British fashion designer Alexander McQueen’s appearance didn’t really live up to one’s expectations – he came across more like your average bloke who’d spend most nights in a dark pub nursing a pint. But the working-class background brought something fresh to his style and he quickly became known as fashion’s ”bad boy”. All of a sudden, outrageous subjects like Jack the Ripper, rape and insane asylums became part of the catwalk. But the more successful he became the more unhappier he seemed to get; McQueen took his life in 2010. A touching and engrossing documentary that interviews the designer’s friends, family and colleagues. Lots of archive footage makes McQueen himself a very vivid part of the film. Nicely designed, with stylish, evocative use of skulls, McQueen’s trademark.
2018-Britain. 111 min. Color. Produced by Ian Bonhôte, Andee Ryder, Nick Taussig, Paul Van Carter. Directed by Ian Bonhôte, Peter Ettedgui. Screenplay: Peter Ettedgui.
Last word: “The more people we spoke to, the more the family realised that we weren’t just two schmucks and that we knew what we were talking about.” (BonhĂ´te). “But when they conveyed the story, it felt like it was happening in present tense again. They were reliving everything that they went through. We thought that eight years was long enough for people to want to talk about it, but we realised that it is still very, very fresh in people’s memory.” (Ettedgui, Vogue)
