So I’m going through my “should see” list of movies over the holidays and come across The Candidate, which has been camped out on said list for almost as long as its been in release (1972), but dismissed because I’d never really heard anyone I know talk about it (a very scientific and highly reliable method, I assure you.)
But there it was, and Robert Reford looked so young and pretty on the poster, so what the heck, let’s do this. And lo and behold, it RULES. And I’m talking from just about every angle. Screenplay, acting, direction…and the icing on the cake…the interior design. Where has this movie been??? (Do you like how I made it the movie’s fault here and not mine? Note: it did win an Academy Award for Best Screenplay in 1972 so the scales probably tip against me in terms of culpability here.)
Take a look at the foyer of Redford’s “Bill McKay” character’s San Diego home:
The pop of that orange outlined with the gold frame against white-washed adobe walls makes me want to grab a margarita and hightail it right back to my sun-drenched days spent living in Santa Barbara.
In fact, if Production Designer Gene Callahan could just replicate for me (in the house I’m currently daydreaming about in fantasyland) the layered, eclectic, yet sophisticated look he achieved for the living area off of this foyer, I might just do that and never come back:
Marcel Breuer Wassily chairs + some modern art on the walls = a great way to add a fresh, contemporary spin on an otherwise traditional room.
Want a few more fun shots throughout the house running the same theme? Here you go:
And then there’s the office of “Bill’s” campaign strategist:
And I thought black leather sofas were sexy…but get a look at that green one! Again, a great balance of daring and traditional by tempering the color of the leather against the more conservative chesterfield design, and balancing a luxe leopard art piece with black and white family photos.
And finally, the library of “Bill’s” father, retired governor “John J. McKay” (played by the venerable Melvyn Douglas):
A little more traditional but you still get that great layered effect…and the pink sofa adds a nice wink to an otherwise manly space (“John,” you grumpy old dog, who knew you had it in you?!).
Ahhhhh, movies and interior design. Does it get any better than this?? It’s a tough job out there saving lives, but alas, someone’s gotta do it…and it might as well be me…
Please do share any of your favorite movie interiors here with us all – and I’ll blame it on you that I need to check out some more cinema for “work.” And in the meantime, you can always indulge in some more favorites from Architectural Digest, Elle Décor, Dwell, House Beautiful and Apartment Therapy, among others.
