Review of Personal Shopper (2016) by Nathaniel M — 13 Nov 2017

I only wish it would have left out one fx shot and stuck to its minimalist guns just a little tighter. There is no film that used iphone chat messages to great effect. This film deserves enormous credit. There are several masterfully built scenes of suspension, horror, and tension. Also heavily philosophical. Juxtaposing the mundanity of shopping for someone's upscale clothing with the fears of death and losing. The sterility of hotel rooms against the aged yet empty beauty of a haunted house. Also left serious questions as to whether this was a mental illness or ghost film.

I am usually a fan of Kirsten Stewart, though she does tend to over act with her body movements.

Cinematography was telling half the story, as it should be. The digital age sure can be artful now that we don't have to endure cinematographers and colorists overdoing everything to hide a camera's shortcomings. Or maybe the world has grown more tasteful. The final scene, they seem to use a really soft lens, to enhance the spiritual and emotional state of the protagonist. Lovely, really.