in Stella

For her first photocall, Cate went bland. "I am a blank slate," this might say. "I am wearing my own flesh tone from head to toe. I am a canvas." That, or, "I told Stella I'd wear her and this is what she sent me, so... but, my word is my bond."

in Armani

THEN Cate re-wore the gown she had on when she won the Globe in 2014, which is a pretty major recycling job. It's not just some dress she wore once that got no attention; it's the dress she gave an acceptance speech in, which will appear in a lot of fashion retrospectives about her. This was, they said, a statement on responsible consumption, and I thought and hoped she was teeing up for an EXTREMELY high-profile Cannes full of her greatest hits. That would have been a magnificent statement, to curate her jury tenure SOLELY from her archive. Reader, she did not.

in Loewe

This was for a Chanel dinner at which almost everyone else wore Chanel. Cate doesn't need rules. Cate sautees rules with garlic and eats them over rice. So she wore someting else entirely: jammies with a blazer-cape. I kind of like it, but the stitching is a little bunchy around her armpits.

in Mary Katrantzou

And THEN, Cate sauntered out in THIS, a color-by-numbers Katrantzou that looked astonishing on the carpet. Fresh off the whole "responsible consumption" thing, it was like, "Okay but sometimes don't we all just want to be SUPER IRREPONSIBLE?!?" However, if you want to wear THAT again, Cate, please be our guest.

I still don't have a credit on this. It's classic Carte Blanchett, I think. Pants that are two different colors should not be a thing, and yet she's there all, "WHYEVER NOT?!?"

in Armani

And then, back to something sedate from the comfy old Armani well. It's... fine. But comparatively it's also a lull.

in Givenchy

This had a wide open back, which was neat. I quite love it, honestly. The surprise and the severity of the inky turtleneck makes the skirt SUCH a standout.

in Iris van Herpen

I wish I couldn't see straight through to her knees, where the lining stops, because that interrupts the illusion of the rest. This is such a creative choice and very funky, from a line few people wear. The bottom is gorgeous. Somthing about this -- and I suspect it's because Jess just watched the movie on the plane, so it's on my moind -- makes me think of if Sally Hawkins' character in The Shape of Water began a transition to being her own fish person. (That is not a spoiler.)

in Givenchy

Back to black next. Now we know Givenchy was in the thick of making Meghan Markle's gown, so maybe all that stuff on her hip was because everyone was in a SUPER bridal mood. It's like they made her an ass veil.

in McQueen

And then, her big finish: I REALLY wish I liked that bodice, but it looks like two red birds who aren't speaking to each other. How much better if it had just been a simple suit with some piping perhaps, and then...

... the big finish. However, I do appreciate the visual language of her putting a bow on Cannes. In the end that's why I decided on the chronology. This is such a clear metaphor that it seemed rude not to give it its due.

Okay, but obviously we were going to spend one more moment with this.

Everything Cate Blanchett Wore at Cannes

Madame President of the Jury had quite a time, sartorially, and hopefully also emotionally.