Monday, September 21, 2009

Guys and Fashion

For some reason I was subjected to the film "The Devil Wears Prada." For those unfamiliar with the chick flick in question it revolves around an aspiring journalist who takes a job at a fashion magazine (Obviously modeled on Vogue) and is the 2nd personal assistant to it's editor-in-chief (obviously modeled on Anna Wintour). In the film our protagonist has her resolve slowed eroded by a cruel boss who expects her to get her flights out of hurricanes and to locate manuscripts for unpublished novels among her other tasks. She is constantly ridiculed by very catty men and women for her fashion sense or lack thereof and her respect for the fashion industry as a whole. the women are catty and the men are more so. The female characters strike you as women who will die alone and the male characters strike you as guys who couldn't work in an all male environment for more than a week without being beaten to death.
The film paints the fashion industry as a bunch of tall, skinny, shallow, bitter women and the gay men who wish they were tall, skinny, shallow, bitter women and the remarkably small outfits they design.
I will admit I have no fashion sense whatsoever. I think I could give "Hitchhiker's Guide to The Galaxy's" Zaphod Beetlebrod a run for his money as "worst dressed sentient being in the universe." Here's the funny thing. I don't care. Some say our clothes make a statement about us, but I'm sorry I don't see it. Mind you there are occassions when I will dress to impress, but ultimately I don't really see the point . Clothes to be serve a utilitarian purpose. Pants cover my legs, a shirt covers my torso and a jacket keeps me warm. I'm wearing sneakers for comfort and boots if I'm going to be in the great outdoors. Wearing one color because it's a given season makes no sense to me, and neither does blowing an entire paycheck on shoes.
I imagine "Fashion week" has to be the "fashionistas" equivilent of the superbowl, but it still does nothing for me.
Do there exist men who care about clothes and shoes? Yes. It's been my experience that three types of men care about fashion:

a. The insecure
b. The incredibly shallow
c. Really gay guys.

By saying that I'm not attacking gay men for their taste in clothes, I am however attacking the shallow and insecure guys. In sofar as fashion is concerned the rest of us could care less.

No comments: