Mahogany: Couture Edition

In the movies, when a character stands up for herself we cheer. In real life, we label her as a troublemaker or worse.

In the slums of Chicago, Tracy Chambers (the astounding Diana Ross in her follow-up to the hugely successful "Lady Sings the Blues") has plenty of battles to fight and an impossible dream. She wants to be a high-end fashion designer in an industry that won't even let black women model. So politics and the fight for equal rights aren't her highest priority.

That's not the case for the impassioned and sexy Brian Walker (Billy Dee Williams), a man who's made his life about standing up for people who can't stand up for themselves. (On a much smaller scale, he foreshadows President Barack Obama.) Brian is running for office in his district, and figures that Tracy will naturally want to stand behind him and support his cause.

There is one man that seems to be standing up for Tracy, the progressive fashion photographer Sean (Anthony Perkins). Even though he's white, he breaks all the rules to highlight black models in his photo spreads. Sean can certainly help Tracy get her foot in the door, but he comes with his own set of problems. He wants Tracy to be a model, not a designer; he's using her for her looks, and ultimately his spreads are more exploitative than empowering.

In order to advance her career, Tracy follows Sean to Rome. (Because "Chicago is not somewhere you start out. It's someplace you end up.") They're less racist abroad, but they're every bit as sexist. The one advantage is she will work for a woman, Carlotta Gavina (Marisa Mell). Through this course Tracy makes her way to the top, but once she's there she has to face the realities of the life she's created.

The production and costume design alone (not to mention the makeup and the hair) are enough to make this film a top priority. In this "Couture Edition" DVD that includes a fabulously stylish menu, a voguish stills gallery and a collection of five fashion photography cards, panache is a priority. But there's so much more to this movie than fashion.

For instance, David Watkin's magnificent cinematography: Here is a man whose picturesque technique and ability to bring us into the head of a female protagonist are legendary. (Some of his other great films are "Out of Africa," "Yentl," "Chariots of Fire" and "Moonstruck.")

John Byrum's screenplay (he turned down "Jaws" to write this movie) is also extraordinary, a classic rendition of the Hollywood Dream (the super-amped American Dream). Only in this vision of success we get a rare and wonderful treat: a black and female hero -- pretty impressive for 1975.

"Mahogany: The Couture Edition"
DVD
Rated PG / 108 min.
www.paramount.com