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Tom Ford, Claudia Schiffer, Linda Evangelista, Nicole Kidman- In Vogue: The 90s seemingly gathers together the fashion industry and Hollywood, with these being only the first few celebrities and fashion icons introduced in the series. With the iconic synth beat of Your Love by Frankie Knuckles blaring, each celebrity expresses the dream that it was, and is still, to be considered for the cover of American Vogue.
In Vogue: The 90s, the six part docuseries streaming in the UK on Disney+, explores the dramatic decade of the 90s fashion. In what can only be categorised as ‘a Devil Wears Prada moment’ in the opening of the docuseries, producers begin by asking Anna Wintour whether she would mind taking off her signature dark sunglasses; she outright refuses. This single utterance of 'no' sets the tone for the entire docuseries, its clever placement at its beginning telling of the rebelliousness of Wintour, showcasing her delight in going against the requests of others and instead following her own intuition.
The first episode of the docuseries, All Change At Vogue depicts Anna Wintour’s entrance to Vogue briefly and comments on how, during the late 80s and 90s, Anna cemented her place in the fashion industry as a force to be reckoned with. When addressing her approach to taking on the role of editor in chief of American Vogue, Wintour states that 'sometimes you just need to tear everything up and start over again'. It is this rebellious streak that defined her leadership at Vogue and transformed the magazine into a fashion powerhouse during the 90s.
In Vogue: The 90s is an intriguing yet effective docuseries, exposing the 90s for those young enough to have little knowledge of this transformative decade of fashion. It is an intertwinement of commentary on Wintour, who is praised in the opening minutes of the programme as a Warholian enigma, and the decade as a whole. As the programme progresses, it moves on to differing subjects. In the first episode alone, the celebrities narrate the state of the fashion world during the early 90s, shifting focus from Wintour's trailblazing leadership to the cultural and social forces that shaped 90s fashion. The docuseries examines the rise of Kate Moss, the role of the supermodel, the impact of the AIDS crisis, the importance of bringing Hollywood on side, as well as delving into the newest up-and-coming designers. Vogue magazine remains a cornerstone for all discussion throughout the documentary as does Anna Wintour, which comes as no surprise with Wintour as an Executive Producer on the documentary as well as it being a Vogue Studios production.
In the first episode, and the beginning of the new decade, Anna Wintour recounts her deliberation over who to have on the cover of American Vogue. As she asks herself who young people are looking up to, Wintour sets the tone for the question Vogue will continue to chase the answer to, even in the present moment. It is expressed that young people in the early 90s no longer desired to be like Grace Kelly and Audrey Hepburn, and whilst this may have rung true, the choice to have Madonna on the cover remained a defiant one. The question of who young people desire to be like seems to be important in exposing the entire purpose of the documentary. Anna Wintour’s tenure at Vogue continues to be about what people want and, subsequently, to have the ability to give this to them before they even decide what it is that they want. Being cautious not to tell the public what they wanted but still being able to pre-empt the stars of tomorrow and their relevance to fashion is a skill undoubtedly honed by Wintour, established during this initial decade at Vogue.
In Vogue; The 90s is an unbelievable triumph in summarising a complex decade in the world of fashion, with five remaining episodes titled, The Fashion Rebels, The Hollywood Merger, The Rise of the Met Gala, Hip Hop Takes Fashion and The American Moment. It is no surprise that The Telegraph names it a 'nostalgic retrospective' that 'celebrates the energy of the 90s and the editorial brilliance of the 90s'.
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