The First Monday in May

Andrew Rossi's 2016 documentary follows the preparation of an exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum in New York and of the gala that accompanies it. The curator Andrew Bolton is mounting a show about what Western fashion has taken from China, and the problem is where that inspiration ends and cultural appropriation begins. The film gives that argument in the words of the people making the exhibition and includes the objections of its Chinese advisers. A second line covers the organisation of the gala held on the first Monday in May, which funds the show: the seating, the guest list and Anna Wintour's decisions. The film leaves the question of whether fashion counts as art open and does not hide the museum's commercial side. Wong Kar-wai appears as an adviser on the exhibition. Who it's for: viewers who like documentaries about fashion and museums. Who it's not for: anyone expecting critical depth; the film stays soft in order to keep its access.