Gia (1998) film review - the tragic story of supermodel Gia Carangi
★★★★★
'Gia’ is a historical drama film based on the life and death of American model Gia Marie Carangi, who is widely believed to have been the world’s first supermodel.
Director: Michael Cristofer. Starring: Angelina Jolie, Faye Dunaway, Elizabeth Mitchell, Mila Kunis, Mercedes Ruehl. 18 cert, 126 min.
'Gia’ is a historical drama film based on the life and death of Italian-American model Gia Marie Carangi, who is widely believed to have been the world’s first supermodel. At the age of just 17, Gia moved to New York and was signed by Wilhelmina Models. Her rise to stardom was fast, but Gia soon turned to drugs, eventually developing a severe heroin addiction. ‘Gia’ is a heartbreaking, intimate look into the short but passionate life of Carangi. Shot in a mock-documentary style and including passages from Gia’s diary, this film contains powerful messages about drug addiction, identity, and the brutal nature of the modelling industry. One day you’re a star, but when you’re past your sell-by date, you may as well be dead.
‘Gia’ (1998) film poster artwork
Angelina Jolie and the truth about ‘Gia’
Directed by Michael Cristofer, ‘Gia’ was released in 1998 as a biographical television film for HBO. However, it stands out from other biopics with its unusual arthouse style, graphic sex and drug-related imagery, and of course a strong lead performance from Angelina Jolie. 'Gia' rarely attempts to sugarcoat or glamourise drug abuse, instead portraying the darker side to Vogue’s glossy magazine covers. And though the trappings of fame and fortune are a familiar movie trope, ‘Gia’ does it particularly well. Angelina Jolie delivers a deeply nuanced performance as Gia, a fiery bisexual model who is at times childish and short-tempered, but also full of love and plagued by abandonment issues and tragedy.
‘Gia’ is not only a cautionary tale about the consequences of drug use, but a tragic love story. At first glance the relationship between Gia, played by Angelina Jolie, and Linda, played by Elizabeth Mitchell, appears exaggerated and exploitative. A lot of the film’s runtime focuses on their unstable relationship, as well as porn-like shots of the two women making love. However, it is true that Gia was infatuated with a particular woman in her life. In 1978, Gia Carangi took part in her first major shoot, where she posed nude behind a chain link fence with makeup artist Sandy Linter. This shoot is actually shown in ‘Gia,’ and the character Linda is loosely based upon Sandy. Though it is not my place to comment on the truth behind various aspects of their relationship, Sandy Linter continues to raise awareness about HIV and AIDs to this day in Gia’s memory.
Sandy Linter and Gia Carangi
The tragic life of Gia Carangi
The period soundtrack to ‘Gia’ transports you right back to the 80s, from David Bowie to The Pretenders and Echo and the Bunnymen. Gia Carangi was allegedly a huge David Bowie fan herself, taking inspiration from his ambiguous sexuality and glam rock style. With exquisite fashion, beautiful people, and seemingly endless amounts of money, the 80s fashion scene is as vivacious and exciting as the music it produced. However, its superficial beauty is not enough to disguise the ugliness of self-destructive behaviours. Following the tragic death of her mentor and agent Wilhelmina Cooper, played by Faye Dunaway, Gia spirals out of control. Angelina Jolie provides extraordinary energy and depth to Gia’s character, which makes this downward spiral even more harrowing and hard to watch. As a viewer, you fall in love with the charismatic and fearless Gia and are forced to watch as her life slowly falls apart.
‘Life and death, energy and peace. If I stop today it was still worth it. Even the terrible mistakes that I made and would have unmade if I could. The pains that have burned me and scarred my soul, it was worth it, for having been allowed to walk where I've walked, which was to hell on earth, heaven on earth, back again, into, under, far in between, through it, in it, and above.’
─ Angelina Jolie in 'Gia,’ 1998
Gia’s death and legacy
‘Gia’ peels back the layers of Carangi’s tough exterior and fierce beauty to reveal a young girl, fragile and yearning to be loved by those around her. But perhaps the most heartbreaking thing about ‘Gia’ is the speed at which Carangi falls. From modelling for numerous high fashion brands like Dior, Versace, and YSL, to struggling to make a living with disintegrating physical health, ‘Gia’ is the ultimate deterrent to hard drugs. In 1986, at the age of just 26, Gia Carangi died as a result of AIDs-related complications. Nobody from the fashion industry attended the funeral, something which is not explicit in ‘Gia’ but highlights the cutthroat nature of the modelling world. Whether Gia would have approved of Cristofer’s film about her is anyone’s guess, but I am without doubt that she would have approved of the awareness it has raised.
With masterful acting from Angelina Jolie, Elizabeth Mitchell, and Faye Dunaway, ‘Gia’ is an impressive, heart-rending television film that deserves a great deal more recognition. Though it is not a wholly accurate account of Gia Carangi’s life, it successfully captures the dark underbelly of the fashion industry and the plight of its victims. The legacy that Gia has left behind will undoubtedly live on, and her influence on the fashion world has been remarkable. At the start of Cindy Crawford’s modelling career, for example, she was referred to as ‘Baby Gia’ due to her resemblance to Carangi.
Should you watch this before you die?
Overall, ‘Gia’ is a visually stunning biographical drama that chronicles supermodel Gia Carangi’s harrowing transformation from gorgeous it-girl to debilitated addict. It is sensitive enough that it presents Gia in a sympathetic light, but shocking enough that it is utterly distressing and powerful. I cannot praise Angelina Jolie’s performance enough, and she does an incredible job at telling Gia’s story. For anyone interested in learning more about Gia Carangi’s life, I will link some videos and books below.
Thing of Beauty: The Tragedy of Supermodel Gia by Stephen Fried
Born This Way by Sacha Baumann
Sandy Linter talking about Gia in 2012
Rest in peace, Gia.