Fashion on Film: The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant

I loved Lynn Yaeger’s article in the September issue of Vogue about the influence of Rainer Werner Fassbinder’s films on semi-recent collections by Marc Jacobs, Chloe, etc. I’m surprised that his films aren’t referenced more often in the fashion press, a la Blow-Up, Belle du Jour, Grey Gardens, etc. His stable of actresses (Hanna Schygulla, Barbara Sukowa, etc) were insanely glamorous, much like the Hollywood actresses of the thirties and forties. Their makeup was flawless, suits impeccably tailored, hats positioned ever so precisely atop their heads. This kind of glamour doesn’t exist anymore, which is sad, but also totally convenient for lazy people like myself who can barely bring themselves to iron a shirt. However, watching The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant really makes me want to change my ways. It’s about a fashion designer who is a total monster (Like every rumor that you’ve ever heard about Donna Karan x 10) who spends her days lounging around in couture gowns while psychologically torturing her assistant. Everything she wears is gorgeous (really, really gorgeous!) and her wig collection is pretty fly too. I tried to dig up a good youtube clip but all I found were a bunch of videos of this guy who dresses in drag and recreates Petra's famous breakdown scene in a variety of languages. Seriously, WTF?