What is Irma Vep about? The obsession of a failing director for a classic silent film serial translates into an electricity filled (I mean this literally) short reel of a remake. Along the way we meet several frenzied and frazzled characters doing pretty much- nothing. They rehearse a scene or two, but mostly talk, talk and talk. Very French with shades of Robert Altman. Many characters, many obsessions and a subtle exploration of hidden selves. In particular, Maggie Cheung walks onto the film set knowing virtually nothing about it and learns something about her own predilections through a mere costume change. However, the rest of the film is a bit muddled and somewhat conventional. References to French New Wave and other cinematic touchstones abound within a chaotic story structure. In the end, the film is slightly amusing, but leaves you mostly Breathless. There- I achieved the level of cinephilia demonstrated by the director Olivier Assayas in this film. I will skip the new HBO series, although I love Alicia Vikander.
