Overall Rating
  Awesome: 44.95%
Worth A Look: 19.7%
Average: 5.56%
Pretty Bad: 7.58%
Total Crap: 22.22%
11 reviews, 132 user ratings
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| Zoolander |
by Scott Weinberg
"Subtly smart, ridiculously silly and very entertaining."
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With equal portions of scathing satire and slapstick silliness, Zoolander is a clever and funny treat. Boasting an ensemble of strong comedians and an "anything for a laugh" attitude, this is one of the smartest "dumb" movies to come along in years. But like Stiller's earlier films, this one may also prove to be an "acquired taste".In satire, half the battle is picking the right target. With Zoolander, Ben Stiller nails the male modeling industry right on its gel-covered head and a half-dozen other irritating conventions to boot. Delivered in a joyously empty-headed and colorful package, Zoolander ranks among the funnier films of 2001. Despite a few slow spots and a handful of pretty awful punch lines, Stiller's movie is a consistently goofy and wild ride.
Derek Zoolander is the world's most popular (and vacuous) male model. His pinched-up visage is plastered on every billboard and TV screen around the world. Although he's been at the top of the modeling game for years, Derek now has some real competition in the up-and-coming Hansel. After failing to win his fourth consecutive Male Model of the Year Award, Derek quits the runway game and heads back home to visit his coal-mining Pa. (Jon Voight contributes greatly to this minor subplot.)
After proving to be a pretty awful coal miner, Derek gets back into the modeling game with the help of the devious fashion designer Mugatu. As if this manic farce wasn't already enjoyably plot-heavy enough, we also learn that the male modeling business has long been a front for the world's most infamous assassinations. Mugatu is intent on keeping this trend alive as he goes about brainwashing Derek to kill the president of Malaysia. (Don't ask.)
As an actor, Ben Stiller (Meet the Parents) infuses Zoolander with an overpowering air of vanity and likeable stupidity. If Zoolander isn't necessarily the funniest character in the film, that's because Stiller wisely chose some truly funny people to play the supporting roles. As Hansel, Owen Wilson (Shanghai Noon) is a perfect adversary. He taunts and sneers and whines and irritates to a delirious degree, and Wilson is a breath of fresh air every time he's onscreen. As the evil Mugatu, Will Ferrell (The Ladies Man) simply steals scenes whole with his wonderfully over-the-top performance, and offers most of the movie's best gags.
Other players worth mentioning include Christine Taylor (The Brady Bunch Movie, Mrs. Ben Stiller) as an intrepid reporter for Time Magazine, Jerry Stiller (Hairspray, Ben Stiller's Dad) as a duplicitous modeling agent with a prostate problem and Milla Jovovich (Dazed and Confused) as Mugatu's right-hand assassin, a sexy Russian femme fatale. Also keep an eye out for some small yet amusing cameos from the likes of Andy Dick, Billy Zane, David Duchovny, David Bowie, Vince Vaughn and even Ben Stiller's Ma, Anne Meara.
A movie has to be somewhat smart to be so successfully silly, and Zoolander is a comedy that nails its targets with impressive regularity. Not content with only skewering the male model biz, Zoolander also offers some sly references to movies like The Manchurian Candidate, The Godfather, 2001: A Space Odyssey and The Jazz Singer. Most of the biggest laughs come from Derek's work, most notably an inspired compilation of his commercials, a brilliantly unpredictable gas station musical number, and his television appearance as a 'MerMan'.
I'm looking forward to the day when Derek Zoolander (the model) and Austin Powers (the photographer) can work together.Much of Zoolander's appeal will rest solely on two things: How much you like Ben Stiller and how irritated you are by models in general. As a director, Stiller seems to keep improving. Both of his earlier efforts (Reality Bites and The Cable Guy) were fairly underrated movies that failed to find an audience. The third time around, Stiller shows a knack for broad punch lines, quick pacing and a sleek, colorful presentation.
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link directly to this review at http://efilmcritic.com/review.php?movie=5243&reviewer=128
originally posted: 10/16/01 08:12:05
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USA
28-Sep-2001 (PG-13)
UK
N/A
Australia
01-Nov-2001
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