This is a photo of some of the members of the cast of a new documentary film that is getting remarkably good reviews. "I was interested in the subject because I'm 60 and I'm fascinated by how one reinvents oneself as one gets old in a society that's so youth oriented," said Timothy Greenfield-Sanders, a photographer known for his iconic portraits of the famous and infamous, from presidents to porn stars..."
http://i.huffpost.com/gadgets/slideshows/240523/slide_240523_1285846_fre\ e.jpg <http://i.huffpost.com/gadgets/slideshows/240523/slide_240523_1285846_fr\ ee.jpg%20> "About Face" is Timothy's documentary about former supermodels, now aged 50-81. It sounds just tremendous to me, and I'm not even a real fan of documentaries. The subject matter *and* the subjects render its material fascinating to me. What profession *other* than modeling involves such occult use of power to attract and fascinate and capture attention? This is a link to an article about Timothy and his documentary: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/07/27/about-face-timothy-greenfield-s\ anders_n_1711344.html#slide=1285846 <http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/07/27/about-face-timothy-greenfield-\ sanders_n_1711344.html#slide=1285846> I haven't seen it yet, but I will, because the writeups remind me of another of my favorite documentaries -- written, directed, and shot by Rosanna Arquette. You've probably never heard of it, but it was called "Searching For Debra Winger," and it was fuckin' brilliant. The speakers in the film are mainly women, because the subject matter is what it's like to be a beautiful woman working in one of the other fields in which one uses occult power to attract and fascinate and capture attention -- being an actress in the movies. In her film, Rosanna interviews...ahem...a few interesting women, and just LETS THEM TALK about what their lives in Hollywood have been like -- the things they gained, the things they gave up, the difficulties of dealing with a male-dominated industry, and the difficulties of trying to maintain a relationship or a normal life in the midst of all of this. The only real male speaker in the film is Roger Ebert. Rosanna took her film crew with her to the Cannes Film Festival, where one of her sister Patricia's films was debuting. She was interviewing actresses at the festival and ran into Roger, whose interaction with Rosanna is blessedly preserved in this film. She explains what she's doing, and Roger just fuckin' GETS it. He LOVES the idea, and her for thinking of it. They have a really charming exchange, and it is to both of their credits that Rosanna chose to include it in the film. The other speakers, as mentioned before, are the kinds of actresses you'd REALLY want to meet -- not necessarily beauties you'd want to gawk speechlessly at, but intelligent women with power, women you'd pay a month's salary just to sit and have a conversation with over coffee. Women like (in alphabetical order, just as they're presented in the credits): Patricia Arquette, Emmanuelle Béart, Katrin Cartlidge, Laura Dern, Jane Fonda, Teri Garr, Whoopi Goldberg, Melanie Griffith, Daryl Hannah, Salma Hayek, Holly Hunter, Diane Lane, Kelly Lynch, Julianna Margulies, Chiara Mastroianni, Samantha Mathis, Frances McDormand, Catherine O'Hara, Julia Ormond, Gwyneth Paltrow, Martha Plimpton, Charlotte Rampling, Vanessa Redgrave, Theresa Russell, Meg Ryan, Ally Sheedy, Adrienne Shelly, Hilary Shepard, Sharon Stone, Tracey Ullman, JoBeth Williams, Debra Winger, Alfre Woodard, and Robin Wright. They have much to say. Anyone who considers themselves a feminist (or a feminist-sympathizer) and who hasn't seen this film is a slacker. The best speakers are those who have not allowed the negativity of their environment to produce negativity in themselves, like Salma Hayek and Laura Dern. The whole film was IMO worth seeing just for Jane Fonda's segment. At the time, this was the first time she'd been in front of film cameras for over a decade, having retired from the biz. But to see her deal with the question of what was *best* about her whole experience in the movies is itself worth the price of admission. "Searching For Debra Winger." Good film. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9-GALaD2kuE <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9-GALaD2kuE>
