So this is a tough one. I sort of enjoyed this but it's another case where I didn't like any of the characters. Even Maureen (Kristan Stewart) was nothing but depressing to watch and she was the entire focus of the film. Following a personal shopper around as she goes through her daily grind was about as entertaining to watch as paint drying and she did a lot of shopping. I hate shopping. She lost her brother and that's an understandable reason to be depressed. She also had the same medical condition that her brother died from and that's certainly another. But when she tries on Kyra's clothes...was it because she envied Kyra's lifestyle? Was she angry because she basically equips Kyra with all of the clothing choices that are the source of Kyra's celebrity status? Was she not being paid enough? I don't get Maureen's issues with Kyra.

This is well directed and features some interesting transitions, some of which only jump seconds or minutes forward in time. I really liked the use of sound, primarily during the "hauntings". They were very effective. I've seen a lot written about the texting scene on the train being suspenseful. It's no different than if she were handed a note or received a phone call with someone stating that they are watching. There's nothing scary about texting itself. Plus, the scene goes on way too long.

My favorite scene features Maureen having tea on the patio in the backyard with Erwin. I'll preface this by stating that this isn't a scary movie. It's unsettling at times because there's always a threat of an encounter with a spirit. Maureen is aware of that presence in every case that I can think of except the scene with Erwin. There's something that happens during the conversation that is extremely successful as a scare. It's not a jump scare and it's not anything that hasn't been done before in lesser movies, it's just done incredibly well.

The ending was a letdown and not because it didn't put a nice, tidy bow that wrapped the story up. But it was far too open ended with too many interpretations possible.

Well ... How's within that, that the soul ... continues to exist ... after death?

Personal Shopper is written and directed by Olivier Assayas. It stars Kristen Stewart, Lars Eidinger, Sigrid Bouaziz, Anders Danielsen Lie, Ty Olwin and Hammou Graïa. Cinematography is by Yorick Le Saux.

A personal shopper in Paris refuses to leave the city until she makes contact with her twin brother who previously died there. Her life becomes more complicated when a mysterious person starts to contact her via text messages.

Personal Shopper is a film that's impossible to recommend with any confidence, even if I personally liked it well enough. It was booed on first showing at Cannes, yet upon the second main screen viewing of it, it got a five minute standing ovation. If you look at the reviews on sites such as IMDb you will see plenty of 1/10 reviews mixed with high scoring ones, evidence of the divisive nature of Assayas' picture. A lot of people went into it expecting a "Paranormal Activity" type of film, but it's far from that.

It's a meditation on grief and the complexities of the mind and the human condition under duress. Stewart gives her all for the director, a real bravura performance. Yes, the ending is either going to make or break your faith in what you have just witnessed, but if you buy into, and think about the narrative's trajectory, this has haunting and ethereal rewards. 7/10

"A lonely existence tormented by distant voices is examined in Olivier Assayas’ Personal Shopper, a moody, occasionally frustrating, often brilliant study in isolation, grief and disenfranchisement..."

Read the full review here: http://screen-space.squarespace.com/reviews/2016/6/15/personal-shopper.html

**Texting, shopping and Ghosting!**

This film was different. My bad, I did not quite get the title at first. I misunderstood it. I thought it was like a Shopaholic theme, a person with a shopping addiction. Then what I saw was different, and somewhere in the narration it explains what the title meant.

The real challenge watching it is the slow moving storyline. Dull and silent on most of the parts. But the mix of fantasy, like supernatural and regular drama brings interesting fact us to stay with it. Though the most of the film was about texting and shopping. I even thought does it any way connected to Stewart's previous film 'Clouds of Sils Maria'. Because there's something where both the films syncs with.

Despite being a bit boring film, Kristen Stewart is the reason it is watchable. Her performance was good, but again the mystery about the unexplainable things holds us as well. Definitely a watchable film, but not an entertaining film that you are looking for on a weekend. I'm not sure who is the target audience, but surely less people will think it is a fine film. So I hope you choose it carefully.

_4/10_