Fashion weeks are like assholes -- nearly every city has them. And while the offerings from New York, Paris, and Milan are hands down the most influential, it's hard to ignore our Funkshion and Rock Fashion when they are capable of resurrecting Pam Anderson's iconic Baywatch suit and showing Dennis Rodman all dolled up and pretty in pink (again).
The shows continue through Sunday, but in case your fashion interests sway more toward the silver screen than the runway, the Miami Beach Cinematheque and Funkshion have teamed up to show a style-centric collection of films called "Fashion on Film" today till Sunday evening. Tonight at 7 is Lagerfeld Confidential, an exclusive peek into the life of head designer and creative director of Chanel, Karl Lagerfeld. The German-born designer's resumé is a veritable who's who in high fashion -- from Balmain to Chloé, and currently Chanel, Fendi furs, and an eponymous line. This silver fox who is perpetually laced in black and white is as infamous for being fiercely private as he is for dropping witty pearls of acerbic wit and wisdom. For this 2007 documentary, director Rodolphe Marconi was granted unprecedented access into Lagerfeld's tight-knit circle, resulting in the type of intimacy one desires to see from a man whose creative juices are spilled so freely on the runway but rarely in real life.
Here his creative process is exposed, as is his personality. Marconi has pulled the curtain back and shows the meaning behind the mystery. Lagerfeld's camaraderie with his team and the vulnerability he shows in private moments paint the designer as endearing and vulnerable. And by the time the lights come up in the theater, you'll see he's as generous with love as he is with impeccable style, and finds peace in the creative process. Lagerfeld wears his heart on his sleeve, and oh what a fabulous sleeve it is.
Also tonight at 9, and tomorrow at the same time, the highly acclaimed Valentino: The Last Emperor will screen at the Cinematheque. I've yet to see this one, but if the fashion world can be trusted (it can, no matter how much you hate last season's acid-wash revival), this one is a must-see, amazing retelling of legendary designer Valentino Garavani's life after walking away from his eponymous line. He's rich, he's famous, he's Italian, and he has made some of the most stunning garments known to (wo)man.
Saturday at 7 p.m., the story of fashion pioneer and possibly the world's most famous couturier, Yves Saint Laurent, is the main event. Yves Saint Laurent: 5 Avenue Marceau 75116 Paris, follows the late designer through his final spring line, a show of epic style for the ages. Though he once famously said, "I wish I had invented blue jeans. They have expression, modesty, sex appeal, simplicity -- all I hope for in my clothes," he will forever be remembered as an innovator of clothing at once beautiful, complex, and completely wearable.
The fashion film house closes Sunday evening with an MBC members-only screening of Coco Before Chanel, the story of a woman who needs no introduction. I could be mistaken, but doesn't everyone know who Coco Chanel is? If not her rags-to-riches story, then definitely her legacy, right? Intertwined C's, menswear-inspired fashions for delicate dames, and an unapologetic confidence? I'll imagine that everyone is nodding their head, but if not, become a member and catch this 2009 French film that encapsulates Chanel's passion, intensity, and talent.
