Tomris Laffly The joy of achieving a certain je ne sais quoi gleams in Anthony Fabian’s heartwarming “Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris,” in theaters July 15, about a widowed ’50s-era cleaning lady—Lesley Manville’s affable Ada Harris — as she travels from London to Paris to purchase a Christian Dior gown.
Designing the intricate costumes with exact Dior replicas was the job of Jenny Beavan, in another couture-centric film after her Oscar-winning designs for “Cruella.”As a storyteller in her own right, Beavan was charmed by Mrs.
Harris as a brave, hardworking woman pursuing her dreams. Portraying those with accuracy meant deep archival research, as well as a close collaboration with the House of Dior and its leading archivist, Soizic Pfaff.
Beavan was able to borrow five pieces from Dior’s Heritage collection for the movie’s central fashion show that Mrs. Harris attends to pick her eventual dress.
Read more on variety.com