"My dear friend Joan Juliet Buck has had quite a life — epic adventures in Hollywood, Paris, London, NYC and Ireland! This is her life story about the drive and allure of glamour and appearances, all the way to being the first and only American editor-in-chief of French Vogue, to her complicated relationship with her father (who was producing partners with John Houston and Peter O'Toole)."

"Because I lived in the country during the war, I saw films for the first time in London circa 1945/1946 . . . I saw Nanook of the North and The River around this time and both left distinct images in my memory. But, in common with many other girls at the time and, indeed, ever since, I would choose The Red Shoes as my first formative film."

"Before that, I read a book called The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time. I go to bookstores when I’m in London or America. I get a coffee and keep browsing for hours—something I can’t do in India. I come back home with a bagful of books. I’m always stopped at customs as they think I’m carrying some heavy electronic items!"

"It is hard to believe that this film about a nunnery in the Himalayas was filmed entirely at Pinewood Studios outside London. We are used now to entirely digital sets, but Alfred Junge’s designs and Jack Cardiff’s wonderful lighting and camera work are dazzling, the illusions spectacular. Add to this a gripping story beautifully acted and directed, despair, passion, and madness; you can’t lose."