How Spike Lee, Bella Hadid and Tilda Swinton rocked the Cannes red carpet

HHave you missed seeing wealthy and privileged people making a big deal for fun on the French Riviera, while you watch their antics through a smeared phone screen? Probably not, but the Cannes Film Festival is still back from its pandemic slumber. And remarkably, the red carpet looks pretty much like it was before.

Timothée Chalamet wore things! He held Tilda Swinton’s hand on the red carpet! The models swept over the events wearing feathers and tulle – and in Bella Hadid’s case, a golden lung-shaped breastplate. After more than a year of Zoom awards and home stages and rehearsals, the celebrities are back. It’s almost as if they picked up where they left off in March 2020.

Cannes fashion has always embodied glamor, sometimes to a rigid degree – remember, this is the same festival that sadly required women to wear heels on its premises until the late 2010s. Dated dress codes may be seen as reflecting archaic morals, but actresses like Sharon Stone in her voluminous Dolce & Gabbana gown hardly seemed to care.

But there were others like French model Tina Kunakey, who showed up on the Croisette in a Valentino hooded creation – think a couture sleeping bag – that crushed any stereotypical French male gaze. The Cannes red carpet therefore remains a sartorial battleground, a very chic battle of the old against the new.

It was one of the most talked about looks of the festival, and for good reason. Bella Hadid wore a bold Schiaparelli look from the French house’s Fall / Winter 2021/22 collection, designed by Daniel Roseberry, to the premiere of Three floors (three floors). Special congratulations should go to his shoulders, which supported the very heavy brass bronchi and lungs.

Salma Hayek left her owl at home and dressed in a blue sequined dress for the Kering Women in Motion Award. It was a bit of an old fashioned look that might have worked if the same event had happened five, 10, or 15 years ago. But it was encouraging to see the return of this timeless type of all-round glitter.

Jodie Turner-Smith opted for a custom Gucci, as is done, with a black vinyl corset and ostrich feather skirt, for the Still water first. The actress also happens to be the face of the Italian line, so this was a mandatory red carpet promotion. She was then the victim of a jewel theft which took place in her hotel room on the Croisette and tweeted that she had spent her last day in Cannes talking to the police. At least she had to wear the jewelry first.

Thoughts and prayers to all who courageously continued to walk The French dispatch red carpet after Timothée Chalamet and Tilda Swinton have eaten everything in their little outfits. Swinton wore a pink and orange Haider Ackermann dress (with gold sleeves!), So don’t let anyone else try to tell you those two colors don’t match. Chalamet wore an iridescent Tom Ford. OK good, we missed that !!

In the midst of it all, their co-star Adrien Brody brought in his partner, designer Marchesa Georgina Chapman. Surprisingly, she was wearing Marchesa. The former wife of Harvey Weinstein, who voluntarily went into exile after being accused of numerous sexual assaults in 2017, has made no attempt to change her style for her next chapter. Her dress exudes the type of picky femininity that initially led Marchesa to stardom; it didn’t seem out of place alongside the more modern looks of Chalamet and Swinton.

Another likely choice to raise eyebrows: Sharon Stone in Dolce & Gabbana at the premiere of My wife’s story. There’s no denying the dream of the dress – or how refreshing and potentially subversive it is to see a 63-year-old actress wearing something so princess. But the Italian label has worked hard to attempt a brand rehabilitation after a racist incident in 2018, and has recently been seen on everyone from Jill Biden to Megan Fox.

Spike Lee in a pink suit and matching sunglasses! No word is needed here.

Tina Kunakey introduced herself to Benedetta Valentino couture projection, which also looks like the fancy version of burying yourself in a quilt.

Jodie Foster, who won a Golden Globe wearing her pajamas earlier this year, finally got a real red carpet moment at the Annette screening in Givenchy. She looked nervous, but comfortable, and very, very French. Two other things: Foster walked the red carpet with his wife, Alexandra Hedison, and held a press conference speaking fluent French.