STYLISH DOCUMENTARY NEEDS MORE SUBSTANCE
“THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO ANDRÉ” EXPLORES THE LIFE OF FASHION EDITOR ANDRÉ LEON TALLEY .
Of all the fashion industry’s characters, are any as commanding a presence as André Leon Talley?
The 6-foot-6, gay, black man from the segregated South has reigned as a high priest of fashion for 40 years, from his days at Andy Warhol’s Factory to writing for Women’s Wear Daily and Vogue. His booming voice glides from baritone to falsetto, his statements as colorful as his turbans, leopard print coats, capes and caftans.
Talley’s ascension from humble beginnings in North Carolina to the global fashion stage is chronicled in Kate Novack’s documentary “The Gospel According to André.” It could be a deeply provocative tale, but the director seems reluctant to probe behind his artful facade. Issues of race and black identity are woven throughout, with archival photos and video footage of his family’s church-going. The U.S. presidential election of 2016 serves as a loose backdrop.
“I don’t live for fashion; I live for beauty,” Talley, 68, says in the opening scenes, shot on the leafy grounds of his colonial home outside New York City. “You must create your own universe.”
It’s a metaphor for his sanctuary — and his success.
He was raised by his grandmother, a maid at Duke University, who taught him that “luxury comes from within.” Still, he was fascinated by exteriors (namely, clothing) which led him to New York, where the Costume Institute’s Diana Vreeland became a mentor.
Clips of runway shows and Talley chatting with Karl Lagerfeld dazzle the eye. We hear anecdotes from celebs, including designer Marc Jacobs, Whoopi Goldberg and Vogue editor Anna Wintour (who says he knows more about fashion history than she does). A former teacher, Wanda Garrett, recalls, “There was always the notion you couldn’t just be good, you had to be better. Success was the best revenge.”
But the film’s most stirring moments are about the personal, not the professional. A woman at Yves Saint Laurent likened him to a gay ape by calling him “Queen Kong” behind his back; it still hurts. Someone told him his success had come not from his own talent but from being “in and out of every designer’s bed in Paris.” To the contrary, Talley reveals, he has never fallen in love nor had a partner and is deeply lonely.
“These things, I internalized,” Talley says, his mouth quivering as he dabs tears. “I kept them bottled up.”
We’ve learned about Talley’s outer orbit, but of his inner universe, we long to know much, much more.