As we head into the 2020s, let’s take a look at some period costume approximating the look of the 1990s. Captain Marvel tells the story of the titular character going back three decades, taking place from 1989 to 1995. But something felt off to me when I saw it in theatres. While it definitely felt like a ‘90s action movie, the menswear didn’t quite look the part.

The first man on Earth we’re introduced to is a security officer patrolling the strip mall where “Vers” crash lands. His outfit is accurate to 1995 yet hasn’t dated at all in 24 years. His grey uniform shirt has a long point collar, so it already looks right for the ‘90s, but to be fair the manufacturing patterns for those haven’t changed much in the last few decades and was likely an easy find for the costume department. The tie is a black clip-on, pre-tied in a Windsor knot, as is standard with security and police for the last few decades. These are commonly worn instead of conventional neckwear so criminals cannot strangle the wearer with their own tie -- a fate Rick Deckard nearly suffers in Blade Runner at the hands of a replicant.

Next, we see a younger Agent Coulson conversing with said security officer. His neckwear is fairly accurate to the period, with an olive and grey medallion printed tie whose only sin is being a bit narrow for the time (like all the ties in this movie). However, it falls apart more when you notice that the lapels on his black suit have a higher and shallower gorge than suits had then. There’s even pick stitching on them, which wouldn’t typically be on a suit worn by somebody with Coulson’s pay grade. This was before AMF pick stitching was in wide use for off-the-rack and made-to-measure clothing. Your average customers weren’t looking for “high quality” details such as that and working sleeve buttons. Additionally, his suit has double (side) vents, which almost no Americans aside from bespoke customers would have been wearing. The average American suit still had no vents at all following ‘80s trends that continued to the ‘90s and, if they did have a vent, it would have been single (centre) rather than the chiefly British double. Completing the definitely bought off the rack in 2019 look is narrower shoulders, a higher button stance, shorter jacket skirt, and trousers that finish with a trim leg opening. Digging further, Coulson’s white shirt has a spread collar. While not completely out of the realm of possibility, it’s rather unlikely. Most every American shirt would have had a point or semi-spread collar at best. At least classic black dress shoes and conservative haircuts don’t date much.

Nick Fury fares slightly better in period accuracy. The lapels on his black suit are also medium width, but have a slightly steeper and lower gorge, the button stance is lower, and his jacket skirt is longer with a single vent. His shirt has a semi-spread collar, though also a breast pocket as American shirts typically had. There are a few concessions to 2019, though. When he takes off his jacket, his shirt has a much slimmer fit than most men would be wearing. It does, however, flatter Samuel L. Jackson’s body and looks good to the modern eye. He’s also wearing flat front trousers, which wouldn’t be seen that much on suits from the late ‘80s until the early ‘00s. The fit is a bit looser on his suit than is fashionable today, but not by that much. The grey tie with smaller white stripes is pretty timeless and looks as good today as it would two decades ago. Both Fury and Coulson are appropriately dressed as “men in black” or Secret Service tropes. But their suits are a better approximation of fit and style trends from the ‘00s instead of the ‘90s.

We are next introduced to S.H.I.E.L.D. Director Keller, whose medium blue suit is much the same as Fury’s aside from the added waistcoat. He wears a tie with gold wide stripes bordered with black and white stripes over a small black and white checkered pattern. This is another tie pattern that looks pretty accurate to the styles sold then. Braces or self-supporting trousers weren’t all that popular in the mid-‘90s, so unfortunately the belt buckle peaking out from under his waistcoat is also pretty accurate at the expense of breaking him up visually. His lapels have pick stitching, but it seems to be done by hand since it is not quite as noticeable as Coulson’s. This could have been intentional to signal that the Director is better off in his position, of course, as with the waistcoat.

When we next see Nick Fury, he’s dressed in a navy shirt with a point collar and edge stitching, which was common with American shirts a couple decades ago and a few brands, like Van Heusen, still make them that way. They may very well have bought this off the rack. With it is a tie with blue and brown stripes bordered by a smaller black and white stripes. It looks very much like something you could get off the rack 20 years ago. The smart casual look is completed with a light brown suede casual jacket, charcoal flat front trousers, and black side zip boots. Dark shirts with ties, particularly lighter coloured ties, are not a flattering look and should be avoided, but this was a fashionable look then and is still being done by many people today. It is better to stick to lighter coloured shirts with darker ties, since the contrast better frames one’s face.

The background costuming is not bad. Other suited-and-booted S.H.I.E.L.D. agents look fairly accurate to the time at a casual glance, as does this bystander to Marvel’s punch-’em-up on the train. His suit jacket even has jetted pockets instead of common flap pockets, which were still being put on off-the-rack suits.

We can get a fairly accurate comparison by looking to movies and television that existed in the 1990s. For example, Goldeneye featured Pierce Brosnan in a belted three-piece suit similar to Ben Mendelsohn. Kelsey Grammar was also wearing dark shirts with ties on Frasier. One thing they seemed to get right is the rise on the trousers, which is higher than on modern ones. A medium or high rise is flattering to more people and I’m happy to see costume designers like Sanja Milkovic Hays still realize the value in this. Additionally, whether or not the ties were purchased off the rack, the fabrics, patterns, and prints look pretty accurate to styles that were worn. None of them are as loud as some “power ties” were, but that’s probably a good thing. It’s only unfortunate that we don’t get to see any ‘90s menswear staples such as three button or double breasted six button, one to close suits… or any trouser pleats whatsoever!

To answer my title question succinctly, no. It really isn’t. Brie Larson gets a more accurate treatment in her adopted grunge attire, but it probably wasn’t that hard considering light wash, high-waisted jeans have come back for women in the last few years.  Milkovic Hays likely prioritized making the male actors look good by today’s standards rather than ‘90s standards. She may have also felt that having period accurate wide shoulders, low gorges, and dated buttoning styles would be distracting. But there’s precedent for movies that do modern interpretations of older styles. For instance, both The Great Gatsby movies made many concessions to contemporary fashions in the years they were made. But so long as we keep this in mind, we can let willing suspension of disbelief take the wheel and just enjoy what we’re watching.

Giselle is a menswear expert and freelance writer who gained an interest in dressing well upon re-watching James Bond movies, researching what makes him so stylish, and later engaging with others in online spaces to learn more. She has written about tailored clothing for over a decade through her blog, Nouveau Vintage, after being inspired by others to share her passion.