Paris, je t'aime
Encyclopedia
Paris, Je t'aime is a 2006 anthology film
starring an ensemble cast
of actors of various nationalities. The two-hour film consists of eighteen short films set in different arrondissements
. The 22 directors include Gurinder Chadha
, Sylvain Chomet
, Joel and Ethan Coen, Gérard Depardieu
, Wes Craven
, Alfonso Cuarón
, Nobuhiro Suwa
, Alexander Payne
, Tom Tykwer
, Walter Salles
and Gus Van Sant
.
The film premiered at the 2006 Cannes Film Festival
on 18 May, opening the Un Certain Regard
selection. It had its Canadian
premiere at the Toronto Film Festival on 10 September and its U.S.
premiere in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
on 9 April 2007. First Look Pictures acquired the North American rights, and the film opened in the United States on 4 May 2007.
were planned, but two of them (the XVe arrondissement
, directed by Christoffer Boe
, and the XIe arrondissement
, by Raphaël Nadjari
) were not included in the final film because they could not be properly integrated into it. Each arrondissement is followed by a few images of Paris; these transition sequences were written by Emmanuel Benbihy
and directed by Benbihy with Frédéric Auburtin. Including Benbihy, there were 22 directors involved in the finished film.
The 18 arrondissements are:
was attached to the project for a long time. He was supposed to direct one of the segments, but this finally fell through because of scheduling conflicts with the filming of Caótica Ana
(2007).
Paris, je t'aime is the first feature film to be fully scanned in 6K and mastered in 4K in Europe (as opposed to the normal 2K). Encoding the image took about 24 hours per reel (at Laboratoires Éclair).
As the film is a collection of shorter segments, there were many producers attached to the project.
, focusing on life in that city, premiered at the 2008 Toronto Film Festival and was released in a limited number of theatres in 2009.
The Cities of Love website states that there are 3 more movies in the series to be released. They include Rio, Eu Te Amo
, Shanghai, I Love You and Jerusalem, I Love You. All 3 films will follow the same style with no fewer than 10 short films using their respective city as the main unifying character. The films are slated for release around 2010-2013.
Anthology film
An anthology film is a feature film consisting of several different short films, often tied together by only a single theme, premise, or brief interlocking event . Sometimes each one is directed by a different director...
starring an ensemble cast
Ensemble cast
An ensemble cast is made up of cast members in which the principal actors and performers are assigned roughly equal amounts of importance and screen time in a dramatic production. This kind of casting became more popular in television series because it allows flexibility for writers to focus on...
of actors of various nationalities. The two-hour film consists of eighteen short films set in different arrondissements
Arrondissements of Paris
The city of Paris is divided into twenty arrondissements municipaux administrative districts, more simply referred to as arrondissements . These are not to be confused with departmental arrondissements, which subdivide the 101 French départements...
. The 22 directors include Gurinder Chadha
Gurinder Chadha
Gurinder Chadha , OBE, is a British film director of Indian origin. Most of her films explore the lives of Indians living in the United Kingdom. She is best known for the hit films Bhaji on the Beach , Bend It Like Beckham , Bride and Prejudice and Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging...
, Sylvain Chomet
Sylvain Chomet
Sylvain Chomet is a French comic writer, animator and film director.- Early career :Born in Maisons-Laffitte, Yvelines, near Paris, he studied art at high-school until he graduated in 1982. Chomet moved to London in 1988 to work as an animator at the Richard Purdum studio...
, Joel and Ethan Coen, Gérard Depardieu
Gérard Depardieu
Gérard Xavier Marcel Depardieu is a French actor and filmmaker. He is a Chevalier of the Légion d'honneur, Chevalier of the Ordre national du Mérite and has twice won the César Award for Best Actor...
, Wes Craven
Wes Craven
Wesley Earl "Wes" Craven is an American actor, film director, writer, producer, perhaps best known as the director of many horror films, particularly slasher films, including the famed A Nightmare on Elm Street and Wes Craven's New Nightmare, featuring the iconic Freddy Krueger character, the...
, Alfonso Cuarón
Alfonso Cuarón
Alfonso Cuarón Orozco is a Mexican film director, screenwriter and film producer, best known for his films Children of Men, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Y tu mamá también, and A Little Princess.- Early life :...
, Nobuhiro Suwa
Nobuhiro Suwa
is a Japanese film director working in Japan and France. His directorial works and screenplays often make use of improvisation techniques. Currently, Suwa is the President of Tokyo Zokei University.-Biography:...
, Alexander Payne
Alexander Payne
Alexander Payne, born Alexander Constantine Papadopoulos is an American film director and screenwriter. His films are noted for their dark humor and satirical depictions of contemporary American society.- Early life :...
, Tom Tykwer
Tom Tykwer
Tom Tykwer is a German film director, screenwriter, and composer. He is best known internationally for directing Run Lola Run , Heaven , Perfume: The Story of a Murderer , and The International ....
, Walter Salles
Walter Salles
Walter Moreira Salles, Jr. is a Brazilian filmmaker and film producer of international prominence.-Life and career:Salles was born in Rio de Janeiro. He is the son of Elizinha Goncalves and Walter Moreira Salles, a Brazilian banker and ambassador, and the brother of João Moreira Salles, also a...
and Gus Van Sant
Gus Van Sant
Gus Green Van Sant, Jr. is an American director, screenwriter, painter, photographer, musician, and author. He is a two time nominee of the Academy Award for Best Director for his 1997 film Good Will Hunting and his 2008 film Milk, both of which were also nominated for Best Picture, and won the...
.
The film premiered at the 2006 Cannes Film Festival
2006 Cannes Film Festival
The 2006 Cannes Film Festival ran from May 17, 2006 to May 28, 2006. Twenty films from eleven countries were in competition for the Palme d'Or. The President of the Official Jury was Wong Kar-wai, the first Chinese director to preside over the jury....
on 18 May, opening the Un Certain Regard
Un Certain Regard
Un Certain Regard is a section of the Cannes Film Festival's Official Selection. It is run at the Salle Debussy, parallel to the competition for the Palme d'Or.This section was introduced in 1978 by Gilles Jacob...
selection. It had its Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
premiere at the Toronto Film Festival on 10 September and its U.S.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
premiere in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh is the second-largest city in the US Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Allegheny County. Regionally, it anchors the largest urban area of Appalachia and the Ohio River Valley, and nationally, it is the 22nd-largest urban area in the United States...
on 9 April 2007. First Look Pictures acquired the North American rights, and the film opened in the United States on 4 May 2007.
Arrondissements
Initially, twenty short films representing the twenty arrondissements of ParisArrondissements of Paris
The city of Paris is divided into twenty arrondissements municipaux administrative districts, more simply referred to as arrondissements . These are not to be confused with departmental arrondissements, which subdivide the 101 French départements...
were planned, but two of them (the XVe arrondissement
XVe arrondissement
The 15th arrondissement of Paris is one of the 20 arrondissements of the capital city of France.Situated on the Rive Gauche of the River Seine and sharing the Montparnasse district with the 6th and 14th arrondissements, it is the city's most populous arrondissement...
, directed by Christoffer Boe
Christoffer Boe
Christoffer Boe is a Danish film director and screenwriter. He is an established and well-known not only in Denmark, but all through the world. Among his international awards there are FIPRESCI Director of the Year at San Sebastián International Film Festival and Golden Camera at Cannes Film...
, and the XIe arrondissement
XIe arrondissement
The 11th arrondissement of Paris is one of the 20 arrondissements of the capital city of France.Situated on the Right Bank of the River Seine, the 11th is one of the most densely populated urban districts not just of Paris but of any European city.-Description:The eleventh arrondissement is a...
, by Raphaël Nadjari
Raphael Nadjari
Raphaël Nadjari is a French born writer and director for film and television.In 1993, Nadjari started working for French television as a writer and director...
) were not included in the final film because they could not be properly integrated into it. Each arrondissement is followed by a few images of Paris; these transition sequences were written by Emmanuel Benbihy
Emmanuel Benbihy
Emmanuel Benbihy is a feature length film producer who created and launched the Cities of Love franchise starting with Paris, je t'aime and more recently New York, I Love You....
and directed by Benbihy with Frédéric Auburtin. Including Benbihy, there were 22 directors involved in the finished film.
The 18 arrondissements are:
- MontmartreMontmartreMontmartre is a hill which is 130 metres high, giving its name to the surrounding district, in the north of Paris in the 18th arrondissement, a part of the Right Bank. Montmartre is primarily known for the white-domed Basilica of the Sacré Cœur on its summit and as a nightclub district...
(XVIIIe arrondissementXVIIIe arrondissementThe 18th arrondissement , located on the Rive Droite , is one of the 20 arrondissements of Paris, France...
) — by French writer-director Bruno Podalydès. A man (played by Podalydès himself) parks his car on a Montmartre street and muses about how the women passing by his car all seem to be "taken". Then a woman passerby (Florence Muller) faints near his car, and he comes to her aid.
- Quais de Seine (Ve arrondissement) — made by the husband-and-wife team of Japanese-American screenwriter Paul Mayeda BergesPaul Mayeda BergesPaul Mayeda Berges is an American screenwriter and director.Of Japanese ancestry, Berges graduated from the University of California, Santa Cruz, in 1990. He has collaborated with his wife, British-Indian director Gurinder Chadha, on a number of films...
and Indian-BritishBritish AsianBritish Asian is a term used to describe British citizens who descended from mainly South Asia, also known as South Asians in the United Kingdom...
director Gurinder ChadhaGurinder ChadhaGurinder Chadha , OBE, is a British film director of Indian origin. Most of her films explore the lives of Indians living in the United Kingdom. She is best known for the hit films Bhaji on the Beach , Bend It Like Beckham , Bride and Prejudice and Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging...
. A young man (Cyril Descours), hanging out with two friends who taunt all women who walk by, strikes up a friendship with a young Muslim woman (Leïla BekhtiLeïla BekhtiLeïla Bekhti is a French film and television actress of Algerian origin. She is best known for her roles in Sheitan, Tout ce qui brille and Paris, je t'aime.-Life and career:...
).
- Le MaraisLe MaraisLe Marais is a historic district in Paris, France. Long the aristocratic district of Paris, it hosts many outstanding buildings of historic and architectural importance...
(IVe arrondissementIVe arrondissementThe 4th arrondissement of Paris is one of the 20 arrondissements of the capital city of France.Situated on the Right Bank of the River Seine, it is bordered to the west by the 1st arrondissement; to the north by the 3rd, to the east by the 11th and 12th, and to the south by the Seine and the...
) — by American writer-director Gus Van SantGus Van SantGus Green Van Sant, Jr. is an American director, screenwriter, painter, photographer, musician, and author. He is a two time nominee of the Academy Award for Best Director for his 1997 film Good Will Hunting and his 2008 film Milk, both of which were also nominated for Best Picture, and won the...
. A young male customer (Gaspard UllielGaspard UllielGaspard Ulliel is a French film actor and model. He began appearing in made-for-television films during the late 1990s and early 2000s, and then began to be known as a film actor in France, as well as starring in the title role in the thriller Hannibal Rising.-Life and career:Ulliel was born in...
) finds himself attracted to a young printshop worker (Elias McConnellElias McConnellElias Comfort McConnell is an American actor from Portland, Oregon. He has performed on Gus Van Sant's Columbine-based film Elephant, which was awarded the Palme d'Or prize in 2003...
) and tries to explain that he believes the man to be his soulmate, not realizing that he speaks little French. Marianne FaithfullMarianne FaithfullMarianne Evelyn Faithfull is an award-winning English singer, songwriter and actress whose career has spanned five decades....
also appears briefly in the film.
- TuileriesTuileries (Paris Metro)Tuileries is a station on Paris Métro Line 1, situated in the 1st arrondissement of Paris.-Location:Like most stations on Line 1, Tuileries station lies on an east-west axis from La Défense in the west to Vincennes in the east...
(Ier arrondissementIer arrondissementThe 1st arrondissement of Paris is one of the 20 arrondissements of the capital city of France.Situated principally on the right bank of the River Seine, it also includes the west end of the Île de la Cité...
) — by American writer-directors Joel and Ethan CoenCoen BrothersJoel David Coen and Ethan Jesse Coen known together professionally as the Coen brothers, are American filmmakers...
. A comic film in which an American tourist (Steve BuscemiSteve BuscemiSteven Vincent "Steve" Buscemi is an American actor, writer and film director. An associate member of the renowned experimental theater company The Wooster Group, Buscemi has starred and supported in successful Hollywood and indie films including New York Stories, Mystery Train, Reservoir Dogs,...
) waiting at the Tuileries stationTuileries (Paris Metro)Tuileries is a station on Paris Métro Line 1, situated in the 1st arrondissement of Paris.-Location:Like most stations on Line 1, Tuileries station lies on an east-west axis from La Défense in the west to Vincennes in the east...
becomes involved in the conflict between a young couple (Axel Kiener and Julie Bataille) after he breaks the cardinal rule of avoiding eye contactEye contactEye contact is a meeting of the eyes between two individuals.In human beings, eye contact is a form of nonverbal communication and is thought to have a large influence on social behavior. Coined in the early to mid-1960s, the term has come in the West to often define the act as a meaningful and...
with people on the Paris MetroParis MétroThe Paris Métro or Métropolitain is the rapid transit metro system in Paris, France. It has become a symbol of the city, noted for its density within the city limits and its uniform architecture influenced by Art Nouveau. The network's sixteen lines are mostly underground and run to 214 km ...
.
- Loin du 16e (XVIe arrondissementXVIe arrondissementThe 16th arrondissement of Paris is one of the 20 arrondissements of Paris, the capital city of France...
; literally: "far from the 16th") — by Brazilian writer-directors Walter SallesWalter SallesWalter Moreira Salles, Jr. is a Brazilian filmmaker and film producer of international prominence.-Life and career:Salles was born in Rio de Janeiro. He is the son of Elizinha Goncalves and Walter Moreira Salles, a Brazilian banker and ambassador, and the brother of João Moreira Salles, also a...
and Daniela ThomasDaniela ThomasDaniela Thomas is a Brazilian film director, screenwriter and editor.-Biography:Thomas, whose birthname is Daniela Gontijo Alves Pinto, is the daughter of the famous cartoonist Ziraldo Alves Pinto and the sister of Golden Globe Award-nominated film score composer Antonio Pinto.In 1994 she...
. A young immigrant woman (Catalina Sandino MorenoCatalina Sandino MorenoCatalina Sandino Moreno is a Colombian actress. She was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress for her role in Maria Full of Grace .-Life and career:...
) sings a Spanish lullaby ("Qué Linda Manita") to her baby before leaving it in a daycare. She then takes an extremely long commute to the home of her wealthy employer (whose face is not seen), where she sings the same lullaby to her employer's baby.
- Porte de Choisy (XIIIe arrondissementXIIIe arrondissementThe 13th arrondissement of Paris is one of the 20 arrondissements of the capital city of France....
) — directed by Australian director Christopher DoyleChristopher DoyleChristopher Doyle is a cinematographer. He has won the AFI Award for cinematography, the Cannes Technical Grand Prize, Golden Osella, the Golden Horse awards , and Hong Kong Film Award . Doyle is an affiliate of the Hong Kong Society of Cinematographers.-Biography:Doyle was born in Sydney,...
and written by Doyle with Gabrielle Keng and Kathy Li. A comic film in which a beauty products salesman (Barbet SchroederBarbet SchroederBarbet Schroeder is a Franco-Swiss movie director and producer who started his career in French cinema in the 1960s, working together with directors such as Jean-Luc Godard and Jacques Rivette.-Life and career:...
) makes a call on a ChinatownChinatownA Chinatown is an ethnic enclave of overseas Chinese people, although it is often generalized to include various Southeast Asian people. Chinatowns exist throughout the world, including East Asia, Southeast Asia, the Americas, Australasia, and Europe. Binondo's Chinatown located in Manila,...
salon run by a woman (Li Xin) who proves to be a tough customer.
- BastilleBastilleThe Bastille was a fortress in Paris, known formally as the Bastille Saint-Antoine. It played an important role in the internal conflicts of France and for most of its history was used as a state prison by the kings of France. The Bastille was built in response to the English threat to the city of...
(XIIe arrondissementXIIe arrondissementThe 12th arrondissement of Paris is one of the 20 arrondissements of the capital city of France....
) — by Spanish writer-director Isabel CoixetIsabel CoixetIsabel Coixet is a Spanish film director.She received an M.A. in history from the University of Barcelona...
. Prepared to leave his marriage for a much younger lover, Marie Christine (Leonor WatlingLeonor WatlingLeonor Elizabeth Ceballos Watling is an award-winning Spanish film actress and singer.-Early life:Watling was born in Madrid, Spain to a Spanish father and a British mother, and has three siblings, with whom she speaks English. Her father died when she was a teenager.When she was a child, she...
), a man named Sergio (Sergio CastellittoSergio CastellittoSergio Castellitto is an Italian actor and director.Castellitto attended the academy of dramatic art and dedicated himself to theatre soon after, working with many famous actors such as Luigi Squarzina, Aldo Trionfo and Enzo Muzii...
) instead decides to stay with his wife (Miranda RichardsonMiranda RichardsonMiranda Jane Richardson is an English stage, film and television actor. She has been nominated for two Academy Awards, and has won two Golden Globes and a BAFTA during her career....
) after she reveals a terminal illness - and he rediscovers the love he once felt for her.
- Place des Victoires (IIe arrondissementIIe arrondissementThe 2nd arrondissement is one of the 20 arrondissements of Paris, the capital city of France. Located on the right bank of the River Seine, the 2nd arrondissement, together with the adjacent 8th and 9th arrondissements, hosts an important business district, centred on the Paris Opéra, which houses...
) — by Japanese writer-director Nobuhiro SuwaNobuhiro Suwais a Japanese film director working in Japan and France. His directorial works and screenplays often make use of improvisation techniques. Currently, Suwa is the President of Tokyo Zokei University.-Biography:...
. A mother (Juliette BinocheJuliette BinocheJuliette Binoche is a French actress, artist and dancer. She has appeared in more than 40 feature films, been recipient of numerous international accolades, is a published author and has appeared on stage across the world. Coming from an artistic background, she began taking acting lessons during...
), grieving over the death of her little boy (Martin Combes), is comforted by a magical cowboy (Willem DafoeWillem DafoeWillem Dafoe is an American film, stage, and voice actor, and a founding member of the experimental theatre company The Wooster Group...
).
- Tour Eiffel (VIIe arrondissementVIIe arrondissementThe 7th arrondissement of Paris is one of the 20 arrondissements of the capital city of France. It includes some of Paris's major tourist attractions, such as the Eiffel Tower and the Hôtel des Invalides , and a concentration of such world famous museums as the Musée d'Orsay and the Musée du quai...
) — written and directed by French animator Sylvain ChometSylvain ChometSylvain Chomet is a French comic writer, animator and film director.- Early career :Born in Maisons-Laffitte, Yvelines, near Paris, he studied art at high-school until he graduated in 1982. Chomet moved to London in 1988 to work as an animator at the Richard Purdum studio...
. A boy tells how his parents, both mime artistMime artistA mime artist is someone who uses mime as a theatrical medium or as a performance art, involving miming, or the acting out a story through body motions, without use of speech. In earlier times, in English, such a performer was referred to as a mummer...
s (Paul PutnerPaul Putner-Life and career:He was born in East Grinstead. He studied at LAMDA where he won, amongst other prizes, the Kenneth More prize for comedy acting.His first significant TV role saw Putner as numerous characters in The Glam Metal Detectives shown on BBC2. His real break in comedy came after he set up...
and Yolande MoreauYolande MoreauYolande Moreau is a Belgian comedienne, actress and film director.-Biography:She has won two César Awards for Best Actress, in 2005 for When the Sea Rises and in 2009 for Séraphine....
), meet in prison and fall in love.
- Parc MonceauParc MonceauParc Monceau is a semi-public park situated in the 8th arrondissement of Paris, France, at the junction of Boulevard de Courcelles, Rue de Prony and Rue Georges Berger. At the main entrance is a rotunda. The park covers an area of 8.2 hectares ....
(XVIIe arrondissementXVIIe arrondissementThe 17th arrondissement of Paris is one of the 20 arrondissements of the capital city of France.-Geography:The land area of this arrondissement is 5.669 km2 The 17th arrondissement of Paris is one of the 20 arrondissements (administrative districts) of the capital city of...
) — by Mexican writer-director Alfonso CuarónAlfonso CuarónAlfonso Cuarón Orozco is a Mexican film director, screenwriter and film producer, best known for his films Children of Men, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Y tu mamá también, and A Little Princess.- Early life :...
. An older man (Nick NolteNick NolteNicholas King "Nick" Nolte is an American actor whose career has spanned over five decades, peaking in the 1990s when his commercial success made him one of the most popular celebrities of that decade.-Early life:...
) and younger woman (Ludivine SagnierLudivine SagnierLudivine Sagnier is a French actress and model, who has appeared in 33 films since 1989. She was nominated for two César Awards for Best Supporting Actress in Swimming Pool and Un secret .-Early life:...
) meet for an arrangement that a third person ('Gaspard'), who is close to the woman, may not approve of. It is eventually revealed that the young woman is his daughter, and Gaspard is her baby. The film was shot in a single continuous shotLong takeA long take is an uninterrupted shot in a film which lasts much longer than the conventional editing pace either of the film itself or of films in general, usually lasting several minutes. It can be used for dramatic and narrative effect if done properly, and in moving shots is often accomplished...
. When the characters walk by a video store, several posters of movies by the other directors of Paris, je t'aime are visible in the window.
- Quartier des Enfants Rouges (IIIe arrondissementIIIe arrondissementThe 3rd arrondissement of Paris, situated on the right bank of the River Seine, is the second smallest in area after the 2nd arrondissement. The arrondissement contains the northern, quieter part of the medieval district of Le Marais...
) — by French writer-director Olivier AssayasOlivier AssayasOlivier Assayas is a French film director and screenwriter.He made his debut in 1986, after directing some short films and writing for the influential film magazine Cahiers du cinéma.-Career:...
. An American actress (Maggie GyllenhaalMaggie GyllenhaalMargaret Ruth "Maggie" Gyllenhaal born November 16, 1977) is an American actress. She is the daughter of director Stephen Gyllenhaal and screenwriter Naomi Foner Gyllenhaal and the older sister of actor Jake Gyllenhaal. She made her screen debut when she began to appear in her father's films...
) procures some exceptionally strong hashishHashishHashish is a cannabis preparation composed of compressed stalked resin glands, called trichomes, collected from the unfertilized buds of the cannabis plant. It contains the same active ingredients but in higher concentrations than unsifted buds or leaves...
from a dealer (Lionel Dray) whom she gets a crush on.
- Place des fêtes (XIXe arrondissementXIXe arrondissementThe 19th arrondissement of Paris is one of the 20 arrondissements of the capital city of France.Situated on the Right Bank of the River Seine, it is crossed by two canals, the Canal Saint-Denis and the Canal de l'Ourcq, which meet near the Parc de la Villette.The 19th arrondissement includes two...
) — by South African writer-director Oliver SchmitzOliver SchmitzOliver Schmitz is a South African film director and screenwriter.His film Mapantsula was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 1988 Cannes Film Festival. His 2010 film Life, Above All was selected as the South African entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 83rd Academy Awards...
. A Nigerian man (Seydou Boro), dying from a stab wound in the Place des fêtes asks a woman paramedic (Aïssa Maïga) for a cup of coffee. It is then revealed that he had fallen in love at first sight with her some time previously. By the time she remembers him, and has received the coffee, he has died.
- Pigalle (IXe arrondissementIXe arrondissementThe 9th arrondissement , located on the Right Bank, is one of the 20 arrondissements of Paris, France. It contains many places of cultural, historical, and architectural interest, including the Palais Garnier, home to the Paris Opera, Boulevard Haussmann and its large department stores of Galeries...
) — by American writer-director Richard LaGraveneseRichard LaGraveneseRichard LaGravenese is an American screenwriter and occasional film director. He is best known as the writer of The Fisher King.-Personal life:...
. An aging couple (Bob HoskinsBob HoskinsRobert William "Bob" Hoskins, Jr. is an English actor known for playing Cockney rough diamonds, psychopaths and gangsters, in films such as The Long Good Friday , and Mona Lisa , and lighter roles in family films such as Who Framed Roger Rabbit and Hook .- Early life :Hoskins was born in Bury St...
and Fanny ArdantFanny ArdantFanny Marguerite Judith Ardant is a French actress. She has appeared in more than fifty motion pictures since 1976. Ardant won the César Award for Best Actress in 1997 for her performance in Pédale douce.-Early life:...
) act out a fantasy argument for a prostitute in order to keep the spark in their relationship.
- Quartier de la Madeleine (VIIIe arrondissementVIIIe arrondissementThe 8th arrondissement of Paris is one of the 20 arrondissements of the capital city of France.Situated on the right bank of the River Seine and centred on the Opéra, the 8th is, together with the 1st and 9th arrondissements and 16th arrondissement and 17th arrondissement, one of Paris's main...
) — by Canadian writer-director Vincenzo NataliVincenzo NataliVincenzo Natali is an American-Canadian film director and screenwriter, best known for writing and directing science fiction films such as Cube, Nothing and Splice.-Early life:...
. A young backpacker tourist (Elijah WoodElijah WoodElijah Jordan Wood is an American actor. He made his film debut with a minor part in Back to the Future Part II , then landed a succession of larger roles that made him a critically acclaimed child actor by age 9. He is best known for his high-profile role as Frodo Baggins in Peter Jackson's...
) falls in love with a vampiress (Olga KurylenkoOlga KurylenkoOlha Kostyantynivna Kurylenko , better known as Olga Kurylenko, is a French actress and model. She is perhaps best known as the Bond girl, Camille Montes, in the 22nd James Bond film, Quantum of Solace. She also portrayed Nika Boronina in the movie adaptation of the video game Hitman...
).
- Père-LachaisePère Lachaise CemeteryPère Lachaise Cemetery is the largest cemetery in the city of Paris, France , though there are larger cemeteries in the city's suburbs.Père Lachaise is in the 20th arrondissement, and is reputed to be the world's most-visited cemetery, attracting hundreds of thousands of visitors annually to the...
(XXe arrondissementXXe arrondissementThe 20th arrondissement, also known as arrondissement de Ménilmontant, located on the Right Bank, is one of the 20 arrondissements of Paris, France. It contains the cosmopolitan districts of Ménilmontant and Belleville which have welcomed many successive waves of immigration since the middle of the...
) — by American writer-director Wes CravenWes CravenWesley Earl "Wes" Craven is an American actor, film director, writer, producer, perhaps best known as the director of many horror films, particularly slasher films, including the famed A Nightmare on Elm Street and Wes Craven's New Nightmare, featuring the iconic Freddy Krueger character, the...
. While visiting Père Lachaise CemeteryPère Lachaise CemeteryPère Lachaise Cemetery is the largest cemetery in the city of Paris, France , though there are larger cemeteries in the city's suburbs.Père Lachaise is in the 20th arrondissement, and is reputed to be the world's most-visited cemetery, attracting hundreds of thousands of visitors annually to the...
, a young woman (Emily MortimerEmily MortimerEmily Kathleen A. Mortimer is an English actress. She began performing on stage, and has since appeared in several film and television roles, including Scream 3, Match Point, Lars and the Real Girl, and Shutter Island....
) breaks up with her fiancé (Rufus SewellRufus SewellRufus Frederik Sewell is an English actor. In film, he has appeared in The Woodlanders, Dangerous Beauty, Dark City, A Knight's Tale, The Illusionist, Tristan and Isolde, and Martha, Meet Frank, Daniel and Laurence. On television, he starred in the 2010 mini-series The Pillars of the Earth...
), who then redeems himself with the aid of advice from the ghost of Oscar WildeOscar WildeOscar Fingal O'Flahertie Wills Wilde was an Irish writer and poet. After writing in different forms throughout the 1880s, he became one of London's most popular playwrights in the early 1890s...
(Alexander PayneAlexander PayneAlexander Payne, born Alexander Constantine Papadopoulos is an American film director and screenwriter. His films are noted for their dark humor and satirical depictions of contemporary American society.- Early life :...
).
- Faubourg Saint-Denis (Xe arrondissementXe arrondissementThe 10th arrondissement of Paris is one of the 20 arrondissements of the capital city of France.Situated on the right bank of the River Seine, the arrondissement contains two of Paris's six main railway stations: the Gare du Nord and the Gare de l'Est...
) — by German writer-director Tom TykwerTom TykwerTom Tykwer is a German film director, screenwriter, and composer. He is best known internationally for directing Run Lola Run , Heaven , Perfume: The Story of a Murderer , and The International ....
. After mistakenly believing that his girlfriend, a struggling actress (Natalie PortmanNatalie PortmanNatalie Hershlag , better known by her stage name Natalie Portman, is an actress with dual American and Israeli citizenship. Her first role was as an orphan taken in by a hitman in the 1994 French action film Léon, but major success came when she was cast as Padmé Amidala in the Star Wars prequel...
), has broken up with him, a young blind man (Melchior Beslon) reflects on the growth and seeming decline of their relationship.
- Quartier Latin (VIe arrondissementVIe arrondissementThe 6th arrondissement of Paris is one of the 20 arrondissements of the capital city of France. It includes world famous educational institutions such as the École des Beaux-Arts de Paris and the Académie française, the seat of the French Senate as well as a concentration of some of Paris most...
) — written by American actress Gena RowlandsGena RowlandsGena Rowlands is an American actress of film, stage and television. The four-time Emmy and two-time Golden Globe winner is best known for her collaborations with her actor-director husband John Cassavetes in ten films, in two of which, Gloria and A Woman Under the Influence, she gave Academy...
, directed by French actor Gérard DepardieuGérard DepardieuGérard Xavier Marcel Depardieu is a French actor and filmmaker. He is a Chevalier of the Légion d'honneur, Chevalier of the Ordre national du Mérite and has twice won the César Award for Best Actor...
and French director Frédéric Auburtin. A separated couple (Ben GazzaraBen Gazzara-Early life:Gazzara was born Biagio Anthony Gazzara in New York City, the son of Italian immigrants Angelina and Antonio Gazzara, who was a laborer and carpenter. Gazzara grew up on New York's tough Lower East Side. He actually lived on E. 29th Street and participated in the drama program at...
and Rowlands) meet at a bar (run by Depardieu) for one last drink before the two officially divorce.
- 14e arrondissement (XIVe arrondissementXIVe arrondissementThe 14th arrondissement of Paris is one of the 20 arrondissements of the capital city of France....
) — written and directed by Alexander PayneAlexander PayneAlexander Payne, born Alexander Constantine Papadopoulos is an American film director and screenwriter. His films are noted for their dark humor and satirical depictions of contemporary American society.- Early life :...
. Carol (Margo MartindaleMargo MartindaleMargo Martindale is an American stage, television and film actress. In 2011, Martindale won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series for her performance as Mags Bennett on Justified.-Early life:...
), a letter carrierMail carrierA mail carrier, mailman, postal carrier, postman, postwoman , postman/postwoman , letter carrier or postie is an employee of the post office or postal service, who delivers mail and parcel post to residences and businesses...
from Denver, ColoradoDenver, ColoradoThe City and County of Denver is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Denver is a consolidated city-county, located in the South Platte River Valley on the western edge of the High Plains just east of the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains...
on her first European holiday, recites in rough French what she loves about Paris.
Production
Julio MedemJulio Medem
Julio Médem is a Spanish writer and film director.Medem was born in San Sebastián, Basque Country, Spain and showed an interest in movies since childhood, when he would take his father's Super 8 camera and shoot at night, while nobody was paying attention...
was attached to the project for a long time. He was supposed to direct one of the segments, but this finally fell through because of scheduling conflicts with the filming of Caótica Ana
Caótica Ana
Caótica Ana is a 2007 drama film by Spanish director Julio Médem. It premiered in Spain on September, 2007.-Plot:A synopsis prior to the release of the film stated:-Production and filming:...
(2007).
Paris, je t'aime is the first feature film to be fully scanned in 6K and mastered in 4K in Europe (as opposed to the normal 2K). Encoding the image took about 24 hours per reel (at Laboratoires Éclair).
As the film is a collection of shorter segments, there were many producers attached to the project.
Influence
Following the success of Paris, je t'aime, a similarly structured film, New York, I Love YouNew York, I Love You
New York, I Love You is a 2009 romance film released in the United States on October 16, 2009. From the producer of Paris, je t'aime, it stars an ensemble cast, among them Bradley Cooper, Shia LaBeouf, Natalie Portman, Anton Yelchin, Hayden Christensen, Orlando Bloom, Irrfan Khan, Rachel Bilson,...
, focusing on life in that city, premiered at the 2008 Toronto Film Festival and was released in a limited number of theatres in 2009.
The Cities of Love website states that there are 3 more movies in the series to be released. They include Rio, Eu Te Amo
Rio, Eu Te Amo
Rio, Eu Te Amo is an upcoming film. This film will be the next episode in the Cities of Love series of films following Paris, je t'aime and New York, I Love You.- Format :...
, Shanghai, I Love You and Jerusalem, I Love You. All 3 films will follow the same style with no fewer than 10 short films using their respective city as the main unifying character. The films are slated for release around 2010-2013.