I watched the Golden Globes last night (well, most of it- I have an old lady bedtime) and I hadn’t even realized it was going to be on. I’m inclined to do a little summary post, mostly of the clothes since I’m not at all up to date with current movies. But there will be little bit about the overt political moments of the night and my own random thoughts.
So strap in, superlatives style:
Mimsy’s Favorite Look:
Zoe Saldana in Gucci
Zoe Saldana is an accomplished dress wearer, which is in fact a high form of praise. She knows how to carry and work a lot of look so she can pull of exciting things (on a carpet that’s not often that exciting because the celebrities are a product dressed to appeal to the lowest common denominator movie consumer). I wish her lips didn’t match her dress quite so well, but that was an oddly frequent complaint for me this time around. I love how “bow and ruffle”-ed it is, as well as the combination of the candy and magenta pinks. Pink in for 2017? I hope not too much so. I just bought two very pink cashmere sweaters, a big stride out of my very beige, white, black, navy wardrobe. But as Diana Vreeland said “Pink is the navy blue of India.”
Honorable Mention: Catriona Balfe
I’m not seeing Catriona’s look mentioned enough, which is a shame because I think it’s lovely. Maybe I’m just feeling fond of color blocking at the moment, but the combination of midnight blue and Chinese red is sublime. Overstatement? Maybe just a tad. Her clean styling is nice, I might have been in favor of a necklace but to be creepily frank she does have a very nice clavicle so it’s all equal. Love the draping, the bodice, the simple hair and even the color-coordinated flower embellishment.
Best-Dressed Baby Bump:
Natalie Portman in Prada
Natalie Portman is a veteran of pregnancy and has very much figured out the “awards circuit while pregnant” look. And also she’s one of my favorite actresses/famous people (she’s vegan too!) so I’m biased. This is a hard color to wear (based on my personal experience) and she looks beautiful. I’m dubious about the tinsel-type appliqué toward the bottom, but some kind of decoration was needed. Her face (hair and makeup and earrings, not her actual face because of course! looks lovely too).
Honorable Mention: Gal Godot
I love the “Yes, this is a baby I’m not fat” red carpet pose. And by love it I mean I really don’t enjoy it. Stop it, Wonder Woman! Also I question your styling choices. If I were in her shoes (instead of my bathrobe at 3 pm) I would have chose a less dog-taggish necklace and less severe hairstyle. But she’s beautiful and I love my bathrobe, so…
Most Improved:
Hailee Steinfeld in Vera Wang:
Hailee Steinfeld has a way to dress in a kid of try hard way on the red carpet and I’ve never really felt before like she looked very comfortable in anything she was wearing. She’s only twenty (good lord, she’s younger than me) and so I feel like she wears styles that she hasn’t really grown into yet. In the same way that blazers are only starting to look appropriate on me now, at 21. But she looks gorgeous and comfortable here. I don’t believe young women need to dress like pastel princesses to be age-appropriate (I was wearing bustiers into school at 15) but it just stands that this is the best I’ve seen her look. And she pulled off the tricky glove-sleeves much better than Nicole Kidman.
Honorable Mention: Sofia Vergara
I find Sofia Vergara’s choices a bit exhausting because she always wears very tight mermaid dresses, super high heels and glamorous waves. Yesterday she wore an embellished transparent gown IN A TRUMPET SILHOUETTE! It’s true that transparent and embellished gowns are kind of ubiquitous/dime a dozen/invasive, but I’m just so excited she’s expanding her repertoire. And her hair is pulled back.
I feel I’ve been a bit fussy because Sofia is always gorgeous and I assume happy with what she has found works for her. I am not under the impression that my opinions matter in any real sense, pfft.
Best Pantsuit:
Evan Rachel Wood in Altuzarra
Pristine and chic. That white shirt is to die for.
Honorable Mention: Octavia Spencer
Looking classy, Olivia, looking classy.
Most in Need of a Lining:
Kristen Wiig in Reem Acra:
Kristen looks great all around except I can see her flesh-toned bathing suit.
Honorable Mentions: Sarah Paulson, Sofia Vergara (see link above), and Tracee Ellis Ross
One of the few categories where one would prefer to be an honorable mention. Sarah Paulson and Tracee Ellis Ross look lovely (if weirdly lacking in undergarments). Although TER’s dress does look like a corset-type undergarment, so a pass?
Best Metallic Sheath Dress:
Annette Bening
I don’t know what brand Annette Bening is wearing, but she looks beautiful from head to toe. Love the graphic interest of the stripes and the ‘figure-conscious’ design at the waist. And I find it interesting that the stripes continue exactly onto her sleeves when she holds them by her sides. Not sure if I love that detail or no, but she looks splendid regardless.
Honorable Mentions: Ruth Negga, Sarah Paulson (see link above)
Like Zoe Saldana, Ruth Negga is an excellent dress wearer (and her voice is beautiful and I may be a bit in love). The dress has a few oddities that make it a bit robotic, especially given the metallic (I’m not a fan of the breastplate). Louis Vuitton hasn’t had an excellent track record on the red carpet of late.
Most Obvious Gucci:
Felicity Jones (in Gucci)
Gucci’s running with a pretty characteristic look these days and this is so thematic that I smiled when I first saw her in it. She looks lovely. I think the dress may be a squish too far to the silly side, but there’s no harm in that. I do wish she had worn a darker lip- it matches a bit too much with the blush color of the bodice, which is itself maybe a skosh close to her skin tone. I think she was wise to keep jewelry to a minimum. Pretty.
Honorable Mention: Zoe Saldana (see my favorite look)
Best Study in Black and White:
Janelle Monae in Armani:
I admire Janelle Monae for her showmanship. She wears some ridiculous getups (She was on a late night show hosted by a Jimmy (like that narrows it down) with googly eyes adorning her hair). Her fashion choices are exclusively limited to black and white but she plays with volume and shape in really interesting ways. As a person who has also established herself as a pop performer, she can also be a bit more out there with her style than a lot of the celebrities on patrol last night. I also really appreciate Jangle Monae’s championship of equal rights in America.
Honorable Mentions: Sophie Turner, Issa Rae and Sienna Miller
I’ll admit that Sophie Turner’s dress is bordering on Hot Mess territory courtesy of Louis Vuitton (they should trademark that) but I actually quite like it. I was going to mention it at the bottom of the post before I realized that it is, in fact, black and white. I may even, on a personal level, like it more than Jangle Monae’s look. Though I don’t think it’s as interesting or stylish a dress, it’s the one I personally would wear first. It my head it fits, even if as a dress it’s a bit laughably complex. I think it did accomplish fun and a bit edgy.
Issa Rae’s dress is the color people wish there teeth were (but not really because- blinding, wow). The more covered up silhouette is atypical (and a breath of fresh air) and the subtle striping is super pretty. It always makes me happy to see Christian Siriano designing for the red carpet, especially because he’s not an asshole about refusing to dress women of a variety of figures and skin colors. And Issa’s hair is sculptural and pretty flawless.
I also really appreciate Sienna Miller’s dress. Which is essentially a casual white tee shirt turned into a gown with cut outs. I frown at the hair and makeup choices (earring are fine but the pearly necklace and bracelet set is not my favorite). But she looks pretty and happy and it’s good to see something on the low key side.
Best Zuhair Murad Couture [TIE]:
Olivia Culpo in Zuhair Murad
Lily Collins in Zuhair Murad
Can we just take a moment how these women are playing to their strengths (particularly in terms of coloring?!). Both of them are epically high drama and gorgeous. A criticism: I know it’s endemic at awards shows, but are both of them wearing maybe a bit much in terms of cosmetics? In the eye area, specifically- Lily Collins looks like she’s a case of conjunctivitis coming on, or maybe she was going for the waif-with-tuberculosis look (which, given Les Miserables, La Dame aux Camellias, and Moulin Rouge! I can completely understand.) Their eyebrows and hair and jewelry decisions (Olivia’s earrings are lovely) are on point. Credit to Olivia for making that tricky top work, and credit to Lily for somehow having actually invisible illusion netting for the top (?). Is there actually no illusion netting? How is that top staying up?
Honorable Mentions: Tracee Ellis Ross and Sofia Vergara (both linked above)
Best Color Game:
Viola Davis in Michael Kors
Hell yes, she is glowing in that canary yellow. Beautiful in pretty much every way. Her beauty is completely blowing Reese Witherspoon’s half-assedly yellow (is half-assedly an actual adverb? It should be.) and kind of stiff Versace gown. I also really like the skimming cut of this dress. And spoiler, her speech was excellent. Also excellent: her introduction of Meryl Streep. Don’t remember it? It was right before Meryl Streep took down the president elect.
Honorable Mentions: Brie Larson, Jessica Chastain, Hailee Steinfeld (see Most Improved)
I love Brie Larson’s classic Hollywood glamour look- complete with a deep red lip, Veronica Lake waterfall hair, and a deep red dress with a sweetheart neckline. She could be an awards statue, she looks so old Hollywood. Jessica Chastain’s Prada is a bit quirky and I think I may not like it. I wish the colors were more saturated and that I was less worried for the security of her breasts, but hey, some of us like to live on the edge. 360 degree beading might have been an improvement.
Asides on other looks:
- Emma Stone in Valentino: Emma Stone is ready to do whatever it takes to get awards for La La Land. Valentino Couture or murder, she will stop at nothing. Look at this and tell me she doesn’t mean business.
- Nicole Kidman in Alexander McQueen: Here’s another frothy chiffon and metallics gown. And this time literally frothy. I would probably unreservedly love this if her hairstyle were a bit more constructed and she weren’t wearing the puffed sleeve-glove combination. But her dress has a wave on it. Pretty! Oh, while I’m reimagining, can I also ask for a more colorful necklace? Maybe ruby or sapphire or emerald?
- Sarah Jessica Parker in Vera Wang: No, I’m not behind this one. But I love SJP’s willingness to dress outside the box. But the sleeve glove trend continues to upset me (one expects it’s a way to follow through on the past year’s bare shoulder trend, but that doesn’t make it good). And then people started comparing her hair to Princess Leia and I was annoyed and Dad was ready to cry. Stop SJP, you’ve done enough.
- Blake Lively in Versace: I find the top detailing weird and I really sympathize with her faraway look because I assume she’s wishing those were real pockets. Pretty much sums up dressing as a woman these days. Lack of pockets.
- Emily Ratajkowski in Reem Acra: Crucify me if you want, but… I don’t like it. It’s kind of canonical model red carpet wear. She’s posing a lot (accidentally flashed her undies quite a bit), dripping in sparkles, and wearing a fabric non-models don’t look very good in. What I mean is it’s not a very exciting choice, given who she is- someone paid to wear clothes for a living.
- Jill Soloway in Gucci: Fun and irreverent and how I would want to look if I were a PE teacher. And that’s not a slight.
- Ryan Michelle: She looks so effervescent and her dress is the color of a sparkly pink bubble bath. Her hair and makeup and jewelry look pretty, even if I’m not a fan of the clutch. The dress really suits her.
Overall too many plunging necklines. I have no problems with plunging necklines but a lot of the time they don’t seem to be balanced very well by the rest of the dress, if that makes sense?
So I lied. I got caught up in talking about the lady red carpet stuff. Will weigh in on a future post on the actual awards portion and possibly men’s wear.
List Mimsy 
