CANNES

In Appreciation of Elle Fanning and Chloë Sevigny, the Only People in Cannes Serving Up Actual Looks

From vintage Prada to custom Mugler.


Alternative View - The 72nd Annual Cannes Film Festival
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The red carpet of the Cannes Film Festival never disappoints, but this year, the responsibility to keep that tradition alive has largely fallen on only two names: Elle Fanning and Chloë Sevigny, who’ve been in France for a week and yet are still somehow pulling out endless look after look, putting the rest of attendees to shame.

Fanning, for example, was a key factor in making the world premiere of Quentin Tarantino’s Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood the biggest red carpet since the Met Gala. Margot Robbie has been coming through with references to the ’60s—most notably, by channeling Sharon Tate’s hair—but Fanning, who isn’t even in the film (though, her sister Dakota is), easily put its cast to shame. She was the picture of Old Hollywood elegance, with a Dior couture ensemble that gave her a New Look silhouette, plus a macramé hat.

Elle Fanning attends the screening of *Once Upon A Time In Hollywood* during the 72nd annual Cannes Film Festival on May 21, 2019 in Cannes, France.

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She also claimed a sizable, yet deserved, amount of real estate on the red carpet of Les Miserables in a giant floral Valentino couture gown, which she accessorized with real flowers in her hair.

Elle Fanning attends the screening of “Les Miserables” during the 72nd annual Cannes Film Festival on May 15, 2019 in Cannes, France.

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Elle Fanning attends the screening of “Les Miserables” during the 72nd annual Cannes Film Festival on May 15, 2019 in Cannes, France.

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Even while off-duty, she and Sevigny have been wearing looks more deserving of the spotlight than those on the actual red carpets. Sevigny, for one, showed up to the festival prominently toting a sun hat around her neck, harking back to the festival’s surprisingly casual glory days

Elle Fanning out and about in Cannes, France during the 2019 Cannes Film Festival, May 2019.

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Chloë Sevigny out and about in Cannes, France during the 2019 Cannes Film Festival, May 2019.

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Of course, the fact that Sevigny has style is nothing new; she’s been the standout on and off red carpets for the past 20-plus years. This time, though, she’s really shown her range, following up the custom Mugler she wore to the first premiere of The Dead Don’t Die with a relatively low-key, but nonetheless elegant, Loewe fall 2019 look with intricate eyelet lace and pearls the very next day.

Chloë Sevigny arriving to the Gala Dinner during the 72nd annual Cannes Film Festival on May 14, 2019 in Cannes, France.

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Chloë Sevigny attends the photocall for “The Dead Don’t Die” during the 72nd annual Cannes Film Festival on May 15, 2019 in Cannes, France.

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Like the true runway model that she is, she’s also been posing up a storm, both on the carpet and off:

And while it may have been unintentional, there’s nothing to make your vintage Prada stand out like fainting because it’s a bit too tight, causing Colin Firth to revert to Mr. Darcy mode.

Elle Fanning attends the Official Trophée Chopard Dinner during the 72nd Cannes International Film Festival on May 20, 2019 in Cannes, France.

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Fanning might have taken the cake when it comes to couture, but no one has nailed the designer credits like Sevigny; in addition to custom Mugler, she’s also worn some of the signature crescent moons of Paris’s buzziest up-and-comers, Marine Serre

Chloë Sevigny attends the photocall for “Les Realisateurs Des Courts Metrages En Competition” during the 72nd annual Cannes Film Festival on May 24, 2019 in Cannes, France.

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Somehow, the red carpets still aren’t over yet, so the rest do have time to step it up like Sevigny and Fanning. For now, though, the only special shoutout goes to Kendall Jenner. While clearly in full promotion mode for Giambattista Valli’s new H&M collab, we have to throw her a bone for looking like she was having an utter (post-breakup) ball while prancing around the city in layers upon layers of hot pink tulle.

Kendall Jenner poses for portraits during the amfAR Cannes Gala 2019 at Hotel du Cap-Eden-Roc.

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Kendall Jenner attends the amfAR Cannes Gala 2019 at Hotel du Cap-Eden-Roc on May 23, 2019 in Cap d’Antibes, France.

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Related: Elle Fanning Fainted at Cannes, Transforming Colin Firth Back Into Mr. Darcy

A Look Back at the Cannes Film Festival’s Pre-Red Carpet Glory Days

French actress Michèle Morgan on the beach in Cannes, France during the first-ever Cannes Film Festival in 1946.

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Jane Birkin and Serge Gainsbourg on the beach in Cannes, France during the Cannes Festival in May of 1974.

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Mariel Hemingway while in Cannes, France to promote her film Manhattan for the Cannes Film Festival in May of 1979.

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Brigitte Bardot and Isabelle Corey in Cannes, France for the Cannes Film Festival in May of 1956.

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Brigitte Bardot running barefoot on the beach while in Cannes, France for the Cannes Film Festival in April of 1956.

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Yoko Ono and John Lennon in Cannes, France for the Cannes Festival in May of 1970.

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Jan Miner, Dustin Hoffman, and Valerie Perrine in Cannes, France for the Cannes Film Festival, presenting Bob Fosse’s film Lenny in May of 1975.

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The scene at an open-air hair salon overlooking the Mediterranean Sea in Cannes, France during the Cannes Film Festival in May of 1958.

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Producer Mike Todd with his wife, Elizabeth Taylor, while in Cannes, France to promote his film Around the World in Eighty Days at the Cannes Film Festival in May of 1957.

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Jack Nicholson living his life in Cannes, France during the Cannes Festival in May of 1974.

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Michael Caine in Cannes, France for the Cannes Film Festival, promoting his film Alfie with a group of women wearing questionably placed advertisements in May of 1966.

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British actress Diana Dors lying on the beach with an effigy of her favorite actor, Gregory Peck, while in Cannes, France for the Cannes Film Festival in May of 1956.

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Italian actress Claudia Cardinale on a beach in Cannes, France with the leopard that she walked on a leash at the screening of Luschino Visconti’s film The Leopard, during the Cannes Film Festival in May of 1963.

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Isabelle Huppert in Cannes, France for the Cannes Film Festival, ahead of receiving the Suzanne Bianchetti award for best young actress in May of 1976.

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British actress Diana Dors in Cannes, France for the Cannes Film Festival, being escorted by policemen from the beach to her hotel in May of 1956.

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David Bowie standing out from the crowd in Cannes, France for the Cannes Festival in May of 1978.

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Agnès Varda in Cannes, France to promote her film Cléo from 5 to 7 at the Cannes Film Festival in May of 1962.

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French actress Yvonne Furneaux eating spaghetti by the pool post-Cannes Film Festival party for La Dolce Vita, hosted by the photographer Dalmas in Cannes, France in May of 1960.

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Grace Kelly on the trip to Cannes, France in which she met her future husband, Prince Rainier of Monaco, during the Cannes Festival in May of 1955.

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Tippi Hedren, Alfred Hitchcock, and a flock of birds in Cannes, France, at the Cannes Film Festival presentation of The Birds in May of 1963.

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French actress Marina Vlady applying her makeup while in Cannes, France for the Cannes Film Festival in May of 1962.

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Jane Fonda in Cannes, France for the Cannes Film Festival in 1978.

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Swedish-American actress Ann Margret at a photo call for Ken Russell’s film Tommy on the streets of Cannes, France during the Cannes Film Festival in May of 1975.

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Catherine Deneuve in Cannes, France for the Cannes Film Festival in May of 1965.

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Arnold Schwarzenegger on the beach with women from the Folies Bergère while in Cannes, France for the Cannes Film Festival in May of 1977.

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Juliette Binoche taking flight on the beach in Cannes, France during the Cannes Film Festival in May of 1985.

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French actress France Anglade in Cannes, France for the Cannes Film Festival in May of 1960.

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Charlotte Rampling and Tennessee Williams in Cannes, France for the Cannes Festival in May of 1976.

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Photographers on the scene at the Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, France in May of 1965.

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Jayne Mansfield surrounded by onlookers and press in a fountain in Cannes, France during the Cannes Film Festival in May of 1964.

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