Ready to Wear (1994)

A chronicle of the interconnected lives of a group of people in the lead up to Paris Fashion Week.

Director:

Robert Altman

Writers:

Robert Altman, Barbara Shulgasser

Stars:

Sophia Loren, Julia Roberts, Marcello Mastroianni

Nominated for 2 Golden Globes. Another 3 wins & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Marcello Mastroianni	...	Sergei (Sergio)
Sophia Loren	...	Isabella de la Fontaine
Jean-Pierre Cassel	...	Olivier de la Fontaine
Kim Basinger	...	Kitty Potter
Chiara Mastroianni	...	Sophie Choiset
Stephen Rea	...	Milo O'Brannigan
Anouk Aimée	...	Simone Lowenthal (as Anouk Aimee)
Rupert Everett	...	Jack Lowenthal
Rossy de Palma	...	Pilar (as Rossy De Palma)
Tara Leon	...	Kiki Simpson
Georgianna Robertson	...	Dane Simpson
Lili Taylor	...	Fiona Ulrich
Ute Lemper	...	Albertine
Forest Whitaker	...	Cy Bianco
Tom Novembre	...	Reggie

Storyline

A fashion show in Paris draws the usual bunch of people; designers, reporters, models, magazine editors, photographers. Lots of unconnected stories which all revolve around this show, and an all-star cast.

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Plot Keywords:

fashion | fashion show | journalist | fashion industry | pantyhose | 

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Taglines:

Sex. Greed. Murder.

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language and nudity

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English French Italian Russian Spanish

Release Date:

25 December 1994 (USA)

Also Known As:

Ready to Wear

Filming Locations:

Champs Elysées, Paris 8, Paris, France

Box Office

Budget:

$18,000,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$11,300,653

Company Credits

Production Co:

Etalon Film, Miramax

Technical Specs

Runtime:

133 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Danny Aiello and Lauren Bacall clashed during filming, with Bacall calling him a bully due to his behaviour towards other cast members

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Goofs

In the hotel room, Anne Eisenhower lifts a glass of wine from Joe Flynn's dining cart with her left hand and takes a drink. Joe makes a comment and it can be seen that Anne's left arm is up to her face (she is visible from the chest down), but when we cut back to Anne the glass is in her right hand as she puts it down.

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Quotes

[first lines]
[subtitled version - opening lines are in French, the English subtitles are a very rough translation]
Olivier de la Fontaine: [opening letter] Moscow? What's this about? Put that on the desk. Dear Mr. de la Fontaine: blah, blah, blah, blah... blah, blah, blah, blah...
Isabella de la Fontaine: [to dog] Robin. Robin. I told you not to! It's dirty. You shouldn't do that. Not in the house.
[to Olivier de la Fontaine]
Isabella de la Fontaine: You're a shit.

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Crazy Credits

The film's opening scene where Mastroianni buys the 2 Dior ties is set in Moscow's Red Square and the first 2 lines of credits (a Miramax production and a Robert Altman film) appear solely in Cyrillic characters

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Connections

Featured in The 52nd Annual Golden Globe Awards (1995)

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Soundtracks

Natural Thing
Written by Paul Heard and Mike Pickering
Performed by M People

User Reviews

The worst film by Robert Altman is still the best film of the year.

This review is written specifically for those who have not seen 'Pret-a-Porte' and are confused by the mixed reviews on this site and from the Critical Press in general. To you, I would say the following: Don't take my word for it...see it for yourself and figure out what YOU think of it. It is my opinion that the worst film from Robert Altman is still the best film of the year (with rare exceptions) and so, naturally, I would recommend this film to anyone. However, Director Altman does NOT make films for everyone. He often makes films for the 'Advanced' film-goer. His work is often dis-jointed and overlapping to an extent that it requires one to actually ay attention to the goings' on rather than to spoon-feed the answers to the audience. Couple this with his tendency to allow the plot and the character to meander, evolving slowly over the course of the film and you often get a movie that is distinctly 'un-Hollywood', which can turn some film goers off. So I would recommend that you not only sit through this film, but allow yourself to actually watch it without any preconceived ideas of how a movie is supposed to be. Then I think you will find a witty, sexy satire that is more about our own vanity and betrayal than it is about the fashion industry.

But like I said, don't take my word for it (or the words of anyone else, for that matter): If you are curious, please watch it. And make up your own mind.