What is it about photos from the 1990s that we all find so alluring? The fact that they feature the same celebrities who still rule the industry today, except when they were more candid and less guarded? Or is it the pared-back fashion and a more relaxed red-carpet mood that feels fresh in today’s ultra-airbrushed landscape? Whatever it is, there’s no denying their appeal, particularly if said shots are from the world’s most glamorous film festivals—sun-drenched, star-studded affairs where Hollywood heavyweights get to let loose and run riot.
There’s Sundance, of course, and Cannes, but also the Venice Film Festival, the latest edition of which kicked off this week. The latter has all the glitz and storied history of its counterparts, but with the added advantage of being set in one of the most jaw-droppingly beautiful and romantic places on earth—a paradise of floating gondolas, glittering islands, ancient bridges, meandering canals, and pristine beaches.
Here, we revisit the best photos from the showcase in the ’90s and the aughts, from Melanie Griffith and Antonio Banderas canoodling on a water taxi to Salma Hayek serving looks dockside. Catherine Zeta-Jones with her Intolerable Cruelty co-star George Clooney at the 60th Venice Film Festival. Spike Lee, cool as a cucumber while promoting She Hate Me at the 61st edition of the festival.
Gwyneth Paltrow and Valentino bring the glamour
Gwyneth Paltrow and Valentino bring the glamour at the festival’s opening night in 2002. Ever the bombshell, Monica Bellucci stuns at the 59th edition. A 32-year-old Sofia Coppola with an 18-year-old Scarlett Johansson, in Venice to promote Lost in Translation. Sienna Miller has a ball at an after-party during the 61st edition. Kate Winslet signs autographs ahead of the Venice premiere of Finding Neverland.
Milla Jovovich takes her pooch on the water at the 59th edition. The luminous Claudia Schiffer shuts down the red carpet at the 57th edition of the festival. Brad Pitt and Helena Bonham Carter, a.k.a. Fight Club’s Tyler Durden and Marla Singer, arrive in Venice for the film’s premiere. Nicole Kidman, all dressed up for an amfAR event, at the 58th Venice Film Festival. Four years before becoming James Bond, Daniel Craig goes smart-casual on the Venice red carpet for the premiere of Road to Perdition, joined by his then partner of seven years, Heike Makatsch (better known as the sultry Mia from Love Actually).
Angelina Jolie, in a peak early aughts ensemble, floats into Venice for the premiere of Shark Tale. Catherine Keener, John Malkovich, and Cameron Diaz, all smiles at the Venice premiere of Being John Malkovich. Michelle Pfeiffer at Venice for the premiere of What Lies Beneath with her husband, prolific showrunner David E. Kelley. Le Divorce stars Kate Hudson and Naomi Watts at a photo call at the 60th edition of the festival.
Sharon Stone chooses a bright red lip
Sharon Stone chooses a bright red lip and sequined leopard print for Venice’s opening night in 2000. Two decades before Brady Corbet won Venice’s best-director prize for The Brutalist, he was a young actor in town for the premiere of Mysterious Skin. Cate Blanchett and a pre-Severance John Turturro in Venice for the premiere of The Man Who Cried. Isabelle Huppert and Vincent Lindon, the stars of No Scandal, pose outside Venice’s Sala Grande at the 56th festival.
A pixie-cropped Isabella Rossellini in Venice to promote The Saddest Music in the World. Salma Hayek, draped in diaphanous tulle, arrives in Venice for the premiere of Frida. A rosy-cheeked Margherita Missoni at a Missoni-sponsored boat party to celebrate the release of A Love Song for Bobby Long. Supremely casual after-party style, courtesy of Tilda Swinton and Julie Delpy at the 59th Venice Film Festival.
Daniel Day-Lewis, Winona Ryder, Michelle Pfeiffer, and Martin Scorsese posing by the water to celebrate the Venice release of The Age of Innocence. Ethan Hawke, Antoine Fuqua, and Denzel Washington crack up at a Venice photo call for Training Day. Charlotte Gainsbourg brings louche French-girl style to Venice while promoting 21 Grams. Far From Heaven’s Julianne Moore at the 59th edition of the festival.
The indelible combination of Bill Paxton, Matthew McConaughey,
The indelible combination of Bill Paxton, Matthew McConaughey, Jon Bon Jovi, and Harvey Keitel at the Venice premiere of U-571. Screen legend Lauren Bacall steps off the boat for the photo call for Birth. Liam Neeson with his then wife, the angelic Natasha Richardson, at the Venice premiere of K-19: The Widowmaker. A post-10 Things I Hate About You, but pre-500 Days of Summer-era Joseph Gordon-Levitt in Venice to celebrate the release of Mysterious Skin.
Charlize Theron and Helen Hunt at the 58th edition of the festival promoting The Curse of the Jade Scorpion. Reese Witherspoon at the Venice premiere of Vanity Fair with her then husband, Ryan Phillippe. Park Chan-wook hides out from the rain at the 61st festival. A pre-Brokeback Mountain Michelle Williams promotes Land of Plenty at Venice in 2004. Melanie Griffith and her then husband, Antonio Banderas, soak up the sun canalside.
Uma Thurman (Photo by J. Vespa/WireImage) Nicole Kidman and Tom Cruise—then married—at the Venice premiere of Eyes Wide Shut.
Source: www.vogue.com
