Zoolander (2001)

Director:

Ben Stiller

Writers (WGA):

Drake Sather (character Derek Zoolander) &
Ben Stiller (character Derek Zoolander) ...

Release Date:

28 September 2001 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy

Tagline:

3% Body Fat. 1% Brain Activity.

Plot:

At the end of his career, a clueless fashion model is brainwashed to kill the Prime Minister of Malaysia.

Plot Keywords:

Fashion | Male Model | Malaysia | Time Magazine | Rival

Awards:

1 win & 9 nominations

Cast

Ben Stiller	...	Derek Zoolander
Owen Wilson	...	Hansel
Christine Taylor	...	Matilda Jeffries
Will Ferrell	...	Mugatu
Milla Jovovich	...	Katinka
Jerry Stiller	...	Maury Ballstein
David Duchovny	...	J.P. Prewitt
Jon Voight	...	Larry Zoolander
Judah Friedlander	...	Scrappy Zoolander
Nathan Lee Graham	...	Todd
Alexandre Manning	...	Brint (as Alexander Manning)
Asio Highsmith	...	Rufus
Alexander Skarsgård	...	Meekus
Donald Trump	...	Himself
Christian Slater	...	Himself

Also Known As:

Derek Zoolander (USA) (working title)
Zoolander (Germany)
Zoolander (Canada: French title) (France) [fr]
Zoolander (Argentina) (Peru) [es]
Zirtapoz (Turkey: Turkish title) [tr]
Zoolander (Austria) [de]
Zoolander, a trendkívüli (Hungary) [hu]
Zoolander: Un descerebrado de moda (Spain) [es]

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 on appeal for sexual content and drug references.

Runtime:

89 min

Country:

USA | Australia | Germany

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital

Certification:

USA:R (original rating) | Singapore:(Banned) (original rating) | Singapore:NC-16 (re-rating) | USA:PG-13 (re-rating after appeal) | Portugal:M/12 | Argentina:13 | Australia:M (original rating) | Australia:PG (TV rating) | Brazil:12 | Canada:14A (Alberta) | Canada:AA (Ontario) | Canada:G (Quebec) | Canada:PA (Manitoba) | Canada:PG (British Columbia/Nova Scotia) | Finland:K-11 | France:U | Germany:12 | Iceland:L | Ireland:15 | Malaysia:(Banned) | Netherlands:MG6 | Norway:11 | Peru:14 | Philippines:PG-13 | Spain:13 | Sweden:7 | Switzerland:10 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:10 (canton of Vaud) | UK:12

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

MFP Munich Film Partners GmbH & Company I. Produktions KG

Trivia:

The film has been banned in Malaysia because of the use of fictional Malaysian Prime Minister as the subject of assassination. It was originally also banned in neighboring Singapore, but the ban has since been lifted.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Zoolander is walking in the graveyard with the famous hand model, they pass the same tombstone twice.

Quotes:

[first lines]
(Announcer): And here in Malaysia, there is an almost overwhelming sense of euphoria as the newly-elected prome minister has given this nation a gift of hope promising to raise the substandard minimum wage and end child labor once and for all. Already considered a living saint he has become this small country's greatest hope for a thriving future in the new millennium.

Movie Connections:

Spoofs The Birth of a Nation (1915)

Soundtrack:

Relax

AUSTIN Posers--Hip, Daffy, Yet Kinda Sweet

In Entertainment Weekly, Ben Stiller described this feature-length adventure of the moronic male model he created for the VH1 Fashion Awards as "MANCHURIAN CANDIDATE meets EYES OF LAURA MARS." Me, I can sum it up in two words: "AUSTIN Posers." No, better yet, I'll boil it down to one word: "endearing." That's right, endearing! As lighthearted as it is lightheaded, this daffy spoof of conspiracy thrillers and the mad, mod world of male models and other hipsters has a surprising undercurrent of sweetness to it. Star/director/co-writer/co-producer Stiller plays dopey Derek Zoolander as a gentle, essentially kind-hearted naif under his hip veneer. The same is true of Owen Wilson, putting his twang and quirky humor to good use as Derek's rustic yet hippy-dippy rival-turned-ally Hansel. I suspect folks will like ZOOLANDER even better on DVD, since there are tons of hilarious extended scenes and deleted scenes as well as the original Zoolander TV sketches that Stiller & Co. did for VH1. As Derek says in the voiceover intros on the DVD menu, the ZOOLANDER disc is a wonderful introduction to "the world of DiviDuh"! :-)