Many of the critics of this movie missed the point. This movie is not about plot or characters. Robert Altman does what movies are for; he takes us to another place.

What Altman does is give us a vivid impression of the incestuous whirl of the fashion world. His world is populated by both real designers (as ever spotting them is half the fun). and wonderful performances such as Richard E. Grant as a male Vivienne Westwood.

The movie also effectively transports us to Paris. And yes, Paris really is covered in "Dog Poop" (they were Paris jokes, not Poop jokes).

I think that many of the jokes about Paris, may have gone over the heads of US movie critics who have not set foot outside LA and New York.

One of the reviews of this movie described the fashion shows as "pointless". They were pointless in the same way a Monet is pointless; they were in the movie because they are beautiful.

To summarise, if you love Paris and you love fashion, you will love this. The closing credits of a montage of Issey Miyake and other fashion shows set to Grace Jones' "La Vie En Rose" is worth the price of admission alone.

4/5 Not Classic Altman But Far From Awful
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Most critics harped on this movie's lack of "depth" when it originally came out. My question is, how would a comedy with "depth" about the fashion industry play? I'm sure it would be much more unwatchable than the witty display Altman puts on here. Yes, there's too many characters and yes, Altman glides over everything without much development but he directs with a sense a fun and keeps the whole thing smooth and amusing. He's much less judgmental about the fashion industry than a director in his seventies might be: in a movie fillled with star performers and designers, everyone is depicted and even photographed is a very democratic manner even if they're all made out to be slightly ridiculous. Only Sophia Loren is really given the "star" treatment in her appearances and even that is done mainly as parody (she begins the movie in a frumpy bathrobe and glasses-who else but Altman would have the nerve to commit such a breach? ) It's arguable that the movie is a little trite-but then so is the fashion industry. I think people were disappointed in this movie primarilybecause Altman didn't stage a fashion show, he only covers one. Altman does here what he's always done well: shown off the farcial elements of American social and political institutions. As for Leonard Maltin, I'm sure his mind is numb after a lifetime of overpraising movies much worse than this one.

4/5 neglected masterwork
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Robert Altman's 'Pret a Porter' was slammed by critics on its theatrical release for its apparent sprawling, incoherent and superficial nature. But it's a film about the fashion industry. How could it be anything but superficial! Superficial it is, but it is also witty, intelligent, and ravishingly beautiful. And the integration of music with image is up there with the best -- wait for the end credits, as the final fashion parade takes place to Grace Jones's pulsating version of 'La vie en Rose'.

My DVD copy is Region Two, and benefits from anamorphic mastering. But whether anamorphic or not, this DVD demands to be seen. Altman's work ultimately and resoundingly answers his critics, who simply cannot understand the nuances of this great director's work.

3/5 Not great, but not everything has to be
  by Linda McDonnell (Brooklyn, U.S.A)
And that about sums up what I have to say about "Pret a Porter". Worst part: Julia Roberts (I wish the rest of America would get wise to her lack of talent). Best part: Seeing Sophia Loren and Marcello Mastroianni reunite. Marcello was her old beau, and now they have a second chance at love, about 40 years late. I laughed out loud at their scenes, cursed the darkness that is Julia Roberts.

Try on "Ready to Wear/Pret a Porter" and see how the fit suits you.

5/5 A Crazy Quilt
  by Kevin Killian (San Francisco, CA United States)
Why all the hate for FEADY TO WEAR? Like many of you, I was underwhelmed when it first came out but now thanks to constant showings on the Sundance Channel and all those channels in that narrow band of indie cable, it has been growing on me and now I can't stop watching it. Barbara Shulgasser's writing is wonderful, and if it has been chopped up like cole slaw by Altman's fitful direction, and by the generally improvisatory style embodied by Kim Basinger's steamrolling fashion reporter, it is still Altman who gives the picture its life, its joie de vivre. And the fantastic outfits are to die for, each one crazier than the last.

Sophia Loren is so over the top in this one role that retrospectively her entire career takes on a veneer of camp Carlo Ponti could never have intended. If she was Elton John her sunglasses couldn't get any vaster, like two TV screens perched on her nose, and her breasts bobbing like apples in the tub of her sausage cased cleavage deserve equal billing with Mastroianni, who perhaps overdoes his sad sack clown persona. Together they're not so much fun as you'd think, but she's great. Is there any black satin left in the world or was all of it used for her widows' wear!

My favorite, Anouk Aimee, gets all the drama parts. Why didn't Altman use Anouk Aimee more, she is simply the most striking and hawklike actress who ever lived! She and Rupert Everett as her avaricious son are playing out whole 3 decker Balzac novels with their back and forth, their mutual accusations of greed and contempt.

OK, there are some inanities to READY TO WEAR, and I'm never sure if Forest Whitaker isn't laughing up his sleeve or revealing new previously unknown dimensions to his private life, but all in all it is a movie for the ages, and my favorite by Altman (except for NASHVILLE and A WEDDING). Maybe its angle about fashion being stupid is itself pretty banal, but you know, I just don't care any more. If it's on, I'll watch it all the way through and I'll cry when it's over, just like Julia Roberts pretending her lost luggage hasn't yet been delivered to her closet.