Paris, je t’aime [Blu-ray]
Even with the impressive talent involved, Paris, je t’aime could’ve ended up like a fallen soufflé. Though all 18 films aren’t equally successful, they hit the mark more often than not. Romantics anticipating happy love stories set amongst the City of Lights may be disappointed to find that many are quite sad and that some parts of Paris are less inviting than others (each takes place in a different district). Further, the shorts aren’t all en Français, since the actors and directors hail from around the world, but their outsider perspectives lend the project depth. The strongest entries are provided by Gurinder Chadha (Quais De Seine), Gus Van Sant (Le Marais), Oliver Schmitz (Place des Fêtes), and Alexander Payne (14ème Arrondissement), but all find interesting ways to explore cultural misunderstandings. In Joel and Ethan Coen’s tragic-comic Tuileries, tourist Steve Buscemi angers a couple simply by making eye contact. Like Miranda Richardson in Isabelle Coixet’s heartbreaking Bastille, he does all his acting with his expressive face. And while Maggie Gyllenhaal speaks the language adroitly in Olivier Assayas’s intriguing Quartier des Enfants Rouges, Nick Nolte (purposefully) mangles it in Alfonso Cuarón’s surprisingly weak Parc Monceau. The anthology ends with Payne’s audio-postcard, in which Margo Martindale’s postal carrier narrates her vacation in awkward, but endearing French. Instead of another person, she falls in love with Paris, simply for allowing her to be herself. It’s the perfect finish to a poignant repast, like strawberries dipped in chocolate–sweet, but not cloyingly so. –Kathleen C. FennessyStudio: First Look Home Entertain Release Date: 11/18/2008 Run time: 110 minutes Rating: R
User Ratings and Reviews
1 Stars Subtitles are an abomination
The english subtitles are for the hearing impaired, so you get subtitles for all sorts of sounds in the movie: [knock on door] [clock ringing] [horn sounds] You get the idea. The subtitles are very distracting and destroy the beauty of the movie. I feel ripped off by this shoddy presentation. Even english conversations have subtitles. What a rip off. Shame on the idiots who thought this was a good idea.
3 Stars I miss Paris…
Having been to Paris several times, I have to say this movie gives you a great sense of the city and all their beautiful districts. I was most touched by the story about the American tourist, because I know exactly how that character feels about the city of light. I would let my kids watch this movie if it were not for the vampire story. Also, some of the acting is poor, but other stories more than make up for it.
The French truly live life to the fullest.
1 Stars Ruined Blu-Ray Version
This is THE WORST Blu-Ray transfer I have seen yet, merely because there are only Subtitles for The Hard Of Hearing, which destroy the film.
The most glaring offense is the mime scene, which has subtitles!
Simply beautiful movie - simply ruined.
3 Stars Paris Je T’Aime - Blu-ray Info
Version: U.S.A / Region A, B(?), C(?)
MPEG-4 BD-25 / High Profile 4.1
Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
Running time: 2:00:42
Movie size: 22,49 GB
Disc size: 24,10 GB
Average video bit rate: 18.00 Mbps
Dolby TrueHD Audio English 3485 kbps 5.1 / 48 kHz / 3485 kbps / 24-bit (AC3 Core: 5.1 / 48 kHz / 448 kbps)
Dolby Digital Audio English 448 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 448 kbps
Subtitles; English SDH / Spanish
Number of chapters: 21
4 Stars Je t’aime
Paris is a city of light, lovers, art and beauty, and it’s been immortalized in paintings, music and fantasy throughout the centuries.
But you’ve probably never seen so many facets of this city before. “Paris, Je T’aime” explores all the sides of the city in in eighteen very brief films, all set in various arrondissements of Paris, and directed by some brilliantly underrated directors with widely-ranging casts of stars both great and small. And all of these films seem to be about love — often it’s a person, but each one is also an ode to Paris itself.
A somewhat lonely Denver mailwoman (Margo Martindale) makes her first trip to Paris, and recounts how “I fell in love with Paris, and Paris fell in love with me” as she gets acquainted with France. A mime spreads colour and mischief on his way to love. Two struggle with love at a bar. A medic learns that a romantically-minded dying man is in love with her, and seeking her out inadvertently led to his death at the hands of a racist gang.
A young boy leaves his misogynistic pals behind, to seek love with a young Muslim girl. A pair of British people visit the tomb of Oscar Wilde in Pere-Lachaise, an American actress falls for her drug dealer, and a young nanny’s dismal living conditions are a stark contrast to that of the people she works for. All these — and more — are intertwined gently in the finale.
But two stand out especially. Tom Tykwer’s includes a young blind man (Melchior Beslon) receiving a call from his American actress girlfriend (Natalie Portman). She tells him, “Our spring was wonderful but summer is over now and we missed out on autumn… our love fell asleep, and the snow took it by surprise.” In his sorrow, he thinks back to how they met, and how their relationship continued… and gets a surprise.
And Vincenzo Natali turns in a bloody, gothic love story. A young American tourist (Elijah Wood) is walking alone at night, when he steps in a pool of blood. He follows the blood to where a beautiful vampire (Olga Kurylenko) is slurping someone to death — only to have a sudden attraction bloom up between them. When he has a fall, what will happen?
“Paris Je T’aime” has it all — comedy, tragedy, romance, racial tension, religion, vampires, sunlit vacations, glamour and cliches, all of them blooming in the middle of Paris’ sunny streets. Okay, there’s the occasional dud — “Tuileries,” about an American tourist by the Coen Bros., is just lame. But since all the directors are given only about five minutes, most of them are tiny, polished gems without any extraneous material.
And you can expect the directors to stretch their limits — Natali’s is colourless (except for blood) and eerie, Gurinder Chadha’s is shyly sweet and sunny, Richard LaGravenese’s is adorable, Craven’s is syrupy, and Tykwer’s is a delicate web of camera tricks and blurred glimpses. Sylvain Chomet even charms us with mimes zooming through the streets. And each brings another dimension of Paris to life, from lush green parks to bars to the Eiffel Tower itself.
And the acting is just as great — the great Juliette Binoche, Seydou Boro, Catalina Moreno, Marianne Faithfull, Fanny Ardant, Gérard Depardieu, and the adorable Melchior Beslon. Martindale deserves special praise for her sweetly realistic portrayal of an American tourist, and Portman is brilliantly vibrant as a girl who yells a lot. And Elijah Wood turns out a brilliant performance in total silence, managing to convey fear, mischief, eroticism and love.
“Paris Je T’aime” is a collection of little gems, with the occasional dull pebble thrown in — brilliant directors, emotionally charged stories, and great acting. Enchanté!
Filed under: Blue Ray Movie Reviews