Customer Reviews

Gia (Unrated Edition)

5 star:		(208)
4 star:		(62)
3 star:		(22)
2 star:		(9)
1 star:		(11)

 

 

This is a terrific movie and I was thrilled to see Angelina Jolie playing this part, (I first saw her in Hackers). But in case you don't know this, the DVD is missing 6 minutes of the movie. the only way to have the extra 6 minutes is to have gotten the original release on VHS (or recorded in from HBO). After Angelina became more popular, 6 minutes of her nude scenes were deleted from later re-releases of the movie including this DVD. But it still is a good movie.

This is it folks - a genuine "breakout performance". We don't get them often enough so we should pay attention when we do.

WARNING ::: This review reveals some plot points !

"Gia", a film for HBO, stars Angelina Jolie, Faye Dunaway, Elizabeth Mitchell and Mercedes Ruehl.

This film is the life-story of Gia Carangi, one of the first "supermodels". How big a star/model was Gia? Well, Cindy Crawford was dubbed the "young Gia" and the "next Gia" - that's how famous she was.

Unfortunately, besides being the "face" of the day in the modelling world, she was also fairly famous for her drug addiction and ultimate fall from grace.

If you want a more indepth depiction of Gia's life - there are a couple of books available. The best being "Thing of Beauty: The Tragedy of Supermodel Gia".

Back to the film.

Angelina Jolie BECOMES Gia in every sense of the word. Her performance is one of the best portrayals of real people in years. She is completely and utter believable. She captures what is surely the essense of Gia. She brings a desparate wanting to the character that you can feel.

Elizabeth Mitchell ( recently of "ER" fame ) co-stars and really provides an excellent touch-stone for Gia's tortured existance.

There's nothing pretty about this film - it shows the whole story, the drugs, the parties, the sex, the pain and the suffering. It depicts, with little filter, the USING of Gia and her decent into her fate.

It's no surprise that Angelina won a Golden Globe for this amazing performance. It's no surprise that she was nominated for an Emmy either. You're not able to take your eyes off her. As a matter of fact, this is a much awarded film - including a best actress award for Angelina Jolie at the LA Outfest.

Faye Dunaway is mainly here for star power - almost as if they weren't sure Angelina Jolie could pull it off. She's okay here, but we all know that Faye has done some amazing work and here, she sort of phones it in.

Mercedes Ruehl plays Gia's mother and she does a good job. She's a little over the top but you suspect it's an accurate portrayal.

For the Angelina Jolie fan - it's a MUST SEE, MUST OWN film. For others, it really is worth the time and money.

You don't often get a chance to see a young star make an amazing film like this. You'll see small tales of "Lisa" from her Academy Award winning performance in "Girl, Interupted" in Gia, but mostly you'll see an INCREDIBLE performance by Angelina Jolie. Really remarkable.

FYI : There is an UNRATED version available on VHS that is currently not available on DVD. The UNRATED version contains more explict scenes ( specifically the shower sequence is longer ).

In all, a great film. Well written, directed and acted. A real gem. Thank you HBO.

All The Best, turtlex

"Gia" is quite simply the haunting but well told story of Gia Marie Carangi. Truth be told, I was not drawn to this movie at first because of the story, what drew me and I'm sure many others to it is the star Angelina Jolie. After her success in the Tomb Raider movies, I thought it would be interesting to see some of her past work, thus this movie became very interesting!

Angelina Jolie performs admirably and brilliantly in this film, almost to perfection in what I'm sure is an even greater range in her talents. The depth of the character she portrays does compel you to the character despite already knowing the tragic outcome. Praise goes to Faye Dunaway and Mercedes Ruehl for their efforts in this film as well.

This true life sad story is told well in the film; however, the director, Michael Cristofer, chose an almost cryptic style in which to tell the tragic story of Gia's life which, at times, detracts from the overall telling of the story. The score for the film does do well in what it's designed to do, augment the overall feel of the movie.

The Premise:

"Gia" is the overly tragic story of Gia Marie Carangi; a young and extremely beautiful woman from Philadelphia who suffered the break up of her parents at a young age and then in her late teens, a photographer stumbles upon her and not long thereafter the life of a supermodel overwhelms her. Incapable of dealing with separation of any form, she turns to drugs!

What follows from there is a heart wrenching and very telling true life tragedy of what happened to this beautiful young woman.

I would definitely recommend this HBO movie; one for the story itself and two for the exceptional performance by Angelina Jolie in this heartrending tale. {ssintrepid}

Special Features:

-Cast & Crew Bios
-Photo Gallery

In this intense and heartfelt film, Angelina Jolie captures the essence of the sad and turbulent spirit of Gia Marie Carangi, the fashion model who struggled with abandonment, fame and drug addiction. Elizabeth Mitchell is Linda, a character who represents several of Gia's relationships. She is an angelic "square" whose attempts to put Gia on the right track are constantly frustrated. Although the film takes some poetic license with this enduring love interest, it does provide us with an accurate glimpse of the kind of monogamous relationship Gia longed for but was unable to obtain. Faye Dunaway as Whilhelmina Cooper (Wilhelmina Models founder)and Mercedes Ruehl as Kathleen Sperr (Gia's mother) are wonderful. Ruehl has a complex character to portray. The movie will not win the modeling industry any new friends, and you'll think twice if you were planning on farming your daughter out to young miss fashion competitions. Angelina Jolie as Gia lets us learn from her mistakes and the movie leaves an indelible mark that cannot be airbrushed away.

I read this book and found it unforgettable, and I love Angelina Jolie, so I was really looking forward to this. I was not dissapointed at all. Jolie is not only so beautiful she takes your breath away, but has real talent and star power. The casting was perfect, and Mercedes Ruehel was brilliant as usual. I don't care for Fay Dunaway but thought she was perfectly cast (though her teeth alarm me) Several scenes stand out--there's the one where she goes into the modeling agency, all punked-out and with an attitude. The snotty receptionist asks her name and she replies "Gia". The receptionist bitchily says, "G-what?" Gia pulls out her switchblade and carves the letters G-I-A right into the shocked receptionist's desktop. The scene where she does a photo shoot nude behind a chain link fence, but asks the blonde assistant she likes to join her in the shoot, is very sexy, beautifully shot and romantic. It gets pretty depressing towards the end when she's desperate for junk and sick, but that's what heroin does to you. (I lost a friend, who was also a model, to heroin several years ago--in fact I read the book the same weekend she overdosed). Though try as the makeup artists might, they just can't make Jolie look as terrible as she's supposed to. Jolie is so stunning it almost hurts to look at her in some of the scenes where she's dressed and made up to the nines. Many of the clothes are to die for (no pun intended) The last few scenes really made me cry, especially when Mercedes Rhuel (who plays her mother) starts crying while she's talking about her daughter's tragic end. Beautiful, haunting, and also thought provoking--yes, supermodels have miserable lives sometimes, despite their looks. And women, even if your boyfriend/husband doesn't want to watch it with you because he thinks it's a 'chick flick', tell him he'll love it, and I'm sure he will become *very* interested during the love scenes!

I was maybe ten when Gia died. Needless to say I had never heard of her when this movie came out. But being a huge fan of Angelina Jolie I watched it. After it was over I just sat there thinking (a sign of a very good movie in my opinion). I had run the gamet of every emotion possible in just two hours. I felt like I had just met someone quite amazing and they told me their life story. Angelina Jolie has proven herself in the past as an amazing actress, but this film established her as a master of the craft. No one could have come close to the power she radiates while showing us who Gia was. I don't say "plays Gia" because it was definitly more than portraying a character. She became Gia. I hate when people categorize this movie as "lesbian/ gay film", because it generalizes a very complex emotional human being. Gia wasn't just a lesbian, she was a model, a friend, a daughter, and a lover. If you want to experience the human condition, it's joy and pain, watch Gia. It truly is a work of art. And Angelina Jolie is an artist.

The entire movie is fabulous, but i would just like to pay special attention to Elizabeth Mitchell for her amazing performance as Angelina Jolie's love interest. Now i totally agree with everyone when they say that Angelina's performance was flawless, but most people have a tendency to over look Mitchell's character and her part which made the movie so wonderful! somehow Mitchell was able to steal all of the scenes she was in, which is an especially hard task since most of the scenes are with Jolie. she's amazing as Gia's lover. you are truly able to feel the love Linda has for Gia, and this is in part thanks to the chemistry between the two actresses but also because of Mitchell's obvious amazing talent at completely giving herself to her part! all i want to know is what else she's has been or will be in! i loved her in this movie and i hope that she keeps portraying wonderful characters such as Linda! so for everyone who loves Gia, next time you watch the movie please pay special attention to Elizabeth Mitchell's magnificent performance as the only person who loved Gia unconditionally!

While "Gia" certainly is a sobering look at the short life and tragic death of Gia Carangi, 80's supermodel, this movie also gets a five star rating for its depiction of the relationship between Gia and her lover Linda. (Unfortunately, the character Linda never really existed in real-life; this is an amalgamation of different relationships Gia had with women.) However, kudos must be given to Angelina Jolie and especially Kathleen Mitchell for the heat and chemistry these two put on the screen. Unlike many movies that depict both the affectional and sexual realtionships between two women, wherein the actresses look as though they are either sleep walking or don't have a clue how two women might interact with one another on an other-than- friends basis, these two actresses capture the whole picture. From the performance that shows up on screen, you could swear that it isn't just acting. They get every nuance, from eye contact to touch. However, you have to get the Unrated version, not the R rated version, to really get the whole picture. The Unrated version contains scenes that go much farther in explaining how Gia's relationship, even if fictional, is the emotional core of this movie. Especially fun is the extended version of Gia and Linda having dinner together when Gia moves back to Philadelphia. While the R version only gives us a peck on the lips at the dinner table, the unrated version contains several of what appear to be outtakes from filming, that are special because of the good humor that the two actresses seem to share in filming a great physical-but-with-clothes-on scene, several times. The initial scenes with Gia and Linda in the photography studio, as well as in bed for the first time, also give a more extended view of the heat between the two characters.If you're tired of politically correct lesbian movies featuring women who look like they need a bath and a good haircut, this is definitly one to rent. I'm only left with a couple of questions: Who is Kathleen Mitchell? Has she ever been in anything else? Angelina Jolie deserves the kudos she's gotten for portraying Gia, but Mitchell deserves a ton for bringing a real-live formerly heterosexual woman who meets someone that changes her mind to life with such a fine, nuanced performance.

The movie is an entertaining yet gut wrenching story of the first super model Gia Marie Carangi. Gia is unfortunately known for being the first female public persona to die from contracting the AIDS virus at the age of twenty six. When Gia passed in 1986 little was known about AIDS. Radioactive suits were used for AIDS patients and it was considered the "gay plaque". Gia was born in Philly and the first to walk the catwalk in a boisterous style. She was also a pioneer being a brunette in the modeling world of "Marsha freakin' Brady" `s.

"... heaven on earth back again into under far in between through it in it and above..." from Gia's journal

This movie chronicles Gia's relationships to family, friends, photographers, other models and drugs. This roller coaster of a movie is not for the faint of heart or close minded. Her rise to stardom and downward spiral take you by the hand every step of the way. Your heart goes out to the wise cracking model, almost daring you not to fall for her yourself, despite her heroin addiction. Her attempts of recovery and living as a house wife ("Mrs Doodiekins") are both endearing and entertaining. This is one of the first movies that I actually spoke to the screen, "NO GIA!" "You go girl!", etc.

I can not say enough about Angelina Jolie's acting of the ill fated model. All sides of this complex character are shown. Charming, lovable, destructive, stubborn, it's all there! Jolie's performance in this HBO movie earned her the Golden Globe award, a Screen Actors Guild Award and an Emmy nomination. Elizabeth Mitchell's performance as Linda is underrated and worth props. Mercedes Ruehl is excellent in everything she does, this is no exception. Ruehl plays Gia's "absent" mother Kathleen Carangi. Faye Dunaway is superb as the sympathetic modeling agent Wilhemina Cooper. Thinking back on the movie, not one bad performance in the bunch.


Now that you know the basics of a "movie review" are covered, here is the real reason I am writing. I owned the "R" rated version of this movie on DVD and was curious to know what the added five minutes of footage contained. I searched the internet and could not find the information anywhere. If you are interested like I was this may be helpful to you. Granted I have not seen the "R" version in a while but these are the scenes I spotted. (no spoilers in case you have not seen this movie)
The black and white chain link fence scene Between Gia and Linda is longer and more graphic. The scene inside studio 54 has a couple more seconds including more sex and drug use. Gia goes to "score" from Satellite in the red dress and Geisha make-up, the motor cycle ride is longer. The shower scene where Linda is "cleaning up" Gia is a little longer.

That is all the difference I saw. If I missed anything, I`m sorry. If you like the movie half as much as I did, buy it. It's inexpensive, and worth so much.

If you havent seen this film already you must buy it and watch it over and over again. Angelina Jolie play a model in need of help as at a young age her mother left her father for a rich man which left her feeling alone. Brought up in a house full of men GIA is sure to turn out a tom boy which she does. meeting a photographer at the age of 17 GIA soon turns into a fashion ikon beautiful and succesful her life was great. As all models in the 80's gia was no different she started taking cocaine to be in the in croud. One photoshoot she was asked to do one topless which she refused to do unless a woman who was working for the photographer was in with her they soon became lovers. So the number 1 model in the world was a bisexual cocaine addict. The film really had a twist ibn it when Gia went to her dealer for more cocaine but was no where to be seen but there was a nother crack head there and she was so desprate she took heroine which he offerd her instead. She took it soon passed out when she woke she was coverd in bruises which this drug addict did he also raped her. so now she had been raped beaten and given heroine with a dirty needle. she caught HIV she didnt know this at this point her girlfriend told he to choose the drugs or her she chose the drugs. soon after she was in rehab no longer beautiful noone wanted her to model for them when she got out
she was cutting her self because she didnt have drugs she went back to her dealer which beat her because she used drugs off someone else. this is when she found out about the HIV it was now worse she had AIDS and was going to die she went to she her ex girlfriend but never told her she was going to die later that week she was in hospital dieing. When you watch this film you will see the brilliant acting from Angelina Jolie but i warn you this film is very sad at the end even i cried i cant get over how good her acting was and im not the only one as she won an oscar for it