Zoolander
If there is such a thing as an island of tranquility in the ocean of diarrhea that passes for Hollywood comedy these days, it may very well be Ben Stiller, whom as a writer, director, and actor consistently comes up with funny, engaging material that many of his peers can only hope to aspire to. Thus was the case with this 2001 effort, released shortly after 9/11 (and ironically getting criticized by the pro-Al Queda crowd as exemplifying âeverything they hate about usâ when obviously they didnât get the joke) and starring Stiller as a shallow, vacuous, dim-witted male model who unknowingly gets recruited and brainwashed by an evil fashion designer (Will Ferrell going WAY over the top as usual) into assassinating a Malaysian Prime Minister looking to do away with child labor practices and raise wages for clothing manufactured in the sweatshops in his country that would naturally decrease profits for the fashion industry. Not being familiar with the modeling scene that the movie lampoons (and thus the in-jokes), this viewer instead settles for the smartly written script that does so well at portraying really dumb people, not to mention a virtual cornucopia of a soundtrack featuring a number of 80s songs that were probably used because they epitomized the sometimes materialistic nature of the era. Couple this with smart casting that also includes Owen Wilson (second to none when it comes to playing an airhead anyway) as the male model rival of Zoolanderâs who ultimately teams up with him; Christine Taylor (otherwise known as Stillerâs wife) as the perky reporter that gets caught up in the mess; Milla Jovovich as the evil Eastern European dominatrix type who assists Ferrell in his scheme; Benâs dad Jerry Stiller as the sleazy modelâs agent who helps set Zoolander up for his fall; and best of all Jon Voight in the all too brief role of Zoolanderâs coal miner father who is disgusted with the path his son has chosen in life, complete with an hilarious grimace he wears on his face during his screen time (plus you havenât lived until youâve seen an Oscar winner deliver the line, âDerek, Iâm a coal miner, not a professional film and television actor.â). In addition, the film features literally dozens of cameos ranging from Donald Trump to Fabio to Garry Shandling to David Bowie plus many, many more (including a few surprises), which indicates that Stiller obviously has a LOT of friends in Tinseltown who would head over to his set on a momentâs notice. While it may be true that not every bit works to perfection and the main characters are obviously not all that likable and easy to root for, the sense that Stiller is succeeding in skewering our image-obsessed culture (which has just gotten worse in the years since) is readily apparent, and while itâs not among the best comedies ever, itâs among the best to come out of the creative deficiency that Hollywood has become in recent yearsâŚ
8/10