The September Issue

This documentary about the creation of the largest issue of Vogue magazine to ever hit the stands starts by focusing on editor Anna Wintour. But it quickly becomes a classic drama as Wintour takes on the role of brittle supervillain to artistic genius and Vogue creative director Grace Coddington. While Wintour dresses in the worst of overpriced old-lady chic, coifs her hair with the precision of a particle-accelerator magnetic array and avoids moving her face into any expression other than self-satisfied disdain, Coddington—who creates the stunning imagery that fills Vogue’s pages—galumphs about in a formless black dress, with her lion’s mane of red hair an untamed jungle above her un-retouched face. The two play off against each other, with Coddington trying to get her best photographs into the magazine, and Wintour playing the commercial angle by stuffing in celebrities and advertising. It’s an amusing face-off, even if it doesn’t quite carry the film’s 90 minutes; it’s worth seeing even if you hate fashion. Actually, it’s worth seeing especially if you hate fashion.