|
|
Vol. LXI, No. 22
|
|
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
|
|
|
|
Vol. LXI, No. 22
|
|
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
|
For more movie summaries, see Kam’s Kapsules.
  
I LOVE PARIS EVERY MOMENT OF THE YEAR: Scenes from some of the vignettes that appear in the film "Paris, je t'aime," a series of cinematic short stories directed by some of the movies best directors and featuring many well known actors. |
When you hear that a score of directors collaborated to make a two hour movie, you can't help but expect the results to be an unmitigated disaster. But I was pleasantly surprised by Paris, je t'aime, a cinematic postcard sent from the City of Light by some of the best directors in the business, including the Coen Brothers, Wes Craven, Alfonso Cuaron, Tom Twyker, and Gus Van Zant.
The movie is comprised of 18 separate shorts, each of which is approximately 5 or 6 minutes in duration. Even though the stories bear little relation to each other besides the fact that they all take place in Paris, there is a pleasantly seamless quality about the production as it smoothly flows from one story to the next.
The cast assembled for this series of vignettes is just as impressive as the directors. Among the better-known actors are Natalie Portman, Steve Buscemi, Emily Mortimer, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Willem Dafoe, Miranda Richardson, Nick Nolte, Bob Hoskins, Elijah Wood, Juliette Binoche, Ben Gazzara, Gerard Depardieu, Rufus Sewell, and Gena Rowlands.
The films explore an array of timely and time-tested themes, such as infidelity, grief, loneliness, the Ugly American, racism, immigration, why Muslim women wear headscarfs, public displays of affection, love, and of course relationships. What is amazing is how each story involves you in the plight of characters you identify with and resolves their predicaments in a satisfactory manner.
A novel experiment which worked and which one hopes will be tried again soon.
Excellent (4 stars). Rated R for profanity and brief drug use. In French and English with subtitles. Running time: 120 minutes. Studio: First Look Pictures.
For more movie summaries, see Kam’s Kapsules.