors degree in Cinema Studies from York University. His favourite times of year are the Criterion Collection flash sales and the annual Toronto International Film Festival.