Iris is a documentary film from the acclaimed documentary filmmaker Albert Maysles (Grey Gardens, Gimmie Shelter) about the famous 93 year old fashion icon Iris Apfel. The film was produced by Jennifer Ash Rudick, Laura Coxson (The Love We Make), and Rebekah Maysles. The documentary chronicles her travels through the fashion world and explores the prominence of Apfel in the fashion industry.

88 year old filmmaker Albert Maysles does an excellent job of telling the story of Iris Apfel. Maysles explores her interests as he interviews her and she discusses her views on life, the fashion industry, people, and more. Iris talks about the way in which she began becoming involved with fashion and how it started to be of interest to her. She discusses growing up, growing old with her husband Carl Apfel, and how she got him interested in fashion as well. There is clearly a great deal of love between Iris and Carl Apfel.

Iris is a interesting character who is quite unique. She always dresses in flamboyant attire and she has an attitude that more is better in fashion: she seems to always add more pieces to the outfits she puts together for herself, fashion shows, and museum displays. Iris likes to be a bargain hunter and she will try and negotiate better prices on items. The documentary also features Iris discussing her time in the fashion world as she has television interviews, attends fashion events, and explores how her arrangements have been presented in fashion shows and at museums around the world.

Maysles makes the documentary a film as much about her style and personality as the fashion world she is involved in. One of the great things about this film is how it's about creativity and individuality. It's as much about that as it is about the fashion world. Iris has a creative life and continues to be fascinated by the different styles of  clothing she encounters along the way. Her individuality shows through her highly unique fashion style. It's inspiring to see Iris's dedication and love for style and the importance it has held in her life.

The Blu-ray:

Video:

Iris arrives on Blu-ray with an impressive 1080p High Definition presentation in the original theatrical aspect ratio of 1.78:1 widescreen. This 16:9 encoded image has a 20mbps bit-rate. Magnolia has done a respectable job of presenting this documentary film. It has strong color reproduction and generally strong clarity. This is a sleekly produced documentary that looks excellent in HD.

Audio:

The audio is presented in 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio. The audio is quite simplistic (which is not so surprising as this is a documentary). The film doesn't utilize that much in the way of music or sound effects. Dialogue reproduction is quite excellent and the audio is encoded in 24 bit depth. The lossless sound quality is pleasing for this documentary.

Subtitles are provided in English SDH (for the deaf and hard of hearing), Spanish, and French.

Extras:

This release includes a small selection of extras: Interview with Iris Apfel (12:28), Deleted Scenes (6:00), and the Theatrical Trailer.

Final Thoughts:

Iris Apfel is an interesting and inspiring fashion icon. Her style is distinctive and clearly her own. She has become a huge cultural icon and this documentary is a well-made exploration of her life and involvement in the fashion world. Filmmaker Albert Maysles has crafted a well-made film. This documentary is worth checking out for fans of the beloved Iris.

Highly Recommended.

Neil Lumbard is a lifelong fan of cinema. He aspires to make movies and has written two screenplays on spec. He loves writing, and currently does in Texas.