7 Historical Movie Costumes That Looked So Much Differently in Real Life

Movies and TV series set in bygone centuries are a special treat. They show in an entertaining way what life was like in those times, how people dressed or what hairstyles they wore. Although, of course, they don’t often correspond to reality. So, we decided to find out what these things really looked like.

Cleopatra, 1963

Cleopatra, portrayed by Elizabeth Taylor, was undoubtedly gorgeous. Perhaps it was because the outfits she wore were historically inaccurate. Women at the time mostly wore kalasiris dresses, which were like shirts with straps, sewn from 2 rectangular cloths and just above the ankles. This is the kind of attire worn by the maids in this movie.

The main fabric then was linen. A shawl, that was worn over the dress, was just a piece of cloth. The dresses that have survived to the present day are usually baggy and hide the body rather than show it.

Moulin Rouge!, 2001

The prototype of Nicole Kidman’s character in the musical movie was Jane Avril, a dancer of the famous Parisian cabaret “Moulin Rouge.” Nicole’s outfits are quite different from those worn by Jane, who danced the cancan in a long dress with many skirts and a hat and was depicted this way even on the advertising posters. She simply couldn’t have performed in such tight stage costumes.

The actress’ costumes are more like those of Mistinguett, the highest paid French actress and singer of the time, who also performed at Moulin Rouge.

Chicago, 2002

In Chicago, Catherine Zeta-Jones played a charismatic vaudeville actress who danced in the early 1920s. But photos of real vaudeville actresses show that their dresses for performances were much more modest.

Marie Antoinette, 2006

The movie is beautiful, but Marie Antoinette’s outfits and hairstyle don’t quite match those worn by the famous queen. When Marie first arrived at Versailles, she was happy to follow the fashion of the nobility with its pastel colors, layered skirts and rich trimmings and embellishments.

Her mother was shocked when she received a portrait of her daughter dressed in “trends” and wrote to her that fashion should be followed in moderation and the young queen didn’t need to wear this madness. In the movie, however, the outfits don’t seem crazy at all.

The hairstyles look too modest too. At that time, huge hairstyles were in vogue, with entire sculptures built on the heads. The young queen, having her own hairdresser, introduced the fashion for simpler, but still very voluminous hairstyles without curls.

Grease, 1978

The movie takes place in the summer of 1958. But the main character Sandy dashingly dances in leggings, which appeared and became fashionable only in the 1960s. At that time, women wore ankle-length woolen trousers.

And her hairstyle is unlike anything that was in fashion at the time. Considering that Sandy’s hair is medium length and lush, her character could have had a hairstyle like Elizabeth Taylor’s.

Mary Poppins, 1964

In the 1964 version, the head of the household, Mr. Banks, says it’s 1910. But the dress of Julie Andrews, who played the iconic nanny, is more like what was worn in the late 40s, when the New Look style was widespread, which implied a narrow waist and a puffy skirt below the middle of the calves. But in 1910, dresses had a loose and high waist. Skirts were long and not wide.

The Three Musketeers, 1948

The adventures of the Three Musketeers take place between 1625 and 1628. In those days, women’s clothes became simpler. Panniers (a frame to make the skirt puffy) disappeared, the jabot turned into a soft collar, the black skirt of the dress was unbuttoned over a light-colored underskirt, the sleeves became very voluminous and sometimes tied at the elbow with a ribbon. The main fabrics were damask, velvet, and silk.

But in the 1948 movie version, Milady, played by Lana Turner, wears an unthinkable at that time dress made of red chiffon, and even with short sleeves. The book has authentic illustrations that show how this iconic heroine was actually dressed.

But costume designers don’t always fail. Here, for example, they managed to perfectly recreate historical costumes.