The Michigan Daily - Monday, October 9, 1995 - 11A
ac Mzrahl and Cindy Crawford.
thua Rich
FIlm Editor
Despite its racy and rather suggestive
itle "Unzipped" is far from some
upernodel skin-fest movie. We should
xpect such a documentary about people
involved in the fashion industry to depict
em stereotypically: Hordes of narcis-
istic models stage one cat fight after
other; nervous designers constantly
mplain about models and consumers
ho just don't understand them; or pro-
oters and fashion editors who care about
othing except making a buck.
Instead, and much to our pleasant sur-
rise, the people presented in this film
, in fact, generally on theirbest behav-
ior. They are an eccentric lot, neverthe-
ess, who continually entertain us while
howing little effort to do so.
"Unzipped" won the Audience Award
or Documentaries at the 1995 Sundance
Film Festival, and it is well-deserving of
such anaccolade. Renowned fashionpho-
tographer Douglas Keeve directed this
movie and it stands out. This is not
necessarily because this film - shot
mostly in 16mm and in black and white
- is drastically different from other
pieces of non-fiction . It is more due to the
"unzipped," or candid look into the out-
landish nature of its subjects.
The film focuses on popular American
fashion designer and "wonder boy" Isaac
Mizrahi. After receiving moderate re-
views for his Spring 1994 collection,
Mizrahi works diligently to create a pro-
found assortment of clothing and acces-
sories for his Fall 1994 presentation.
Abonafidepopularculture encyclope-
dia, Mizrahireincamatesoldfashion styles
aM those worn by Mary Tyler Moore- of
whom he says: "Between her and Jackie
Kennedy, they shaped this country" -
and Nanook ofthe North. That's right, his
designs use the pass6 styles of an up-
wardly-mobile woman ofthe '70s and an
Eskimoof the '20s. So does he succeed?
"Well,before the show goes on, Mizrahi
meets with such varied personalities as
model Naomi Campbell, wild songstress
Eartha Kitt and fashion editors from all
the tradfe magazines. Most amusing is
seeing all of the top supermodels in the
NEED HELP GET
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Classic Elton John is as fresh and vibrant as ever
By Brian A. Gnatt
Daily Music Editor
After the first note of Elton John's y
voice rang throughout The Palace of
Auburn Hills Friday night, beginning the
first of a two day sold-out stretch at the
arena, it was clear Elton was going to give
his fans a run for their money.
Openingwithhis'80shit"I'mStill Stand-
ing," Elton showed fans he wasn't going to
shove his newer, slower songs down their
throats. It took seven songs before he got to
his '90s repertoire with "The One."
Dressed in a white jacket and pants,
Elton John F
xThe Palaceo
Auburn Hills
October 6, 1995
ook iside
business-Campbell, Kate Moss, Cindy
Crawford and Linda Evangelista (always
with beau Kyle MacLachlan at her side)
--actually moving and talking and show-
ing us that they are, in fact, real people
with real feelings. They are notjust pieces
of meat, they are human beings with
strong wills and many desires.
Mizrahi must satisfy the needs of all
these people before he can think of put-
ting on his show. He seems to do this with
great ease (while under even greaterpres-
sure). Notice his dead-on impressions of
every soul with whom he comes in con-
Unzipped
Directed by Dougla
Keeve, zwith Isaac Mizrah
At the Michigan Theate1
tact. Mizrahi certainly gets business done,
but he enjoys every minute along the way
- and we love watching him work.
It is the unbiased and discreet look into
the world of fashion that is so refreshing
here. So often do documentaries give us
the impression that we are just watching
the subjects perform for the camera, while
not letting us see their real personalities.
"Unzipped" succeeds, thus, because it
gives us such a true glimpse into this
exciting and previouslystereotypedworld.
This is partly due to the frank behavior
of those on screen. Perhaps more impor-
tant, however, is that the filmmaker,
Keeve, and the subject, Mizrahi, were
lovers during filming. While this is not
explicitly mentioned, we get a sense that
the camera, and the man behind it, loves
this adorable fashion designer.
Mizrahi is constantly presented in aposi-
tive manner - especially since there is no
bias concerning his sexuality or religion.
And we feel quite lucky to be able to spend
time with him. This receptive nature of
"Unzipped" makes the film endearing and
memorable. The audience is always a wel-
come guest in Mizrahi's home and work.
We have a chair at his designing table, a seat
inhisphotoshootsandevenabackstagepass
to his exclusive fashion show.
glasses, and his most recent wig, John
started off the show with a bang and kept
his set flying for three hours. Mixing
more recent classics like "Sacrifice" in
with old greats like "Honky Cat" gave the
audience just what they wanted; a look
back on the artist's 28 year career.
From his pasty-white stubby fingers,
John's music flowed almost magically
through his blackbaby grandpiano, where
he sat for the majority of the night. Be-
tweenmaking faces atthecheeringcrowd,
Elton's enthusiasm and excitement shone
through, making it one of the best arena
shqws to hit the area in a while.
Quite surprisingly, the show had more
of the crowd on their feet boogying to the
music than at Tuesday's Palace show of
Nine Inch Nails and David Bowie. It was
even funny to think that the majority of
the 20+ crowd was more into the music
than the teens in black leather had been.
But with dazzling renditions of"Satur-
day Night's Alright (For Fighting)" and
"Rocket Man," John kicked over his
bench and climbed on the piano. In
"Bennie and the Jets" he climbed under
the piano and played his smashing solo to
finish the song on his knees.
Between sips on his Diet Coke can
(c'mon Elton, aren't you making enough
money already?), John belted out classics
like "Someone Save My Life Tonight"
and a phenomenal version of "Don't Let
the Sun Go Down On Me."
Elton did squeeze in new songs, in-
eluding "The Lion King'"s "Can You
Feel the Love Tonight." and the title track
from hislatestalbum,"MadernEngland."
The new songs were great, lacking the
cheese that brings them down as they're
played on the radio over and over again.
After two hours, Elton was still going
strong, and ended up playing thre en-
cores. With his percussionist taking an
outstanding 10 minute solo featuring con-
gas and tmally a giant gong, the tinales
were a great end to a great show.
Squeezing out a few more classicsElton
gotin "Pinball Wizard,"'TheBitch is Back"
and "Your Song" before finishing off his
wonderful set. The show proved that even
with age and softer new material. Elton John
has still got quite a bit of fire left in him.
Challenging and prvocative'Safe' is anydgbut
By Jennifer Petlinski
For the Daily
Someone probably always told you to
never leave home without your Ameri-
can Express card. Or without your lunch.
Or maybe your homework. And don't
forget your oxygen mask. What?!?!?
Bizarre. That has to be the first word to
pop into everyone's mind after seeing
"Safe." With his latest movie, director
Todd Haynes has certainly made his view-
ers think. And our main thought as we
exit the theater. What the hell was that?
Carol White (Julianne Moore) has itall
- a family, an incredible house, glamor-
ous friends, plenty of money and some
pretty serious problems. Exhaust fumes
from other cars make it impossible forher
to breathe; she throws up after smelling
her husband's deodorant; she has sei-
zures after taking-a whiff of bug spray.
Only ten minutes into the movie, we
know that something is very wrong with
Carol White.
She claims she's under a lot of stress.
Yeah right. All she does is go out with her
friends, decorate her house and order her
maid around. Carol's biggest problem
arises when the teal couch she ordered is
delivered in black - until her allergies
Safe-
Directed by Todd Haynesl
with Juianne Moore and
James Le Grosj
At Ann Arbor 1 & 2
erupt.
Aftermonths ofnobody believing her,
Carol eventually figures out that she can-
not function in her chemical-oriented en-
vironment. She has a dise«ase thatnot even
doctors can figure 1ut: Environmental
illness. Months later, her heralth begins to
deteriorate. As a last resort, she decides to
leave her life for a f1w weeks and join
Wrenwood, a cult-like group for peop e
who are allergic to the 2th century. There,
Carol will be "safe.:
In the scenes at Wrenwood, we begin
to question Carol's healing process.
People wearing oxygen masks chant, "We
are one with the environment that created
us. We are safe and all is well in our
world." By now, the audience just might
be thinking: Their "world" can't be too
healthy. This thought is confirmed when
Carol begins to live in a porcelain bubble.
Julianne Moore's ("Nine Months")
strong performance demonstrates the
range of her acting ability. Last time we
saw her, she was visiting the gynecologist
with Hugh Grant. This time, she is the
perfect, rich, air-headed wife whose suf-
fering is haunting. In fact, Carol is the
only character in the movie worth men-
tioning; everyone else remains in the dis-
tance while we examine her pathetic char-
acter. For over two hours, we watch Carol
sneeze, convulse and crumble.
Both Moore's character and the eerie
music throughout "Safe" make this movie
psychologically terrifying. And although
the movie is slow moving, it is certain to
raise some interesting questions. What is
really wrong with this woman? Is her
sickness from fumes? Or is it her own
paranoia?
One thing is certain, however. Sitting
through the entire movie won't necessar-
ily give you the answers to these ques-
tions. But be prepared for your mind to
reel with thoughts of the unknown, most
importantly: What are we really allergic
to anyway?
TING OVER THE MID-TERM HUMP?
A. PHI BETA RUSH
EW BEGINNING
WHEN & WHERE.
October 11, 7:30pm
Ann Arbor Theater
WHAT.
Cardmembers get two compli-
mentary passes to MGM Pictures'
blockbuster Get Shorty.
HOW.
Just bring the American Express
Card or Optima® Card and your
student ID to the location listed
below to pick u your passes.
NOW.
If you're not yet a Cardmember
and would like to take part in
our exclusive previews, it's easy
to apply for the Card. Just call
1-800-942-AMEX, ext. 4114.
MORE TO COME.
Get Shorty is the first in a series
of five major motion pictures to
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