"Michael Jackson" (Diego Luna) performs on the streets and in old folks homes of Paris and meets "Marilyn Monroe" (Samantha Morton). She invites him to join a group of other impersonators living in a commune, where her husband is "Charlie Chaplin" (played by Denis Lavant, he's often jealous and abusive) and their daughter is "Shirley Temple."
Michael seems dissatisfied with his life; his way of looking at life seems bigger than what it is offering him. He tries hard to find whatever it is he is seeking for, but the sadness around him reminds him that it may be futile.
The people at the commune live their lives 24/7 as their celebrity characters, their real names are never revealed. When animals at their commune get sick and have to be put down, it seems like a sorry parallel of their odd lives, as well having a religious meaning to the viewer.
There is a secondary storyline of a priest (German director Werner Herzog) travelling with some nuns on a missionary trip. The priest gives a very direct monologue about life and faith that voices I think just a bit too much, instead of letting the viewers make their own inferences and decisions about the characters and happenings in the movie (although I think this is typical Herzog style).
There is bizarreness and oddity that definitely makes this an art film rather than mainstream; despite the two known international stars, viewers may have to stick around to get the meaning of this two hour movie. A scene with eggs and the song that accompanies it is a perfect little representation of the message of the film. It really is as if the real Marilyn Monroe is saying those words, and the real Michael Jackson is taking in that advice.
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