''Gia'' is a 1998 American

biographical A biography, or simply bio, is a detailed description of a person's life. It involves more than just the basic facts like education, work, relationships, and death; it portrays a person's experience of these life events. Unlike a profile or c ...

drama Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has b ...

television film about the life and times of one of the first

supermodel A supermodel, also spelled super-model or super model, is a highly paid fashion model who usually has a worldwide reputation and often a background in ''haute couture'' and commercial modeling. The term ''supermodel'' became prominent in the po ...

Gia Carangi Gia Marie Carangi (January 29, 1960November 18, 1986) was an American model, considered by many to be the first supermodel. She was featured on the cover of many magazines, including multiple editions of '' Vogue'' and ''Cosmopolitan'', and appe ...

. The film stars

Angelina Jolie Angelina Jolie (; born Angelina Jolie Voight; June 4, 1975) is an American actress, filmmaker, humanitarian and former Special Envoy to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees. The recipient of numerous accolades, including an Academy Award ...

as Gia and

Faye Dunaway Dorothy Faye Dunaway (born January 14, 1941) is an American actress. She is the recipient of many accolades, including an Academy Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, three Golden Globe Awards, and a BAFTA Award. In 2011, the government of France mad ...

as Wilhelmina Cooper, with Mercedes Ruehl and

Elizabeth Mitchell Elizabeth Mitchell (born Elizabeth Joanna Robertson) is an American actress known for her lead role as Juliet Burke on the ABC drama mystery series ''Lost'' (2006–2010). Mitchell also had lead roles on the television series '' V'' (2009–2 ...

. It was directed by

Michael Cristofer Michael Cristofer (born January 22, 1945) is an American actor, playwright and filmmaker. He received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama and the Tony Award for Best Play for '' The Shadow Box'' in 1977. From 2015 to 2019, he played the role of Phillip ...

and written by Cristofer and

Jay McInerney John Barrett "Jay" McInerney Jr. (; born January 13, 1955) is an American novelist, screenwriter, editor, and columnist. His novels include ''Bright Lights, Big City (novel), Bright Lights, Big City'', ''Ransom'', ''Story of My Life (novel), Sto ...

. The original music score was composed by

Terence Blanchard Terence Oliver Blanchard (born March 13, 1962) is an American trumpeter and composer. He started his career in 1982 as a member of the Lionel Hampton Orchestra, then The Jazz Messengers. He has composed more than forty film scores and performed ...

Plot

is a

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...

native who moves to New York City to become a fashion model, and immediately catches the attention of powerful agent Wilhelmina Cooper. Gia's attitude and beauty help her rise quickly to the forefront of the modeling industry, but her persistent loneliness, especially after the death of Wilhelmina, drives her to use mood-altering drugs such as

cocaine Cocaine (from , from , ultimately from Quechua: ''kúka'') is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant mainly used recreationally for its euphoric effects. It is primarily obtained from the leaves of two Coca species native to South Ameri ...

and heroin. She becomes entangled in a passionate affair with Linda, a make-up artist. Their love affair first starts when both pose nude for a photo shoot and make love afterward. Gia tries to get clean and begins taking

methadone Methadone, sold under the brand names Dolophine and Methadose among others, is a synthetic opioid agonist used for chronic pain and also for opioid dependence. It is used to treat chronic pain, and it is also used to treat addiction to heroi ...

. However, Gia eventually starts using again, and Linda gives her an ultimatum. Gia chooses the drugs. Failed attempts at reconciliation with Linda and with her mother, Kathleen, drive Gia back to heroin. Although she is eventually able to break her drug habit after much effort, she has already contracted

HIV The human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV) are two species of ''Lentivirus'' (a subgroup of retrovirus) that infect humans. Over time, they cause acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a condition in which progressive failure of the immune ...

from intravenous drug use, which has progressed to AIDS. She spends the remainder of her life in the hospital.

Cast

Reception

Critical reception

''Gia'' was generally well received by critics, with an approval rating of 92% based on reviews from 13 critics on review aggregator

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...

. ''

Kalamazoo Gazette The ''Kalamazoo Gazette'' is the daily newspaper in Kalamazoo, Michigan, and is part of MLive Media Group MLive Media Group, originally known as Booth Newspapers, or Booth Michigan, is a media group that produces newspapers in the state of ...

'' commented: "Jolie gives it her all in a thoroughly uninhibited and highly effective portrait of a woman living from thrill to thrill."

Christopher Null Christopher Null is an American writer, film critic, and columnist. A former blogger for Yahoo! Tech, he was the editor of Drinkhacker.com, and the founder and editor-in-chief of Filmcritic.com, which operated from 1995 to 2012. In 2003, CNN cal ...

of Filmcritic.com gave the film 3 out of 5 stars. Conversely, Film Freak Central gave the film only 1.5 out of 4 stars and commented: "''Gia'' isn't hagiography, I'll give it that, but it ''is'' reductive to a fault."

Awards

;

Golden Globes The Golden Globe Awards are accolades bestowed by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association beginning in January 1944, recognizing excellence in both American and international film and television. Beginning in 2022, there are 105 members of ...

* Angelina Jolie – Best Performance by an Actress in a Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television * Faye Dunaway – Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-Series or Motion Picture ; Emmy Awards * Eric A. Sears – Outstanding Single Camera Picture Editing for a Miniseries or a Movie ; Screen Actors Guild Awards * Angelina Jolie – Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Television Movie or Miniseries

References

External links

* * * {{Michael Cristofer 1998 television films 1998 films 1998 in American television 1998 drama films 1998 LGBT-related films 1990s biographical drama films 1990s English-language films American biographical drama films American LGBT-related television films American mockumentary films Biographical films about models Biographical television films Borderline personality disorder in fiction American drama television films Female bisexuality in film Films about heroin addiction Films directed by Michael Cristofer Films scored by Terence Blanchard Films set in the 1970s Films set in the 1980s Films set in New York City Films set in Philadelphia Films shot in Los Angeles Films shot in New York City Films with screenplays by Michael Cristofer HBO Films films HIV/AIDS in American films HIV/AIDS in television Lesbian-related films LGBT-related drama films LGBT-related films based on actual events 1990s American films