FILM FINERY L.A. EXHIBIT HIGHLIGHTS CINEMA'S OUTSTANDING COSTUME DESIGNS.

Byline: Barbara De Witt  Fashion Editor

Could Judy Garland have pulled off that Kansas farm girl look in a tweed suit?

Would Scarlett O'Hara's green dress be as memorable if it had been made from cotton curtains instead of lush velvet draperies?

Those classics remain on Hollywood's best-dressed film list because of a costume designer's vision, but it wasn't until 1948 that the Academy Awards included an Oscar for Best Costume Design.

And when Elizabeth Taylor presented the award, it wasn't the ever-popular Edith Head who received it, but Madame Karinska and Dorothy Jeakins for ``Joan of Arc.''

Period films do appeal to academy voters, but you can't always count on it,

said Maggie Murray, curator of the ``Hollywood 2000 - 100 Years of Film Style'' exhibit at the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising in Los Angeles.

According to Murray, who has costumes from all five of this year's Best Costume nominees, as well as 175 other costumes from past and present films, Oscar voters are fickle when it comes to fashion.

``For instance, I particularly appreciated the inventiveness and skill that went into Queen Amidala's costumes in 'Star Wars.' They're a genre of their own and weren't even nominated.''

And at the recent Costume Designers Guild Awards, the award for best film costumes was given to Judy Weiss for the contemporary ``American Beauty,'' also not a contender for the coveted Oscar.

Meanwhile, Deena Appel's colorful `60s costumes in ``Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me'' launched a retail fashion trend that's still going strong, yet she didn't get an Oscar nod.

``Actually, it was just a cosmic coincidence, and we were lucky that the film opened at a time when people were ready for color,'' she confided at the Costume Designers gala. No longer in the running, Appel said she's counting on ``Sleepy Hollow'' to win.

``Sleepy Hollow'' designer Colleen Atwood is the only L.A. resident nominated this year (the others are from New York, Great Britain and Italy). It took her up to four weeks to create each gown for the film.

``The biggest challenge was the black-and-white dress worn by Miranda Richardson when she goes into the tree of the dead, and I got the inspiration for it from a painting. In the end, I made it my tribute to Adrian's black-and-white ball scene in the vintage film 'Marie Antoinette,' '' which happens to be included in the FIDM exhibit.

Atwood has loaned three costumes to the exhibit, including the black-and- white gown, the headless horseman's ensemble and a pale beige satin gown worn by Christina Ricci, whom she says has the perfect body for period costumes because she is tiny yet curvaceous.

Even Lindy Hemming, who designed the lavish costumes for ``Topsy-Turvy,'' was impressed with Atwood's work.

``Colleen is an excellent designer and has a great sense of humor that you can see in her costumes.''

This is Hemming's first nomination.

``When I got the job for 'Topsy-Turvy,' I didn't think, 'Wow! This will be a winner!' but I did think it was a great opportunity and the costumes of the 1880s would be interesting to look at. And I also thought it would have a cult following.''

For Hemming, the biggest challenge was the amount of research she spent on Gilbert and Sullivan's operas, particularly ``The Mikado.''

``Since the costumes in that opera are Japanese and based on Kabuki theater rules, we had to be absolutely certain we were getting the right colors and tones because each one has a different meaning.''

Now, if academy voters pass on opulent period costumes and go for more contemporary fashions, they might choose Ann Roth for her late-`50s looks in ``The Talented Mr. Ripley.''

Roth, who won an Oscar for ``The English Patient'' costumes, is a popular choice with Hollywood actors and fashion designers, like Badgley Mischka. But she's rather blase about the whole Oscars thing and isn't even sure she'll attend because she's busy on a new film.

During a phone interview from her New York office, Roth talked a lot about the clothes setting the mood, and considered the blue coat worn by Gwyneth Paltrow at the end of the film as one of her best examples.

Does she think those circle skirts might be the next big trend? ``Oh, yes. She (Paltrow) wears them on the island, doesn't she? But you see, it's not about setting trends or a fashion show. Costume design is about characters.''

Roth designed many of the costumes, but also borrowed vintage pieces such as the ocelot fur coat, which Murray said is included in the exhibit.

The exhibit also includes six costumes by Jenny Beavan from ``Anna and the King'' and nine costumes by Milena Canonero from ``Titus.''

``The latter,'' Murray said, ``are the most peculiar. Canonero takes Shakespeare and puts it into the `60s, and the result is a bizarre, interesting clash of cultures.''

Oscar bets

So, who's going to win the Oscar for Best Costumes? If they got to vote, here's how a few celebs and designers would cast their ballots:

Deena Appel (``Austin Powers'' costume designer) - ``I'm counting on 'Sleepy Hollow.' ''

Badgley Mischka (fashion design duo) - ``Definitely 'The Talented Mr. Ripley.' ''

Selma Blair - `` 'The Talented Mr. Ripley.' It's everything costumes should be.''

Sophia Loren - ``Titus.' It's an important film with very dramatic costumes.''

Tori Spelling - `` 'The Talented Mr. Ripley.' I want one of those circle skirts.''

- Barbara De Witt

Crazy about costumes

Find yourself more interested in the clothes than the movie plot? Circle these events:

``Hollywood 200 - 100 Years of Film Style'' - A costume exhibit at the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising, 919 S. Grand Ave., Los Angeles. Hours are 11 a.m to 3 p.m. Monday through Saturday, through April 28. Admission is free. For more information, call [phone].

``Faded Sequins, Tattered Dreams: Saving Hollywood's Classic Costumes'' - A one-hour TV special on the preservation of Hollywood's most precious film costumes, including those from ``Wizard of Oz'' and ``Gone With the Wind.'' It airs at 5 p.m. on March 21 on the American Movie Channel.

- Barbara De Witt

CAPTION(S):

11 photos, 2 boxes

Photo:

(1 -- cover -- color) "The Talented Mr. Ripley"

(2 -- cover -- color) "Anna and the King"

(3 -- cover -- color) "Sleepy Hollow"

(4 -- color) Milena Canonero is the designer of this golden gown for Jessica Lange in ``Titus.''

(5 -- color) The costumes for ``Topsy-Turvy'' are designed by Lindy Hemming, who studied operas to prepare for the job.

(6 -- color) Ann Roth captures the spirit of the late '50s in ``The Talented Mr. Ripley.''

(7 -- color) For ``Sleepy Hollow,'' star Christina Ricci is dressed in handmade corsets and period gowns designed by Colleen Atwood. The pieces took weeks to create.

(8 -- 10 -- color) no caption (Costumes)

(11 -- color) Those lavish costumes in ``Anna and the King'' are the work of Jenny Beavan.

Box: (1) Oscar bets (See text)

(2) Crazy about costumes (See text)