David O'ConnellNew York, I Love You
April 27th 2010 04:38
The very nature of portmanteau or anthology films means that they’re generally hit-and-miss affairs. It’s a tricky task trying to fill the brief window of time each story is allotted with anything of substance. New York, I Love You, a direct relation to the often wonderful Paris je t’aime (2006) (both are produced by Emmanuel Benbihy), fails to fill the shoes of its predecessor though it provides an enjoyable means of whittling away 90 minutes of your life.
An assemblage of moderately well-known directors and actors create a series of stories set in the 'Big Apple', some effectively evoking the city’s vibrant but oppressive atmosphere, whilst the lesser installments feel like manufactured flyweight encounters. Many are organically derived from what goes on behind closed doors and vary from funny, witty commentaries on the nature of love and relationships to frivolous time-wasters. The streets are always close by but it’s clear that budget limitations prevent these tales from being heavily populated.
Perhaps the most vicarious joy is derived from Ethan Hawke’s appearance as a brazen, rapid-fire sweet-talker who uses the lighting of a match for an attractive stranger as the starting point of his quest to talk her into bed. Echoing the naturalistic, stream-of-consciousness exchanges he shared with Julie Delpy in Richard Linklater’s Before Sunrise (1995) and Before Sunset (2004), Hawke's character crosses the line but makes the explicit seem like nothing more than an innocent proposal with the conviction of his suave suggestiveness. Directed by talented French actor Yvan Attal – best known for starring opposite Sophie Marceau in the superb Anthony Zimmer (2005) – the story ends with a nice little stinger that’s an appropriately ironic kick in the pants.
Film stars from a forgotten past: Eli Wallach and Cloris Leachman.
The film is a showcase for plenty of lesser known talents, both in front of and behind the camera: from Japanese director Shunji Iwai comes a sweet tale of a bedraggled film composer (Orlando Bloom) fascinated with the voice of a woman (Christina Ricci) he meets through a work contact; Natalie Portman takes the reins for the story of an unlikely father (Carlos Acosta) and daughter (Taylor Geare) who enjoy an outing in Central Park oblivious to the contrary perceptions of those around them; whilst a creaky, bickering old couple (Eli Wallach and Cloris Leachman) prove that there are annoying ways to mask the tender love that has bound them for more than 60 years of wedlock in a tale written and directed by Joshua Marston who first won acclaim in 2004 with Maria Full of Grace.
The film’s most startling image arrives in the form of wheelchair-bound Olivia Thrilby and her use of a tree as a love-making prop after a night at the prom with a reluctant suitor (Anton Yelchin). Conversely, the most disappointing segment comes from Shekhar Kapur directing a story penned by the late Anthony Minghella (to whom the film is dedicated); it’s an ethereal, painfully dour tale hampered by its futile attempt at a kind of elliptical dream-logic, and featuring a badly miscast Shia LaBeouf.
New York I Love You, rather than something that ignites the screen with audacious innovation, is content to provide gentle, observant poetry set to the beat of its giant metropolis epicenter. True, a lack of risk-taking, either in terms of style or content, does tend to provide an unwelcome whiff of modesty meandering down a too-familiar track. Anthology films are like short-story collections, you discover – far more alluring in conception than in actuality. After all, how many writers, in shortened form, consistently hit it out of the park? New York I Love You, then, is clearly not the work of Ernest Hemingway, but it’s still not a bad read.
Watch the film's trailer here.
New York, I Love You will be released in Australian cinemas on May 13 by Madman.
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Comment by Matt Shea
Exactly, Dave. You have to be brave to tackle something like this. I'm not a massive fan of these films, and was irritated by the skivvy brigade's foam-mouthed praise of Paris je t'aime - although it did have some nice moments.
Comment by Cinema Autopsy
But I do agree that these director-ensemble films are always OK at best, although I was impressed with 11'09''01 - September 11 when I saw it. Not sure if it would still hold up now though.
Comment by David O'Connell
20/20 Filmsight
Screen Fanatic
Hey Thomas, indeed we do seem to have had a serious divergence of opinion on this one!