New York, I Love You (2009)

Much inferior follow-up to an anthology film with an almost perfect track record. I cannot think of one episode I would particularly recommend; some are in fact decidedly UNromantic (if nothing else, this film shows the difference in French and American sensibilities). This time they tried to shake up the formula by having some characters from different vignettes cross paths, or by adding "twists" that make little sense, but if it ain't broke why try to fix it? Even New York is, with the exception of a couple of shots, drably photographed. *1/2 out of 4.

I liked this about as much as Paris, Je T'aime, which is to say not so much. The attraction of course is the all-star cast involved, its a regular omnibus of talent in a series of ten artsy, disjointed short stories about love and relationships in New York.It's a mixed bag; some good, some boring, some make you think and some are just plain bizarre but none of them are really long enough to matter. This collection didn't leave its mark on me and if there was a bigger message meant to be conveyed, I didn't get it. Mostly it was a waste of time. I guess a couple stories did stand out; Natalie Portman as a Hasidic Jew fantasizing about her East Indian diamond broker, Anton Yelchin's prom date story was good, weird, silly. Um yeah, a big waste of talent. 7/15/14

I've recently been talking with someone close to me about what "love" really is and really isn't. The thing people think love is often isn't truly what it should be defined as. In the case of New York, I Love You what is presented as the follow up to the uniquely crafted tales of love gained and lost in Paris entitled Paris J'taime (or Paris I Love You) ends up being not so much an American remake as a bunch of immature kids trying to recreate the magic they see their adult counterparts doing. Every tale here is about things related to love, but is actually a diversion from love... the sort of story you tell someone about when you were in kindergarten and you had your first erection... no not love... just a sign that you may be seeking it. While Paris J'taime had tales of actors rekindling their love for each other and the stage OR an actress finding love in the comfort of an unlikely blind companion NEW YORK I LOVE YOU tells the tales of a man's depraved fantasy of having sex with a disabled woman hanging from a tree. It is amazing that the producers let these projects go out "as-is" given how it severely wrecked the franchise, the original artistic premise and seriously made American's look like our idea of romance is children looking under girls skirts. It's low class, amateur hour filmmaking and writing and the only excuse I can come up with is that unlike the first film, which though it had 21 unique world class filmmakers managed to have a congruity to its overall tone that brought it all together, this film seems like a bunch of film students running around on a 48hr film festival. It is a cheap adaptation and I'm sorry to say I saw it in theaters. What can you expect when you have a ton of filmmakers like pop-icon Brett Ratner and actors attempting to be filmmakers like Natalie Portman and Scarlett Johansen. This shouldn't be a showcase for new directors... this should be a showcase for world class filmmakers who really know, understand and have proved themselves with a New York sensibility. Where's Woody Allen's contribution? Where is Coppola? Where are the voices of New York, new or old, that could have made this film as impactive and memorable as the Paris counterpart? All together this is an embarrassing failure.

I've not been to NYC but have seen loads of films based in and about the City and like any great cities, there's a core of people that make up a group that champion its community and identity. After 9/11, this spirit found an even higher plateau.Look beneath the surface of noise, bustle and showbiz, are the people of course and as with any multi-ethnic and diverse population, there's a labyrinth of stories about them.Some are going to be strange and some straightforward. It might seem a bit misty-eyed and sentimental to try and convince us that eleven directors each producing a snapshot can make up a mural that depicts all of the Big Apple but that's what seems to be the intention.Blessed with a good number of very recognisable actors, that adds a connectivity and gravitas we should be bowled over. But, largely, we're not. It must all come down to the quality of the actual stories, which mostly are unmemorable. Perhaps they're just too short for us to get under their skin and allow us to appreciate them. Maybe, we're supposed to be in love with this movie enough to want to watch it over and again, to fully 'get' it.My 6/10 is because it's "OK". My viewing was pleasant enough. I wasn't repelled or confronted by bad acting and the time passed satisfactorily. But that's like having a 'nice' shepherds pie and I can always buy another of those from Sainsbury's again tomorrow.Since John Hurt is one of my very favourite actors, my enthusiasm increased enormously seeing him halfway through. Though he says only two lines, it was the most beautiful and sad chapter of them all, with Shia LeBeouf and the radiant Julie Christie, playing a crippled hotel porter and opera star respectively.Unless you really want to buy the DVD, catch it on TV. I watched it on Sky Arts.