djderka Am I the only one that agrees with Tessa 11. This clunker has all the earmarks of R.J. Cutler being 'paid' to make a corporate video for Vogue...for about $500 including meals. Why $500? Well, take about 20 miniDV tapes at $5 each. That's $100. Then add about $400 for food for a week in NYC. Presto: Boring video about fashion world.Was this film in the..the theaters? IMDb says it made money. Wow! I thought it was a Lifetime video when I got it for free from our local library. Were patrons able to get a refund on their tickets?Make no mistake. I love beautiful girls. I love great fashion. I have several Polo shirts and shorts.The only fashion in this diatribe is the few runway shots, and quick two second glimpses of models blow drying their hair. There was a quick 1 second shot of Anna as a 21 yr old as a babe with the oh-so-chic black page boy with bangs. OK, she was hot back then.R.J tries to be the next Fred Wiseman, but falls way, way short as his forte seems to be those bogus 'reality shows' for cable and offers not much in behind the scenes here, giving the film a 'corporate video' look and feel.With no voice over to guide the viewer, this video seems to follow dowagers and former fashionistas through hallways and into limos, and with a few inane conversations with co-workers. Is that all they do is walk down hallways and look at light boxes with slides on them? Oh, once in awhile they open their lipstick lips to utter nonsense about the 'fabulous' September phone book size issue of Vogue. Was that big redhead a former UFC cage fighter. One wonders.The only 'exposure' of the fashion world was something everyone knew. No one wears those clothes except for a few fashion mavens that appear in the back pages of the NYT when they are photographed by Bill Cunningham at social events in faux haute couture clothing.And we all know that those fabulous models can hardly wait to get home slip out of those 4" heels and skin tight pencil skirts or fu fu skirts and throw on a t-short and shorts, and tennis shoes.The viewer would find much more excitement in watching Real Housewives of Miami and pondering whether the "wives" are going to get drunk on Vodka or Scotch and if they will get their french nails done in time for weekly Saturday party. OMG, will they be able to do it in time. Hey get R.J. on this we need a corporate video here.

jumpdogjump The documentary itself was great in many ways- the story-telling, film, interviews and insights about the nature of the relationships between each person involved with the production of the magazine issue. I was most struck by Anna W...walking from place to place, person to person with a constant 'puss' on her face. Always ready to dish out demeaning and cutting remarks. The first shot of the film was a surprise to me, I was not aware of Anna before this film, and when I heard this woman speak her ideas, I immediately thought this person is totally clueless about her class and about the distorted view of the world she had. As the film went on, it became noticeable that the majority of the people she interacts with are white people, rich white people. I also observed the sheer amount of power she has.This is not feminism folks, this is a woman who assumed the role of her past male predecessor, and combined them with her own seeming delusions of being royalty- the Folie of this delusion is that *everyone* helps make it happen by kissing her ass:they defer, they submit. This woman is exactly what is wrong with how people use their power. Her use of power appears to be based in supporting exclusivity, inequality and exploitation. To see her complete clueless-ness about people who live outside of her vacuum of sycophantic/terrified underlings. I felt turned off completely by this documentary- the entitlement, the implied nepotism (wants daughter in the industry), the seriousness given to the issue of fashion and the denial of the 'real' world outside of the fashion bubble. This doc to me, exposed a superficial world that is characterized by some of the ugliest uses of power, amazing disrespect and dis-ingenuity.

Jim Beller My fashionable daughter insisted that my wife and I watch this movie. I liked it very much even though I am not into fashion. I think the movie gave some interesting insights into Vogue magazine and the power it wields.However, my reaction to Anna Wintour, the Editor in Chief, and Grace Coddington, Vogue's Creative Director is what reinforced in me a conclusion that I became aware of years before. Anna Wintour, who most would say is very good looking, came off as very cold and distant and not especially likable. Grace Coddington on the other hand, who is eight years older and does very little to enhance her looks, especially with her hair, came off as smart, honest, thoughtful and very likable. By the conclusion of the movie, I found Grace Coddington to be by far the better looking of the two. The reason is that she had an inner beauty that shined through while, in my opinion, Anna did not.I learned at an early age that your conception of looks and beauty of a person can change greatly when you get to know that person.

Peter Kowalski I was interested in this movie for two reasons: one, because I love fashion and everything it stands for, and two, because I wanted to see Anna Wintour's persona in a movie other than The Devil Wears Prada, which, I suspected, might have painted her a little bit darker than she really is.The movie is not disappointing. It a great documentary, with lots of great music. You have a feeling that it shows the industry for what it really is: it doesn't add and it doesn't remove anything. If it's really that close to the truth, only people from the industry can tell.The movie doesn't have a specific plot -since it's a documentary- but it focuses around the process of putting together the September issue of Vogue. A lot of staff is shown, in their daily habitat, in between clothes, photographers, make-up flying everywhere. They're not shown as people who are too sure about their jobs: they love them, of course, but there is a lot of insecurity in their actions. What I really enjoyed about the movie was its lightness. Wintour is depicted as a delightful, professional person, rather quiet, not too bitchy, not too shy. She definitely knows what she wants: she points shots that need to be removed from the photoshoot, she vetoes decisions stylists around her make, and she just goes forward with a great deal of sureness and confidence. That confidence adds a lot of comfort to the movie, and isn't cold at the same time.Overall, the movie will be probably raved about mostly by fashion addicts like myself. It's not a necessary position to have or to watch, but its certain wisdom makes the experience enjoyable, and for that, I truly recommend it.