Cast: Gen Stiller, Owen Wilson, Penelope Cruz, Kristen Wiig, Will Ferrell
Director: Ben Stiller
Genre: Comedy
Duration: 102 minutes
Now showing: Cinema Magic Metroplex Mall Naalya and Century Cinemax Acacia Mall Kisementi
The last time we saw Derek Zoolander, he had quit the fashion industry, was married, with a son and busy running The Derek Zoolander Center for Kids who can’t Read Good and Who Wanna Learn to do Other Good Stuff Too. If you are a Zoolander newbie, there is your first sign that this is a comedy of silly proportions. 15 years later, and we get a sequel.
To say that Zoolander 2 is just as silly is an understatement. Then again, since it takes a satirical look at the fashion industry, it may be easy to imagine. Plotwise, we get a rundown of what has taken place in Zoolander’s life through a series of media reports delivered by well-known faces of the news; Katie Couric and Christiane Amanpour. The cliff notes version of it is that Zoolander’s centre collapsed, killing several people, including his wife. The incident sent Zoolander into a breakdown of sorts that caused the authorities to take his son away from him, sending Zoolander to unknown lands under a new name. It also left his friend and fellow model, Hansel (Wilson) “disfigured” and living in seclusion.
However, when several popstars are killed, their dying selfies on Instagram (I kid not) reveal that whoever murdered them may have a connection to Zoolander. Valentina Valencia (Cruz), an agent of Interpol’s Fashion division starts an investigation that starts with tracking down Zoolander. Also in pursuit of Zoolander is fashion mogul, Alexanya Atoz (Wiig like you’ve never seen her before). As the mystery unfolds, many celebrities make cameos, you’ll probably get whiplash from it. Good thing is that their appearances serve a purpose.
As mentioned earlier, there is silliness going around. That silliness will make you laugh, especially if you are not in a serious mood. However, the same silliness seems to have put off more than a few people. Personally, I love the digs the movie makes at the fashion industry, how it highlights things such as hierarchies among models –it’s not so glamorous to be a swimsuit model after all, and the insecurities that assail those in fashion. In fact, one of those insecurities is what is causing all the trouble. I also love that we got to see people like Sting, Keifer Seitherland and Anne Wintour, among others appearing as themselves in less than flattering scenes. While it may not be credited as Stiller’s best work, you will still get more than a few laughs from it. Also, if at the end of the movie you feel that Joan Rivers would have fit in perfectly, you are not alone.