AdvertisementCultureMoviesDocumentaries Melania review: Lavish documentary on US First Lady beautifully shot but short on substance Karl Quinn January 30, 2026 — 6:55pm Save You have reached your maximum number of saved items. It’s a lavish, beautifully shot documentary that deploys many of the tropes of commercial cinema (director Brett Ratner’s principle stomping ground until accusations of sexual assault – which he has denied – derailed his career in 2017). Melania Trump was a model before she became the girlfriend of property developer Donald Trump circa 1998. Melania Trump in a scene from the documentary Melania. Bezos’ company paid $US40 million ($57 million) to acquire the rights to this film, of which $US28 million went straight to its subject.