LogFAQs > #972262556

13. Zoolander (2001)
Directed by Ben Stiller
Score: 147

Poke: 3
Forty: 5
John: 8
Vis: 9
Karo: 15
Gavs: 17
Plasma: 18
Tangy: 23
Mythiot: 23
Suprak: 26

5. Forty
Just because we have chiseled abs and stunning features doesnt mean that we too cant not die in a freak gasoline fight accident. I love this movie, possibly more than it deserves. Like Not Another Teen movie, it came out in 2001 when I had just graduated high school and was part of the prime target audience. I literally owned 2 copies of it at the same time (I dont remember why, but I did). Its pretty much the dumbest of the dumb comedies, but unlike a lot of stuff from former sketch comedy actors, its truly hilarious. The plot is pretty thin, with the estranged family and the assassination attempt, but thats fine because its so fun watching these characters in their crazy wardrobes being exceptionally dim-witted. Love Derek, Hansel, and Maury, love all the cameo appearances. The fashion world isnt hard to make fun of, but it also touches on the inhumane working conditions in the industry. Nothing deep rooted but silly, superficial and an all-time favorite of mine. As a side note: Its funny how the idea of Derelicte seemed ridiculous but now celebrities really be out there dressing like actual bums.

8. John
There are a lot of quotable movies on this list, but Zoolander takes it a step further by having a facial expression that is somehow, without any words, somehow still quotable. There was a while there where Ben Stiller comedy just couldn't be beat. I watched Dodgeball over the course of this list just because I love it and it fits the vibe, and he just really manages to crack me up. It's not that the character is all that original; the "famous guy that's so oblivious to reality that he's unrealistically dumb" has been done before, but Derek Zoolander still stands out somehow.

9. Vis
Id never actually seen this movie before this watchthrough, despite often quoting scenes (namely from the trailers) with my family. Having finally seen it though, its a pretty solid movie. It is hard at times to enjoy and appreciate a main character that is dumb to the point that Derek Zoolander (and Hansel, honestly) is dumbbut this also leads to the comedy of him being completely bowled over by anyone with a rudimentary understanding of common sense. It does lead to a point of absurdity, when you think about the amount of world-building that had to go into a dumb comedy about a legitimately dumb male model, in order to justify political assassinations via male models as unwitting killers. Yet it somehow works, and the over-the-top use of breakdance fighting, gasoline fighting, walk-offs, and Will Ferrell playing his best Will Ferrell, just makes for something so goofy and strange, that its hard to imagine how it was created.

15. Karo
A self-absorbed (and potentially brain damaged) male model is made into an unwitting hitman via hypnotism and 80s music, and then things start to get really crazy.
The vapidity of the fashion industry is lampooned savagely and without mercy. All the models are just so incredibly stupid, and it is amazing that they have managed to stay alive long enough for half of them to die in a 'freak gasoline fight accident' 15 minutes into the movie.
it is stupid, knows that it is stupid, and fully embraces the fact that is stupid. Does that make it less stupid? Well, no, but it does make it more watchable. It is not great cinema but it is still entertaining.

17. Gavs
This tale of the really really ridiculously good-looking male model Derek Zoolander being trained as a sleeper agent is one of the wackier films on the list, and also one of the more quotable ones. Derek can be so stupid that it leads to some very funny scenes, with my favourite being the centre for ants. His naivete is always good for a laugh. He may hurt peoples feelings at times but he means well in the end, since he wants to help kids who cant read good and who wanna learn to do other stuff good too.

The other characters are similarly larger than life. Dereks rival Hansel (hes so hot right now) is only slightly more intelligent, while Mugatu comes across as an absurdly hammy Cruella DeVille. These characters and others bouncing off each other is often enough to be entertaining. There are plenty of celebrity cameos too, maybe half of which have a joke associated with them.

That said, this film feels quite thin at times, with some slow patches between the big laughs. It makes sense when you consider that Zoolander started out as a sketch character and this movie was the characters first feature length outing. There are lots of celebrity cameos, roughly half of which are more than Its certainly worth watching once, though it might not hold up to repeat viewings.

18. Plasma
It scores points for being bizarrely original but loses points for being obnoxiously stupid. Best moment: the gas station explosion. Cant believe they actually went through with that. Bravo, Ben Stiller. C-

23. Tangy
Wow, Im kind of sad at how little I enjoyed Zoolander this time around. It was a classic for me back in high school. Although interestingly enough, I did still find new things to enjoy about this movie, so I guess Ill start with those. That Hansel. So hot right now. This is another case of an actor completely understanding their role. Wilson manages to give off this laid-back yet pretentious aura. You know hes kind of full of shit, but hes so chill you dont care and start buying into it yourself. This is also the only Ferrell performance I really like. Hes so dramatic in every scene and is absolutely giving it his all, so I have to give him credit there.

So heres kind of my main issue. Ben Stiller is fun in small bursts, but when hes directing AND starring in the movie I start getting sick of him. His comedy ranges from iconic to cringe and everything in between. Center of Ants might be one of my favorite movie moments, but it doesnt make up for the excess of unfunny jokes. Like what was with that massage scene? Did people really find that funny? Also I dont know if I can say he grew as a character at all. He goes through an arc, I just dont believe that hes actually learned anything. As great as some of these moments and characters are, they dont make up for the flaws.

23. Mythiot
Just as flashy, fun, and gasoline-gushingly stupid as the male models at the center of the films absolutely bonkers story. The humor verges on being excessively obnoxious at times, but I cant dislike a film where male models are revealed to be the perfect sleeper assassins of choice for the rich and powerful.