NZIFF Film Review: "Dior and I" (2014).

"He has a new vision. They have eight weeks to create it." This is Dior and I. This documentary film written and directed by Frédéric Tcheng. The film brings the viewer inside the storied world of the Christian Dior fashion house with a privileged, behind-the-scenes look at the creation of Raf Simons' first haute couture collection as its new artistic director-a true labor of love created by a dedicated group of collaborators. Melding the everyday, pressure-filled components of fashion with mysterious echoes from the iconic brand's past, the film is also a colorful homage to the seamstresses who serve Simons' vision.

Since his birth on January 12, 1968, Raf Jan Simons has gone on to become a world renowned Belgian fashion designer, who began his career in furniture design. In 1995, Simons launched his own menswear label. He went on to become the creative director at Jil Sander (2005-12), Christian Dior (2012-15) and Calvin Klein (2016-18). In early April 2020, he is the co-creative director of Prada, in partnership with Miuccia Prada. In April 2012, it was announced that Simons would replace John Galliano as creative director at the helm of Dior, ending a period of transition after Galliano's dismissal from the role. However, he did not design the menswear collections, as fellow Belgian designer Kris van Assche remained as Dior Homme creative director. Simons' first collection for Haute Couture Fall-Winter 2012 was well-received as the designer focused on the 1950s by playing with some of Christian Dior’s famous silhouettes: the A line and the H line, and the Bar jacket. In late October 2015, Simons resigned from his post as the Creative Director of Womenswear for Christian Dior following a three and a half year stint at the brand. In a statement the designer stated "It is a decision based entirely and equally on my desire to focus on other interests in my life, including my own brand, and passions that drive me outside my work." The departure was reportedly amicable and no replacement was immediately named.

Fantastic fun. It's full of energy and zing, just like its subject, although, just like its subject, it also feels less than truthful somehow. Simons was a fashion-industry icon and taste-maker for decades, working at Sander and then Dior in an era when magazine publishing was as corporate as painting, filmmaking and music. This pleasurable documentary is jammed packed with images from magazines, photoshoots and newsreels of an amazing chapter in an amazing chapter, but also lots of footage of the life Simons imagined he had too. The film is more of an energetic and affectionate sketch than a revealing portrait of this oversized personality, but one has to wonder if the man who celebrated glittering surfaces would have wanted it any other way. What makes this such a joy to watch is not just the timeline of fashion highlights, but Simons' unique perspective on life. His life, and his work, transcended what we think of as "fashion." The film celebrates a unique and uniquely determined man.

Simon says Dior and I receives:

Also, see my reviews for Diana Vreeland: The Eye Has to Travel and Jodorowsky's Dune.