Les Créatures

'Losing the plot' is more than a metaphor in this metaphor-strewn illustration of the creative process in action. Edgar (Piccoli) is in the throes of writing a novel. He plays dice games with his grumpy Muse and co-opts assorted shopkeepers and neighbours into his shifting narrative. A couple of sinister jokers dash about undermining attempts at order. Meanwhile the novelist's pregnant wife (Deneuve) undergoes her own process of creation. Finally both baby and book are safely delivered. It's an audacious concept with, in the background, a characteristically sharp documentary on the island of Noirmoutier, Varda's home at the time. But it's too whimsical to be very enlightening, and by the end you probably won't feel much urge to tackle old Edgar's doubtless quite unreadable tome.