Alice Winocour’s Couture (2025) takes us to Paris Fashion Week as we follow the American filmmaker Maxine Walker (Angelina Jolie), young model Ada (Anyier Anei), and makeup artist Angéle (Ella Rumpf), who are all facing their own challenges during the fashion industry’s most important week.
To no one’s shock, I am not that fashionable or particularly into fashion; however, Couture gives viewers a chance to step into a world they may have never seen before. And, it helps that you also have the incredible Jolie leading the charge. Winocour achieves a real sense of hypocritical restriction that hides beneath this whole event. The week prides itself on artistic freedom and boldness, but if you look closely enough, you will see that it isn’t as free as it seems.
We arrive in Paris with Maxine, excited to see the artistic variety on display. Straight away, though, that variety feels as if it’s under a microscope. Maxine, who is making a film about the event, is questioned about her process from the jump, despite being told the style house encourages artistic freedom. The hypocrisy doesn’t stop with Maxine: Ada is told she can’t walk a certain way, and Angéle, who is also trying to write about her experience during the week, is told no one wants to read her work.
This creates a fun clash, with a genuine sense of excitement at the start, but by the end of this week, everyone is glad it’s over. Oddly enough, the freedom comes once everything ends. Everything is under a microscope, highlighted by the film’s elegant use of set design and location.
Where the film didn’t work for me, though, was its approach of three storylines. I can understand what Winocour was going for with these characters, because any event like Paris Fashion Week would be hectic and have so many people from different walks of life. However, certain storylines felt more important than others, resulting in a sense that the film was doing too much for its own good. Maxine’s storyline regarding her health, for instance, feels miles apart from Angéle’s story of being a writer.
Jolie is such a seasoned veteran, bringing a freshness to Maxine that reminds you why she is such a talented actor. She brings an unflinching confidence to Maxine, but when she hears world-shattering news about her health, that confidence becomes uncertainty.
Anei is great in a supporting role as Ada, who takes on the audience’s perspective as a first-time visitor to the event. Rumpf is also effective as Angéle, an everyday person trying to follow her dream while balancing a job.
Even though Couture does too much for its own good, I still found it to be an interesting experience of dipping my toes into a whole different world.
Review Courtesy of Matthew Allan
Feature Image Courtesy of Pathé