Keira Knightley is usually pretty spot-on when it comes to red-carpet style (although we haven't quite forgotten that inexplicable crop top). But hey, everybody makes mistakes. Last night at the premiere of Anna Karenina, she stepped out in what sounds like perfection on paper: A floor-sweeping Chanel gown embellished with 3-D roses in a shape that not so much flatters the figure as redefines it. But when the photos came in, the result was...less than satisfactory.
Let's start with the belt (which, incidentally, comes with the dress and was shown with it on the runway). What place does that shiny fabric, reminiscent of Claire's, have on such a ladylike gown? The neckline, sleeves, and bodice look great, but the belt is where the trouble begins. From the cinched, natural waist down to her invisible feet, the structured skit makes her look awkward and very oddly proportioned. You know it takes a real mess of a dress to make such a leggy babe like Keira look short (and not in a good way).
We totally get the idea behind this dress. The metallic belt is an unexpected but interesting contrast, the rigid shape is supposed to add dramatic, larger-than-life curves (à la Lady Gaga on the cover of Vogue), but something went wrong in the execution of the project. She ended up looking stiff and, despite the extreme texture, a bit like a cutout paper doll. We're not blaming Keira per se, but it's definitely not one of her strongest looks.
Do you like this fluffy floor-length number, or should she have given it more thought?