Movies 2007 #54 Paris Je T'Aime

Paris, Je T’Aime While almost all of the entries were interesting and the film overall was a joy, I did have some favorites:

• Montmartre written and directed by Bruno Podalydès, this was a cute tale of loneliness vanquished by an abrupt courtship. A simple, sweet story.
• Quais de Seine written by Paul Mayeda Berges and Gurinder Chadha, directed by Gurinder Chadha. Remarkable balance between a thought-provoking examination of the “head scarf” controversy in France and a sweet picture of young longing…
• Loin du 16e written and directed by Walter Salles and Daniela Thomas. Simple in concept, but well executed. The bookended lullabies and the long, painful commute that connects them makes for a rich snapshot.
• Bastille written and directed by Isabel Coixet. A beautiful but painful love story executed in five amazing minutes.
• Parc Monceau written and directed by Alfonso Cuarón. Cuarón is ridiculously good. Here he takes a really simple setup and plays with our assumptions in one long take.
• Place des Fetes written and directed by Oliver Schmitz. A stunning achievement for a five minute short. Creatively structured and emotionally engaging, this was easily my favorite of the segments in this film. A truly perfect bit of cinema.
• Pere Lachaise written and directed by Wes Craven. A great little story. A hallucination of Oscar Wilde is in it. What more do you need?
• 14e Arrondissement written and directed by Alexander Payne. I love this segment. I wasn’t really sure where it was going, but when it gets there it’s just brilliant stuff.