Mad Men Film Analysis

The critically acclaimed tv show Mad Men, debuted in July 2007. Matthew Weiner, creator of show, captured the nostalgia of the 60 's through the ad men world. By romanticizing full skirt dresses, smoking in restaurants, and suburbia. To bring the viewers back to the reality of the 60 's they did not leave out any of the racist or sexist comments being flung across the offices of New York. Mad Men is known for its highly stylized visual component in filming this show. Phil Abraham, cinematographer, said Mad Men 's style "is influenced more by cinema than TV." Jeremy G. Butler points out that the show is "cut faster than television programmes or films from 1960" even when it is trying to emulate the past. Meanwhile the costume design is

Costumes in this series help propel storyline and adds content to episodes. In episode one and three, there are two scenes where clothing plays a role in Joan Holloway 's power over Peggy Olson through belittling her fashion choices in the office. In the pilot Smoke Gets in Your Eyes, Joan parades through the office while giving a tour to Peggy on her first day. In this scene (8.19-10.20) the two women walking through the office are the main focal point, but their clothing says more than the dialogue between them. Joan is sporting a knee length hunter green pencil dress, also known as a wiggle dress in the 60 's, the cut of the dress emphasizes her small waist and large bust. She wears a small gold brooch to match her gold leaf stud earrings. As a woman in an ad agency, her business attire appears to complement the gray suits around her. Joan is the undisputed leader of the secretaries and Peggy is becoming Don Draper 's secretary, which keeps her under a spotlight to all of the men of the office. Peggy 's attire is very understated with a beige ¾ sleeved sweater and a past the knee tan full skirt. She is minimalistic with pearl earrings and a black ribbon bow in her hair. Whilst walking

As the series advances, Peggy began to fit herself into the office uniform in her unique way. In Marriage of Figaro (8.55-10), Peggy has a black and navy plaid dress with a white collar that fits her waist and flares out. Slowly she is figuring out what fits her body while still dressing conservatively. Joan is standing out in a bright pink dress with a gold starburst brooch and matching earrings. Joan 's clothing became a uniform of wearing similar dresses in different colors that accent her body and hair color. Joan is discussing Lady Chatterley 's Lover, a banned sexual romance book, with two other secretaries while Peggy stands by and listens to the conversation. When Peggy asks to read the book, Joan takes one look of her schoolgirl looking dress and says "I don 't think it 's a good idea" and continues to explain that she is not mature enough to read the book. The clothing in this scene proves the power difference between the two as does the angle of where the camera is positioned. Throughout the series, Joan towers over Peggy and as Butler said “her curves stand out against the grid of the ceiling, emphasizing how her masquerade of femininity is the source of her power.” As Peggy is progressing and dressing closer to what Joan would deem appropriate for the office, she is still considered to be childish. As the dialogue does not outright point out that what Peggy is wearing is a part of the issue of Joan not respecting her. As we progress into the series,