Writer/director/star Ben Stiller in ZOOLANDER
© 2001 Paramount Pictures

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ZOOLANDER

Knowing that a comedy has its beginnings in a SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE sketch does not exactly inspire confidence, as the misses far outnumber the hits with this subgenre. However, ZOOLANDER is one of the few that actually works. It's director/co-writer/star Ben Stiller has a consistent vision, an ear for absurdity and a sweetness of tone that make ZOOLANDER unexpectedly enjoyable.

Derek Zoolander (Stiller) is a top male model that has even less going on upstairs than the clichés about his profession would indicate. His biggest problem would seem to be his competition with rival model Hansel (Owen Wilson) and the nefarious plot to turn him into an assassin hatched by evil designer Mogatu (Will Ferrell).

ZOOLANDER gets off to a slow start, but picks up as its world comes together. Stiller and co-writers Drake Sather and John Hamburg, working from a story by Sather and Stiller, have thought things out carefully, so that elements lead into one another with a kind of giddy dream logic. Crucially, although Derek is truly dim-witted, the movie likes him and everyone around him the gags are loopy rather than mean-spirited, turning on straight-faced incongruity instead of sadism. The sensibilities here could almost be described as AUSTIN POWERS meets Richard Linklater. One of the funniest scenes involves no sight gags at all, but simply three characters in an earnest conversation that is so lively and bizarre and sharply observed that it might be a bent version of something heard in real life all three are bemusedly but sincerely trying to figure out what the hell the other two are talking about.

As Derek, Stiller seems to be channeling Marilyn Monroe, breathy voice, pout and soulfully clueless expression included. As a filmmaker, he's canny enough to share focus with other actors, notably Wilson, who plays Hansel in the mold of a young, laid-back Dennis Hopper. His imperturbable sunny demeanor and splendid timing are major assets. Christine Taylor as a reporter from TIME who does most of the story's deductive work is an ace at reaction shots. Ferrell is on his game and Milla Jovovich launches into her Natasha Fatale-esque baddie with real zest. There are what seem to be a few zillion cameo appearances, with the two most notable arguably David Duchovny, almost unrecognizable under a woolly beard, and David Bowie as himself, refereeing a modeling duel.

The film isn't consistently sure-footed, wandering into some comedic routines that meander too long, but the worst that happens is that some of the gags get old fast but at least they don't get ugly. Meanwhile, other riffs flourish with vitality. ZOOLANDER is one of those pleasantly goofy movies that at its worst is harmless and at its best has flashes of real wit, livened all the while by a very savvy cast.