Among the most striking things about Black Adam are the costumes. They are precise without being silly, but colorful without sacrificing seriousness. Against the film’s brown tones, elements such as Doctor Fate’s blue and gold cape and Black Adam’s yellow and black chest emblem stand out on screen. But nobody looks as fabulous or unique as Quintessa Swindell’s Cyclone.
“For me too”, the euphoria The actor told Polygon via Zoom: “[someone who’s] really into comics, superhero movies and seeing what people are doing to change the genre – everyone on this team, literally everyone, just made it really special.”
The wind-wielding Cyclone – also known as Maxine Hunkel – is far from the most famous character in DC Comics Black Adam, but she pedals onto screen as the best-dressed of them all, from her striped stockings to her monkey backpack. Then she takes it a step further in her superhero costume: iridescent greens on purple, loose hair, puffed shoulders, sheer skirts, and again those very witchy striped leggings.
:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24129156/IMG_4CA5A375EF3B_1.jpeg)
Image: Matthew Sturges, Freddie Williams II/DC Comics
The entire ensemble is based on the Cyclone comic appearance – a loose green tunic dress and The Wizard of Oz– reminiscent of red and white striped stockings, not to mention the occasional pointy witch hat and pet monkey in a vest. (After all, she is does have the power to summon Twister.)
According to Swindell, the comic book canon was filtered through the costume design team Kurt and Bart – whose pedigree in fantastic cinema costumes spans the last two Hunger Games films, dead pool 2and the lavish first episode of Apple TV Foundation, endowment Series. Swindell also had a lot of influence on the process.
“What makes this film so special is that everyone was so collaborative and interested in my ideas,” said Swindell. “I’ve been looking at a lot of comics trying to gather as much as I can, and when I went to see Kurt and Bart, our costume designers, all I thought was, what if we do Thiswhat if we do Thishow can we do This Work? The hair and the powers and the costume all flow together. It really had to be a symbiotic team effort. We were just so lucky that everyone was so willing to play and create something special and unique. […] [Director Jaume Collet-Serra] was so excited to make Cyclone dance too.”
And boy, dance Cyclone. Black AdamThe visual effect of her wind powers, a mix of CGI effects and wirework, has Swindell floating through the air like an otter, twisting and squirming like a Cirque du Soleil performance, while her skirt and hair swirl magnificently around her. Along with Swindell’s charisma, the little-known superhero is a real highlight of an otherwise anything but exemplary flick.
