522. Queen Of Versailles

Well there was a surprise on so many different levels.
1. Lauren Greenfield's documentary took a twist that I (and I'd imagine the director) had not seen coming.
2. Mrs W was astonished to find that we were watching it in a glorified living room (Nottingham Broadway's charming Lounge).
3. We were apparently sitting next to one of everyfilm's twitter followers (our hasty exit meant I only found out when he tweeted me later on).
When I suggested that Mrs W would love this it was on the basis that the documentary was about the unabashed lives of the super-rich (indeed, the sort of thing she watches on MTV with Miss W).
The brief clips I had seen of The Queen Of Versailles were of Jaqueline Siegel behaving like the biggest trophy of all the trophy wives.
She married timeshare king David when she was a beauty queen and he was 30 years her senior.
They have had seven children, live in a huge mansion and their regular mode of transport was chauffeur-driven limos and private jets.
And on top of all of that, they were having built the biggest house in America, modelled on the Palace Of Versailles in France.
That was until the financial markets went pop.
Greenfield's film,which had chronicled their rise to the top and consequent lifestyle, then became a fascinating insight into how the crash affected the super rich.
I presume that she could not believe her luck because, frankly, the way her film was shaping up I cannot imagine it would have been very interesting.
Indeed, the excesses of the Siegels which were funny at the beginning started to turn my stomach.
However, The Queen Of Versailles has now become a record of a salutary tale of our times.
And, while the belt-tightening is interesting, what really hits home is how the change in their finances affects the relationship of the Siegels themselves.
Greenfield had already gained the trust of the family when the times were good and was, therefore, able to continue shooting when the golden goose had flown.
That has helped make this a unique documentary.
Laughs: four out loud and plenty of sniggers
Jumps: none
Vomit: none
Nudity: none (although I saw more of Jaqueline's overspilling fake boobs than I wanted to).
Overall rating: 7.5/10