Chop Suey is based on photographer Bruce Weber’s four-year photographic love affair with Peter Johnson, now one of the highest paid male models in the States. But it is far more than a homage to male beauty: Weber’s profound respect for his subject expands into a mutual fascination for some extraordinary people, notably the late lesbian jazz singer Frances Faye, fashion doyenne Diana Vreeland and Hollywood icon Robert Mitchum. Weber combines film sequences, photographs, archive footage, Super-8 and clips from Hollywood films to build a multi-layered meditation on the nature and meaning of fame. This is a challenging and gorgeous film which richly rewards the open-minded viewer.
Director: Bruce Weber. U.S.A., 2000. Colour. Dolby stereo. 98 mins.