Ghost world

Personal Shopper is The End of The Affair: an acute study of relationships in modern times with a magical element that feels both sincere and tacked-on. Graham Greene's novel frustrated readers who enjoyed the bits in it about people; Olivier Assayas' movie should be equally annoying but his mystery-machine is more compassionate. Maureen's connection with the spirit world is a neat metaphor for an interloper who purchases transient fashion on behalf of a distant celebrity; when she steps into her client's clothes she becomes someone other than Kristen Stewart, a meta-special-effect in itself. We are in the Single White Female / Maitresse neighbourhood here, the transference and stalking by text more thrilling and scary than any CGI spook. Contemporary Paris and London are looking newly sexy lately – see also In the Shadow of Iris (Jalil Lespert, 2016).