Among the iconic dresses of the cinema, the white dress remains one of our favorites. When it is not the traditional and classic uniform of the bride, the white dress has a sexy look, immortalized on screen by some of the greatest actresses of all time. From the mythical metro scene in The Seven Year Itch to the interrogation scene in Basic Instinct, the white dress is the number one asset of a more or less suggestive seduction. Here's the proof in pictures.
Marilyn Monroe in The Seven Year Itch (1955)
The film: After seven years of marriage, Richard Sherman (Tom Ewell), a New York publicist left alone at home after his family went on vacation, meets his charming blonde neighbor (Marilyn Monroe), on whom he gradually projects his fantasies until he verges on infidelity.
The dress: When we say "white dress at the movies", we immediately think of the one worn by Marilyn Monroe in The Seven Year Itch, which is a myth in itself. All it took was one scene to shape the Marilyn legend. At the end of a film session, Richard Shelman and his beautiful neighbor stop above an air vent between Lexington Avenue and 52nd Street in New York City when the hot air from the subway lifts the young woman's dress. At the age of 29, Marilyn gained legend status with this pleated white cocktail dress designed by costume designer William Tavilla, nicknamed the "subway dress".
Grace Kelly in To Catch A Thief (1955)
The film: Imagined against a backdrop of palaces and jewelry thefts, Alfred Hitchcock's 1955 thriller To Catch A Thief was largely filmed at the Carlton, in front of its spectacular entrance as well as in its sublime interiors. Having always had a soft spot for the French Riviera, the American director filmed Grace Kelly there, more beautiful than ever, succumbing to the charm of jewelry thief Cary Grant. Notably in room 623, which was immortalized on the screen and is now called the Alfred Hitchcock Suite.
The dress: In 1955, the year before she married Prince Rainier III of Monaco, Grace Kelly appeared in a series of dresses, each more devastating than the last, in Alfred Hitchcock's To Catch A Thief (created by the incredible film costume designer Edith Head). It's a winner of a white dress.
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Lauren Bacall in Written on the Wind (1956)
The film: Son of an oil merchant, Kyle Hadley, an alcoholic, falls in love with Lucy (Lauren Bacall) who makes him forget his vices. But when he learns that his wife is pregnant, even though he is infertile, his demons catch up with him until the final stroke of madness sets in.
The dress: In this sentimental, thriller-like drama, the sublime belted white silk dress worn by Lauren Bacall is a highlight. It is a true moment of grace that accompanies her secret.
Elizabeth Taylor in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958)
The film: Adapted from Tennessee Williams's 1955 Broadway play of the same name, Richard Brooks's Cat on a Hot Tin Roof brings to the screen two sacred film icons, Elizabeth Taylor and Paul Newman, as a torn couple who blame each other for the dramas of their lives, against a backdrop of family breakdown and inheritance. Nominated for six Oscars, this film exudes pain and sensuality. A masterpiece.
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The dress: Lying languidly on her wrought-iron bed, Maggie Pollitt, dressed in a white lace teddy, waits impatiently for her depressed, alcoholic husband to offer her a night of love, in vain. A cinematic image burning with sensuality like few others.
Claudia Cardinale in The Leopard (1963)
The film: Burt Lancaster, Alain Delon and Claudia Cardinale star in this scorching film portraying the decadent and impoverished Sicilian aristocrat of the 1860s who blindly enjoys the advantages and comfort of his class, deaf to the roaring revolution that is gradually transforming the country and replacing the old world. A breathtaking adaptation of Giuseppe Tomasi Di Lampedusa's famous novel that won the Palme d'Or at Cannes in 1963.
The dress: Embodying the femme fatale Angelica, Claudia Cardinale wears a white dress in the sumptuous ballroom scene from Visconti's film, subtly revealing her shoulders. This creation by Italian costume designer Piero Tosi, imagined in the pure style of the 19th century, included a corset so tight that the actress was wounded in the flesh.
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Audrey Hepburn in My Fair Lady (1964)
The film: Audrey Hepburn shines brightly in George Cukor's famous musical as a flower seller who is snatched from anonymity by an elocution teacher (Rex Harrison). Determined to teach her refined English and to pass her off as a duchess, she submits herself to grueling lessons in phonetics. But what was just a social experiment soon turns into an unhoped-for love affair. Among the film's highlights are the delightful I Could Have Danced All Night and a scene as brilliantly choreographed as it is singularly costumed at the Ascot Racecourse.
The dress: For this cult film, Cecil Beaton composed a series of sumptuous outfits for Audrey Hepburn, accompanying the transformation of the cheeky flower merchant into a refined duchess. Among the unforgettable ones is her white Empire-style ball gown studded with pearls and crystals. The costume designer and photographer was awarded the Oscar for Best Costume Design in 1965.
Sharon Stone in Basic Instinct (1992)
The film: The erotic game of cat and mouse between a police inspector (Michael Douglas) and a promiscuous novelist (Sharon Stone), suspected of murdering a rock star.
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The dress: Did somebody say cult? In the middle of an interrogation, Catherine Tramell (Sharon Stone) dressed in a tight white turtleneck mini dress, uncrosses and crosses her legs languidly. A polemic sets in and makes this one of the most erotic scenes in the history of cinema.
Alicia Silverstone in Clueless (1995)
The film: The high school superstar Cher (Alicia Silverstone) has only one obsession: finding boyfriends for her friends. A modern adaptation of Jane Austen's novel Emma in which we follow the daily lives of these rich kids from an upscale Beverly Hills neighborhood, Clueless remains one of the cult teen-movies of the 1990s which strongly inspired those of the following decade (Mean Girls comes to mind).
The dress: Among Cher's looks, each more iconic than the next, our heart beats for her tight white mini dress with spaghetti straps made by Calvin Klein, a model typical of the 1990s.
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Claire Danes in Romeo + Juliet (1996)
The film: This reinterpretation of Baz Luhrmann's 1996 Shakespearean tragedy anchors the action in contemporary American suburbs, in the face-off between two rival mafia families.
The dress: Romeo (Leonardo DiCaprio) meets Juliet (Claire Danes) at the costume ball organized by the Capulets. Dressed in a white pleated dress accessorized with a pair of wings, the angel Juliet, attracted by a certain knight in armour, plays an innocent chase with him, ending with a now-iconic kissing scene in a swimming pool.
Scarlett Johansson in Match Point (2005)
The film : Chris Wilton (Jonathan Rhys-Meyer), an ambitious tennis teacher, falls under the spell of Nola (Scarlett Johansson), an American actress who has come to try her luck in England. Both already engaged, the two lovers embark on an affair that is as passionate as it is destructive.
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The dress: The ping pong scene sums up the sexual tension that emanates from Woody Allen's film. In his friend's English cottage, Chris meets Nola, the friend's fiancée. He teaches her some ping pong rules, while playing a dangerous game of seduction. Scarlett Johansson, dressed in a white dress, is irresistible.
Sarah Jessica Parker in Sex and the City: The Movie (2008)
The film: Four years after the end of the cult series, Sarah Jessica Parker, Kim Cattrall, Kristin Davis and Cynthia Nixon find themselves on the big screen, still as delirious as ever. Now a bride-to-be, a mother and a housewife, each heroine tries to combine her personal and professional life while enjoying the pleasures of New York.
The dress: Carrie Bradshaw's style, skilfully crafted by stylist Patricia Field, is one of the most daring in the last 20 years, not to mention one of the most inspiring. So, when the first film of the cult saga came out in 2008, the looks of our darling New Yorker were eagerly awaited. And we weren't disappointed. Between measured bling and twisted trends, the Carrie Bradshaw 2.0 inspired a whole new generation of girls, with a wardrobe mixing designer pieces and revisited vintage. A highlight was an ultra-sexy pleated white dress, adorned with an oversized gold-stitched flower, which appears at the beginning of the film.
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Jennifer Lawrence in American Hustle (2013)
The film: In a retro style by David O. Russell (Three Kings, The Fighter, Silver Linings Playbook), American Hustle plunges us into the New Jersey of the late 1970s. An FBI agent (Bradley Cooper), recruits a local fraudster (Christian Bale) and his wife (Amy Adams) in order to catch a crooked politician (Jeremy Renner). The beginning of a clever film carried by a strong cast (Robert De Niro and Louis CK make appearances) and an astoundingly convincing story.
The dress: Between glitter dresses and vinyl leather, the 1970s wardrobe hand-sewn by costume designer Michael Wilkinson is truly inspiring. A prime example is the ultra-sexy metallic white dress worn by Jennifer Lawrence, who embodies the whimsical Rosalyn Rosenfeld.
Translated by Freya Doggett
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