A lesson from John Travolta’s stunning new look: always dress for the job you want | Morwenna Ferrier

Meit happened, like most fashions these days, in Cannes. I’m not talking about Demi Moore wearing a pink dog-shaped bow, or Jane Fonda glittering in Gucci to the point of blindness, but John Travolta, of all people, who showed up at the festival this week to kick off a. a new movie and a new lookwhat was in the middle was a beret.

He had three around, black, brown and cream. On the beach of the boulevard La Croisette, he combined them with a wire view and a beard that seemed to have been placed with a felt pen. A beret, a beard and a statement you say? Nothing looks too good for the 72-year-old celebrity. But that hasn’t stopped Travolta’s photos from going viral, sparking online discussions comparing him to – in no particular order – a barista, a Bond villain and a character from Guess Who?.

Fortunately, the man was happy to reveal his inspiration in an interesting way interview with CNN. Since he was making his directorial debut, Travolta decided to dress up like an old movie director. “You’re an actor,” he told himself, looking at pictures of Ingmar Bergman and Roberto Rossellini on a similar path. “Play the role of director.” In other words: a show.

Travolta’s admission had the dramatic effect of softening the heat. They just wore what they wanted, or just wanted to be noticed. And no matter how ridiculous her clothes were – especially when she was fanning herself honor Palme d’Or around – there was a small part of me, and maybe all of us, that looked really good.

Who among us has not used clothing to change results? Maybe as a way to show off trying to change careers, or to create a new identity after a breakup. Or in my case, polluting the field I work in – fashion – by wearing Birkenstocks (although it helps make them more comfortable too). Regardless of how you look at clothes, how we wear them affects how we feel. And the way we dress affects the way other people feel. This is not cosplay. It is a veiled knowledge. The only mistake Travolta made was taking it too seriously.

It is worth adding that red carpets are the most amazing place. Attention to detail must be hell for celebrities, but the lack of it is even worse. Although this dress is instructive, despite the popularity of the participants, when the main focus is on films and not clothes, as is the case in Cannes, the stars can be broken. But it’s very difficult for directors, who are alternating between important publicity and wanting to be taken seriously as auteurs.

Add to that how cruel, unchanging and ageist Hollywood can be, even for men, especially when it comes to makeovers. Who can blame Travolta for buying new hats to try to move the invisible point of need, even hats that make him look like a clown? Is it different from Taylor Swift wearing Elizabeth Taylor jewelry this week is the hope that some of the last star power can be wiped, or Pep Guardiola wearing a plaid shirt as a way to leave quietly from his job at Manchester City, or even Kim Kardashian wearing Marilyn Monroe’s 1962 “nude” dress. at the Met Gala in 2022 not to pay tribute to those who wore it first, but as a way to invite comparisons?

But it’s politics where this kind of dress code happens the most, where clothes are like an exercise in who can become leaders and ultimately show what kind of politician you want to be.

Currently, Andy Burnham is playing the role he wants, which is Keir Starmer. Showing that he is a man of the people, he is out in a retro Everton shirt running shorts – a soft suit of choice (I have the power!) – or bomber jackets and tees, Whitehall’s anti-Whitehall code is deliberately at odds with its once-difficult adversary. Then there’s Wes Streeting, the long-time wearer of the navy blue suit – and the bearer of his unspoken ideas. He is, as he always has been, wearing a big job, when he removes the page Barack Obama playbook of easy leadership by removing his tie at times. Or Angela Rayner, who showed in her recent interview with ITV, she just wore a lot of red.

The problem is, dressing the part can only get you so far. You can dress for the job you want but that doesn’t mean you’re talented. Go too hard and you risk a fairy tale or Halloween take on it. However, Travolta found freedom, after directing a film (even middle class). What about the others? There is still a short that can confuse the minds of people.