The Best-Dressed Film Heroines of All Time : Lucky Magazine

1:00 PM, April 12 2011

Atlanta-based Rhiannon Leifheit originally launched her site, liebemarlene.com, as a companion to her expertly curated and gently priced online store, Liebemarlene Vintage. Now it's become a hub to peep her insanely cool, retro-inflected personal style, as well as a place to read her musings about all things stylish, past and present. We're thrilled to have Rhiannon guest-blogging for us all week on luckymag.com, where she'll be sharing her second-hand shopping expertise and more!

Sissy Spacek in Badlands:This is a 1970s fashion movie and a period piece all in one. This genre (and it is a genre) totally excelled at interpreting styles of earlier eras into something more exciting and palpable, especially if you weren't that crazy about a decade's particular look to begin with (think Picnic at Hanging Rock's dreamy Edwardians, The Great Gatsby's fresh, white-wearing flappers). I'm usually not crazy about 1950s clothes, but '50s clothes through a '70s prism are something else all together. Spacek plays a runaway rebel in Victorian-esque blouses and the kind of perfect day dresses you dream of finding at vintagestores.

Marion Davies in The Patsy: Am I biased because Davies is my favorite silent film star? Probably, but the clothes in this one are as good as they come: tons of little white dresses that are loose and pretty, with undeniably charming 1920s flair.

Julie Christie in Far From the Madding Crowd: I feel like it's sacrilegious to choose this one over Christie's Darling with all its perfect '60s Biba minidresses, but I can't help it. I like Thomas Hardy, and I like the late '60s fad for pastoral, English countryside-inspired clothes--and ultimately, maybe I like this one because Christie's character is a little more likable in it. And, yes, the clothes--they are pseudo-Victorian/romantic farmer, while Christie's hair is all 1960s, loose and tied in a black ribbon, Brigitte Bardot-style.

Ginger Rogers in Carefree: Okay, really, Ginger Rogers in any musical. But this one especially. Rogers always looks amazing in the long, white dancing gowns that are requisite in any Astaire-Rogers musical, but the clothes in this film go above and beyond. Imagine perfect ball gowns, quirky, pre-Karen Walker heart-emblazoned dresses and late-'30s sportswear, including the best biking-in-the-country outfit you've ever seen.

More from Rhiannon Leifheit:

The Best Places to Find Vintage Scores (In Order of Most Enjoyable Experience to Least)

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