Sometime in 2005, in a suburban Cineworld, I watched The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, and my eyes were opened to the magic and mystery of Tilda Swinton. Her portrayal of the Turkish Delight-wielding White Witch draped in polar bear furs is what first prompted my obsession with Swinton and her often extremely stylish characters, ranging from archangels in Helmut Lang to Fendi-clad Milanese women on the brink.
A muse to some of cinema’s most revered auteurs, Swinton has worked with Derek Jarman, Luca Guadagnino and Jim Jarmusch, become a regular fixture in Wes Anderson’s eccentric universe, and even made a cameo in a David Bowie music video back in 2013. Whether lolling around on a sun-drenched volcanic island in A Bigger Splash or bringing new meaning to balletcore in , her characters regularly give her Chanel-tastic real-world wardrobe a run for its money.
As she celebrates her 66th birthday (of course Tilda is a Scorpio), here are some of her most stylish film moments to date.
A Luca Guadagnino film is guaranteed to look good, and is up there at the top of the list. As Emma, an impeccably dressed Milanese woman in turmoil, Swinton drifts through the historic Villa Necchi Campiglio in Fendi and Jil Sander thanks to costume designer Antonella Cannarozzi. Upper middle class ennui looks almost enjoyable when it’s dressed in Hermès.
A Bigger Splash (2015)
Another banger from Guadagnino, this time based on Jacques Deray’s sexy, sun-soaked psychological thriller (1969). Swinton takes on the role originally played by Romy Schneider, bringing a distinctly Bowie-esque quality to Marianne, a rockstar on vocal rest in Pantelleria. Her summer wardrobe, courtesy of Raf Simons’s Dior, is all breezy cotton dresses, oversized shirts and 1950s-inspired resortwear. Respect must also be paid to Ralph Fiennes’s wardrobe of Charvet shirts as intensely irritating bon vivant, Harry.
We have Swinton’s longstanding creative collaboration with the late Derek Jarman to thank for such masterpieces as , an adaptation of Christopher Marlowe’s 16th century play. As Queen Isabella, Swinton goes from spurned wife in opera coats and chandelier earrings to vengeful power player in monochrome tailoring.
Jim Jarmusch’s existential (and slightly nonsensical) spy thriller featured Tilda as she’d never been seen before, sporting a platinum wig and a cowboy hat for a Southern Belle-meets-007 effect. Topping off the look: blood-red lipstick and leopard-print boots.
A remake of the 1977 cult classic, Guadagnino’s reimagining of took Swinton on a trip to Cold War Berlin. Set inside a prestigious dance academy where things take a sinister turn, the film’s costume designer Giulia Piersanti (who also worked with the director on Call Me By Your Name and A Bigger Splash), drew inspiration from 1970s German fashion magazine as well as the work of artist Louise Bourgeois, for a decidedly uncosy take on balletcore.
You can always rely on Pedro Almodóvar to deliver style, and is no exception. In this 30-minute adaptation of Jean Cocteau’s 1930 play, Swinton paces around a brightly coloured, mid-century modern Madrid apartment in a bold red and cerulean wardrobe masterminded by costume designer Sonia Grande.
Swinton plays Gabriel, an archangel bent on destruction in this 2005 horror fantasy. With no flowing white robes in sight, costume designer Louise Frogley turned to Helmut Lang for androgynous actionwear, dressing Swinton in custom autumn/winter 2003-inspired pieces paired with a spring/summer 2004 top.
The French Dispatch (2020)
saw Swinton play J.K.L Berensen, an art critic and lecturer inspired by real-life art historian and critic Rosamond Bernier. Of course, it wouldn’t be a Wes Anderson film without a distinctive wardrobe, which this time came courtesy of a bright red beehive, bold orange outfits and statement eyeliner.