Before watching Paris, Je T'aime, I knew it was an anthology film collecting various stories themed around Paris. I initially assumed the structure would be quite loose (especially given that two segments were discarded during production), yet when these 18 stories are assembled, they still deliver a powerful impact.
In terms of style, there is comedy and tragedy; the fantastical and the dramatic. Various storytelling methods all convey tales of love concerning Paris. Fortunately, this film does not interweave the different plotlines into a single timeline like Love Actually. This allows each five-minute segment to maintain its own sense of independence and expression, much like the sense of freedom one finds in Paris itself. The audience can experience this Parisian love from different viewpoints. Is cinema not, after all, a microcosm of life?
What I love most is the film's distinct "French flavour" prevalent in recent years—whimsical imagination balanced with a human touch. The film also introduces the audience to the multiculturalism of Paris; a city filled with people of different ethnicities, all loving and suffering within the same space. The story that touched me the deepest was one where a black man, having been stabbed, is treated by a female paramedic with whom he had fallen in love at first sight. Sadly, due to his humble status, she does not remember meeting him. The song he sings before being loaded into the ambulance moves her deeply. The final scene, where she holds two cups of coffee with trembling hands, truly shook my emotions.
Whether viewed during the Christmas season or not, watching Paris, Je T'aime is a heartwarming experience.
Paris, Je T'aime
Montmartre - Written and directed by Bruno Podalydès
Quais de Seine - Written and directed by Gurinder Chadha
Le Marais - Written and directed by Gus Van Sant
Tuileries - Written and directed by Joel & Ethan Coen
Loin du 16e - Written and directed by Walter Salles & Daniela Thomas
Porte de Choisy - Written and directed by Christopher Doyle
Bastille - Written and directed by Isabel Coixet
Place des Victoires - Written and directed by Nobuhiro Suwa
Tour Eiffel - Written and directed by Sylvain Chomet
Parc Monceau - Written and directed by Alfonso Cuaron
Quartier des Enfants Rouges - Written and directed by Olivier Assayas
Place des fêtes - Written and directed by Oliver Schmitz
Pigalle - Written and directed by Richard LaGravenese
Quartier de la Madeleine - Written and directed by Vincenzo Natali
Père-Lachaise - Written and directed by Wes Craven
Faubourg Saint-Denis - Written and directed by Tom Tykwer
Quartier Latin - Written by Gena Rowlands, directed by Gérard Depardieu & Frédéric Auburtin
14e arrondissement - Written and directed by Alexander Payne