Carbon Costume

Melanie Cavill (played by Jennifer Connelly) is the Voice of the Train on TNT’s TV reboot of Bong Joon-Ho’s 2013 film Snowpiercer.  Melanie is a cunning and intelligent woman who exerts her will over the passengers of the train by invoking Mr. Wilford’s name.  She is shown throughout the series to be cruel and calculating, capable of making alliances as suits her needs at the time, including an often uneasy back and forth with Andre Layton.  Melanie’s uniform consists of a blue-green skirt suit complete with a Wilford Industry pin and buttons.  During Fight Night on the train, Melanie lets her hair down in a chic black gown.

Curtis Everett (played by Chris Evans) is often cited as the hero of the film Snowpiercer. It’s not a term Curtis would apply to himself, though. Haunted by what it took to survive shortly after the world ended, his every action is motivated by a need to atone. In the end he makes the ultimate sacrifice to save the innocent and end a system of brutal oppression that has spoken broadly to audiences in the years since the movie’s release. Director Bong Joon Ho pulled no punches in crafting the world of Snowpiercer and it shows in the depth and grit the movie submerges viewers in.

The first thing you’ll want to do is use a distressing technique like this one to make sure all your clothes looks dirty. Curtis has been living in a train car with little food and even less water – for drinking let alone bathing – for seventeen years. Washing clothes is not a priority in the tail section.

Once the clothes have been distressed properly you’ll also want to apply some black Duck Tape around the shoulder seam of the wool coat’s right shoulder. The tape is only around the back of the seam, however. A very clear shot of the layout can be seen in the scene where Curtis confronts the guards in the tail section and discovers they have no bullets.

Before doing your cosplay you can also make black cherry Jell-O and use extra pectin make it firm like the food bricks in the movie. Adding in some orange coloring or orange Jell-O might get the color closer to what we seen on-screen.

When you’re ready to put your cosplay together, layer up the tops and then apply the makeup to your face and hands to replicate dirty smudges. Any that gets on the clothes will add to the gritty condition they’re supposed to be in. Keep your hatchet handy and your food bricks ready and you’re ready to go!