Euronews Culture dives into the best, worst and most bizarre looks from this year's iconic film festival.
ADVERTISEMENTEvery year, the red carpet at Cannes is one of the biggest events for fashion enthusiasts - and for good reason. 2023’s edition was no exception, with the film festival drawing countless celebrities displaying looks ranging from weird to wonderful. While we’d love to wax lyrical about every last style choice, we simply don’t have the time - so here’s a rundown of the ten most stand out outfits to grace the iconic French event.
Natalie Portman garnered countless headlines when she wore this Dior gown to the premiere of May December. The stunning dress was inspired by a 1949 design from the French fashion house called ‘Junon’ and the all-over embellishment and skirt which resembles flower petals makes it a knockout - and one which would make Cannes icon Grace Kelly proud.
Maya Hawke almost got it right with this ensemble, tapping into one of the key trends at Cannes this year - opera gloves. Honestly, they were everywhere for some reason! Sadly, they and the gogo boots ruin this otherwise cute look, featuring a dress by Prada.
Once a goddess, always a goddess: Naomi Campbell looked incredible in all of her red carpet choices but this extravagant Valentino number teamed with jewels from Chopard really made an impression - and, yes, red and pink do go together (when you do it right).
Another red carpet at this year’s Film Festival was… being naked. Seriously. Irina Shayk led the pack in this barely-there Gucci get-up which drew criticism across the board, with some saying the supermodel had simply forgotten to get dressed. A case of less is less.
Jennifer Lawrence may look like the typical glamorous Cannes star in this Dior gown, but look closer. Yes, she really is wearing flip flops. While the Film Festival has typically insisted on actresses wearing high heels at all times, that all changed in 2015 when a group of women were allegedly turned away from a screening of Carol for wearing flats instead of cripplingly painful stilettos. The year after, Julia Roberts and Sasha Lane removed their heels and actresses followed suit ever since, ditching the spikes for comfort and going barefoot on the red carpet. Jennifer Lawrence, though, is the first ever to actually wear the ultimate practical shoe - and we salute her for her choice.
Troye Sivan has a part in the almost-universally-panned upcoming show ‘The Idol’ and this look is almost as controversial. While we appreciate his fluid approach to style - and a man wearing something other than the Cannes-staple tuxedo - this ensemble is giving goth mermaid and the wet-look hair just adds to the ‘lost on a desert island’ vibe.
There are extreme cut outs, then there are… whatever this is. While the biting yellow tone of this Zuhair Murad gown looks glorious on Heidi Klum, the enormous amount of skin on show took the look from classy to crass. On that note, a request to Cannes 2024 attendees: please stop with the underboob - it’s one wrong step from disaster.
How did a circus tent get onto the red carpet?! Oh wait, it’s just Ikram Abdi wearing Nina Ricci. There are simply no redeeming features to this sequined, Beetlejuice monstrosity, made even worse by the enormous red choker. In Abdi’s defence, though, she did wear the look to the premiere of Disney-Pixar cartoon Elemental so if her aim was to look like an animated character, she absolutely achieved it.
Cindy Bruna ran with the ‘naked’ trend but made it classy and wonderfully successful. Wearing Vivienne Westwood and a vast Ruslan Baginskiy hat along with simple accessories, the French model displayed how it is entirely possible to wear very little and look polished and sophisticated. She's the antidote to Irina Shayk in this regard and proves that less can absolutely be more if it’s executed well - it’s a solid 10/10 on this look.
You have to hand it to Julia Fox - there's little doubt that she is a marketing genius. Everything she wore at Cannes drew endless comments due to the downright bizarreness of every look - but then, getting people talking is exactly the aim. Over the Festival, she donned one outfit featuring a see-through breast plate made to look like melting ice and another topped off with see-through opera gloves, white foundation and black lipstick. The stand out though? This Pierrot inspired-look - that is, if the famous clown liked to be nearly-naked. The outrageous see-through ensemble topped off with feather pompoms and a matching cap is certainly weird, but no one is likely to forget it in a hurry!
