310, Melania

Okay Amazon Prime - Lets get the bad bits out the way first.  

IMDB have ranked this 1.4 Stars (One of the 5 lowest ranked films on the platform) & Rotten Tomatoes gave it a critics score of just 7% (although it has an audience rating of 99%!)

Openly - it's been slammed as an egotystical self portrayal of first world problems that only seem to affect the top 0.0001% of the population and the whole concept was never really going to allow the promise of a 'tell all' behind the scenes documentary of what life is truly like for the wife of President Trump, especially in the 20 days leading up to his 2nd term as US President.  So what actually is 'Melania' - if it's not an 'access all areas' documentary?

Well - surprisingly enough - I found it to be quite interesteing.

Lets just agree that it's a very manicured and scripted 90 minutes of self produced positivity from Melania's perspective.  The doting Wife, Daugher, Mother and the orchestrator of home design and public event planning which does shed some insight into some of the 'behind the scenes' goings on of the innaugural dinner and the pre-empt to life (once more) in the White House.

Trump himself appears fleetingly - it feels honest, and respectful but with that said, there are a handfull of funny and witty quips from Melania 'behind the camera' that do raise a smile, especially with how distanced she sounds on some of the recorded phone calls with him and pretty much her dismissal of his polling successes but on the whole, Melania is portrayed as a very supportive First Lady, albeit very much in control of her own schedule.

We do see (what we are led to believe is) the inside Melania's apartment within Trump Tower for a dress fitting, which is where we meet some of the ensemble cast - namely her designer / dresser (Herve Pierre) who does steal each scene he's in as well as the event coordinator (David Monn) who is behind some of the events Melania is working on.  The standout performance though is the hand made dress, presented by Herve that is nothing short of knockout and you do get a small glimpse of the 'fashionista' side of Melania - almost forgotton given her current standing.

There are filmed interviews with potential new 'staffers' - Invitation choosing, table dressings meetings and Art selection discussions for the White House that pad out the films duration but it really is all about Melania.  There are no sit down 'one to one' moments like you see in Drive to Survive and everything is shot pretty much in 3rd person, either on the move or on location with lots of voiceovers and very little straight to camera conversations.  There are lots of thoughtfull 'stares' set to patriotic soundtracks as this plane lands or that car pulls away and even the Secret Service guys get some face time, which I thought was a big 'no no' but hey, it's a new world!

We get to see inside the Capitol in footage that wouldn't have made the CNN Presidential coverage and if anything, this documentary is focussed on showing the indiviuality of the returning First Lady and the work she is doing towards numerous charities, much more than being just the wife of a President.

You don't get the open honesty and realism of let's say - 'Clarksons Farm' and if you honestly thought you would hear the first Lady slagging off her Husbands antics, then you are very much mistaken.

Okay - I'll agree with the critics that this isn't going to win any Documentary awards - but if Melania herself is of interest you, then this will give a voice to someone who on 'TV' is always two steps behind and pretty much unheard - allowing some small insight to life outside of being  'Mrs Trump' and highlights her own passions, challenges and steps to secure her and Baron's future (albeit financially, I'm sure they'll be okay) as the years tick by.

(Images used in blog are sourced from Wikipedia, Vanity Fair, Yahoo, New york Times, Common Sense Media & USA Today)