‘Man’s Man’ Harry Styles Explores Traditional Masculinity For Dunkirk, Louis Tomlinson’s Sass Finds New Expression


Harry Styles continues to get into character for his role as a soldier in Christopher Nolan’s Dunkirk, and Louis Tomlinson’s war with intrusive paparazzi in Los Angeles rages on this week.

Harry Styles is known for his progressive political views, particularly on the issues of gay rights and women’s rights. Harry is a supporter of the He for She movement and has in the past declared “I lean to the left,” reports Sugarscape.

“I’m a Labour supporter, I lean to the left. I’m for the people.”

Last year when the US Supreme Court made the historic ruling that same-sex marriages are now legal, Harry Styles tweeted his support, reports Unreality TV.

One Direction singer Harry Styles took to Twitter and Instagram to show his support, writing, “Huge day for America.. Happy to see the news. All the love.”

Harry’s rejection of many aspects of traditional masculinity is obvious in his look and style choices. The left-leaning New Statesmanpraised Styles for dressing outside the gender binary, declaring “finally, a mainstream risk-taker in men’s fashion.”

Male fashion at music awards basically subscribes to two tried-and-tested models: the traditional suit [or] the dressed-down rebel who wears jeans because he doesn’t play by your rules… Harry Styles punctures these two acceptable modes of masculinity, a breath of fresh air in a sea of boring male fashion choices… Styles has become increasingly adventurous, and less traditionally masculine, in his choices.

Harry Styles may not be the most androgynous or sartorially experimental man in music, but his unquestioned status as a mainstream teen heartthrob makes the deliberate blurring of gender boundaries all the more radical.

Harry is a truly a man of 2016, and a super-famous person in an era when event photographs can be flashed around the world in a matter of minutes via social media. Harry has become very good at staying calm, presenting himself amazingly well, and striking super-sexy poses.

Remember this doozie from the One Direction guys’ appearance on James Corden’s Late Late Show?

Now that Harry has been cast in Christopher Nolan’s Dunkirk, the most photographed man in the world will need to unlearn all of that. Harry has gotten used to presenting himself in a fresh-faced way that looks great on the cover of Tiger Beat, and in a refined fashion befitting a kindly, left-wing progressive, but in Dunkirk he will have to capture the spirit and nail the body language of men from a time when women’s and gay rights had not yet made inroads, and no-one had ever heard of a selfie.

There are already signs that Harry is getting into character. You can see in recent exercise photographs of Harry that his expressions are rawer and less teen mag-friendly, and his body has bulked up as he prepares to channel the young British soldier.

There are photographs of Harry ripping into a piece of fruit and allowing his handsome face to contort in ways that definitely channel a time when most men wouldn’t be caught dead preening and posing. The 1940s was a period when masculinity was still associated with grit, steely resolve and aggression, and when these traits were indeed required, as the men of Britain pulled together to battle against Hitler’s Nazi Germany.

There is a well-known photograph of a couple of Dunkirk men biting into some fruit. Could super-talented Harry Styles have come across it as he did his research for the role?

Harry may be able to draw on his teenage experiences as he gets into character. Styles’ former stepdad, John Cox, has come forward saying that Harry seemed like a “man’s man” when they lived together and that Harry loved sport and enjoyed living in a pub, reports J-14.

“I fell madly in love with [Harry’s mum] Anne, she got me. I was a dad to Harry for six years and brought him up in his important years. Harry loved living in a pub and he was the centre of attention.

“He was really lively and would run around the pub, with all the customers fussing over him…He was a man’s man if you know what I mean, he liked his sport and football. I took him to play football on Sundays. He was rubbish, though. That’s why I told him to become a singer.”

In other One Direction news, Harry’s bandmate Louis Tomlinson has made a splash by pinching a paparazzo’s phone and handing it to some people in a car!

Check out the video of Louis with his assistant Oli. The friends were trying to buy a video game when Louis lashed out good-naturedly at the pap who was tagging along on their trip.

[Photo by Carlos Alvarez/Stringer/Getty Images]

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