How to Dress Like a Character from Happy Together
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How to Dress Like a Character from Happy Together
Yeah, yeah, this one's from the archives, cry about it (into a recorder and make a random hot guy listen to it in a lighthouse).
Hello, new subscribers! I am SO excited to meet and immediately alienate you by having the first post I send out to you be A) an archival post B) full of bad links and C) somewhat niche in its purview. But guys (also, if you’re NEW new, I’m nonbinary and therefore anything I say is intended gender neutrally. Them’s the rules), I am currently listening to the rumble of Iguazú Falls, on the border of Argentina, where I live right now, and Brazil. If you’ve ever seen Wong Kar-wai’s film Happy Together, you know that he uses the falls as an integral, potent symbol of yearning, ennui, regret, and about 45 other agonizingly beautiful feelings in the context of the movie.
When I made this post initially in December 2021, I had Covid (and didn’t know it yet), lived in NYC, didn’t know a single word of Spanish, and never would have thought I’d EVER end up here. Now, I am deeply in love with Argentina, have experienced more yearning, ennui, and regret than I thought possible in a single year, am conversational in español (the biggest accomplishment of my life), and here I am, in Iguazú, about to have my Tony Leung moment weeping over the water tomorrow morning.
I felt compelled to re-share these seasonally appropriate recs on how to dress like a character from Happy Together in honor of my pilgrimage, and I KNOW most of these things are not available anymore, but using reverse image search and a dash of the ingenuity I KNOW you have stored up in those ol’ glands of yours, I have faith that these ideas will get you somewhere sartorially if you let them take hold of you. Also, pretty much everything in this post is thrift store fodder, so just use this as your shopping list and pick up one of everything for under 20 bucks total! Godspeed! Do note that, since this post is from days of yore, prices and sales aren’t listed like they generally are now (I’m so generous now, wowwwww).
I have been En Una (On One) and therefore largely absent for the past few weeks, so it feels kind of smug and insane to circle back just to slap you with an oldie, but if you’re into it, you are in the right place, and if you’re not, you still are (in the right place) and just give me a few more days it’ll be great and check out the HR archives if you wanna. Glad that our relationship is starting off on such a strong, healthy note. And if you’ve been here the whole time and saw this post the first time around…. DM me your favorite poem on Instagram and I will make an outfit for you based on it. You have earned it with your patience and steadfastness, and I adore you. Ok, ok, heeeeeeere’s Tony!
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Thank you SO MUCH for your support, whatever you are able and willing to do to help is extremely valuable to me and I’m honored to be a small part of your life on the web.
Originally posted on humanrepeller.com December 18, 2021:
This post is dedicated to my friend Max, who insisted upon me watching Wong Kar-Wai's Happy Together even though I resisted for months because I knew it would make me feel very, very sad. We finally watched it and now I am sick and sad because I probably will be spending the holiday season mostly alone, but no one makes being abjectly lonely look sexier than Leslie Cheung and Tony Leung Chiu-wai, dancing together and apart across Argentina in thin t-shirts, corduroy, flannel, leather, and knitwear that made me pause the film several times to simply marvel at the fabric choices made by costume designer William Chang Suk-ping. Most of the more interesting/distinctive choices made are in tops, so I'm focusing on that. Mix and match with jeans, work pants, or corduroy pants, and you've got yourself an outfit that you can wear whether slow-dancing with a doomed paramour, crying into a tape recorder, or standing alone getting drenched by a waterfall.
If you will also be alone for the holidays, feel free to DM me on Instagram @humanrepeller or comment below with your ideas for a post and I will add them to my queue! Movie recommendations (especially happy films that will not leave me a withered, emotionally emaciated husk) also very much appreciated.
Knits
This Mohair cardigan opened my eyes to everything a Mohair cardigan can be. The warm brown, the triple stripe just above the elbow... it's a perfect garment and I can't find a good dupe but here are some potential alternatives taking inspiration from its subdued tones, stripes, and luscious furriness.
Vintage Blue Crew-neck Sweater
Tony Leung wears an incredible geometric-patterned sweater to go get sticky rice cakes. You can find amazing vintage sweaters like this one all over the web, as you probably know, but here are a few to start your journey with. The yellow is a perfect example of the Wong Kar-wai color scheme I discussed in a previous post.
The Corduroy Jacket
Throughout the film, Tony wears the apex of all jackets: a creamy corduroy, wide-waled number that is seemingly the only warm garment he owns. I now dream in pale corduroy.
Corduroy Jacket with Elbow Patches
Perfect Shirts
Be a Perfect Boyfriend like Tony in a red and white rugby-polo shirt as you give your ne'er do well lover a washcloth bath.
1990's Heavyweight Rugby Shirt
Thin, broken-in-looking, perfectly crew-necked, skintight tees in dusty tones or muted stripes are the default uniform for both dudes in this torrid romance, and if you don't yet have any, you need some for emergency slow-dance sessions or suns to "buy cigarettes" at midnight.
Plaids
Plaid shirts and jackets keep the dudes warm as they stab knives into doors, smoke depressedly, and perform other fun rituals like these!
White Tank
The best way to go about capturing the look that is *the perfect white ribbed tank* is probably to go to your local hardware or 99c store and get a 3-pack for 5 bucks, but if you want something a little more wear-outside-your-room-able, here are some options for you. Racerback and high, narrow neck is the way to go:
Don't Forget
A pair of tiny and simple silver hoops to remind the viewers that you are gay and extremely sexy!
I hope you and your loved ones have stayed safe and healthy this week, and if you're not depressed enough by the state of the world, watch a Wong Kar-wai film to wet your eyeballs!
<3 HR