An inside look at Brett Ratner’s “Melania,” via Rolling Stone, surprisingly paints the first lady in a positive light — given the source. The one person who doesn’t come off so well is Ratner, but that’s a whole other story and should be tackled in another post.
Yes, we are just 48 hours away from Amazon’s “Melania” doc hitting theaters — it’s currently tracking at a $3M opening. Many are wondering why on earth Amazon would spend $75M on this film, and there are plenty of theories out there. However, one thing’s for certain: production went all out to make the film look beautiful.
Tackling the first lady in the weeks leading up to the inauguration, the production was — no surprise — chaotic, involving the hiring and coordination of three separate production crews working in Florida, Washington, D.C., and New York City. Two heavyweight cinematographers were involved — to the shock of cinephiles worldwide — Jeff Cronenweth and Dante Spinotti!
These two actively chose to work with Ratner, and given how important the visual aesthetics had to be for this doc, I can only imagine they got paid a handsome sum for the project.
Cronenweth used to be David Fincher’s go-to cinematographer — he’s the man behind the visuals of “Fight Club,” “The Social Network,” “The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo,” and “Gone Girl.” He hasn’t worked with Fincher in over a decade. Cronenweth’s photography was also the best thing about “Tron: Ares,” and he’s already shot Aaron Sorkin’s “The Social Reckoning,” hitting screens this fall.
As far as Spinotti goes, he was Michael Mann’s go-to DP for many years before they went their separate ways. His masterful photography in “Heat” was as much a visual feast as it was a visceral experience. Spinotti’s imprint has been all over Mann’s filmography, having worked with the filmmaker on “Manhunter,” “The Last of the Mohicans,” and “The Insider.” Their last collaboration together was 2009’s “Public Enemies.”
So, there you have it — “Melania” might turn out to be one of the most beautifully photographed docs you will see this decade.