The change in fashion is self-evident at the Cannes festival, with flashy brands, excess, and instant impact being pushed aside for elegance, chic understatement, and classic-based looks. These are styles that can be worn again and again, many offering versatility in their concept and easy updates. It’s not about being dull or boring, nor about playing it safe—it reflects the reality of a difficult global economy, the times we live in, and a mindset of truly buying less but better.
The Cannes festival has sent a clear message: overly opulent dresses with massive, time-consuming trains, requiring stylists and assistants to constantly arrange them, waste valuable time and monopolise space meant for other celebrities to be photographed. Additionally, the trend of “naked” and transparent dressing feels like a cheap and obvious attempt to grab headlines. It’s simply inappropriate at a film festival that celebrates the craft of filmmaking, from writing to acting.
Maria Grazia Chiuri, as the creative lead for womenswear, and Kim Jones, for the current menswear collection, have redefined Dior by offering beautiful clothes, refined options, and exquisite quality. The house continues to celebrate its couture heritage. Dior’s menswear was launched under the aegis of Marc Bohan in 1970, and tailoring—like the iconic Bar jacket from Monsieur Dior’s first collection in 1947—has always been the foundation of its masculine style.
This season, many men chose Dior Homme suits, tuxedos, and more relaxed looks. Tuxedo wearers included Felix Kysyl, Quentin Tarantino, and Robert Pattinson, while Pedro Pascal wore a tuxedo with a twist: sharper, wider lapels, asymmetric fastening, and broader trousers. Filipino Schnack, Pierre Mouton, Finnigan Oldfield, and August Diehl all opted for soft, natural/neutral tones in slouched silhouettes for both day and night in Cannes. In other words, while the foundation remains classic menswear tailoring, new adaptations and fresh details bring a contemporary edge.
Christian Dior-designed pieces at the Cannes festival
The brilliance of Dior’s womenswear lies in an archive of thousands of Christian Dior-designed pieces. Even the first collection in 1947 featured ninety looks, with later collections reaching up to 150. The decade of Monsieur Dior’s reign provides endless inspiration. Jennifer Lawrence wore a gown of plissé white crepe directly inspired by a 1949 dress named Poulenc, after the great French composer and friend of Dior. Upon closer inspection, it’s clear this was not a direct copy. The pleated layers, not unlike the overlapping petals of Junon—a famous 1949 ball gown—are reinterpreted with modern proportions and balance.
Likewise, Natalie Portman, who wore a Junon-inspired look to Cannes in 2023, this season appeared in a reinterpretation of Mexique, a gown originally shown in 1951. The slimming of the skirt, the refined scale of scalloped embroidery, and the rebalanced bow make this a genuine reinterpretation rather than a reproduction. Portman also wore two mini-crinoline looks—one in black with rococo flourishes in jet and pearl embroidery, the other in a rich Renaissance red.
Jennifer Lawrence wore a beautiful daytime look that, at a glance, could have passed for a sweater and skirt—except the sweater was pale biscuit silk mousseline, and the skirt was composed of airy silk layers delicately embroidered with flowers and leaves. Later, she switched to a dramatic black silk satin draped dress that merged draping traditions from both the sari and the sarong. The fabric cascaded like liquid from a simple asymmetric line, extending into a ribbon-like panel at the back.
Drape was a key feature of Dior dresses at the Cannes festival: Nadia Tereszkiewicz wore lacquer-red silk crepe with a shoulder drape; Alexia Chardard appeared in pale sage green with woven drapery; Jodie Foster chose ice-blue slipper satin with asymmetric drape; and Solmaz Panahi wore saffron silk mousseline.
Mathilde Roehrich and Hafsia Herzi both chose dresses in rich burgundy and claret wine tones—one in heavy silk crepe, the other in medieval-style velvet.
On opening day, Juliette Binoche wore a chalk-white silk crepe draped top with wide trousers—its fluid lines recalling Madame Grès’ iconic costumes for the classic French film L’Éternel Retour. Jury member Leila Slimani stunned in a voluminous white silk crepe caftan during the day, and later appeared in a sliver of vertical-beaded glamour. She also wore a baroque-embellished tulle dress in black and palest ecru with lace, tulle, and embroidery—true couture craftsmanship.
Jenny Slate wore an exquisite gown of pearly dawn-pink, fragile silk mousseline embroidered with delicate foliage and florals. Halle Berry wore the palest ecru filigree lace, while Rabanne Jammel looked ethereal in white silk tulle embroidered with tiny insects and calligraphic flourishes. Jodie Foster also donned a Dior dress with chinoiserie patterning and long straight lines, finished with swaying fringes at the hem—a nod to Diana Vreeland, a lifelong fringe enthusiast.
Finally, in this Cannes season of restraint and elegance, black was everywhere—from sporty daytime looks to full gala-worthy gowns. Sara Giraudeau in tulle, Mona Soualem in fit-and-flare, India Hair, Leila Slimani, Juliette Binoche, Sofia Achaval, Angelina Woreth in lace, Lucie Zhang, Rebecca Zlotowski, and Géraldine Nakache were among many who embraced the length, fabric, and silhouette versatility black provides. One standout was Alba Rohrwacher, who combined a backless long-sleeved black top with the pinkest bubble skirt—a New Look-style ballgown that conveyed both couture and fun: the perfect Cannes combination.
