Irma Vep

Irma Vep is a charming comedy about the art of filmmaking. When Hong Kong movie star Maggie (Maggie Cheung playing herself) comes to make a film in Paris with French director Rene Vidal(Jean-Pierre Leaud) she has little idea of the maelstrom she is entering. Despite the stresses of being in a strange city with a minimum grasp of the French language, Maggie implicitly believes in her director’s vision. His long-suffering crew, however, do not and when Rene is overcome with the symptoms of a nervous breakdown it seems the film is set for a disasterous outcome. Despite this, “Irma Vep” ends on a magical note as the mysterious director manages to create his vision despite the circumstances of the film-making process. In this fun ‘mockumentary’ Oliver Assayas cryptically comments on the art of filmmaking as well as on the French film industry (and the Hong Kong film phenomenon). Ultimately “Irma Vep” is a vehicle for and a tribute to Hong Kong movie star Maggie Cheung, whose brave performance grounds the whole film. In English and French with English subtitles.