A few months ago, in a post about having seen the movie, Les Miserables, I wrote of the wonderful actor, Helena Bonham Carter; “… she must be getting tired of that ‘look’. If I look just at her costumes, hair and makeup I would be hard pressed to differentiate this character from her roles in “Sweeney Todd”, ”Fight Club” and the “Harry Potter” movies.” I was reminded of that recently seeing the trailer for the movie The Lone Ranger.
In doing a little research I realize I was wrong in my original assessment. Not only are the looks very different but they show a clear progression.
In Fight Club her hair was black and tangled. The eyes were an homage to Rocky Racoon and the dress was tattered and black.
Sweeney Todd continued the theme in makeup but the hair is clearly longer. Most significantly, the tattered black dress was accessorized with tattered black gloves.
By the time Bellatrix Lestrange appeared on-screen in the Harry Potter films, the look was clearly developing. The tangled hair is even longer and now, with proper lighting, looks only half black. The makeup was more subtle; more of a glamorous, really well-dressed, racoon. The dress is still black tatters but she’s gone to long sleeves and lost the gloves. I don’t know why I thought this look was so similar to the previous iterations. And yet it seems somehow familiar….
By Les Miserables the progression had moved into warp speed. The hair is blond now (everyone has roots from time to time). There is hardly even a hint of racoon in the makeup and she has abandoned the black tattered look for a much warmer, more sophisticated, polychromatic, tattered look.
And, coming soon to a theater near you, The Lone Ranger takes is to where no tangled hair and tattered dress have gone before.
Well…..maybe once before….
Harper's Valley 
Doesn’t everyone wish they could change their looks that easily.
Laurent
WHY does she always look like a shaggy dog?
I can’t get out of my head that she’s STILL trying to shake off the demure, maidenish, Merchant-Ivory ‘Room with a View’ look that she’s been saddled with, for going on 30 years now, rather like Julie Andrews trying (and failing) to garbage ‘Maria’. She seems to be trying too hard to do something that she’s just doesn’t look convincing playing – or maybe the fault is in the way I’m seeing her?
You forgot her Queen of Hearts look in “Alice in Wonderland.” That waist!
Retired in Delaware
I did indeed !
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And her lips, those little bed-stung lips!
why fidget with success!?
She’s just a spoiled little rich girl. I get tired of that look. I want to be surprised sometime. It didn’t help she hooked up with Tim Burton. But still, A Room With A View is one of my favorite movies.
Being regionally Southern, and of a certain age, I had no problem, but — and maybe I’m very mistaken here — is Mrs. Belle Watling instantly recognizable to most?
Having seen GWTW probably as many times (probably not) as Ted Turner, one of my very favorite gems tucked away in the movie is the meeting between Belle Watling and Melanie Wilkes in the carriage. There she (Belle) is, talking along, and abruptly she hauls a power puff out of her bag, and starts pouncing her breast with it. Never gets old. Aside from that comic detail, it’s really a very tender scene.
I’m sure there are many that can hear; “I ain’t never seen hair that color before. Do you know a dyed haired woman?” without a smile of recognition. They might not understand the reference. Oh well;… I’m glad you did.
Belle was the first image that popped into my mind. I briefly considered ‘Miss Kitty’ as an alternative but I couldn’t find a pic where the color and pose matched up as well.
At the risk of sounding selfish, as I approach my first anniversary of blogging. I’ve learned that, sometimes, it is just about amusing myself and hoping someone else comes along for the ride. I guess this was one of those posts.
My question, “is Mrs. Belle Watling instantly recognizable to most?” was a [personal] reality check, not a scolding for an obscure [maybe] reference. Scoldin’ wouldn’t have been fittin’ 😉
Didn’t feel scolded but thanks for clarifying. I just glad someone else knew who she was. 🙂
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In “Dark Shadows”, she looked totally like a different person: http://www.imdb.com/media/rm1939256320/nm0000307
She looks beautiful in her latest role playing Elizabeth Taylor. In the photo/promo, I think in USA Today, she was stunning. I need to Google it as I think about it. I think it might be a film on the BBC?
She does indeed! Thanks for the heads up on this. I had not heard about it. It is a television production (BBC4) and sound like reviews are positive. I wonder how soon it will be available on DVD or BBC America.