Written
and directed by Julie Delpy, 2
Days in Paris is like a parallel world version of her
earlier films Before
Sunrise and Before
Sunset :
where in those films, Delpy wandered around with her American soulmate
(Ethan Hawke) pontificating on life and love in a deep and meaningful
way.
Here she wanders around Paris with her American... well,
boyfriend (Adam Goldberg), arguing, cracking wise and insulting each
other.
Surprisingly, having two people come close to
complaining about everything, including each other, turns out to be a
whole lot of fun. It helps that both Delpy and Goldberg can be charming
when they want to be with a great on-screen chemistry, and that their
characters Marion and Jack have the kind of foibles and neuroses that
Woody Allen used to be so good with back when he could be bothered
being funny.
For a French comedy, the French themselves come in
for a fairly hefty serve: taxi drivers are either racist or sexist,
Marion's family are either former hippies still keen to shock or snooty
backstabbing types, and Marion herself flies off the handle whenever
she's not flirting with old boyfriends. Jack, on the other hand, is a
hypochondriac who wants to visit Jim Morrison's grave because
he's "a big Val Kilmer fan", and who's lack of French convinces him
that every man Marion speaks to is trying to pick her up.
It's
not exactly deep stuff and there's no real moral or message to all of
this (not even to the scene where jack gives a bunch of George Bush
supporters on holiday directions guaranteed to get them lost in Paris),
but it's funny from start to finish.
Its' even kind of sweet and romantic in its own twisted way - date
movies don't come better.
4 out
of 5
2 Days in
Paris Australian release: 26th
December, 2007 Cast:Julie Delpy, Adam Goldberg Director: Julie Delpy
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