As illuminating as it’s totally ravishing, this painterly Disney+ biopic from creators Lourdes Iglesias, Aitor Arregi, Jon Garaño, and Jose Mari Goenaga tracks the titular vogue legend, as embodied by the brooding Alberto San Juan, as he arrives within the French capital from Madrid within the ’30s, decided to make his mark. However, in a panorama dominated by the pared-back class of Chanel (a delightfully venomous Anouk Grinberg) and, later, Dior (a magnanimous Patrice Thibaud), the Spanish revolutionary initially stumbles—and realizes that to be able to stand aside, he should hone his personal signature model and deconstruct the period’s conventional silhouettes to create one thing totally, and thrillingly, new. Watch it for the gorgeous avant-garde costumes, the dreamy-eyed cinematography, and the fascinating insights into the fiercely aggressive world of post-war high fashion.

Methods to watch: US launch date TBA

This equally shiny 10-part Apple TV+ sequence from Todd A. Kessler examines the identical interval, however with a special designer at its heart: Christian Dior, right here performed by a grizzled Ben Mendelsohn, as he popularizes the wasp-waisted, full-skirted “new look,” a logo of Parisian glamour and optimism within the wake of World Conflict II. His rise to prominence, nonetheless, poses a menace to his contemporaries: Cristóbal Balenciaga, Pierre Balmain, and, most importantly, Coco Chanel (Juliette Binoche), whose beforehand undisputed standing as essentially the most influential couturier on the planet was then coming into query. Cue a ruthless battle, that includes a number of different acquainted faces, too, from Glenn Shut within the a part of Carmel Snow, the legendary editor of Harper’s Bazaar, to John Malkovich as designer Lucien Lelong, and Maisie Williams as Catherine Dior, the designer’s sister, a French Resistance fighter who was awarded the Legion of Honour and remained a lifelong muse.