Best & worst dressed celebs at the Met Gala 2018

There is no grander night for the denizens of the fashion world than the annual Met Gala, the quintessential showcase of who’s who (and who’s wearing who, and to what effect).

From a strictly sartorial perspective, the Metropolitan Museum of Art fixture is notable because it empowers prominent designers to blur the lines between costume and couture. But, for the vast majority of us onlookers, the real allure of the evening stems from the celebrity guest-list, and the drama it invariably attracts.

In spite of the fact that the devil wears Prada, this year’s theme was "Heavenly Bodies: Fashion and the Catholic Imagination". It’s a motif that calls for re-imagined Madonnas and gilded laurels. 

Here’s our take on the best and the worst of last night’s fashion:

BEST DRESSED

KIM KARDASHIAN

Kim Kardashian’s form-fitting Versace gown might not be the most inventive interpretation of "the Catholic imagination", but it definitely does justice to Kim’s heavenly body.

She looks polished and glamorous, while subtly paying tribute to the genre of cross-laden, sex-spangled garb popularized by inimitable ’80s divas (read: Madonna).

RIHANNA

You may the hate pop idol’s idiosyncratic Pope-mod fusion, but the fact of the matter is, this look is already iconic.

Designer Margiela assembled the clerical headgear and the celestial robe, which are undercut by the surprising mini-dress they conceal. The combination makes for an interesting, cheekily irreverent (albeit somewhat literal) statement: fashion is a religion – and Rihanna’s the Pontifex Maximus.

RITA ORA

Rita Ora’s dazzling custom Prada ensemble was regal and feminine.

Unlike some of the more overt Papal renderings, Ora’s sheer, embellished gown and long dark train hinted at the duality and the ethereality of Catholic influences, without outright evoking a cassock. 

WORST DRESSED

AMAL CLOONEY

Weird pants! Floral tinfoil. Not heavenly. Not Catholic? Yawn. The culprit behind the design? Richard Quinn.

KYLIE JENNER

New mama Kylie Jenner looked out-of-place in an uninspired black gown and very cute little gold 'we’re-not-really-glasses-glasses’, which nevertheless bore absolutely no relation to the theme.

The only thing worse than missing the mark at the Met is aiming in the wrong direction.

SHAILENE WOODLEY

Sweet Shailene Woodley in reliable Ralph Lauren was probably trying to do something not unlike what Rihanna managed to pull off. 

That said, it’s hard to see how both she and the house of Lauren failed to notice her uncanny resemblance to the Tin Man. This is so wrong for the red carpet, but so right for the yellow brick road …