Those previously unfamiliar with the work of Valentino will find it to be sporadically interesting. Everyone else, especially fashion aficionados, will find it to be superficial, unprovocative and bland.
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03/19/09
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Valentino: the Last Emperor (2009)
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Reviews Counted:60
Fresh:47
Rotten:13
Average Rating:6.9/10
Consensus: Valentino: the Last Emperor utilizes its access to the fashion icon to the fullest, and the result is a glitzy, dishy, and insightful documentary.
Theatrical Release:Mar 18, 2009 Limited
Box Office: $1,569,618
Synopsis: Shown around the world in film festivals to wide acclaim, VALENTINO THE LAST EMPEROR is a feature film that has captured the hearts and imaginations of audiences. It is a behind-the-scenes look at... [More]
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Reviews for Valentino: the Last Emperor
Lovely to look at, perhaps, but in the end there's not much to it behind the surface glamour.
05/14/09
[Director] Tyrnauer and the movie seem blinded by Valentino's stardom and start to lose their way. As a result, the documentary is unfocused.
06/11/09
So enamored of its subject, legendary Italian fashion designer Valentino Garavani, that it almost loses sight of explaining why he's so great in the first place.
07/30/09
Awash with celebrity, the documentary is a rubbernecker's delight.
03/17/09
Superficial but giddily entertaining.
07/10/09
Top CriticIf I really wanted to indulge in stargazing, I'd just as soon hook up a telescope in the backyard and aim it at the night sky.
06/12/09
Tyrnauer's [film] extols Valentino's extreme lavishness as a kind of honorable, defiant stance (sneaking away to Gstaad as investment bankers take over his company), but demurs from searching for its subject's gravitas.
03/17/09
The director only skims over the historical material. In taking for granted that this background is familiar to all, the film drives home the fact that high fashion is made by the few for the few.
07/10/09
As exciting as clothing bought off the rack at K-Mart and less informative than even the weakest episode of "Project Runway."
03/26/09
By glossing over much of the Italian designer's past, Tyrnauer assumes a certain level of familiarity with his subject from his intended audience. If you can't tell Valentino from Versace, you ain't it. That said, The Last Emperor isn't totally ina
08/05/09
Watching Valentino: The Last Emperor is a little like gorging on chocolate and Champagne.
03/18/09
Top CriticPart celebrity dish, part business journalism...illuminating 2008 documentary.
03/27/09
This remarkably intimate portrait, made with less formality than you might expect, gives a real insight into Valentino as a living, working phenomenon at the end of his career
09/10/09
A genuine Felliniesque procession of the rich, powerful and over-awed.
03/18/09
In this time of economic distress, watching the twilight of Valentino's enormous success, and the extravagant lifestyle it funded, doesn't feel like it's worth a lot of tears.
04/11/09
If Valentino doesn't reveal much about the man, it argues convincingly that the elaborate gowns, like the vintage one Julia Roberts wore to accept her Oscar, will outlive him, anyway.
06/12/09
In a time where fashion is reduced to tawdry reality shows, Valentino: The Last Emperor reinjects the sophistication and elegance in what some say is a lost art form.
06/10/09
This splendidly eye-filling documentary about the last of the grand couturiers is as seductive and glamorous as high fashion itself.
03/18/09
The unique behind-the-scenes profile Tyrnauer has achieved makes this more than just another excuse to look at beautiful models in pretty frocks, and a film not only for fashionistas.
09/16/09
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