Rage

Sally Potter (Orlando) has always pursued Big Ideas—sometimes at the expense of narrative flow—but her work is reliably thought-provoking. In the case of Rage, she takes on the worlds of fashion and business, as student filmmaker Michelangelo (who is never seen or heard) captures interviews with 14 characters (all involved with the same fashion show) on his cell phone camera (his blog comments also appear as inter-titles). What starts out as a behind-the-scenes exposé, however, turns into a murder mystery when two models die under bizarre circumstances. The cast brings together actors from both sides of the Atlantic, including Oscar winners Dame Judi Dench as Mona Carvell, a critic who believes that “fashion is pornography to which millions of people are hopelessly addicted,” and Dianne Wiest, playing Miss Roth, a company executive. There's no lead, but Jude Law cuts the most striking figure, portraying an androgynous model named Minx. Like Julie Taymor, who began her career in the theater, Potter emphasizes artificiality (any perceived “staginess” is intentional), and the film is just as episodic as it sounds, but also humorous, since a few characters aren't as self-aware as they seem to think. A strong optional purchase. [Note: DVD extras include 21 deleted scenes and an interview with Potter. Bottom line: a solid extras package for an uneven film.] (K. Fennessy)