Fashioning James Bond: Costume, Gender and Identity in the World of 007

"Fashioning James Bond provides the first full-length critical study of the costumes and fashions of the James Bond movie franchise, from Sean Connery in 1962's Dr No to Daniel Craig in Spectre (2015). Llewella Chapman draws on original archival research, close analysis of the costumes and fashion brands featured in the Bond films, interviews with families of tailors and shirt-makers who assisted in creating the 'look' of James Bond, and considers marketing strategies for the films and tie-in merchandisethat promoted the idea of an aspirational 'James Bond lifestyle'. Addressing each Bond film in turn, Chapman explores the 'fashioning' of each incarnation of the iconic spy, detailing not only clothing but jewellery and accessories choices, from Sean Connery's suave Savile Row suits and Roger Moore's safari jackets to Pierce Brosnan's Italian couture tailoring and the updating of Daniel Craig's wardrobe to suggest a gritty and complex Bond with a more directly sexual appeal. Chapman also considers the costumes worn by Bond girls, 'bad girls', villains and fellow spies including Moneypenny and M, showing how the films' fashions came about through a collaborative process in which costume designers, wardrobe artists, couture and high street fashion houses, tailors, directors, producers, and the actors themselves all played their part. Fashion served not only as part of the films' visual appeal, but also provided a source of revenue from tie-in merchandise that could enable Bond fans to aspire to the lifestyle of the international spy or of one of the glamorous Bond girls"--
Fashioning James Bond is the first book to study the costumes and fashions of the James Bond movie franchise, from Sean Connery in 1962's Dr No to Daniel Craig in Spectre (2015). Llewella Chapman draws on original archival research, close analysis of the costumes and fashion brands featured in the Bond films, interviews with families of tailors and shirt-makers who assisted in creating the 'look' of James Bond, and considers marketing strategies for the films and tie-in merchandise that promoted the idea of an aspirational 'James Bond lifestyle'.Addressing each Bond film in turn, Chapman questions why costumes are an important tool for analysing and evaluating film, both in terms of the development of gender and identity in the James Bond film franchise in relation to character, and how it evokes the desire in audiences to become part of a specific lifestyle construct through the wearing of fashions as seen on screen. She researches the agency of the costume department, director, producer and actor in creating the look and characterisation of James Bond, the villains, the Bond girls and the henchmen who inhibit the world of 007. Alongside this, she analyses trends and their impact on the Bond films, how the different costume designers have individually and creatively approached costuming them, and how the costumes were designed and developed from novel to script and screen. In doing so, this book contributes to the emerging critical literature surrounding the combined areas of film, fashion, gender and James Bond.