Thursday, May 13, 2010

The September Issue

So...FINALLY I sat down and watched The September Issue! Sheessh! Took me long enough - again, first heard this buzz while at the Sundance 09 Film Festival. Every screening while in Park City was sold out and  (gasp!) Anna Wintour even made an appearance at some of the screenings.


{Side Note: For those of you who don't know who Anna Wintour is, she is the Editor-in-Chief of Vogue, and allegedly the inspiration for the villian character Meryl Streep plays in the movie, The Devil Wears Prada}

Anna is notorious for her skinny frame, perfect bob, chic clothes, and large frame sunglasses. Most recently, a la 2010 - she asked Lady Gaga to perform at the Annual MET extravaganza in New York, however in her invite to Gaga she requested Lady Gaga not "swear so much." Ultimately, she's (Anna) a perfectionist, whose seen as a bitch and really doesn't care either way. She wants the product to speak for itself - and every September it does.

Upon relsease, the press ate up this documentary. Four stars here, two thumbs up there, it traveled the film festival circuit and even landed on DVR's across the United States. It's a real behind the scenes look of the hours, costume changes, edits, cat fights, and power struggles that go into getting the September issue of Vogue magazine or the "fashion bible" as it's been dubbed ever year. (840 pages and nearly five pounds of fashion, glamour, celebrities, and blood, sweat, and tears.) R.J. Cutler, the films director was granted unprecidented access to Vouge's team in the months leading up to the September issue release.

For twenty years, Anna has been the Editor-In-Chief and driving force behind the magazine and its success. Matching her tenure, is Creative Director, Grace Coddington. In my humble opinion, Grace is the films, heroine. A former model, Grace allows viewers to see the fashion world through her eyes, the 'magic' and 'wonder' that surrounds the business trips to Paris, the photoshoots at 3 in the morning, and the down-to-the-wire changes that go into making each issue seamless. The push pull-relationship between Anna and Grace is cinematic genius! Anna may be the face of Vogue, but for me Grace is the passion.

Regardless if you're a fashionmonger or not - The September Issue is cinematically stunning and definitely worth an hour and half of your time.