Penelope Cruz was one of my favorite looks of the right. Penelope is always so interesting at the Oscars! I love her. My first thought when I saw her was “Spanish Grace Kelly” – that was definitely her style inspiration, right? I feel like Grace Kelly would have worn this dress, or maybe Grace even DID wear a version of this dress at some point. Plus, the styling and the hairstyle really seemed so Grace Kelly-ish. The hair was my least favorite part though – in motion, her hair looked kind of stiff with bad highlights. But in photos, you can’t really tell. Oh – her long hair was tucked under – that’s why it looks so stiff.
Penelope’s dress is Armani Prive – she has a good relationship with Armani, and I’m guessing they made this especially for her – that’s what she told Tim Gunn anyway: “This is Armani Prive. If you like the dress, it was them, I did nothing. They created this for me… I was blown away by it. It’s one of my favorite dresses that I ever wore.”
I didn’t see any photos of Javier Bardem, her husband. I guess he didn’t come to the Oscars. Too bad – I love when they do a rare event together.
Photos courtesy of WENN.
Oh wow! She looks absolutely amazing.
Her face seems off to me… has she got new veneers? or maybe new cheeks or nose? can’t put the finger on it but she looks different..
I thought the same thing as you, I cant figure out what it is either!!
http://www.popsugar.com/Red-Carpet-Dress-Pictures-Oscars-2012-21931647?slide=115
This picture made me think that she might have new teeth? or cheeks? dunno but she looks different..
for me, she just look much older..
What about her hair? I think it makes her look older… and different
beautiful. my favourite of the night.
I agree, she looked lovely. The dress is beautiful from the color to the neckline to the flow of the skirt. Beautiful, and I agree it was the best dress of the night.
Beautiful and classy, but does anybody else think that she was dressed a bit too matronly for her age? I think it’s the hair. Very grandma-style, IMO.
Agree.
She looks like a well-preserved woman in her mid-fifties, not someone still the sunny side of forty.
The dress IS beautiful, but for Lawd’s sake sort the hair & make-up, luv!!
MTE.
Yep, definitely the grandma hair ruined an otherwise beautiful look. That thin hairline cries out for a style with *gasp* BANGS!
That hairdo is aging her, but maybe she wanted to go for vintage 50’s look
yeah, so naturally stunning…too granny.
I disagree. I think the hairstyle was a breath of fresh air! Yes, it was very different and we associate it with a different time, but I’m so tired of long, flowing hair–the look is so cookie cutter that you can’t tell one actress from the next. This at least showed some creativity and the style looked great on Penelope.
i agree with you and like this hairstyle but one side is shorter and something (too flat ?) and is throwing it off.
Love the dress and the color, but I think she should have mixed it up with the hair a little. It looks too dated.
DOn’t shoot me but… I always hate her style, she’s gorgeous but to me she always picks drab colours and boring old fashioned (not in a good way) dresses…
Boring, matronly and totally ‘toxed (or is it a weird nose job – she looks very different facially). Definitely on my list of worst dressed.
This dress would have looked amazing on a red head.
Agreed.
She and the dress both look boring here.
It’s a shame because she’s a really striking woman imo.
i don’t think she looks botoxed though.
I nodded off when I saw this look… Snore
Cruz got it right. The whole thing was perfect.
Not even close! While again not the worst dressed of the night she is not the best. She looks better here than she did at the Baftas but this dress is just meh. The dress has a pretty color but it is two different wedding dresses put together to make another wedding dress. She needs a pop of color on her face to be less wan looking and the hair makes her look older than she is. Not her best at all.
I fully agree with you once again today. 🙂
While there’s nothing wrong with old-Hollywood inspirations, this colour just does absolutely nothing for her, makes her look bland. And making such a gorgeous waman look bland is quite an accomplishment…
Definitely the dress of the night.
Loved the dress, hated the hair. It’s like she went from sexy siren in previous years to old maid aunt in this one. Yuck.
Yeah, I agree, I loved the dress but the hairstyle was a bit dated.
Don’t like the cut of the waistline, the skirt coming from the hips. A bit ‘meh’. The rest is ok.
Hate the hair and the dress is meh in my book.
I love this dress. The color & cut is sublime. I would have styled her hair differently.
I dislike the way the shoulder straps and the neckline fit. They made her look kind of droopy. The skirt and the fabric is gorgeous though.
It’s quite bland to be honest, but she’s one of the better dressed.
I love this dress so much. The color is amazing.
I think she looks nice. Very elegant.
This woman is ugly. Ugly face, ugly body, ugly voice, ugly talent.
She looks like old Hollywood. I love the dress, though I tend more toward simple and elegant dresses. Add pretty jewelry and shoes to jazz it up. The color looks really pretty on her.
She’s stunning, but it looks like a prom dress to me.
To me she looks stunning, if a bit mature. My first thought when I saw this was “she is one of the few actresses aging gracefully.” But then I remembered, she’s not even that old!
The dress is really pretty, but as soon as she paired it with that hairstyle, it became a bit costume-ish – “I’m going to the Oscars as Grace Kelly!”
I liked her dress. I didn’t like that she did the retro hair as well. It become too “costume-y” for me.
I have never seen Penelope look bad. The dress was even prettier on stage.
Definitely my pick for best dressed. I love the hair as well.
a spanish Grace Kelly (my fav with Emma Stone’s look and for the men,Bale)
Not a great color on her.
So…bride-y!
Granny hair and not her best look
Glad to see I’m not the only one who hated it.
I hated the matronly hair, the droopy-fabric effect around the shoulders, the colour, and the bride-meets-quinceanera look of the dress.
The only positive: at least her ass is not flat, like that other red monstrosity she wore not long ago.
No you’re not the only one who hated it.It was so disappointing to see Armani do that kind of cheap ugly dress after so many amazing avant garde looks coming from Armani Privé during the last years at the Oscars.It didn’t look like Haute couture.
This was hands down my favorite dress of the night. Sophisticated in every way. Great color. Elegant. Chic. Classy. She didn’t have cleavage issues, it fit her perfectly and she wore it well. Amazeballs.
ETA: In that second picture she scarily looks like Brittany Murphy (RIP).
I think she’s so old school beautiful, very classic. Agree with the Grace Kelly comparison. And those diamonds – DAMN!! Way to go girl.
Can’t stand her, I don’t know why everybody says she’s beautiful, ugh.
BUT that dress is absolutely AMAZING.
This is an Oscar dress very elegant and beautiful .
Classy and graceful. Definitely a touch of Grace Kelly in this outfit.
I love her, one of my favourite actresses.
She can do no wrong and she always knocks it out of the park fashion wise.
Best dress of the night. hands down. It was really the only one that struck me as having the ‘drama’ appropriate for the oscars.
She does not look right – was she sick? The color on the dress is not good on her – it washes her out. Also her hair is not good. And finally, why do her boobs stick out like that?
Overall it is a nice dress – just not for her.
Gorgeous!
Great from the neck down, but she is such a butterface! Uck!
The pleats remind me too much of a tennis or cheerleader skirt.
Once again she nails it…not diggin the hair so much but very nice Penne!
Worst Ive seen her look. Matronly dress & hair and blah makeup.
I hate it too but it’s not the worst i’ve seen her look, remember that fugly red dress she wore at the Oscars(last year?).
I don’t like how her boobs are pointing in different directions.
love the dress, not mad keen on the colour, hate the hair
I loved it – the cut and the colour and I thought she looked great in it. I also kinda liked the hair – a bit old fashioned but it worked imo.
I just don’t think anyone can do this without at least looking more like grace kelly. Even then, it’s a little tired.
…she was my fave along with jessica….beautiful and elegant…soft and graceful….perfect for the oscars
viola was too low cut for me, although that green on her was striking…
and cameron and j lo just plain ska.nky
Lovely. Very old school Hollywood.
She looks REALLY old! And where is Javier?
She is one of my worst dressed! She looks old and dated. The color is just blah. Her hair looks grandmother-y. Not a good look. It sucks her sexiness out.
omg, looooove the dress! the color, the cut, the fit. amazing.
Her dress is exquisite! However her hair makes her look like a middle-aged housewife! Keep your locks long Pen, while you’re still young!
Loved the dress and the jewels.
Now the hair was a different story entirely. hated it.
Her mother’s prom dress. Yechh.
Gorgeous understated elegance. Love it.
The woman knows how to dress. She usually nails it. She looks old Hollywood, one of the best dressed of the night.
I thought the dress was beautiful, color a little drab, but very elegant. The jewelry was perfect. Hair, not so much? With the poofy dress I would have gone for a chignon with some soft curls pulled out around her face.
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