ZOOLANDER (2001) ** You know, I almost like that Ben Stiller again. I remember his tv show in L.A., it was a breath of.not fresh air so much, but definitely not stale air. He's kind of recovered what's fun about that. I think it does him some good having that Christine Taylor around: he's quit trying to do all the corny clichéd leading-man stuff that he was awful at, and he's back to exaggerating his trump strength, which is being irritating and offensive. He wields it like a proper wand though, red-lining until emotions come full circle and the victim is amused, if not delighted. This one loses steam somewhere towards the second half, but there's no denying the physical genius of some of Stiller and Owen Wilson's posing in the service of the fashion industry. Is there no Department of Good Taste? Thankfully not, thank heavens, do you have any idea what those bureaucratic pencil-necks would do with that ?! So it's a couple good Saturday Night Live sketches glued onto a clueless plot, but you've missed the point for noticing. As Owen says, kick back, relax and enjoy it. Owen appears to have that wonderful characteristic identified by Steinbeck; that of naturally and routinely receiving the satisfaction that most men spend their lives striving to achieve. And imagine having the guts to pass yourself off as a supermodel with that nose .! And the talent to do it! I guess that all comes with a shadow, but call it a Blessing anyway. Also altruistically distracting from the plot, Milla Jovovich is scary, Will Ferrell nauseating in that endearing way of his, Jon Voigt enjoys beer like he means it, and lots of cameos. I'd say David Bowie just wins the cameo competition, with Fabio a close second.
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