Sunglasses and Hollywood cool are almost interchangeable these days. Nine out of ten celebrities caught walking down the boulevard are sporting a pair. They add mystery and intrigue…and also hide imperfections. The latest designer sunglasses of 2014 include vintage inspired frames and transparent lenses, with Stella McCartney sunglasses and Neiman Marcus leading the pack. Shady trends are often influenced by who is wearing what in film. Just about every man and woman on the street wants to follow fashion trends, film and popular culture.
From La Dolce Vita to Weekend at Bernie’s, sunnies have played a huge role in film, not just in Hollywood, but in Bollywood too; as you will see from this snap in our blog. In fact one might say they deserve to billed alongside the actors that wore them. Let’s take a look at some iconic sunglasses of the big screen.
La Dolce Vita (1960)
The amazing Film La Dolce Vita, directed by Italian Director Federico Fellini, follows the exploits and foibles of a paparazzo living in Rome. The main character, Marcello Rubini, played by Marcello Mastroianni, used his Persolsunglasses as a way to appear cool, calm and collected. The film is considered a classic for its stylish quality and cinematography, but the shades surely played an important role the film obtaining it’s icon status. Rubini just looked so cool.
Breakfast at Tiffany’s (1961)
No list of shady film would be complete without mention of Audrey Hepbern, as Holly Golightly, in the film adaption of Truman Capote’s classic novel, “Breakfast at Tiffany’s”, directed by Blake Edwards. The film follows the life of the young New York socialite who has the world at her feet. When people conjure up an image of iconic actress Hepburn, they almost always picture her in a long black Givenchy Dress with long matching gloves, covered in diamonds wearing those Oliver Goldsmith frames.
Dirty Harry (1971)
Dirty Harry is a classic cop film directed by Don Siegal. It stars Clint Eastwood as a tough as nails San Francisco police inspector searching for a psychopath who goes by the moniker “The Scorpio Killer.” The film, known for its gritty realism, also shows Eastwood, who plays Inspector Harry Callahan, sporting some pretty snazzy shades. Normally cops are associated with jet black aviators, but Eastwood sports Ray-Ban Baloramas with the coolness only “Dirty Harry” could pull off. Forty years later, these glasses are still a popular buy, which shows some sunglasses are just plain iconic.
Weekend at Bernies (1989)
Now it is time for a lighter addition to the list. Weekend at Bernies, directed by Ted Kocheff, is a wild romp, in which two losers Larry Wilson and Richard Parker, played by Andrew McCarthy and Jason Silverman, uncover some bad accounting practices at their place of work. When they try to inform their boss Bernie Lomax, played by Terry Kiser, they are unintentionally pulled into a web of intrigue during which Lomax hires mobsters to kill them. One problem, their boss gets whacked first. The two men decide to carry on a charade in which they pretend their boss is still alive. And how do they conceal the truth? Sunglasses. The make of the shades is unknown, and they are really interchangeable with any of the 1980s frames. But when it comes to sunnies playing a huge role in movies, this movie is number one.
The Matrix
When The Matrix came out the movie was just about the coolest thing ever, with special effects and twists at every turn. Keanu Reaves sporting his glasses is pretty much as iconic as it gets at this point. We are pretty sure the whole matrix system, directed by the Wachowski Brothers, would crumble without the black leather dusters that the villain Agent Smith, played by Hugo Weaving, absolutely never took his off, ever.
Time for the Next Shade
Well there you have it, the sun accessory will always be a huge part of film. No matter what the style, lens shade, or size there will be more iconic movies with shades in our future. We are curious to see what the next iconic pair of frames will be. Is there anything out there at the moment that you think is on the way to iconic status?
