Paris,Je T'Aime

PARIS,JE T'AIME

Segment By Segment

Montmartre-Director:Bruno Podalyes-There's nothing much to say here,because this segment doesn't have a word to say.Dull script.Bad acting.That's about it.Terrible way to start an omnibus.This might have been acceptable in the middle of it,but the first impression counts.

Quais De Seine-Director:Gurinder Chadha-Though this starts one way and ends in another,there's good acting and a satisfying ending.

Le Marais-Director:Gus Van Sant-This starts off OK,but it degrades into a pseudo-intellectual conversation,that finishes almost during the development of the premise.I never expected this to be such an incoherent segment from "Elephant" director Gus Van Sant.

Tuileries-Directors:Ethan Coen,Joel Coen-Buscemi is pitch-perfect in this hilarious and unpredictable story of misfortunate events.Also,the cinematography is fantastic.

Loin Du 16e-Directors:Daniela Thomas,Walter Salles-A slow-paced drama,that doesn't bring anything new to the genre,but still packs a dramatic punch.

Porte De Choisy-Director:Christopher Doyle-Though it starts off slowly,this develops into a crazy and joyful romp.But,I would have expected better cinematography from Doyle.

Bastille-Director:Isabel Coixet-Coixet uses strong narrative and smart editing to create a good-to-great segment.

Place De Victoires-Director:Nobuhiro Suwa-Binoche pulls off a good performance and this is quite powerful,until it goes into the supernatural.After that,it's ridiculous.

Tour Eiffel-Director:Sylvain Chomet-This as cartoonish and delightful as you could expect from Chomet to be.I thought of this to be like a prologue for Chomet's  "L'Illusioniste".

Parc Monceau-Director:Alfonso Cuaron-Nolte succeeds in pulling a performance,but this is as dull as it could get.

Quartier Des Enfants Rouges-Director:Olivier Assayas-This has an intriguing premise attached to it,but it goes nowhere with it.

Place Des Fetes-Director:Oliver Schmitz-This benefits from a sublime performance from Boro and impressive editing.A powerful story.

Pigalle-Director:Richard LaGravenese-Two great actors team up in this light comedy.They both make this a delight.

Quartier De La Madeleine-Director:Vincenzo Natali-This has an intriguing premise,but it suffers from  unecessary ridicule and poor execution.

Pere-Lachaise-Director:Wes Craven-Sewell is spot-on as William and the dark humor never seems to miss a note,but the outcome is unsatisfying.

Faubourg Saint-Denis-Director:Tom Tykwer-Tykwer directs this segment with artistic flair,using psychedelic,yet organized editing and strong,touching dialogue and narrative.

Quartier Latin-Directors:Gerard Depardieu,Frederic Auburtin-Rowlands and Gazzara are terrific in this well-written tale of divorce.

14e Arrondissement-Director:Alexander Payne-With great cinematography and good narrative,Payne directs a relaxing and funny segment.

What (most of) these segments have in common

1. The cinematography-Fortunately,all of these segments succeed in capturing the visual beauty of Paris.
2. Good acting-Almost all of the segments,feature great acting from known actors(Bob Hoskins,Fanny Ardant,Ben Gazzara,Barbet Schroeder etc.) or great unknown actors(Paul Putner,Seydou Boro,Sergio Castellito etc.).
3. OK development of the premise-Some might be overdeveloped(Pere-Lachaise) or underdeveloped (Le Marais) or one doesn't even has a clear premise(Montmartre),but most of them succeed in being understood and fully developed.

What (most of) these segments don't have in common

1. An interesting premise-Sadly,the starting point of many of these segments is often,simple(Bastille) or,even worse,dull(Le Marais).
2. Impressive editing-Most of the editing in the segments is too simple(Quartier Latin,Pigalle).
3. A strong narrative-Some segments don't even use it(Quais De Seine) and some use it just as an unnecessary filling.