Historic films are not easy to make. You have to take a lot of little details into account along with writing an accurate script. To recreate the era perfectly, serious projects hire consultants that make sure that the film is historically accurate. The filmed material is then verified several times.
But some mistakes can still happen and very attentive viewers notice them. They pay attention to things as minor as the length of a character’s nails and the types of glasses they wear. Today, we at Bright Side decided to look back at movies where the characters’ costumes didn’t look quite right.
The Favourite
Mascara, as we know it today, was invented in the 19th century, and in the film, you can see mascara several times. In close-ups of actresses Emma Stone and Rachel Weisz, you can see more than one hole in their ears for earrings, which would’ve been strange for a woman to have at the beginning of the 18th century.
Fashion experts found a lot of mistakes in the costumes, but the movie designers and stylists did all this on purpose because director Yorgos Lanthimos wanted to make the film a bit surreal.
The King’s Speech
The kilt bearing the wrong colors made a splash after the release of the film. The Scotts were insulted because George VI (played by Colin Firth) wore a kilt with an Irish pattern that wasn’t even created until 1997.
In reality, the members of the British Royal Family wore kilts with a Scottish pattern on them, known as Balmoral. Queen Victoria and her husband, Prince Albert, are credited with having made this pattern in the middle of the 19th century in the Balmoral Castle in Scotland.
Back to the Future
The scene where Marty plays guitar instead of Marvin Berry at a school party is very famous. But few people noticed that he was holding a guitar of the future — a Gibson ES-345, which was released in 1958. The film, however, is mostly set in 1955.
The Tudors
These collars (with ruffles), like the one Natalie Dormer wore while playing Anna Boleyn in The Tudors, were only worn in the 16th century with a closed chest. If a lady (especially a queen) wore clothing like this at a ball, it would turn into a huge scandal.
Life Is Beautiful
When Dora looks out from her barrack to listen to the opera piece, her long hair can be seen under her scarf. In concentration camps, women’s heads were regularly shaved to prevent the proliferation of lice.
Gladiator
During the fight with the tigers, Maximus falls and rolls over, revealing Lycra shorts. Where did the gladiator go shopping in Rome? Lycra was made only in the middle of the twentieth century.
Seabiscuit
The jockeys have chin straps holding their hats on. Jockeys’ hats didn’t have chin straps until the Caliente Safety Helmet was introduced in 1956.
Little Women
Some people think that Little Women didn’t deserve the Oscar they received for “Best Costume Design” because there were so many inaccuracies made by Jacquelyn Durant, the costume designer of the film. The dresses the sisters wore in the film have the wrong color schemes and the silhouettes were not popular at the time. Their hairstyles are messy and they often didn’t wear bonnets, which was unheard of for girls in the middle of the nineteenth century.
But the most peculiar problem was that the March family was poor — so where did they get the money for these amazing dresses? Of course, the dresses that they wore in almost every scene of the film cost a lot of money. And it’s worth noting that during the war, many fabrics — especially cotton — were very hard to come by.
Amadeus
In the film, there are several times where you can see zippers that didn’t exist in the eighteenth century. They were made about 100 years later and became widely spread only in the 1920s.
Lincoln
In close-ups, you can see the holes from earrings on Daniel Day-Lewis’s ears. Of course, the sixteenth President of the US would never wear any earrings but Daniel Day-Lewis loves them.
There Will Be Blood
There Will Be Blood is a story of a miner that became an oil tycoon at the end of the nineteenth century. A fireside scene reveals the character’s boot to have a waffle sole. The waffle sole was not invented nor used until the early to mid-’70s.
Captain America: The First Avenger
Many fans of the franchise love Peggy Carter even though there are some mistakes in the way she looks. In the 1940s, women in the military forces couldn’t have their hair down. Also, her makeup is too bright.
Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl
In the film, all the officers and sailors of the Royal Navy wear the same uniforms. But at the time, they didn’t actually have the same uniforms. The first uniform regulations for officers were issued in 1748.
Also, something miraculous happens to Elizabeth’s nails in this film. When she’s an adult girl and looking at the pirate’s medallion, you can see that her nails are short, which is accurate for that time. But then Elizabeth is kidnapped and you can see that she has French nails. They probably cut out the scene where she was getting her nails done...
Schindler’s List
In one of the most realistic movies about war, the reality was still tweaked a bit. At the time, women didn’t shave their legs or armpits, but in the film, all but one of the women are trimmed and groomed.
How important is historical accuracy for you in movies? What other movies with costume mistakes can you recall?
