2 Days in Paris
Release Date:
August 10, 2007
Limited release
On the Big Board |
| Position |
Staff |
In Brief |
| 82/94 |
Shane Jenkins |
Julie Dalpy and Adam Goldberg should be commended for not demanding to be likeable. And nothing else. |
| 106/214 |
Max Braden |
The cute and interesting conversation in Before Sunset/Sunrise becomes too chatty here. |
BOP fave Julie Delpy first stole our collective heart as the winsome Celine in Before Sunrise. Sure, she had worked a ton for a thespian of her age previously, but few of us spoke French; ergo, a lot of her earlier work was lost on us. Eventually, Europa Europa as well as her role as Dominique in Krzysztof Kieslowski’s masterful Three Colors trilogy would make its way into our consciousness as well, but the first time we fell in love with her was when she met Ethan Hawke on a train. In 2004, the two of them had a chance encounter once more in Before Sunset, and our staff was so moved that we honored Delpy as one of the four best actresses of the year in our 2005 Calvins. We also lauded her joint script with Hawke and Richard Linklater as one of the five best of the year.
With her craft mastered as a thespian and a check mark firmly placed in the “screenplay” box, there isn’t much else for Ms. Delpy to work on other than directing. Sure enough, the French goddess has chosen to take on its her largest scale behind the camera this year. The project is 2 Days in Paris, and it tells the story of a bickering couple who attempt to take a vacation in order to rekindle their romance. Their first destination, Venice, does not work out well since both of them come down with a stomach flu.
Plan B is the titular city of romance, Paris. The problem is that Marion, Delpy’s character (she also writes and stars in her pet project), has a lot of overhead when she travels to Paris. Her non-English speaking, disapproving parents (with Marie Pillet and Albert Delpy duplicating their real life roles as her folks) reside there. This makes Marion the de facto translator of their insults for husband Jack (Adam Goldberg) whenever the couple visits. Also, since she grew up in Paris, Marion can’t throw a crusty croissant without hitting an ex-boyfriend, creating further insecurity issues for Jack.
2 Days in Paris sounds like a run-of-the-mill French romantic comedy, but given the presence of Delpy, BOP holds out hope it will prove to be every bit the masterpiece that Before Sunrise and Before Sunset are. (David Mumpower/BOP)
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