Working Girl

By Bill O'Sullivan
24th Mar 2014

?I’ve a head for business, and a bod for sin? – Some things only get better with age and Working Girl might just be one of them. It’s 25 years old this year, and thanks to the folks of Hollywood Babylon it is now making its long overdue reappearance on the big screen. Whilst a lot of its themes are commonplace now, its storyline about a Staten Island girl who wants to make it on Wall Street against all odds was revolutionary in its day, as was much of its fashion. In honour of this 80’s classic we take a look at how its box office success went hand in hand with its influence on late 80’s fashion for better or worse.

The power shoulders ? Square, unflattering and padded to smithereens – No other movie was more about women’s newfound struggle to enter the working world and no other movie quite brought the power shoulder to prominence like it did.
The glass frames – Yep they are making a hipster comeback, but just look how on trend Mel looks here!
Hair – Big 80’s back-combed hair. Nothing will ever quite be as ghastly as that weird mullet shape they used to have. Or as voluminous – how did they do it?!
The boat neck ? Now this in our opinion was one of the more flattering looks in the movie, worn notably during the scene when Melanie meets Harrison Ford while knocked out on valium. Very flattering, and back on trend thanks to the likes of American Apparel.
That creamy-pink blazer – So horrendous and yet so very iconic at the time, and really rather nice over that collared shirt, and the symbol of Tess’s self-empowerment! Thankfully this won’t be making a comeback we believe, due to the incredibly unflattering lapels.

Working Girl will be on in The Lighthouse Cinema Saturday 12th April. For tickets see here