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Friday, October 23, 2020

Spooky film costumes, props, prosthetics and puppets to get you in the Halloween spirit...

This Halloween if you're looking for something to get you in the mood for witching season, here's a collection of screen-used costumes, props, prosthetic makeup and stop-motion puppets to get you in the spooky spirit. Horror fans will love this eclectic collection of vampires, werewolves, monsters, corpses, possessed dolls, ghosts and ghoulish sights from the movies that I have come across on my travels to museums, cinemas and exhibits.
Bat-form prosthetic makeup worn by Gary Oldman in Dracula
Gary Oldman bat makeup prosthetic Dracula
First up is this fantastic vampiric prosthetic makeup used by Gary Oldman in Bram Stoker's Dracula from 1992. This bat-form makeup along with a miniature model of Castle Dracula was photographed on display at the Planet Hollywood Cafe in Las Vegas in April 2011.

Werewolf prosthetic makeup from Dog Soldiers
Werewolf prosthetic makeup Dog Soldiers
Next up is this ferocious werewolf prosthetic mask and torso from 2002 British horror movie, Dog Soldiers, and was photographed on display at the London Film Museum in May 2012.

Chimp autopsy creature prop from 28 Days Later
Chimp autopsy prop 28 Days Later
Keeping to the animal theme and this gory chimpanzee autopsy prop from 2002 zombie movie, 28 Days Later, snapped on display at the London Film Museum in January 2011.

Norman Bates mother corpse prop
from Psycho IV: The Beginning
Norman Bates mother corpse Psycho IV
Next is this mummified-looking corpse of serial killer 'Norman Bates' from the 1990 made-for-television fourth installment in the Psycho film franchise. This gruesome prop from the horror prequel was photographed on display at the Planet Hollywood Cafe in Las Vegas in April 2011.

Annabelle doll prop from The Conjuring
Conjuring Annabelle doll prop
2013's supernatural horror, The Conjuring, introduced us to the possessed vintage doll 'Annabelle' (who has since starred in her own spin-off movies). This creepy doll and more screen-used props from the movie were exhibited at ArcLight Hollywood cinema in July 2013.

Gas mask-wearing mannequin from Insidious: Chapter 2
Insidious Chapter 2 mannequin movie prop
More creepy sights could be found at ArcLight Hollywood's lobby in September 2013 with this mannequin prop and scary costumes from Insidious: Chapter 2 on display.

Xenomorph suit from Aliens
Xenomorph suit Aliens
One of my all-time favourite films is James Cameron's 1986 sci-fi horror sequel, Aliens. There's action, heart, horror and acid-for-blood Xenomorphs to terrify and entertain and this screen-worn costume was photographed don display at Disney's Hollywood Studios theme park in Florida in September 2010.

Corpse Bride stop-motion animation puppets
Corpse Bride stopmotion animation puppets
I think stop-motion animation sometimes lends itself to being a little creepy with the movement of its characters and so these Corpse Bride puppets from Tim Burton's 2005 film are the perfect examples. They were photographed on display as part of Warner Bros. Studios Backlot Tour in October 2016.

Frankenweenie stop-motion animation dog puppets
Frankenweenie stopmotion dog puppets
And speaking of stop-motion animated movies from Tim Burton, these spooky canine puppets from 2012's Frankenweenie were snapped on display at ArcLight Sherman Oaks cinema in September that year.

Ghost children stop-motion animation puppets from Coraline
Coraline child ghost stopmotion puppets
And finally for this collection of movie memorabilia, I've always loved these creepy spectral children from LAIKA Studios 2009 movie, Coraline. These stop-motion ghost puppets were captured on camera at Universal Studios Hollywood's now defunct cinematic and televisual archives exhibit in the lower lot in April 2009.

Hopefully these movie costumes, props and puppets have been a welcome distraction from the horrors of the real world at the moment and maybe even inspired some Halloween season movie watching in the near future.

Happy hauntings.

Friday, October 16, 2020

Lady Tremaine and Stepsisters movie costumes from Cinderella on display...

2015's live-action Cinderella movie gave us Cate Blanchett's deliciously cruel stepmother 'Lady Tremaine' and her two nasty daughters, 'Anastasia' (Holiday Grainger) and 'Drisella' (Sophie McShera) that gave Lily James 'Ella' such a hard time after the death of her father. Here's another look at their Oscar nominated costumes from the reimagined fairytale classic photographed on display at Disney's D23 Expo in Anaheim, California, on August 23, 2019.
Lady Tremaine Wicked Stepmother costume
worn by Cate Blanchett in Cinderella
Cate Blanchett Cinderella Lady Tremaine movie costume
Cate Blanchett Cinderella Lady Tremaine film costume
Lady Tremaine Cinderella film costume
Lady Tremaine Cinderella costume hat
Lady Tremaine Cinderella costume detail
Lady Tremaine costume detail Cinderella
Cinderella Lady Tremaine Wicked Stepmother costume
Cinderella Lady Tremaine costume skirt detail
Cinderella Lady Tremaine costume skirt detail
Sandy Powell was Costume Designer on the Disney movie directed by Kenneth Branagh and the same year she was also nominated for an Oscar for her film costumes for Carol, which also starred Cate Blanchett.

Anastasia costume worn by Holliday Grainger
and Drisella costume worn by Sophie McShera in Cinderella 
Holliday Grainger Cinderella Anastasia Stepsister costume
Holliday Grainger Cinderella Anastasia film costume
Holliday Grainger Cinderella Anastasia pink dress
Sophie McShera Cinderella Drisella Stepsister costume
Sophie McShera Cinderella Drisella movie costume
Sophie McShera Cinderella Drisella yellow dress
If you like these outfits, make sure you also check out these other Stepmother and Stepsisters ball costumes from 2015's Cinderella.

Plus for another take on the fairytale characters looks,  you can also enjoy these Stepmother and Stepsisters gowns from Into The Woods on display.

With the current global pandemic this may not be the year, but this trio of costumes would make for a great group Halloween look for three friends, don't you think? Obviously the real problem would be deciding who'd be cast in the starring Stepmother role, and who would be the supporting Stepsisters.

Cinderella movie poster
Cinderella Stepmother movie poster

Thursday, October 8, 2020

Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. costumes and props up for auction by Prop Store...

This November fans of Marvel's long-running Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. television series will have the unique opportunity to own over 500 costumes, props and set items from the small screen superhero spy show courtesy of Prop Store. Spinning out of the Marvel Cinematic Universe with Clark Gregg's resurrected 'Agent Phil Coulson' leading a diverse group of agents from the Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and logistic Division, the team took on Hydra, Inhumans, supervillains, ghosts, aliens, rogue LMDs and explored time and space over its exciting seven season run. Here's a curated collection of some of my favourite costumes from the Marvel TV series up for auction.
Quake costume worn by Chloe Bennet
in Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
Chloe Bennet Marvel's Agents of SHIELD Quake season 5 costume
Marvel Agents of SHIELD Quake costume detail
Marvel Agents of SHIELD Quake gauntlet
Agents of SHIELD Quake costume gauntlet
Agents of SHIELD Quake costume back
Quake costume Marvels Agents of SHIELD
First up is Chloe Bennet's 'Quake' costume from the show's fifth season. 'Daisy "Skye" Johnson' went from Rising Tide hactivist to one of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s top agents, transforming into a seismic-powered Inhuman who needed gauntlets to control her quakes. Her spy super-suit is estimated to sell for $8,000 to $10,000.

Mockingbird costume worn by Adrianne Palicki
in Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
Adrianne Palicki Marvel Agents of SHIELD Mockingbird costume
Bobbi Morse Agents of SHIELD Mockingbird costume
Bobbi Morse Agents of SHIELD Mockingbird costume
Agents of SHIELD Mockingbird costume baton
Agents of SHIELD Mockingbird costume back
Bobbi Morse Agents of SHIELD Mockingbird costume
Before Quake got her powers, Adrianne Palicki was closest thing the show had to a classic Marvel Comics superhero, when her fierce baton-wielding 'Bobbi Morse', codenamed 'Mockingbird', was introduced in the second season. Sadly her spin-off series with her former onscreen husband 'Lance Hunter' wasn't picked up when they departed in the third season, but she certainly shone in the series when she was in action. Her Mockingbird costume which comes with her iconic battle stave batons is estimated to sell for $6,000 to $8,000.

Deke Shaw costume worn by Jeff Ward
in Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
Jeff Ward Marvel Agents of SHIELD Deke Shaw Lighthouse costume
Marvel Agents of SHIELD Deke Shaw helmet
Agents of SHIELD Deke Shaw Lighthouse costume detail
Marvel Agents of SHIELD Deke Shaw Lighthouse costume back
Deke Shaw Lighthouse costume Agents of SHIELD
Season five introduced us to the grandchild of agents 'Fitz' and 'Simmons', Deke Shaw' (played by Jeff Ward), in a future where the Earth had been destroyed and the remnants of humanity lived on the Lighthouse enslaved by the Kree. This space scavenger certainly channeled the look of Guardians of the Galaxy's 'Star-Lord' with his helmet mask and jacket, and the costume with its light up Gravitonium belt is estimated to sell for $6,000 to $8,000.

Ghost Rider costume worn by Gabriel Luna
in Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
Gabriel Luna Marvel Agents of SHIELD Robbie Reyes Ghost Rider costume
Robbie Reyes Agents of SHIELD Ghost Rider costume
Robbie Reyes Agents of SHIELD Ghost Rider costume back
Robbie Reyes Agents of SHIELD Ghost Rider costume
In season four Diego Luna played 'Robbie Reyes', the modern day version of Ghost Rider, when the series explored magic, ghosts and the Darkhold book. His flaming skull special effects proved too costly on a weekly basis and his own spin-off solo series was sadly cancelled after it was announced, but his screen-worn costume is being auctioned for around $8,000 to $10,000.

Madame Hydra costume worn by Mallory Jansen
in Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
That same season we were introduced to Life Model Decoys, LMDs, and Mallory Jansen's 'AIDA' aka Artificially Intelligent Digital Assistant. AIDA's mainframe was corrupted by the Darkhold spell book and within the simulation world of the Framework she ascended to be 'Madame Hydra', leader of the totalitarian organisation wearing this full comic book costume estimated to sell for $3,000 to $5,000.

I really loved this series, especially when it kicked into high gear after the events of Captain America: The Winter Solider and the revelation of Hydra's infiltration of S.H.I.E.L.D. The storylines became even more creative in the last three seasons with all their time travel shenanigans and the exploration of the show's own mythology and characters.

Bidding on items starts today and ends on November 10, 2020, with a live video stream of the auctioneer, so make sure to visit Prop Store's website to find something from the Marvel Universe to add to your collection.

Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. season 1 TV billboard