Bad repro looks

[Marc Chevalier]

It seems that at the time those were made there was a case of:

1) "We don't have the money to be accurate, I hope no one notices!"
2) "Don't bother, nobody cares really. Who's going to notice?"
3) "The players may get mad if we made them get haircuts."
4) "We don't have time for this, besides it's not crucial to telling the story."

5) "The audience wants to see its modern-day stars (as opposed to character actors) looking at least a bit modern."
6) "The audience will be turned off by historical fashions, makeup and hairstyles that are too different from its own. We must 'contemporize' such details to a greater or lesser degree."


.

[Atomic Age]

5) "The audience wants to see its modern-day stars (as opposed to character actors) looking at least a bit modern."
6) "The audience will be turned off by historical fashions, makeup and hairstyles that are too different from its own. We must 'contemporize' such details to a greater or lesser degree."


.

You've hit the nail on the head.

I think in many cases, particularly with In Harm's Way, there was a really attempt to "contemporize" World War Two for a "modern" audience. I read an interview with the costume designer of that film and completely intentional on the part of the filmmakers to update the look of the film so that it wouldn't feel old fashioned to the audience.

There was a similar attempt by the makers of L.A. Confidential to avoid things that looked old fashioned, hence the lack of hats in the movie.

Doug

[ukali1066]

I HATE HATE HATE seeing films with German WW2 officers with clumps of 1960's/70's/80's hair sticking out from under their caps....

The VERY short back and sides was beloved in that era...

[habberdasher]

Man, watch the Glenn Miller story sometime starring Jimmy Stewart and June Allyson. It was made in 1954 about' the 30s and 40's and all the women are wearing 50s full circle dresses and have short haircuts. It's weird! Even when they are portraying the 30s the womens clothing is wrong. A lot of movies made in the 50s get 30s and 40s fashion so wrong, or don't even try get it right at all.

Right!

[Matt Deckard]

The Winds of War

[2jakes]

On the set of "Paradise Alley" (1978) Mr. Stallone is sitting having make-up before the scene begins, I was an extra watching in the wings.
When he gets up to do his scene , I go over & ask the make-up lady , "This is suppose to be during the 1940's & his hair is way too long for
that time period" ? She replies, " Honey..you tell him that cuz I ain't ". Later when I saw the film..in the story…the brother yells to him..
"get a haircut..ya look like a bum "!!! I guess being the director he could've added the line so as not to cut his hair. I remember this because
my hair was cut short like in those old days !

[fortworthgal]

Pretty much any period film made during the 1950s through the 1970s is guilty of this!

[Olde English]

I am fairly tolerant, but the one film that guarantees me shouting at the television is 'The Battle of Britain' set in 1940, which features Susannah York with a blonde pixie crop hair style and frosted baby-pink lipstick. Pure 1969. Grrr...

[flat-top]

On the set of "Paradise Alley" (1978) Mr. Stallone is sitting having make-up before the scene begins, I was an extra watching in the wings.
When he gets up to do his scene , I go over & ask the make-up lady , "This is suppose to be during the 1940's & his hair is way too long for
that time period" ? She replies, " Honey..you tell him that cuz I ain't ". Later when I saw the film..in the story…the brother yells to him..
"get a haircut..ya look like a bum "!!! I guess being the director he could've added the line so as not to cut his hair. I remember this because
my hair was cut short like in those old days !

Paradise Alley is on TV right now....holy $#!+

[Fletch]

You know, even today, many people read period styles as bad taste. Such an attitude was probably near universal in earlier eras.

Today's movies often show the extras looking more period than the stars, probably because the extras won't complain.