Personal Shopper

Personal fashion shopper, Maureen (Kristen Stewart), is an American living in Paris struggling to get by whilst working for fashion diva, Kyra (Nora von Waldstatten). But, between navigating Kyra’s outbursts and demands, Maureen has a deeper reason for staying in Paris, she happens to believe she’s a psychic medium; and, she’s waiting for a sign from her recently departed twin brother Lewis, she’s not aware of what his sign will be, or what it will mean, but her own spirit won’t rest until she finds this peace. Meanwhile, Kyra’s estranged lover Ingo (Lars Eidinger) has his own agenda and questions, where the physical and the spiritual collide, answers for all will be hard to come by. Directed and written by Olivier Assayas, this European spiritual slow burn features strong performances from the ensemble, developing into a slightly disjointed and enigmatic ghost story with aspirations of being deeper than is actually capable. Measured in its pacing, the plodding speed of Assayas may be trying for the non-art house crowd, and, the relatively unfocused plotting and genre morphing leaves the film feeling loose and un-tailored, the opposite of what a fine European suit should be. Maybe a rental for the fans of Assayas’s work, but, for the rest of the world, more likely a pass, Personal Shopper is rated R.