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Zoolander | 2001 | PG-13 | - 4.4.5

Derek Zoolander (Ben Stiller), a male supermodel and an air-head, is brainwashed by an evil fashion designer into becoming an assassin. His target is the Prime Minister of Malaysia, and the plot is hatched in order to prevent the elimination of the sweatshops that churn out cheaply-produced fashion apparel. Also with Owen Wilson, Will Ferrell, Milla Jovovich and Christine Taylor. [1:35]

SEX/NUDITY 4 - A woman is shown being kissed by numerous men, on her shoulders, neck and back as she spins around; she has a satisfied look on her face; some of the men are bare-chested and we see the tiny straps of what could be a teddy on her shoulders. A man and woman kiss romantically. A man squeezes a woman's buttock as she walks by, and a man pricks a woman's buttock with a pin (during a fitting). A man thinks that a woman has come to his apartment because she wants to have sex with him. We see a photo of a man on his hands and knees with a bridle in his mouth and a very large person in a tiny outfit sitting on his back. A man gets a massage (he's covered by a sheet); the masseuse smacks his buttocks repeatedly and when he rolls over he has a huge erection which sticks up under the sheet and seems to be moving around. A man sticks his hand in his pants, wiggles around a bit and pulls his underwear out. Another man puts his hands in his pants, wiggles around a bit and gives himself a huge wedgie. We see raised carvings of body parts on tombstones (buttocks and a penis). Women are shown in tight-fitting outfits which reveal cleavage, and very short skirts which reveal a lot of thigh. A man wiggles his hips and buttocks preparing for a runway competition.

VIOLENCE/GORE 4 - Three young men spray each other with gasoline, one lights a cigarette, they burst into flames and their car explodes (we do not see them on fire). A man using a pick axe loses his grip and the axe hits a man off-screen (we hear him yell). A man swings from a rope, punches a man in the face and knocks him out. Two men are involved in a "break-dance fight," with lots of kicks and punches. A man flings a throwing star at another man, but it stops in mid-air and never reaches its target. We see photographs and newspaper stories of models dying in freak accidents. A woman threatens another woman with a gun a few times. A man practicing karate moves flips over a dummy and rips its head off. A woman is thrown out a door and lands hard on the ground, a woman punches another woman in the stomach, and a woman punches a woman in the face and her lip bleeds. A man does flips and karate kicks down a runway, coming closer to a man whom he is supposed to assassinate. A man bangs his head on the underside of a bunk bed. A woman throws an egg (which does not break) at a man and yells at him. One character has a nasty scar on his face and a clouded eye which makes him look sinister. A man stands in front of a urinal, talks about not being able to urinate and cheers when he finally manages to. A man spits in a bucket.

LANGUAGE 5 - 1 obscene hand gesture, 11 scatological terms, 11 sexual references, 30 anatomical terms (many are spelled out on T-shirts, office doors and logos), 13 mild obscenities, 5 religious profanities, 5 religious exclamations.

SUBSTANCE USE - One character talks about tripping on acid and smoking peyote. Two men and a woman are shown drinking tea which has some sort of mind-altering effect on them.

DISCUSSION TOPICS - Slave labor, sweatshops, exploitation, child labor laws, being overweight, brainwashing, Pavlovian conditioning, assassination, coal mining and black lung, bulimia, the fashion industry, vanity, death of a mother.

MESSAGE - There's more to life than being really, really, really, good-looking. Do something important with your life, and don't judge yourself based on what you see in magazines.

(Note: The film is apparently taking place in New York City; the twin towers are not evident in the skyline.)

CAVEATS

Be aware that while we do our best to avoid spoilers it is impossible to disguise all details and some may reveal crucial plot elements.

We've gone through several editorial changes since we started covering films in 1992 and older reviews are not as complete & accurate as recent ones; we plan to revisit and correct older reviews as resources and time permits.

Our ratings and reviews are based on the theatrically-released versions of films; on video there are often Unrated, Special, Director's Cut or Extended versions, (usually accurately labelled but sometimes mislabeled) released that contain additional content, which we did not review.


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