Michelle Williams vs. Carey Mulligan: who did the Mia Farrow thing better?

People often confuse Michelle Williams and Carey Mulligan. I get it. They both chopped off their hair around the same time, both can be overly “precious” and too girlish and wispy. Both have sometimes sketchy styles. Both seem obsessed with “the Mia Farrow look” – meaning Mia Farrow’s most identifiable look in the 1970s, circa Rosemary’s Baby – the short hair, the school-girl style. Both Carey and Michelle are talented actresses with Oscar nominations under their belts, and their pick amongst the independent-film scripts (I actually think Carey is more mainstream than Michelle, though). And Carey and Michelle actually do look rather similar, although I would describe Carey as more “elfin” and Michelle as more standard-issue “pretty”.

But there are significant differences – one is British and one sometimes speaks in a hokey fake accent in interviews. One is moving past the Mia Farrow look and one isn’t. And… that’s about it, as far as superficial differences go. In any case, Michelle and Carey were both at last night’s Hollywood Film Awards. Both had short blonde hair. Both wore dark dresses (Michelle‘s is technically navy, but looks black in many photos). Both were promoting films that will likely be up for awards this year, and both received awards at the ceremony (Michelle for My Week With Marilyn, and Carey for Shame). And on and on…

Michelle must have gotten Stacy Keibler’s memo about sheer skirts, because Michelle wore this Nina Ricci gown that actually seemed uncharacteristically “sexy”. Usually Michelle hates to show off her figure. I don’t particularly like the gown, but I like that Michelle is trying to mix it up. I absolutely hate Michelle’s current cropped haircut, though.

Meanwhile, Carey Mulligan wore this black Bottega Veneta. If I’m doing a comparison with Michelle’s Nina Ricci, I like Carey’s so much better. I just think it’s a cute dress, appropriate for her age, and it’s sexy without being over the top. I like Carey’s current hair too – but I hate her makeup job here. The eyes are too dark and the lip is too nude.

Photos courtesy of WENN.

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