Zoolander (2001) 2 1/2 stars out of 4. Starring Ben Stiller, Owen Wilson, Will Ferrell, Christine Taylor, Milla Jovovich, Jerry Stiller and Jon Voight. Story by Drake Sather and Ben Stiller. Screenplay by Drake Sather & Ben Stiller and John Hamburg. Directed by Ben Stiller. Approx. 100 minutes. Rated PG-13. Zoolander is stupid fun - emphasis on stupid - with only a couple of missteps that mar its overall enjoyment.
The movie, co-produced, co-written, directed by and starring Ben Stiller, is nothing more than a satirical jab at the fashion industry and the perception of male models as dim-witted, self-obsessed dolts who are pliable and easily manipulated. It almost seems like a redundancy.
It doesn't sound like much, and nor does it seem like it takes much effort to skewer male models. After all, Fabio does it all the time just by being himself.
Zoolander's plot, unfortunately, is in bad taste, considering today's political climate. It revolves around a cartel of designers wanting the new prime minister of Malaysia assassinated because he is vowing to raise the wages of his countrymen who slave in the sweatshops run by said same designers.
It would have been less objectionable if a real nation had not been used and the assassination plot had been altered to perhaps merely overthrowing the leader.
The second misstep revolves around a sequence featuring three of Zoolander's male model friends who it seems are so dumb that at a gas station they spray each other with gasoline from the pumps. One is stupid enough to try lighting a cigarette, thus blowing them all to smithereens. Recent events speak for themselves as to why this scene should have been deleted.
And, yes, in fairness, people at the preview screening howled, thinking it was hilarious. But there may be some in the audience - myself included - whose sensitivities may preclude them from seeing the humor in such a situation.
But we cannot toss out the entire barrel because a couple of the apples are rotten.
In truth, Zoolander is pure silliness, a no-brainer, just-sit-back-and-laugh feature.
The plot is simple. Since male models are easy to control one must be brainwashed - or in this case given a light rinse - to carry out the diabolical plot. And who is the most vacuous model around, why three-time model of the year, Derek Zoolander master of the "blue-steel" look.
Stiller captures the walk and talk - as well as the look - of the male model. He snaps his head, raises an eyebrow, furrows his brow in incomprehension with comical ease.
His Zoolander is a man-child, as dense as an Adirondack forest. When his reporter girlfriend, Matilda (woodenly played by Stiller's wife, Christine Taylor) tells Zoolander and his main rival, Hansel (Owen Wilson), that she was once bulimic, Zoolander looks at her in awe and says, "You can read minds?"
That's about the level of the movie's humor.
A "walk-off" between Zoolander and Hansel, judged by David Bowie, is one of the film's more inventive sequences, as is a scene in which former X-Files star David Duchovny shows up as a conspiracy theorist who explains to Zoolander and Matilda how all the political assassinations of the past 200 years have been carried out by male models.
Wilson walks away with the film as the laid-back Hansel, who shifts from Zoolander's main rival to ally in his attempt to halt the assassination plot. With his long blonde locks and outlandish outfits, he makes a charming blockhead.
The movie's main villain, Mugatu, is portrayed by Saturday Night Live's Will Ferrell who has yet to find a film role that truly exploits his talents. Here, he is reduced to merely yelling and mugging, while wearing ridiculous outfits with a crop of white hair that looks like it was borrowed from the Three Stooges' Larry Fine.
At least Stiller made the film a family affair, giving his mom, Anne Meara, the small role of a protester, while his dad, Jerry Stiller, plays Zoolander's agent.
Zoolander has its shortcomings. It is definitely not sophisticated humor, but it does provide several laughs. And you will never be able to look at a model again without wondering how akin he is to Derek Zoolander.
Bob Bloom is the film critic at the Journal and Courier in Lafayette, IN. He can be reached by e-mail at bloom@journal-courier.com or at bobbloom@iquest.net. Other reviews by Bloom can be found by going to www.jconline.com and clicking on golafayette. Bloom's reviews also can be found on the Web at the Internet Movie Database: http://www.imdb.com/M/reviews_by?Bob+Bloom
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