mia farrow be the wife of an unemployed bully and womanizer danny aiello . she work in a diner and and when she try to forget her lousy life in the depression she turn to the movie . currently she be see a b feature again and again call the purple rise of cairo and about a bunch of bored socialite ( edward herrmann and john wood and zoe caldwell and van johnson ) who go to egypt for a change . they meet an archaeologist play by jeff daniel and who be try to find a mythical flower ( the one of the film title ) that will lead to a true love . we see farrow go again and again to the film until daniel start notice her and ask if she really like the film that much . this unsettles farrow who leave the theater . but she return and she see that daniel be interested in her . interested enough to leave the film and much to the consternation of herrmann and the other character in the film because they be train by the fact that they be shoot in a way by the film company and edit to follow the same pattern forever . so the character be at a loss at how to continue . also they can not leave the film ( a daniel do ) . allan be one of the few director brave enough to look at philosophical situation in his film . here it be the odd rule govern reality and falsity . the world of the movie be as rigid a that of the real world and despite the cinematic daniel discovery of color and real space in the outside world . the real world require real training ( not the idiotic false title the cinematic daniel have a a so called archaeologist ) and real money ( daniel have fake money on him from the movie set ) . but the character in the film be lose their mind for be unable to go ahead with the plot without daniel . that be some of them be represent the actress play the african american maid in the movie become more real in her not act like a female stereotype ( she take off her shoe and plot down on a couch and to the dismay of the others ) . the revolt sense by daniel step out of the screen spread consternation in other world represent the theater management and the movie company see it a a threat of left winger try to undermine the american film industry . indeed and we hear that other copy of the film have incident elsewhere in the country . the film company send the real daniel to the site where his character come to life and and soon it be daniel v. daniel woo farrow . who will she choose and will she choose wisely and between a naive fictional character who adore her and a man of flesh and blood and potential and who be ambitious and devious . but what be wisdom in such a choice . the purple rise of cairo be one of those film that make one look twice at reality in the world we inhabit and and the world that we seek to enter through our imagination . it be an exceptionally clever film and and a very funny one . certainly one of allan top five movie .