Freeze Frame

by Stephen Garrett

Details, July 1999

Get ready to rumble. In his upcoming Fight Club, director David Fincher (Seven) envisions a near-future society where men - led by the demented Tyler Durden (Brad Pitt) and his wimpy cohort Jack (Ed Norton) - beat each other senseless to express their repressed primative agression. Pitt was pumped for Fight: After reading Chuck Palahniuk's apocalyptic 1996 novel on which the movie is based, the star ran to Fincher's house (they're neighbors) and pounded on his door, eager to be part of the project. In the scene at the right, Tyler and his bruiser boys gather to work each other over.

The Lighting

"They're supposed to live in a stark world," says director of photography Jeff Cronenweth of Fight Club's shadowy environment. Filming began after dark for a third of the projects 138 shooting days (director Fincher shot about 1,500 rolls of film, nearly three time the Hollywood norm). "Color is the enemy," says Cronenweth. "We wanted something real, but in a grungy way." And Cronenweth know his shadows - his father, Jordan, was the legendary DP of Blade Runner.

The Set

This bunkerlike space - the basement of Lou's Tavern in the film - is one of 70 different sets used. The look of the filmmakers were trying for was "a longshoremen's bar down by the ports," says production designer Alex McDowell (Leaving Las Vegas). "The club members wrap mattresses around the column and put cardboard on the ground to fight on. It's a very primal space."

The Clothes

"The club is very democratic," points out costume designer Michael Kaplan (Seven), who created a variety of outfits, from off-the-rack J.C. Penny to vintage Gucci ensembles, for the wide assortment of men - lawyers to mechanics - who frequent the club. Kaplan wven did some clothes shopping at Sears, but avoided the Gap; "Too perky," he says.

The Wounds

To correctly plot the characters' wounds over time, head of makeup Julie Pearce (The Game created a "bruise continuity sheet" that listed cuts, scrapes, and claw marks. Her favorite prosthesis? One of the extras wears a teeth-mauled earlobe Pearce dubbed "the Tyson ear."

The Hair

To ensure that Pitt had the right millenial caveman look, key hairstylist Frida Aradottir (What Dreams May Come) gave the star a spiky, postpunk do. "Most of these characters," explained Aradottir, "are thrashed form the inside out." She used a Japanese wax stick called Tancho - all the rage among the L.A. make-up artists - to get the spikes right.

The Precious Bodily Fluid

Beating the shit out of people can really make a guy sweat. But how to do it on cue? Fincher deployed two varieties: "Beaded sweat" is Evian water spayed over a coat of Vaseline, and "wet sweat" is straight Evian. For an especially nasty look, the crew mixed in a little bit of fuller's earth, a special "clean" dirt manufactured for the movies.

The Bodies

Pitt and Norton took lessons in boxing, Tae Kwon Do, and "grappling." Newly slim co-star Meat Load wore a 90-pound "fat harness" that gave him big breasts. "[Bodybuilders] call them 'bitch tits,'" author Palahniuk explains, "because the hang down pointed, like a dog's."

Brad's Outfits

Eight pairs of these faux-1970s maroon polyester flare-leg pants were made for the fight scenes. Pitt wore them low, giving him "plumber's butt." "It's a recurring feature of his character," says costume designer Michael Kaplan. To get Pitt's eclectic wardrobe right, Kaplan combed through L.A. uniform shops (found: postman trousers) , thrift shopts (found: an old Hustler shirt), and vintage stores in Palm Springs (found: '70s patent-leather Gucci loafers). The crew called Pitts clothes "The Tyler Collection," and presented the star with a J. Crew-style catalog filled with his different looks.

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