As Pat Cleveland, one of his favorite so-called Halstonettes, said in an interview last week, “Our whole life was about moving chiffon, cashmere and bugle-beaded dresses, that was our life. Halston was about what existed outside of it-evocative garments that were meant to expand. Contemporary clothing is all about what fits in the image, literally and figuratively. In other words, it’s the opposite of what Halston represented: freedom, hedonism, feelings instead of statements. Its rhetoric is meant to be inarguable, its messages carefully constructed so as to be impossible to disagree with. It’s a blunt and obvious instrument, with many puppeteers (stylists, designers, publicists, influencers) pulling the strings. Mass camp is the language of the red carpet and celebrity fashion fashion is now one of the main tools at a public figure’s disposal to indicate they stand on the right side of history, that they’re using their platform for positive means. But it’s also absolutely at odds with Halston’s work and life, and so the tone and source material make for strange bedfellows. Mass camp has defined fashion in America over the past five years, making it into a cornerstone of popular culture. (If writing about camp is to betray it, then Murphy’s oeuvre amounts to camp treason.) There is nothing secret or sensual about the series-qualities that defined Halston’s work. The sly wink has become the overly articulated one, the secret language has become a string of cliches.
#Halston episodes series#
With its didactic structure and dialogue-early on, there’s a strange rehashing early of Ralph Lauren hawking his wide ties-the series is emblematic of a mass camp that seems to have taken over film and especially television. The miniseries format mostly means that little is spared-we see things even a generous biopic would admit, like his forgotten first and failed attempt at couture, and Halston begging the filmmaker Joel Schumacher to get sober. A Ryan Murphy production, the show sets out to portray the life and influence of Halston, the American designer who, after finding fame as the designer of Jackie Kennedy’s pillbox hat, launched his own brand of American clothes that blended the ease and wearability of sportswear with the taste and culture of couture.
Villains with mustaches-don’t see those very much anymore!īut how the dresses changed women’s lives-their raison d’etre, in Halston’s world-isn’t seen. That leaves the question: is Halston, the series, good? The casting-the film’s own entourage of Halstonettes, if you will-is terrific: McGregor stalking around in ever-longer coats Bill Pullman as a pushy then greedy backer Kelly Bishop as a foul-mouthed Eleanor Lambert, creator of the International Best-Dressed List and New York Fashion Week, calling the French fashion establishment “motherfuckers.” You’ll love Victor Hugo, Warhol hanger-on with the perfect mustache.
And Halston is currently in Netflix’s Top 10 streamed programs on the homepage. This is true, actually, on the occasions when consumer desire overrides a critic’s ire, but Halston is near tears because he knows the reviews are right. Embittered and tearful, he proclaims, “Reviews don’t matter.” The designer asks his last gal standing, a secretary named Sassy who is mostly charged with procuring cocaine for the office, to read him the reviews of his latest collection, a low-priced iteration of his wares for mall retailer JC Penney. This episode is also brought to you by Draft Kings.The final and fifth episode of Halston, the new Netflix miniseries starring Ewan McGregor as the mononymous designer, is named for the fashion designer’s feared adversary: “Critics.” The finale takes place after Halston’s interest in orgies and cocaine binges, and a perilous licensing agreement, have overtaken his life.
#Halston episodes code#
Enter promo code “BERT” and get a free Whistle Tip Football at This episode is also brought to you by Birddogs. This episode is also brought to you by Noom. Get up to $200 off all mattress orders and 2 free pillows at From the tour bus in Portland, Oregon, we talk about our favorite moments, least favorite moments, we play clips that make us laugh the hardest, why we never released the Ari episode, and much more! Today, I sit down with my producer Halston and my cousin Andrew to celebrate 500 episodes of the Bertcast.
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