Socks on Fire is an interesting documentary. It makes use of old home movies, interviews and recreates staged events with famous actors to tell its tale. It does cut fast at times, but all the time it is done deliberately, to impart a disorienting atmosphere. The newer footage, and the interviews, are quite well filmed.
We are introduced to the unlikely hero of the film, who happens to be a sewer-turned-entrepreneur who finds himself in charge of designing socks for the very first time. He and his partner embark on a crazy adventure that sees them cross country, visit the Fashion Institute of America, get arrested, escape to Mexico and come back with a brand new motto: “When you’re out of ideas, go to Socks on Fire.” Yes, this man and his partner’s business ventures are about to become the talk of the town. They even manage to get some negative press from a clothing manufacturer who thinks they are onto something big when it comes to men’s socks.
When the pair finally get their big break, it seems like fate has smiled down on Socks on Fire. They hit the big time, and the rest, as they say, is history. The movie makes an excellent case study on how fashion should not be left to the fashion hounds and the runway. Fashion is something anyone can get involved in, regardless of age or background. Everyone should be able to wear fashion and have their say, whether it is loud and abrasive or sweet and sassy.