Review of The September Issue (2009) by Robert T — 27 Feb 2010

Ha! Didn't think I would watch a documentary about fashion, now did you? Anna Wintour's considerable fame/infamy/god-like status in the field of skeleton-esque girls wearing the most impractical garments imaginable got me intrigued enough to check this film out. Bring on the goose feathers!

Okay, this is how not to make a good documentary. There is nothing compelling in this one. The movie is basically a collection of short, unrelated scenes of Anna doing something very uninteresting, like watching photographs. Then she watches clothes, and then more photographs. Awesome!

Almost as much screen time is afforded to Grace, whose title I forgot already, who is also very high in the pecking order at Vogue. The filmmakers probably realized that she is a much more interesting person than Anna. I would go as far as saying that, based on this documentary, she should probably be the head editor. Also, she has feelings. Pretty useful things, those.

This film actually diluted the legend of Anna Wintour for me. She knows what she wants, sure, but she doesn't seem to think things through very much. And in one interview it seemed like she was almost embarrassed of her job. "My brothers and sisters are amused by what I do". Cue awkward smile. What the hell?

But holy shit does Anna have a big house! How much room can a human need? The garden alone is probably the size of a small nation. The egos on these people...

It's a wonder they get any work done in the magazine, as everyone seems to disagree on everything all the time. And the work itself was some pretty cold shit at times. I had to roll my eyes when they started counting the fillings on Sienna Miller's teeth. Retouch! Hmmm... Her neck isn't quite right. Retouch! The cameraman has a pot belly. You guessed it, retouch! Grace vetoed that last one though, bless her soul. She actually thinks people who are not models can look like normal people.

An altogether unnecessary entry in the field of documentaries. One thing left me baffled though. What on earth is color blocking?