Galliano: From Genius To Controversy In Kevin Macdonald's "Highs and Lows"

“I’m going to tell you everything” Galliano states at the start of ‘High & Low’, a film about the controversial fashion genius by documentarian Kevin Macdonald. And seemingly, he does.

Galliano’s career fell apart in 2011 after a video leaked of him being antisemitic in a cocktail bar.

 The documentary refuses to move on to the highs of Galliano’s career until the clip has been shown. It’s a respectful move to all those affected by his damaging remarks and immediately makes the viewer understand that this isn’t a documentary full of praise. 

That is not to say that Galliano doesn’t receive praise at all. Sandwiched between clips of Abel Gance’s ‘Napoleon’ (the inspiration behind Galliano’s Central Saint Martins graduate show ‘Les Incroyables’) are clips of Galliano’s evolution - one that New York Times fashion director Vanessa Freidman describes as ‘parallel to the growth of the fashion industry.’ Clips of his collections at Galliano, Givenchy, and Dior are pasted over interviews from many of the fashion elite: Anna Wintour, Kate Moss, Naomi Campbell, Suzy Menkes, and the late Andre Leon Tally. Fashion enthusiasts are given the chance to awe over Galliano’s creative genius as they watch models perform their way down the runway in shows like the Galliano ss’94 collection titled ‘Princess Lucretia’.

It is clear from the behind-the-scenes clips and the way he is spoken about by those close to him that Galliano has always had a true passion and love for fashion, but it ultimately led to his downfall. He says it himself – he was “obsessed”. 

After a touching tribute to the late Steven Robinson, Galliano’s right-hand man, the documentary moves swiftly on from the highest of highs to the lowest of the lows. Whilst Macdonald slides anecdotes of Galliano’s alcoholism into the early parts of the documentary, his first financial backer Johan Brun states he “would crash after every show,” it all comes to a head when the pressures of the fashion world collide with the death of his closest confidant. In one cyclical moment, we’re back to the starting point. The video that started it all. The documentary shines a light on three separate antisemitic comments that Galliano made at Café La Perle. He states he can only remember one. 

Despite trying to sue for defamation at the time of the incident, Galliano states he apologized during his trial and says he ‘feels terrible for all the hurt [he has] caused’. One of the victims of the racist remarks states he never apologized. 

Galliano did make a quiet return to the fashion world after going through rehab and working with Jewish organisations. He accepted a residency at Oscar De La Renta in 2013 before becoming creative director at Margiela in 2014.

His Margiela spring 2024 couture show went viral and led to the question that this documentary ultimately strives to answer – can we appreciate a person's incredible talent without excusing mistakes they have made?

The documentary is incredibly well made, and Macdonald does an excellent job of combining a slice of fashion history with an unforgivable controversy. There is an insight into the creative genius of Galliano alongside an exploration of how addiction and upbringing led to his downfall.

Watch the official trailer below:

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