Aside from the futuristic Los Angeles skyline created by production designer K.K. Barrett, the first thing that catches the eye in Spike Jonze’s new film, Her, are trousers worn by Joaquin Phoenix and Matt Letscher. The two actors sport tapered pants with seriously high waists. The clothes are not that different from looks that make up the current modern wardrobe, yet the crafty tweaks and body-conscious designs evoke a near future without distracting the eye from the drama at hand in the film. Costume director Casey Storm created the looks for the film, and the world of Her inspired Opening Ceremony’s Humberto Leon to collaborate with Jonze on a collection of men’s and women’s clothes that riff on the spare aesthetic seen in the film.

As the movie unfolds, Phoenix’s character, Theodore Twombly, finds himself developing an intense emotional connection with an operating system (voiced by Scarlett Johansson), and he starts to carry his phone around in the front pocket of his shirt to allow the computer program to see and experience his world through the cell camera. This idea inspired Leon to devise shirts and pants with built-in spaces meant for such devices. The garments also allow space for headphone cords and other such modern accoutrements. Double-layered shirts and sweaters come in shades of baby blue, yellow, cherry red and navy blue. Each hue is saturated and bright, while pants come in neutral shades of tan and brown. There are even t-shirts printed with a distorted L.A. skyline. It’s a bright vision of the future that still conjures up the introspective mood of Jonze’s film.

By Elizabeth Varnell

 

Pictured: Looks from Humberto Leon’s collaboration with Spike Jonze, director of Her, for Opening Ceremony.
Photo courtesy of Opening Ceremony

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