Lagerfeld Confidential (2007) Movie Review

This engaging fly-on-the-wall documentary offers a rare glimpse into the life of the notorious designer and photographer, highlighting his sharp humour and larger-than-life personality.

Filmmaker Marconi was followed Lagerfeld (age 69) for two years, including private moments at home in Paris and in his work as a designer, artist and photographer. We also see his jet-set lifestyle, taking a private plane around Europe and then first class to New York. We witness his personal obsessions and interests, his interaction with models and celebrities, and how his staff has become his de facto family.

And he talks a lot, sharing feelings and opinions, always aware that he's on camera. We never quite believe his comments about how happy he is to be alone in life, without a relationship. Although there are clearly lingering feelings from his long-term liaisons. And his descriptions of his childhood seem somewhat exaggerated--his parents a little too colourful and accepting of his sexuality in a time when such a thing was unspeakable.

But even this adds to the mythology surrounding the man. And Marconi has an amazing wealth of material to work with--including the archive of film and print from Lagerfeld's entire career. When he talks about his first show for Chanel in 1983, there it is on screen. We get to see photos of him as a lively child and strikingly handsome young man, watching the recognisable public persona develop along the way. And in the present day, he teasingly refuses to remove his sunglasses (although Marconi catches him a few times), paws through bowls of rings, drawers of stiff collars, rooms of clothes racks. And yet, despite his fortune, his life seems strangely simple.

Assembled somewhat archly with self-aware transitional sequences, this film also looks at the fashion industry itself through Lagerfeld's wry perspective. He acknowledges that the business isn't actually vital to society, that the concept of elegance is completely subjective and that he designs because he doesn't have the patience to sew. And even more interestingly, we get his personal opinions on everything from personal possessions and porn to prostitution and politics. It's an engaging portrait of a man who claims to eschew self-analysis and nostalgia, even as these are clearly his stock in trade.