Director: R.J. Cutler
Year Released: 2009
Rating: 2.0
"Inside peek" at the construction of Vogue's monstrous September issue, widely regarded as the year's most important release as it (a.) sells a ton of ad space and (b.) sets fashion trends for the following months, when housewives apparently shake off their Summer funk and realize they need a coat that costs as much as a Honda Civic. The chief 'conflict' - if you can even call it that - is between big mahoff Anna Wintour and artistically gifted creative director Grace Coddington as they bicker over how photos look and where they're placed in the magazine itself - eventually they come to an agreement, Wintour calls her cohort a genius and all is (temporarily) peaceful in Diva Land. Says considerably less about the function, construction and artistry of fashion - and rather evasive on the politics of it - than the superior documentary about Valentino by Matt Tyrnauer - this just manages to show Wintour as a stubborn workaholic instead of a cruel tyrant (take that, Lauren Weisberger). Though I can't comment on Wintour's taste (I know little about women's clothing except that I want to take it off many of them), there's something to be said about someone who isn't afraid to be critical, to have strong opinions and to believe in one's judgment (and be successful at it): to quote John Simon, "criticism is not meant to be the Red Cross or the Salvation Army."
