Seen on: September 30, 2009

The players: Director: R.J. Cutler, Cast: Anna Wintour, Grace Coddington, Andre Leon Talley, Sienna Miller, Patrick Demarchelier

Facts of interest: None.

The plot: This documentary takes a closer look at what goes down at Vogue in New York and how Anna Wintour puts together the magazine's popular September issue.

Our thoughts: I’m someone who couldn’t care less about the world of fashion, but I’ll tell you this: I absolutely adored R.J. Cutler’s documentary “The September Issue,” which offers cinemagoers a detailed look into the world of Vogue magazine. It’s a truly fascinating film, and not one minute of it is boring or unoriginal.

Even though the film focuses mainly on the development of Vogue’s ultra-popular September issue, the film sets aside enough time to introduce audiences to the talented folks running the fashion magazine. We don’t only get to see them work, but we also discover who they are as people and why they do what they do best.

The central figure in “The September Issue” is the legendary Anna Wintour, editor-in-chief of Vogue. She’s definitely an incredible interesting character with a very special work ethic, and Cutler paints a compelling portrait of this woman, who is admired and respected by pretty much everybody in the fashion world.

Cutler and his crew got to accompany Wintour and her team at Vogue during the hectic weeks leading up to the release of the September issue, and watching her and her co-workers do their thing is informative and totally interesting. Putting together such a magazine is no easy job, and the film demonstrates this flawlessly.

One of the most interesting things about this doc is the focus on the relationship between Wintour and Grace Coddington, creative director at Vogue. Grace and Anna work together quite well, but as some parts of the film shows, the two friends also do disagree often, which is quite simply part of the job.

From enlightening interviews to scenes filmed during important meetings all over the world, “The September Issue” really provides an intriguing look into how things work at the magazine. There’s a lot to learn about it, and Cutler delivers a strong and highly entertaining documentary that works from start to finish.

Freaky quote: "There is something about fashion that can make people very nervous" – Anna Wintour

The final word: Fashion gurus and folks who don’t know anything about fashion should all give this film a shot. I found it particularly interesting to watch Wintour do her thing, and even though she’s nowhere near as mean as Meryl Streep’s character in “The Devil Wears Prada,” she’s someone who knows and always gets what she wants.

Article by Franck Tabouring