Estrelato - A Realidade de uma Top Model

STARDOM is a film that has been thoroughly misunderstood.

Seen as a film about the superficiality of the modeling industry and the trivia of all media commentary, it is actually a film about the absence of a fully determining, existential self. On reflection--something most viewers have not had the patience to do--STARDOM is about the loss of moral centre in a world devoted to celebrity celebration and instant gratification. Have a look at it. Think about it. There is more to STARDOM than meets the eye!

"Stardom" is the fourth Denys Arcand film I have watched so far, after - in their chronological order - "Gina", "Jesus Of Montreal", and "Love & Human Remains". Apart from "Gina", which was made much earlier and Arcand was still finding his way, in the other three films I have noticed some shared trademarks: Arcand seems to see filmmaking as a kind of intellectual game with the audience, and he also doesn't like to be constricted in the number of topics that his films touch upon - in fact, in "Stardom" he tackles a different topic in almost every other scene! With that said, the main target of the film is the fashion industry, and in that field Arcand achieves what Robert Altman only dreamed of in his "Pret-A-Porter" (1994). Coming before the social media frenzy and things like "revenge porn" really took over, "Stardom" can be considered quite prophetic as well. Arcand plunges the viewer, as well as the heroine, into a frenetic whirwhind of media coverage; the film is often dryly funny, but also has some amazing serious scenes, like when Jessica Pare confronts her long-missing father. Speaking of Pare, she is a radiant discovery; this must also be one of Dan Aykroyd's best performances. *** out of 4.

The cult of celebrity and beauty is exposed in the blackest humor by Denys Arcand with the hysterical Stardom. Jessica Pare as Tina Menzel is a vacuous beauty who is never allowed to be more than a pretty face and sexy body. A cast of mostly Canadian actors, Dan Ackroyd (SNL), Thomas Gibson (Dahrma and Greg), and newcomer Pare are cast to perfection in a scathing parody of entertainment television, expose documentaries, fashion television, and talk shows. Frank Langella (HBO Unscripted) portrays stuffy Blaine De Castillion, an aging minor diplomat who marries a trophy wife only to be thrown over by her for yet another monosyllabic athletic type.

Tina is the young victim of her own beauty and presented as an uneducated, unsophisticated, and naive girl swept into the heights of celebrity solely by the manipulation of her stunning face and figure. She is the victim of both men and women of the fashion trade that cash in. The modeling world which Tina inhabits is exposed with stunning cinematography as Arcand strips away the layers of commercialism that relies on selling the notions of youth and physical perfection like Tina Menzel.

No pc topic is overlooked by Arcand who takes a swipe at Canada's First Nation's eco-hype and indigenous spirituality, PETA animal rights fanaticism, heavily accented Canuk celebrity reporters, ice hockey, and feminist-lesbian-politics all with hilarious results.

Thomas Gibson as the steely agent for the multinational public relation agency that represents Tina never permits his client to be anything but the innocent yet desirable money-making product. Gibson's brief b/w screen time reflects a high production cosmetic ad and both Pare and Gibson are beautifully photographed to highlight their physical attractiveness, yet theirs is the only on screen relationship never consumated. Gibson's performance is both subtle, ambiguous, and dead on, esp. teaching a 400-level Yale course in "Sports and Celebrity Entertainment" and warning students of Millie-Vanilli versus Celine Dion talent spotting.

With little exposure beyond HBO screenings, Stardom continues to be true to the reality TV trend, yet, while it was ahead of its time, particularly in comments about full frontal nudity and Meg Ryan that unfortunately have come true, Arcand's film is often so subtle its droll satire flies over the heads of an unreflective public failing to grasp the humor and truth of the informed filmmaker.

In the vein of "This is Spinal Tap" and the other mocumentary films out there, "Stardom" manages to take shots at almost every aspect of celebrity, Canadian-ness, high-fashion and a lot more. I found this one while looking for something to watch on a slow Friday night, "Third Watch" having gone on summer hiatus. I have always liked Akroyd and the plot looked like fun. Of course, had I seen a picture of Jessica Paré, I wouldn't have needed anything more. She looks very much like Liv Tyler, minus the famous and luscious Tyler lips. Paré's character, Tina Menzhal, is the epitome of a beautiful tomboy -- yeah, as one viewer said she looks too pretty to be a trade-school hockey player; she has all her teeth -- but anomalies do exist.

There are some slow moments, but the movie mostly moves along well, blending the footage shot by the obsessive film maker, (played so well by Robert Lepage) -- mostly in B&W -- with stuff from other points of view. It isn't a deep character study -- although we do get to see a bit of what goes into some of the main characters -- but it is a very funny movie. I won't spoil it, but Frank Langella has one scene which represents what a lot of people might want to say, and I bet he enjoyed it. He, Akroyd, Gibson and the other supporting actors do great work. In fact it is some of the best work I've seen Akroyd do since the high days of SNL.

I've never seen Denys Arcand's work before -- and understand this is atypical -- but don't think he has anything to be ashamed of. This is a well made, biting but very funny satire of fame, the media and life in our modern world. Highly recommended at 7.5 out of 10. Really.

The movie is quite clever and pops along very quickly, making it an easy 'watch'. The great looking Jessica Pare does an excellent job playing the rags to riches to rags supermodel Tina Menzhal, and Dan Aykroyd plays a resturant tycoon who loses everything in his pursuit of Tina. I thought this movie was very funny and fun to watch. Nothing too heavy or groundbreaking, just good clean fun. 7 of 10.