The September Issue (2009)

A documentary chronicling Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour's preparations for the 2007 fall-fashion issue.

Director:

R.J. Cutler

Stars:

Anna Wintour, Thakoon Panichgul, André Leon Talley

2 wins & 5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Thakoon Panichgul	...	Himself
André Leon Talley	...	Himself
Grace Coddington	...	Herself
Anna Wintour	...	Herself
Hamish Bowles	...	Himself
Sarah Brown	...	Herself
Charles Churchward	...	Himself (as Charlie Churchward)
Oscar de la Renta	...	Himself
Patrick DeMarchelier	...	Himself
Jill Demling	...	Herself
Edward Enninful	...	Himself
Brian Fee	...	Himself
Filipa Fino	...	Herself
Tom Florio	...	Himself
Jean-Paul Gaultier	...	Himself

Storyline

The September 2007 issue of Vogue magazine weighed nearly five pounds, and was the single largest issue of a magazine ever published. With unprecedented access, this film tells the story of legendary Vogue editor in chief Anna Wintour and her larger-than-life team of editors creating the issue and ruling the world of fashion.

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Plot Keywords:

reference to carolina herrera | magazine cover photo | vogue magazine | interview | fashion week | 

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Taglines:

Fashion is a religion. This is the bible.

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Genres:

Documentary

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for brief strong language

Details

Official Sites:

Official site Official site [France]

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

25 September 2009 (USA)

Also Known As:

Untitled Anna Wintour Documentary

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$220,416, 30 August 2009, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$3,820,700, 12 February 2010

Company Credits

Production Co:

A&E IndieFilms, Actual Reality Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

90 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Did You Know?

Quotes

[first lines]
Anna Wintour: I think what I often see is that people are frightened of fashion and that because it scares them or it makes them feel insecure, they put it down. On the whole, people that say demeaning things about our world, I think that's usually because they feel in some ways excluded or, you know, not part of the 'cool group' so as a result they just mock it. Just because you like to put on a beautiful Carolina Herrera dress or, I don't know, a pair of J Brand blue jeans instead of something...

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Connections

Featured in The Rotten Tomatoes Show: Shutter Island/The Ghost Writer/Happy Tears (2010)

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Soundtracks

Around the Bend
Written by Lars Iversen, Mette Lindberg
Performed by The Asteroids Galaxy Tour
Courtesy of Small Giants
By arrangement with Zync Music Inc.

User Reviews

Doesn't dig deep enough

The September Issue is a superficial look into the making of the September 2007 issue of Vogue. Many of the shots consist of various photographers, art directors and members of the editorial staff behaving in a groveling and subservient way around editor-in-chief Anna Wintour. The one exception is stylist Grace Coddington, a confident and gifted woman who does superb creative work and isn't afraid to stand up for herself. Her work really is the backbone of the magazine. Once she leaves, Vogue is on a fast ride downhill. Wintour's insights, as she looks at and discusses potential fashion spreads, seem fairly prosaic. She must have gotten the job by game-playing and the usual machinations of the business world. Outside of standing back somewhat and letting Coddington do her work, I don't see what she contributes to the magazine except for making her staff feel compulsively insecure. I enjoyed the few scenes that show her with her twenty-something daughter, who wants to be a lawyer. She clearly has the ability to "get" to Wintour that no one else in the film does. Good for her. Wintour talks about her father and siblings, but neglects to mention her American mother, an interesting omission. Wintour is a lonely character, in a way. There's a revealing scene of her in the back of a town car clutching a Starbucks coffee and staring straight ahead. She's off in her own world most of the time.

As is to be expected, no one on the Vogue staff actually wears the outlandish clothing featured in the magazine. Wintour wears flattering silk dresses, Coddington dresses in various frumpy black outfits and the staff and photographers wear practical work clothes. The exception is Leon Talley, the only member of the staff who truly buys into the fashion myth. Since Wintour reveals so little of herself and the filmmaker is as deferential to her as the rest of her intimidated staff, ultimately "The September Issue" is an elegantly made film with no emotional heart.