I am trying something new this weekend. There are some fabulous furs in many films, particularly from the 1930s, but squeezing an entire update out of just one really nice fur in a single movie can be tricky unless you’re The Awful Truth. Since many films don’t quite warrant the complete treatment yet shouldn’t be overlooked entirely, I’m going to combine a group of them into a single update.
So I present the first: “Thirties 3 Pack.” This is a dumb name, so if anyone has a better suggestion, feel free to drop them into the comments.
The Law in Her Hands – 1936
The Law in Her Hands is the story of Mary Wentworth, who goes from waitress to lawyer and gets mixed up with the mob. How do you celebrate your new mob lawyer salary? Big white fox fur wrap, that’s how.
Mary is played by Margaret Lindsay, seen here a scene where the bloom falls off the whole mob lawyer rose. Never saw that plot twist coming.
Someone more skilled in the technicality of fashion may be better qualified to say where the sheer size of this wrap translated into full “cape” status.
The fur is well filmed, providing both wide and a couple of closer shots that show Miss Lindsay surrounded by the white fox.
The Bride Wore Red – 1937
I made my feelings on Joan Crawford clear with the They All Kissed the Bride update, but allow me to reiterate: 30’s Joan Crawford is an amazingly beautiful woman, and this sequence from The Bride Wore Red is one of my all-time favorites thanks to the perfectly framed close-ups.
Miss Crawford plays Anni, a chorus girl who ends up warmly dressed on her way to an upscale resort in the Alps due to a lark by her boss. She meets the humble postal clerk who services the resort and totally doesn’t end up falling in love with him.
Oh, wait, yes, yes, she does. I don’t care about the plot of this film, just looking at Joan in this enormous fox fur collar. Honestly, one might guess it’s a “red” fox, but I doubt that… the color pattern is wrong.
This shot alone is worth everything. It perfectly frames Joan Crawford’s face and the collar, just low enough to catch all the fur but not so far as to reveal the remainder of the coat isn’t fur.
Those unable to concentrate quite so exclusively on collars can check out the They All Kissed the Bride update for Miss Crawford in a huge full-length fox coat.
Sponsored.
Bride Wore Red, The (DVD)
Genre: Comedy
Format: NTSC
The Match King – 1932
Sometimes the best is the hardest to categorize. This outfit from the last reel of The Match King is fully visible as it enters, allowing us to appreciate the costume designer’s work thoroughly.
Lily Damita plays Marta Molnar, an infatuation of the titular Match King, who is dropping by to tell him that whole “liking her” thing isn’t going to work out.
She can dump me any time wearing this outfit. Like all the furs covered in this update, this sequence is marvelously well filmed, providing a variety of close shots.
The size of the collar is clearly on display here as we’re treated to a shot of this massive fur collar that drapes her shoulders.
Please enjoy the last close-up of Miss Damita and this fox fur collar. The Match King takes the breakup pretty hard, and I can’t blame him.
There are no “Fur Runtime” stats for these, as they would be rather unimpressive. Each is pretty much the only fur of any note (or at all) in their respective films. That’s the point of this update, and perhaps future updates of the same sort, to give these “One Fur Wonders” a chance to shine. Next time maybe I’ll find films that don’t start with “The” either.
Does this update agree with you, dear readers, or would you prefer to see single film updates? Comments on this topic are welcome.
Each film has a separate gallery:
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