In September 2013, Fendi released a scary movie in place of a conventional campaign video. Invito Pericoloso is a seven-minute short directed by Karl Lagerfeld. It starred Cara Delevingne, Saskia De Brauw and Lady Amanda Harlech.
Its title translates as “Perilous Invitation”. The film supported the house’s Autumn Winter 2013-2014 campaign and was released on Fendi.com, with Singapore’s online launch of the film following the brand’s release.
A campaign dressed as a thriller
Fashion films were already a familiar way for houses to extend a campaign. Lagerfeld, who designed for Fendi, chose genre filmmaking for this one. Grazia Italia described it as a mysterious, unsettling noir shot in a villa on the outskirts of Rome, with De Brauw and Delevingne alongside Harlech.
The film’s date was announced ahead of its release. It was due to go online on Fendi.com on 12 September 2013, and a teaser appeared in the days before.
Inside the mansion
The premise was simple and borrowed freely from classic horror. Two young women venture into a grand but unkempt mansion after a mysterious host invites them. Familiar figures from the genre turn up, including a suspicious butler and a stern housekeeper. Harlech, Lagerfeld’s long-time collaborator, played the host.
Fendi’s clothes were central to the story. The models wore the house’s looks from head to toe. Lagerfeld also chose the props and furniture for the set himself. The sumptuous furs and red-carpet dresses were set against decaying grandeur. The camera also lingered on accessories, so the film still worked as a showcase for the collection.
The credited cast went beyond the three leads. Video listings of the film also name Sebastien Jondeau and Tonino Berardi in the cast.
The people behind it
Lagerfeld had worked with all three leads before. Harlech has a long association with Lagerfeld, and she also works as a consultant at Fendi. In November 2011 she appeared in his film The Tale of a Fairy.
Delevingne’s link to the designer was longer-standing than the film. Her rise in modelling led to a lasting relationship with Lagerfeld. In 2013 she also took part in Chanel’s “Paris-Édimbourg” show at Linlithgow Palace in Scotland. Her acting career came afterwards. Her film roles include Paper Towns in 2015, Suicide Squad in 2016 and Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets in 2017.
De Brauw shared the lead with Delevingne. Reviewers at the time noted the pairing of the two models as the film’s central duo. One fashion site described them as models who find themselves in a very creepy mansion with Harlech as host.
Where it came from
The film belonged to a season in which Fendi looked to dramatic fur and richly worked clothes. A short film let Lagerfeld show those pieces moving through rooms and corridors, rather than posed in a studio. It also let him play with a genre he clearly enjoyed.
The release timing, in early autumn, suited the theme. Halloween was only weeks away when the film appeared. The story held back its ending, and the film’s last minutes were left for viewers to discover on screen.
For the current catalogue and the brand’s own channels, Fendi’s official website is the place to look.