A new film is about to hit cinemas that will leave audiences stunned, amused, and just a little horrified. Visa for Love: The Jay-Jay & Minou Story is based on the extraordinary true tale of a pudgy New Zealand radio personality Jay-Jay Feeney, who fell head-over-heels for Minou, a much younger Algerian man who knew exactly how to play the long game.
Bringing the bizarre love story to life is an unexpected but brilliant casting choice: Magda Szubanski, best known as Sharon Strzelecki from Kath and Kim, stars as Jay-Jay, while Hollywood heartthrob Liam Hemsworth steps into the role of Minou. The unlikely pairing is already raising eyebrows, but early previews suggest the chemistry, or lack thereof, is exactly what makes the story both tragic and darkly funny.
The film chronicles Jay-Jay’s desperate attempts to convince New Zealanders that her whirlwind relationship with the 31-year-old was real. Every few months, whenever funds were running low, she would resurface in glossy women’s magazines, clutching at the narrative that love conquers all. The public wasn’t buying it, and behind the scenes, neither was Immigration New Zealand.
The immigration process proved to be more brutal than any media headline. Officials were forced to comb through every message, every detail, every photo exchanged between Jay-Jay and Minou. According to reports, one immigration officer is still undergoing PTSD counselling after being exposed to what was described as "scarring evidence" in the couple’s private communications.
Director Taika Waititi doesn’t shy away from the absurdity of it all. The film leans into the tension between love, delusion, and the cruel opportunism of online romance scams. As Jay-Jay battles to keep her fairy tale alive, the walls close in. Immigration red tape becomes a character of its own, relentlessly dissecting her personal life until there’s nowhere left to hide.
The climax is as tragic as it is predictable. Minou secures his place in New Zealand and takes half of everything Jay-Jay owns. The final act leaves her in tears, finally confessing that all the signs were there from the start - the warnings, the red flags, the doubts voiced by friends and strangers alike. But she chose not to listen.
Visa for Love: The Jay-Jay & Minou Story isn’t just a cautionary tale about romance scams. It’s a reflection of how loneliness can make us blind, how love stories can become tragedies, and how sometimes the cruelest betrayals are the ones we let ourselves walk into.
