Film anthologies invariably suffer from the same problems of stylistic, tonal and thematic inconsistency, and Paris, Je T’aime is certainly no exception. Often, brilliant films are placed nonchalantly next to shitty ones, and self-serious tragedy is juxtaposed awkwardly with ironic farce. But even if one were to be a fan of anthology serials, this one is still weighed down too heavily by its generous proportion of fillers to be considered any more than the sum of its parts. To be fair, there are a few solid gems in here, but one can only appreciate them if one has the patience to sit through a lot of inconsequential, amateur film fare. I’ll be reviewing individual segments before I give an overall score.
Tom Twyker’s “Faubourg Saint-Denis”: An American actress romances a blind French student, who feels like he is undeserving of love and worries that she will leave him.
The film opens promisingly enough with an intriguing premise and humane characters, and even manages to stuff in enough stylistic flourishes necessary to establish a distinct artistic identity. Of course, this shouldn’t really come as any surprise because Tom Twyker is one of the most talented directors in the world today. His magnum opus Run Lola Run, for one, was also equally fast-paced and stylistically distinct with a richly painted protagonist to boot. However, while that film was a breathtaking, thrilling ride with a powerful emotional payoff, this film is weighed down too much by clumsy, prolonged sequences that completely eschew substance for style. There are simply too many stupid fast-forwarded scenes with the two protagonists hugging/facing away, as though we need a full minute of inconsequential emphasis to understand what Twyker is trying to get at. Twyker seems to be illustrating a world in perpetual motion and lamenting how it is too fast to appreciate love, but the ending is so painfully flat that this sentiment just blows up and starts spontaneously emitting foul odors.
Segment KevinScale Rating: 2.5/5
Richard LaGravanese’s “Pigalle”: An old married man turns to a prostitute for advice on pleasing his wife.
This short film takes unexpected turns and culminates in a very warm, sentimental emotional climax, and never once feels contrived or artificial. LaGravanese is a director who understands the beauty of love between a long-married couple, and who also understands that it’s a struggle to constantly keep up with one’s other half when they are permanently suspended in a perpetual state of flux. Oh and it’s also a fine demonstration of how one can use the same song twice in a single short film without making the audience tire of it. I just don’t see how Paris is necessarily a backdrop for this film to work, and that definitely weighs it down because um…it’s supposed to be a film in an anthology about Paris.
Segment KevinScale Rating: 4/5
Christopher Doyle’s “Porte de Choisy”: Elderly white salesman tries to pitch beauty aids in Chinatown
Doyle appropriates Kung Fu Hustle-esque camp and revels in absurdity, non-sequitors and over-the-top melodrama in this farcical look at Parisian Chinatown. It’s definitely the most amusing piece in the anthology, even if it is far from the best. In retrospect, this film is an incoherent mess that is saved only by its entertainment factor. It’s a pleasant reprieve from the other self-serious/awful films, but never really becomes anything more than a good piece of filler. There is no distinguishable plot progression, the characters are utterly ridiculous and the ending seems like an overtly desperate attempt to fit “Paris, Je T’aime” into the film.
Segment KevinScale Rating: 3/5
Alfonso Cuarón’s “Parc Monceau”: An elderly man and a young woman engage in an argument that suggests they are having an illicit affair when they are in fact father and daughter.
It has a pretty cool twist, but is ultimately inconsequential and aimless. Are we supposed to be impressed by it simply because it takes one unexpected move? At the end of the film, the twist fails to bring any deeper meaning to the context of the film, and everything just falls flat and watching it becomes a fantastic waste of time.
Segment KevinScale Rating: 1.5/5
Animator Sylvain Chomet’s “Tour Eiffel”: A child recalls how his parents — who, incidentally, are both mimes — met in prison.
This is a fantastic sequence, because it is not only a deeply moving homage to silent film and physical comedy, but because it effortlessly and stylishly transforms its premise into a triumphant irony. Much of the film’s humor is derived from the mime’s lack of self-consciousness and the flat-out absurdity of his cheerfulness, but by the end we realize that we ourselves are the absurdity and that the world of the mime was real — and magical — all along. It also has a very gracious screenplay that is unequivocally more intelligent and self-aware than its audience, but that has the grace to not be bitchy about it.
Segment KevinScale Rating: 5/5
Gurinder Chadha’s “Quais de Seine”: A young white kid develops feelings for an attractive Muslim woman.
This is a very tender piece, and the scene where the female protagonist talks about faith and beauty is genuinely wonderful, but the beginning feels like a wasted sequence, and the ending, while pretty, is not sufficient to make this any more than a pleasant filler.
Segment KevinScale Rating: 3/5
Gus Van Sant’s “Le Marais”: A French man becomes convinced that a muted but attractive gent who works in a print shop is his soulmate.
Gus Van Sant is a veteran at painting moving portraits of unrequited love. “My Own Private Idaho” and “Good Will Hunting” both have richly written, emotionally stunted protagonists who desperately want to reach out for love but who are too damaged to allow themselves to do so. In this short, Van Sant’s source material/plot is much weaker than that of his full-length features, but the powerful script and subtle use of silence are clever enough to make this work.
Segment KevinScale Rating: 4/5
Isabel Coixet’s “Bastille”: A man about to leave his wife for his mistress finds out that she is dying of terminal cancer, and rediscovers his love for her.
This is a moving piece, but it is weighed down heavily by the omnipresent, deadpan narration, the lack of irony and the stupid ending.
Segment KevinScale Rating: 2/5
Nobuhiro Suwa’s “Place des Victoires”: A grieving mother rediscovers the importance of life by dealing with her son’s death.
This is a short film with little substance, but that knows its way around sentimentality. Watch this only for Juliette Binoche’s characteristically poignant performance.
Segment KevinScale Rating: 3/5
Gérard Depardieu and Frédéric Auburtin’s “Quartier Latin”: A long-married couple meet amiably in a bar for the last time before their official divorce.
This is a very mature and funny short film, and while unoriginal and unmemorable, it is warm and well-executed. The best filler piece in this anthology.
Segment KevinScale Rating: 3.5/5
Joel and Ethan Coen’s “Tuileries”: A tourist learns a lesson about local etiquette in the Paris Metro.
Admittedly, it’s very difficult to make a 5-minute short feel like a complete film, but the Coen Brothers have masterfully imbued their piece with enough visual style, thematic depth and farcical absurdity to make it an instant standout. This is essentially a film about being an outsider and about trying to negotiate the coordinates of foreign culture, and the Coen Brothers make this problem an entertaining ride by filtering Paris through the fearful, lonely and subjective eyes of Steve Buscemi — who incidentally gives a marvelous performance as a helpless, hapless tourist. It gives new meaning to Mona Lisa’s smile and Paris’ claim to the “City of Love”. It makes complete use of its subway setting. It mocks the tourist agenda. It mocks urban France. Undoubtedly, the best film in the anthology.
Segment KevinScale Rating: 5/5
Walter Salles’ “Loin du 16ème”: A Columbian housekeeper longs for her own child as she tends to the infant of her wealthy employer.
Too much transitional shots without a satisfactory emotional payoff. Sofia Coppola’s “Somewhere” too has many scenes where Johnny Marco, the film’s protagonist, drifts aimlessly through wordless silence, but at least it was grounded in Marco’s real, tender (albeit dysfunctional) relationship with his daughter Cleo. Here, the film focuses too much on the pain of a housekeeper we are given no time to relate to. Salles is a brilliant director with a distinct artistic vision, but as is the case sometimes with talented directors, he doesn’t really know how to compress his ideas into a short film, and ends up with lackluster results. Doesn’t feel like a filler piece, but it’s not good enough to warrant any praise.
Segment KevinScale Rating: 2.5/5
Vincenzo Natali’s “Quartier de la Madeleine”: A young man falls for a vampire upon seeing her dead victim.
Humorless garbage without an ounce of self-awareness or irony. Elijah Wood can do so much better…than those sideburns.
Segment KevinScale Rating: 0.5/5
Wes Craven’s “Père-Lachaise”: A hopefully humorless, engaged young man receives a humor lesson from the spirit of Oscar Wilde that saves his marriage.
Pointless. And Oscar Wilde is Irish. Bad even for a filler piece.
Segment KevinScale Rating: 1/5
Alexander Payne’s “14th Arrondissement”: An elderly postal worker shares her opinions on Paris.
Funny, warm and embracing with a brilliantly written narration. Would’ve liked it more if it wasn’t as self-indulgent or if the narrative was occasionally broken by Annie Hall-esque magic realism.
Segment KevinScale Rating: 4.5/5
Oliver Schmitz’s “Place des Fêtes”: A dying Nigerian man romances a paramedic.
Aims to portray the aches of unrequited love but just ends up as a pointless exercise in pointlessness.
Segment KevinScale Rating: 2/5
Bruno Podalydès’ “Montmartre”: A single, lonely man chances upon a beautiful stranger in need of his help.
This film opened the anthology, and actually made me believe that Paris, Je T’aime could possibly be good. It’s a very personal short, and the romantic tension between the two leads is surprisingly kept nicely under wraps. The subtlety is endearing and the male lead is fantastic. However, it never actually becomes more than a good intro that presents the possibility of finding love in Paris.
Segment KevinScale Rating: 3.5/5
Olivier Assayas’ “Quartier des Enfants Rouges”: An American actress in a costume drama attempts to romance her drug dealer.
I didn’t get this. The scenes of the drug dealer following the female lead around is kind of endearing, but then it collapsed into an aimless showcase of what appeared to be the set of Sofia Coppola’s Marie Antoinette. I didn’t get this.
Segment KevinScale Rating: 1/5
There were a few great pieces, a few good ones, and a lot of fillers in between. But what’s worse is that a fair number of films bear too obviously the artistic stamp of their directors (The Coen Brothers’ and Walter Salles’ films are particularly recognizable), and this completely disrupts the tonal flow of the anthology series. Also, the fillers are too bad for this series to be taken seriously.
Overall KevinScale Rating: 2.5/5
therein, Therin. 