ZOOLANDER
Rated PG-13 for language and some sexual humor
Starring Ben Stiller, Owen Wilson, Will Ferrell

CineSight Rating

ZOOLANDER to some degree suffers the same fate as other movies derived from TV skits; it is always a real stretch to make a 5-minute gag last for 90 minutes. However, since the gag belongs to Ben Stiller (MYSTERY MEN) there is hope. Stiller originally conceived the character of male supermodel Derek Zoolander for the VH-1 Fashion Awards show a couple of years ago. Now he writes, directs and stars as the title character.

Zoolander is on top, having won best male model for three years in a row. He has pioneered a string of copyrighted looks: Le Tigre, Ferrari and his best known, Blue Steel (which are all the same expression - wide-eyed and clueless). But suddenly he is eclipsed by hot new surfer dude Hansel (Wilson). Zoolander doesn't handle defeat well. Not even his modelling buddies can lift his spirits. After a tragic gasoline accident, he decides to head home to his mining family in New Jersey, and turn his back on modelling. He soon discovers that he doesn't fit into the tough, grimy mining community, and is a constant embarrassment to his father (a fun cameo by Jon Voight).

However, evil clothing designer Mugatu (Ferrell) has plans for Derek. He lures him back to model his new hobo line called 'Derelicte', but in reality Mugatu is preparing him to become a political assassin. Will Zoolander be able to overcome the plot and foil the assassination? Will he beat out Hansel and again become top dog? Will he ever get a clue?

ZOOLANDER is basically a one gag movie, centering on the vain, self-obsessed modelling world. The fun thing about it is that real models and celebrities aren't shy about making fun of the whole profession. Even Fabio makes a cameo as the recipient of the coveted Slashie Award (for actor-slash-models). As a writer, Stiller isn't able to keep the gags coming continually, but he injects enough funny moments to sustain us through the banal assassination plot. The movie does have its moments - a catwalk walk-off between Zoolander and Hansel reminiscent of a thousand wild west duels; a ranting Zoolander, complaining about the tiny size of a 'Center for Children Who Can't Read Good' when he's shown a model of the building; trying to figure out how to extract files from a computer... Unfortunately the whole movie is something less than the sum of its parts. Pity. It would have been interesting to see Stiller develop the modelling idea with someone like Christopher Guest, and do the whole thing documentary style a la THIS IS SPINAL TAP or WAITING FOR GUFFMAN. That way he could have kept all the great moments and ejected the tedious storyline.