House of Gucci was always going to stoke controversy. The new film charts the fall of the family behind the Italian fashion house. Its A-list cast is headed by Lady Gaga as Patricia Reggiani, who in 1995 hired an assassin to kill her ex-husband Maurizio Gucci.

Its reception has been as explosive as the film itself. Sight and Sound called it "a tragic-comic triumph". The Gucci family called it "painful and insulting". Designer Tom FordFord, who became creative director of Gucci in 1994, is depicted in the film by American actor Reeve Carney. said it made him "laugh out loud".

One thing everyone seems to agree on is Gaga's "mesmerising performance", as well as her fabulous garments, both on-screen and off.

The pop star-turned-actor has always been known for her outlandish outfits, from a tentacled headpiece to a dress made of raw meat. But House of Gucci has confirmed her as, in journalist Karen Dacre's words: "the most powerful woman in fashion."

For followers of fashion, this makes Gaga incredibly important. Fashion makes the world more beautiful. Designer Vivienne Westwood has called it "life enhancing". But not everyone agrees. Some see fashion as trivial, wasteful and even immoral. 

Fashion does nothing to reduce the world's ills. It even fuels some of them. The rapA type of music in which the words are spoken rhythmically rather than sung. sheet is long. Clothes account for 8-10% of global carbon emissions and 20% of waste water. From Leicester to Laos, it relies on poorly paid, mistreated workers. And it enforces unrealistic standards of beauty.

High fashion is famously cruel, to both insiders and outsiders. Last year, former journalist Andre Leon Talley described his "huge emotional scarring" after working at Vogue. The late designer Karl Lagerfeld snobbishly attacked  "ugly short men" and "fat mummies".

Yet fashion has held an enduring grip. Ancient Romans used clothes to indicate their social status. In the RenaissanceA period of enormous cultural, artistic and economic growth in Europe, from the 15th to 17th Centuries., fine garments became de rigueurA French phrase meaning "out of strictness". In English, it is used to describe a fashion or behaviour so common in a particular context that it appears to be essential to display wealth and power, and to boost the beauty of their wearers.

The past abounds with people celebrated for their dress sense, from Madame du Pompadour to Beau Brummell(1778 - 1840), close friend of the future English king George IV who introduced tailored suits in dark colours to the English court. He fell out of favour after mocking George's weight, and died impoverished in an asylum. . But it is also the case that many actors in history cared not one stitch for fashion: Napoleon wore a standard military uniform. And some actively rejected it. Gandhi chose to set aside smart suits in favour of the khadiA coarse, handwoven outfit commissioned by Gandhi. His aim was to reject British-style designs and instead wear an entirely Indian outfit. .

For fashion's defenders, however, this is besides the point. In fact, Gandhi's choice shows how important clothes are in shaping our identity. As Vogue editor Anna Wintour says: "fashion is ceaselessly fascinating because it is an expression of self."

Some even see fashion as a form of art. Andy Warhol(1928 - 1987), pioneering American artist. Warhol was a leading figure in pop art, an art movement that embraced popular culture like film, advertisements and fashion. even said "Fashion is more art than art is." Just as a great painting allows us to touch the sublimeOf the greatest excellence and beauty. , the best garments can give aesthetic pleasure. Clothes can turn their wearer into a work of art.

Lady Gaga, who has written two songs called Fashion, agrees: "I love becoming art." But she also sees fashion as something with an emotional impact, "the thing that saved me from being sad." Perhaps appreciating fashion can make us all feel better.

Of course, say some. Clothes allow us to reveal our personality to others. They give us control over how people see us. And they make the world more beautiful to behold. Above all, however, fine garments feel good. Few things are more empowering than walking the streets in a well-chosen outfit.

Not at all, say others. Fashion is shallow and insubstantial, valuing beauty over brains. It is elitist, with luxury garments only available to the richest few. And it is fickle, tossing people aside when they lose their looks. What really matters in life is what people do, rather than how they look.