“Peachy f**king keen”, Poppy evaluates the stylistic choices of Steins 1999 film, Jawbreaker.
Darren Steins Jawbreaker is a campy black comedy that debuted in 1999. It was a critical and commercial flop, but upon being released onto VHS, the film quickly gathered a cult following amongst teenagers. The comedy was among similar raunchy teen movies that premiered that year; including She’s All That, Cruel Intentions and American Pie. However, it was set apart from the rest for one main reason: the fashion.
For those who haven’t seen Jawbreaker, the plot revolves around the Reagan High School ‘Queen Bees’: Courtney, Marcie and Julie, who accidentally murder their friend Liz during an odd birthday prank…gone wrong. Liz chokes to death on a jawbreaker and the girls, spearheaded completely by Courtney, cover up it up. A witness to their crimes is the timid Fern Mayo, but her silence is bought by Courtney who promises to make Fern popular and beautiful. Julie, Marcie and Fern (or Vylette as her popular alter ego is named) all regret the death, but Courtney seems to be fuelled by the murder. The actress that played her, Rose McGowan, called her a “young, budding sociopath”.
The plot – as fun and freaky as it may be – almost takes a backseat in lieu of the costumes. Rebecca Gayheart, who played Julie, said that “the wardrobe in the movie was as big of a character as any written character”. The costume designer for this film was Vikki Barrett, who had previously worked on films like Clueless and Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion. She was known for loud and iconic costumes and this, coupled with Stein’s cinematography, created the cult classic we know (and love) today.
The costumes of Jawbreaker are a whirlwind of hyper-feminine colours, cuts and silhouettes, echoing the looks of the 1950s more so than the fashion of its own era. The looks of the 1990s are more grungy, while Jawbreaker is pure bright colours. The director, Stein even banned the colour black from the costume department! The vibe of the style can be encapsulated by one of Courtney’s iconic lines: “peachy f**king keen”. Despite the boujee looks Barrett curated, the film was on a tight budget so a lot of the clothing was sourced from LA vintage stores (with some pieces costing as little as $1). The pieces were then tailored by Barrett to fit the cast perfectly. Fern’s bright pink fishtail prom dress was tailored down from a size 20 to fit Judy Greer, the actress playing her.
Barrett’s eye for detail is second to none in this film. She curated their outfits so perfectly, that the first set of outfits we see fully introduces us to the characters better than any description could.
Courtney Shane – our murderous ringleader – is dressed in varying shades of red, evoking the image of the vintage femme fatal, whilst foreshadowing her presence as the antagonist (as she is dressed in the brightest of colours). Marcie, Courtney’s right hand, is dressed in the demurer colour of green, wearing an almost identical silhouette to Courtney. This mimicry signifies her status as a follower or as someone not looking to challenge Courtney by wearing a more eye-catching colour. Julie is the kindest ‘Queen Bee’, drenched in equally tight clothing, but her clothing is cutesier; in their video “analysing the outfits in Jawbreaker” the YouTube channel ‘ModernGurlz’ liken Julie’s style to that of a Polly Pocket doll.
The thing that all the girls’ outfits have in common however, is their hyper sexuality. All the ‘fits’ worn by our female main characters are raunchy, skin-tight and revealing, which is a satirical juxtaposition to the dark plot.
Above all else, Jawbreaker is a type of horror film; Stein created it with the idea that is could be “something very dark that could also be a commentary on the world of girls”. Those super sexual outfits leaned into the vein of horror where women’s sexual power is the scariest thing there is and flipped it on its head. According to Stein, the world of Jawbreaker is “a female-dominated world where the males are secondary characters or arm candy, where women have the power, and their strength and sexuality are celebrated.” This is completely echoed in its outfits.
The fashion of Jawbreaker has also left an impressive legacy. Currently we are seeing a reassurance in what we call y2k fashion, a lot of which is like what we see in Jawbreaker. Famous fashionistas like Kendall Jenner or Bella Hadid all occasionally sport looks that wouldn’t seem out of place in the film and Dazed Magazine bets its “only a matter of time until a designer cites the film as a direct reference.”
The style is silly, sexy and above all, iconic. If you haven’t seen Jawbreaker yet, what are you waiting for?