SIMPLICITY ITSELF: OSCARS 2012

When it comes to awards ceremonies, not all red-carpets are created equal. Now in its 84^th year, the Academy Awards is, and remains, the benchmark by which all other events are measured.

With the knowledge that the world is watching, the pressure to get it right can be immense. Some stars avoid the glare of the fashion spotlight by playing it safe; others replay their best fashion hand with looks seen before. But those who make the headlines (in a good way), balance a little risk against a fail-safe marker – and that can be anything from a colour to a favourite silhouette. This is the strategy we saw in abundance at this year’s Oscars: a touch of the familiar, with a flash of unexpected genius, made for a very stylish carpet.

With a stunning appearance at the Golden Globes already under her belt, you would think that Angelina Jolie would have nothing left to prove. But you would be wrong. Jolie showed up in a black velvet gown from Atelier Versace, slit to the thigh with pleated panels on the bodice. It was a masterwork of seduction; no-one in Hollywood does smart / sexy quite like Angelina. Her winning formula of reveal and conceal makes her not only one of the Best Dressed of the night, but downright intriguing. Channelling old-school glamour with a twist of modernity, this was Jolie’s best look of the season.

Intelligent choices were all over this red-carpet, with Gwyneth Paltrow stunning everyone in a stark, white gown and cape from Tom Ford. In theory, this could have gone horribly wrong, but Ford’s gift for precision and restraint made this outfit a beautiful example of postmodern glamour. As already demonstrated by Rooney Mara and Tilda Swinton, there is an appetite for gowns off the beaten track: spare, elegant forms without a flounce in sight. This modern way of approaching red-carpet dressing looks set to become the rule rather than the exception: ruffles and bows for night-time don’t sit quite right at the moment. Indulging your inner girl feels more appropriate to daytime with Louis Vuitton and Prada giving us plenty of ideas on how to do pretty.

In terms of eveningwear, bold, sleek shapes channel a political consciousness that’s purely interested in showing up, not showing off. Gwyneth, picked by many as the evening’s Best Dressed, had clued up on the style zeitgeist: her choice was undeniably beautiful but its simplicity left Paltrow looking calm, relaxed and approachable. This style code feels like a better fit on Gwyneth, who in the early part of her career struggled to find her groove. But this stab at sartorial greatness turns Gwyneth into a very modern style icon: cool, confident and above all, contemporary.

Very few people did sequins for the Oscars, but those that did, applied them with wit and verve. Rose Byrne’s midnight-blue gown from Vivienne Westwood made her one of the red-carpet stand outs. Epic detail was reined in by a sleek, one-shoulder design and a touch of Westwood tailoring. This many sequins should cause the dress to droop, but it stood firm thanks to a corsetry that kept the shape of the dress intact. It was a comforting hit of sparkle (for those who feel a red-carpet isn’t the same without it), and Rose’s profile soared in what was a very modern re-working of a red-carpet classic.

Jessica Chastain, nominated for her role in ‘The Help’, also took her brand to the next level in a career-making turn wearing custom-made McQueen. A black strapless gown overlaid with intricate gold embroidery saw Jessica; in sartorial terms at least, go toe-to-toe with Angelina and Gwyneth. Paired with beautifully-judged make-up and tousled hair, this was a look belonging to someone who is destined to become an even bigger star. Someone with this much confidence at this stage in their career cannot help but excel – Jessica is one to watch.

Some of those attending did opt for colour in what has been a curiously monochromatic awards season: Natalie Portman in vintage Dior, Emma Stone in Giambattista Valli and Michelle Williams in Louis Vuitton – all three went for shades of red.

Williams’ gown in particular divided the critics: a strapless gown with soft, horizontal ruffles and a peplum detail at the waist was a winning choice but possibly not on Williams. Like Paltrow, Williams is most in her comfort zone when she goes simple. Some of her best red-carpet moments have been in dresses of deceptive simplicity.

Others attending chose to tread a well-beaten path. Meryl Streep chose the good-luck charm of previous Oscar winners and went for gold in eco-Lanvin. Like Sandra Bullock (Marchesa, 2010) and Charlize Theron (Gucci, 2004), Streep got her award dressed head-to-toe in gold.

Livia Firth’s good work at the BAFTAs in encouraging A-listers to participate in the Green Carpet Challenge was confirmed in earnest at the Oscars. French fashion-house Lanvin used eco-certified fabrics to dress the Iron Lady. Stepping up to collect the third Oscar of her career, Meryl looked softly glamorous. It was a truly Oscar-worthy choice.

If there was anything to take away from this awards season, it was a renewed appreciation of the simple things. A good cut, a plain colour won out time and again over flashier designs. It may be something to do with the types of films making it big this year: the grand-ambition projects or the small art house films that end up stealing your heart. But whatever is causing it, there’s a real call to arms to those who want real, honest-to-goodness sophistication.

Whether you like your red-carpet to shine, or be beautiful in a more subtle way, what’s very clear is that modern glamour – in all its grown-up glory – is here to stay.

HELEN TOPE

A SUBTLE ART: GOLDEN GLOBES 2012

This year’s Golden Globes were proof once again that if you want to be surprised, the Globes are your go-to reference.

Divided right down the middle, this year’s carpet split the attendees into one of two sartorial camps: light or dark. Rooney Mara, Evan Rachel Wood and Julianne Moore all went to fashion’s dark side, but there was still plenty of support for the softer palette. Nicole Kidman, Charlize Theron and Angelina Jolie were just three of the big-hitters who opted for lighter shades.

Theron continued her partnership with Dior Couture, and Angelina stunned in an ivory gown from Atelier Versace; its pristine quality only broken by a single, dramatic sweep of red. Commanding the red-carpet, the dress was an exercise in deceptive simplicity. Jolie, never knowingly under-dressed, was positively regal in a dress that was expertly cut to make a lasting impression. Sophisticated and polished, this woman was light years away from the girl who collected her Oscar in 2000, dressed in nothing but black. Angelina’s transition from goth to glam has been a slow one, but if this gown is any indication of what we can expect from Jolie in the future, the wait has been worth it.

Where actors went with a bold gesture, the gamble paid off. Tilda Swinton arrived in a pale-blue skirt suit by designer-of-the-moment, Haider Ackerman. Swinton actively provokes opinion, with the style renegade preferring Parisian edge to the Italian masters of luxe. But in these moments of defiance, Tilda reminds us why she is one of a kind. This suit came pretty damn close to avant-garde perfection.

Other highlights included Natalie Portman in a bubblegum-pink gown that showed the sunny side of Lanvin, and Kristen Wiig got serious in a beautifully-draped goddess gown from Bill Blass.

However, even in terms of red-carpet dressing, one size does not fit all. Those who opted for the darker side of glamour did not disappoint. But even the darker hues were offset with soft, romantic detail; the feathered hem of Evan Rachel Wood’s custom-made Gucci gown and the soft drapery on Rooney Mara’s Nina Ricci dress compensated for the S&M-style straps on the bodice. Hard was countered by soft, and the result was a red-carpet in perfect harmony.

Another big trend that emerged was the return of the strapless gown. Worn by Julianne Moore, Kate Beckinsale and Salma Hayek, in an evening with almost zero cleavage on display, the shoulders became the new erogenous zone. Coupled with high-necks and long sleeves, this was a night to explore new ways of revealing and concealing.

Glee’s Lea Michele went one stage further with an intricately-embroidered sheer bodice from Marchesa, dripping down into a metallic skirt. It was reassurance that if fashion was steering towards a new age of innocence, there was still some naughtiness left.

But the note that carried through the evening was softness, a demure sensibility that found it way into virtually every gown. In physics, it is said that for every action there must be an equal and opposite reaction, and this is a law that fashion applies with rigour.

As times are getting together (even in Hollywood), fashion is becoming softer with gentler colours and soft-focus silhouettes. Highly adept at providing us with what we want (before we even know it ourselves), fashion is giving us no-fuss, no-stress solutions. The carefree sartorial tone was perfect for the Globes: in a ceremony that refuses to take itself too seriously, the glamour on show was all about the art of subtlety. It is no accident that body-con was a trend persona non grata. Breaking away from the old codes of glamour, the Globes was clearly writing a style language all its own. With some of the best looks of the night being the most unexpected, the sheer variety presented meant that if you couldn’t find something you liked on this red-carpet, you just weren’t looking hard enough.

In a year where cinema celebrates heroes and villains, a red-carpet divided so definitively between light and dark cannot be that surprising. From the heroism of ‘War Horse’ and ‘The Help’, to the complex political legacies of Margaret Thatcher and J. Edgar Hoover, never has Hollywood been so brazen in its depiction of the moral maze.

This new phase that sees Hollywood explore good and evil, light and dark, with such relish takes the industry into unchartered territory. After all, this could be the year where a silent film walks away with the biggest awards: something that only five years ago would have seemed unthinkable.

Hollywood’s willingness to go deeper and take real risks is being reflected in the red-carpet. Against this backdrop, all-out glitz would just look wrong; what’s taken its place is a subtle art of red-carpet dressing. No fuss, no frills – just beautiful, epic design. 2012: it’s going to be a very good year.

HELEN TOPE