Prêt-à-Porter (film)

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Movie
German title Prêt-à-porter
Original title Prêt-à-porter
Country of production United States
original language English
Publishing year 1994
length 127 minutes
Age rating FSK 6
Rod
Director Robert Altman
script Robert Altman,
Barbara Shulgasser
production Robert Altman
music Michel Legrand
camera Jean Lépine ,
Pierre Mignot
cut Suzy Elmiger ,
Geraldine Peroni
occupation

Prêt-à-Porter is a comedy film by Robert Altman from the year 1994 .

action

The plot of the film consists of numerous episodes that are kept together by a framework plot. Sergei buys two copies of an eye-catching tie in Moscow . He sends one of them to Olivier de la Fontaine, who lives in Paris, who is supposed to wear it as a badge at the planned meeting.

Preparations for the big fashion shows are now in full swing in Paris . First, fashion for dogs is presented, then the normal fashion show with human models follows. As a common thread, reporter Kitty Potter leads through the film by asking the makers and models their questions.

In the meantime, Sergei has arrived in Paris and meets Olivier de la Fontaine. Sergei's real name is Sergio and is Italian. The two recognize each other by the tie that they both have bought in Moscow and are wearing. You get into a car and seem to be starting an important meeting when Olivier de la Fontaine suddenly gasps and suffocates on a ham sandwich. Since the driver did not observe what was going on (because he was investigating the cause of a traffic jam), he considers Sergio to be a murderer. He sees his salvation in front of the alarmed crowds in a jump directly from the bridge into the Seine .

The world press now has a sensational story under the motto Accident or Murder? treated. In the center of interest: Isabella de la Fontaine, the grieving widow. But her grief seems to be limited: "He has never looked better," she says of the victim during police identification. Then suddenly Sergio appears with her. Sergio lived in the Soviet Union for years , was her first husband and was thought to be dead by her.

The hyper-cool Irish top photographer Milo O'Brannigan also appears, with whom three publishers of leading fashion magazines vying for a contract with him have a private meeting. The three women pull out all the stops to win over O'Brannigan. But he uses the embarrassing situations for the women to shoot exposing photos.

The journalist Anne Eisenhower, on the other hand, wants to check into her room. This was previously done by sports reporter Joe Flynn, who, against his will, was put on the fashion show at short notice and so cannot leave. There is no other room available. They both argue about the room and insist on living there while they try to get rid of the other in a seriously situational hilarious attempt.

In the meantime, Sergio and Isabella have made up again and would like to celebrate their reunion with a romantic evening. Sergio is completely exhausted by the efforts of his escape and falls asleep despite Isabella's striptease.

There are some surprises during the fashion shows: two designers who abuse each other publicly are gay and in love; the reporter Kitty Potter is color-blind and the heavily pregnant model Albertine walks naked on the catwalk, only dressed in a bouquet of flowers and a bridal veil. Overall, the world of fashion is being led to absurdity.

Anne and Joe have both moved into the room and are inevitably getting closer. Joe seduces Anne with lots of champagne. He wants to stay in the room with her, although the hotel management has meanwhile been able to find another room for him. Joe now orders champagne every evening, but has it presented as a "present from the house".

Anne and the married Joe split up after their jobs in Paris are done. So there will be no future together and living together in the hotel room will remain an episode in both lives.

At the end of the film, Olivier de la Fontaine is buried and the funeral procession leads past a park bench on which Sergio has apparently stayed the night.

Reviews

  • “A film comedy from the world of fashion, in whose brilliant staging a multitude of plot threads run parallel and which, despite some handles in the clothing box of the tabloid comedy, testifies to the sovereignty of its director. A cinematic pleasure that is also convincing in terms of performance. ” -“ Lexicon of International Films ”(CD-ROM edition), Systhema, Munich 1997
  • “(...) But this time Altman's concept didn't work. His ensemble farce, which follows 38 characters with a quasi documentary gaze, stuck to the beautiful surface. Instead of concentrating on the representation of exemplary characters, Altman gets lost in the large, colorful circus that takes place in the week before the fashion shows in Paris. Individual episodes are quite amusing (...). Only the cinema audience stayed away. The world of the beautiful appearance interested less people than expected. ” - rk in: Das Großes TV Spielfilm Filmlexikon . Digital library special volume (CD-ROM edition). Directmedia, Berlin 2006, ISBN 3-89853-036-1 , p. 9873

It was described as entertaining in the Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger , and the glamorous star cast was praised in the magazine Der Spiegel .

The Wiesbaden film evaluation agency awarded the production the rating of particularly valuable .

Awards

The film was nominated for the Film Award Golden Globe Award in the category film Best nominated, another nomination for the same prize went to Sophia Loren . The film won the National Board of Review Award for Best Performance by an Acting Company .

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Release certificate for prêt-à-porter . Voluntary self-regulation of the film industry , January 2004 (PDF; accessed December 23, 2017).