“Gucci, luxe, drame et volupté”: the must-see documentary on Arte this summer
The flamboyant saga of the House of Gucci will be shown on Arte from July 23, 2025 in a documentary by Olivier Nicklaus. A look back at a century of excess, fashion and conflict.
This is the story of a luxury empire born from a simple leather workshop in Florence in 1921. It’s also a family saga marked by rivalries, assassinations and creative upheavals. ” Gucci, luxe, drame et volupté”, the new documentary by French journalist and directorOlivier Nicklaus, traces the chaotic rise of the brand with the two Gs. Broadcast on Arte from July 23, 2025, this 52-minute film explores the aesthetic power and internal fractures of one of the most sulphurous houses in Italian fashion.
A history of style and struggle
It all began with Guccio Gucci, a former baggage handler at the Savoy in London, who founded his house in Tuscany. Gucci soon became a benchmark for equestrian chic, with its horsebit motifs, high-end leathers and international clientele. By the 1950s, Hollywood and political elites – from Grace Kelly to Jackie Kennedy – were flocking to Gucci boutiques in Rome, New York and Los Angeles.
But behind the glamour, the power struggles between heirs, the partial sale of the company, and then the ordered assassination of Maurizio Gucci in 1995, build a dark myth that the documentary restores with sobriety and dramatic tension.
From Tom Ford to Demna: the metamorphosis of an empire
Looking at the different stylistic eras – the provocative sexism of Tom Ford, thebaroque exuberance of Alessandro Michele, and finally the recent appointment of Demna (ex-Balenciaga) – Olivier Nicklaus questions Gucci’s shifting identity. How can a house survive so many ruptures? By embracing the show, answers the filigree of the film.
The documentary also sheds light on Gucci’s dialogue with Paris, the capital of luxury, where each season its shows arouse both fascination and controversy.
Also read: Gucci and Pomellato join forces: a collection of haute joaillerie combining archive and modernity
