Unzipped

Unzipped is about Isaac Mizrahi and the world of fashion. The documentary takes place in New York and is the setting for his 1994 fall collection. Many actors, musicians, and of course, supermodels surround Mizrahi in this film. It's a delightful look at the hectic world that is fashion. This documentary is hard to define it to a singular genre. Some that come to mind are direct cinema, performance films, and biography. The role of the filmmaker is observer/ chronicler. We find out at the end (spoilers!) that his collection was a huge success, but my burning question is whatever happened to him? Well with a little internet help, it was easy to find the answer to that. He's still a gigantic influence to the world of fashion. The visual imagery was perfect for the early 1990's. Except for the actual show itself, the film was shot in black and white. I think it added a different element to it. Making it black and white seemed similar to the streets of New York, sort of an urban decay kind of feel. I think a lot of photographers were shooting in black and white at the time as a throwback to noir films. The theme for this film is fashion. The stakes for this film is what would the movie become had Mizrahi failed at his collection? Would he still be in the fashion world, or shunned away never to work again? The editing style is really smooth. With insert shots of Mizrahi as a child, and black and white shots before the show, and then the show in color, it blends very well. I guess the biggest thought or emotion that I have about this film is that I really want to go to a fashion show. Actually, I just really want to date a model.