style inspiration | Atomic Blonde

I'm a big fan of spy movies. The stunning locations, the fast cars, the gorgeous spies (and sometimes villains) fighting with their high tech gadgets and of course, the fashion! 

This month we have a new action heroine on the scene - Agent Lorraine Broughton of Atomic Blonde as played by the statuesque Charlize Theron. Continuing the trend of strong female leads in Hollywood this year (see also Wonder Woman), the film follows the  MI6 agent to the city of Berlin in the last year that the Berlin Wall was in existence. The film is mostly based in East Berlin with a plot that is centred around a game of intrigue and espionage. There's a fair bit of fighting, a lot of smoking (because she looks stunning with an ice-queen glare and cigarette in hand) and a few killer coats and stilettos. 

Anatomy of a signature look - Lorraine Broughton 

Midi coat
Tinted sunglasses with a vintage frame
Stilettos 

Throughout the film, Lorraine spends most of her time in long midi coats. Partly due to the chilly weather in which the story is set in, and partly due to the style inspiration drawn by the costume designer from legendary photographer Helmut Newton whose subjects are often photographed in simple yet strong statement pieces. 

A midi coat itself is a statement piece. The length of a midi coat and the textured fabrics often used to construct this type of garment are structured such that once on, the mood of the piece will dictate the rest of your look. 

We can see this approach in Atomic Blonde, especially in the use of accessories to elevate the mood of each coat and the use of a predominantly monochrome palette. One of my favourite pieces is the white midi below in an unexpected raincoat-like fabric. The bold texture of this coat is complemented by the boldness of the chains on her boots. Black accessories are used to highlight the coat as the hero piece in this ensemble, and the use of a grey scarf (the intersection of black and white) provides a mellow addition to this otherwise starkly monochrome look. 

The grey scarf appears again in another signature look, when she is walking along the pavement next to the Berlin Wall with fellow agent Percival in a black wool military style coat worn with over-the-knee black leather boots. For this ensemble, the scarf is draped down the body (instead of being tied in a knot) to accentuate the fluidity and movement of an open coat. 

She also wore a timeless trench coat in the rain - this scene is so beautiful it looks like it belongs in a Burberry fashion film! 

The sunglasses

Central to Lorraine's look are the sunglasses that she never seemed to be able to live without, and even wore indoors on occasion! I think it was as much of a sartorial choice as well as a nod to Lorraine's personality to have almost every single look styled with a pair of sunglasses. Since we are meeting a female agent with no background story of how and why she came to be the way she is, the sunglasses elevates her sense of mystery. Only two pairs were worn throughout the film - the tinted Miu Miu 03QS aviators and the black Saint Laurent SL138. 

The shoes 

Similar to other action films featuring strong, kick-ass female agents (see also Charlie's Angels), Lorraine did some of her fighting in stilettos. Two statement-making shoes were given their own screen time. A pair of chain-wrapped black Yves Saint Laurent boots, and the fire-truck red Jimmy Choo pumps. 

For her only evening look in this film, the storyline followed Lorraine into a bar in East Berlin in a liquid metal dress. The scene where she walks in and perches on the bar to order a drink was so elegant that it could be a fashion film in itself. The scene was also set in a rose tone for a softer, evening look that is stark contrast to the bleak, washed-out grey in which a lot of the daytime scenes are shot in. 

Needless to say, I absolutely loved this film for its appreciation of fashion!

Atomic Blonde is in cinemas now (in Australia)

xoxo