What Does The End Of Personal Shopper Really Mean?

4. But What About That Final Scene?

The final scene is the most crucial in tying the movie's themes together and unraveling the true nature of the mystery. If we accept that Maureen is still alive at the end of the film and the spirits she's encountered are real, then it seems that while her grief hasn't caused her to invent these ghosts merely in her own mind, the pain of her loss is nevertheless the reason why she's seeing them.

Her brother's death, the murder of her boss and the texting business with Ingo all amounts to a massive amount of personal suffering, which makes her both extremely sensitive to otherworldy forces and allows her to externalise her emotional torment in these restless spectral forms.

So, when considering whether the movie is in fact a psychological thriller or a ghost story, it actually turns out to be both. That's sure to be frustrating to those who would prefer a tidier answer regarding the nature of the movie's supernatural elements, but for open-minded audiences, Assayas' desire to radically defy conventions is enormously satisfying in its own way.