Paris Can Wait

There is no escaping the three pillars of movie-making: they have always been narrative, cinematography and emotion. If any pillar is weak, the movie struggles but if all three are weak the movie doesn't have a chance. With an appealing plot, a favourite actress, and a road trip across France, how could Paris Can Wait (2016) not succeed?

A story of an unhurried drive through France is full of promise. Neglected wife Anne (Diane Lane) and movie mogul husband Michael (Alec Baldwin) have been in Cannes and about to board a flight to Paris for a long-awaited holiday. At the last minute, she is advised not to fly because of an ear infection and agrees instead to be driven to Paris by her husband's French business associate Jacques (Arnaud Viard). What was expected to be a few hours drive becomes a two-day road trip, meandering into places Anne would never have seen without Jacques' knowledge of local attractions. Jacques is a gourmand who knows every good restaurant along the way and Anne allows him to show off his taste for fine food, French wines and other hidden cultural treasures. The trip is punctuated by long and luxurious meals, and frequent commentary on local history, architecture and customs. Despite Jacques' flirtations, they stay in separate rooms while Anne dutifully stays in touch by phone with her by-now anxious husband and daughter. By the time they arrive in Paris, Michael is showing his wife more attention than he has for years.

For this story to work, it needs rising romantic tension, some surprising revelations or narrative twists, or at least a sense of excitement about possibilities lying in wait. Instead it is two days of small talk punctuated by Anne's photo-taking: even when each reveals an emotional event in their lives it quickly dissolves into banal conversation without impact on their relationship or how we see them. The idea that Jacques' flirtations might succeed with Anne is deflated by his encounters with girlfriends along the way. Even the gastronomic feasts fall flat as visual treats: one plate of something delicious quickly loses its appeal when the plates just keep coming. The photographic delights of countryside France are captured inelegantly through car windows or in other uninspiring ways, and Jacques' informative tour-guide commentary has the tonal enthusiasm of someone reading from a travel brochure. The mediocre script is made worse by dialogue delivered as if Anne and Jacques were paced by a metronome, each taking turns to speak with the same pause between sentences. This lack of spontaneity carries throughout their journey except when Jacques' car breaks down and he immediately springs into picnic mode, grabbing a basket of goodies, and spreading a blanket alongside a lake in a scene that is pure Monet. That's what you do when your car breaks down in the middle of nowhere, isn't it?

Given its quality ingredients this film should have worked. If the story represents a personal journey of self-awareness its revelations remain obscure. As it is based on the director's real-life experience, perhaps reality got in the way of creative filmmaking. Whatever the reason, the delicious promise embedded in the wonderful title Paris Can Wait does not even come close to fulfilment.

So own my way to posting this, I discovered that the director, Eleanor Coppola is 80 years old and this is her fist feature narrative. I like that. I assumed that Eleanor was some new 20- something year old Coppola getting into the family business, but as it turns out she's been in the biz along side her hubby Francis Ford for over 5 decades. I mean, this may be her first narrative but the film game an'it new to her (You could probably say that about any Coppola at any age).

Paris can wait was what I like to call a slow burn. It's a great movie that takes it's time getting to the point but it's a very enjoyable romp getting to that point.

And now I'm seeing something about the film I've never seen before. Similar to her daughter, Sofia's film Lost in Translation, the film is about the wife of a film producer who is far too busy to spend time with his wife as he's getting a movie made. She's unable to fly do to ear problems so the husband has one of his employees drive her from Cannes to Paris, and he takes the scenic route about it. Somewhere in this story is a lot of real life I'm sure.

The movie is not for everyone, I would say. I can see that appeal for women who know exactly what it's like to be in a relationship with a man married to his job, but for the most part, I find the movie concentrates or centers around the food of France a lot. Lots of really cool scenes of Diane Lane and her co-star, Arnaud Viard sharing meals with each other, and the meals look great. Far better than the scenery of France. I must admit, I was expecting France to look far more beautiful than it does in this movie, but I guess what Eleanor thinks of this road trip is different than what I was expecting (But what do I know I'm no Coppola).

You know what was great to look at? Diane Lane. So beautiful. I feel like the word MILF does not go with the elegance and grace she brought to the performance. Perhaps Cougar? Either way, smoking hot.

It's a very classically done comedy. You don't see movies made like this anymore. Very laid back and relax with the purpose of everything unfolding naturally.

Like some of the food in the movie it's a required taste, but I recommend taking a bite.

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The Coppola name comes with big expectations nowadays, but Eleanor Coppola (wife of Francis Ford, mother of Sofia) offers up a sweet, simplistic and somewhat conventional film about a 50 something woman who stumbles her way into a delightful adventure.

Diane Lane plays Anne, the elegant but somewhat neglected wife of a successful producer. They are supposed to take a long-delayed vacation in Paris only for that vacation to get delayed again when her husband, Michael, has to rush to Budapest for work. Anne is initially supposed to go with him, but when a severe earache prevents her from flying Michael's producing partner Jacques steps in and offers to drive her up to Paris. What is supposed to only be a quick car ride slouches into a several day long trip as spendthrift Jacques insists on making numerous detours to sample the architectural, culinary and cultural delights.

The movie is full of clichés (I mean really, a charming Frenchman named Jacques?) but Lane and Arnaud Viard have good chemistry and it's fun playing tourist by proxy as they stroll around the countryside flirting and looking chic. The movie only stumbles towards the end when it tries to get serious.

Early on the film comments about the importance of timing the perfect soufflé so that it doesn't deflate. Unfortunately, while made up of all the perfect ingredients this film isn't time quite write. It deflates a little upon conclusion but much like a soufflé would be, it still tastes perfectly alright.

I don't get the low rating for this film. As a man, I can understand how it would be borderline boring, but still it is a good movie, with good acting and very beautiful content. I went through a trip in France, with the great lighting and the great food and the beautiful countryside and I can tell you it's truly what women want. My wife was happy for months. And this is the film adaptation of such a trip, written and directed by Eleanor Coppola.

There are two problems with this film. One is that this is about rich people traveling through France and getting the best of the best from fancy restaurants and places for the in-people. That can annoy some folk. The other is that there really is no story. There's just a French guy trying to woo a beautiful American married woman.

One can learn a lot from this film, too. Basically, the writer says "hey, men that take their wives for granted! Your women want romance!". OK, that can be annoying, too, but also serves as a manual on how women would like to be made to feel.

Bottom line: a true romantic road trip movie, with no pointless comedy or drama added. Refreshing and inspiring.

"Paris Can Wait" (2016 release; 92 min.) brings the story of Anne and Jacques. As the movie opens, Anne and her husband Michael, a movie producer, are in Cannes and ready to fly to their next location, Budapest. But because Anne has an earache that would only get worse from the in-flight cabin pressure, she decides to go on directly to Paris, where she'll wait for Michael to catch up. Jacques, a business partner of Michael's, by coincidence is driving to Paris and offers her a ride. Off they go, and it's not long before Jacques makes frequent stops to sample the local "cuisine" and show local landmarks to Anne. At this point we're 10 min. into the movie but to tell you more off the plot would spoil your viewing experience, you'll just have to see for yourself how it all plays out.

Couple of comments: writer-director Eleanor Coppola (wife of Francis Ford) has been in the movie industry for decades, mostly as a documentarian, and so now, Elelanor, a crispy 80 years young, makes her debut as a fiction feature-length director. Wow. Here she brings us what amounts to a road movie with a romcom undertone, plus a foodie splash for good measure. If you have seen the trailer (which had been playing prominently in recent weeks), the movie plays EXACTLY as you'd expect from the trailer. The only element of the slightest surprise/mystery is: will they or won't they (Anne and Jacques) fall for each other? But even that is almost besides the point, as we watch what amounts to a 90 min. commercial for "la douce vie en France" (the sweet life in France). There are so many restaurant scenes, involving the most delicious dishes and wines, that it feels like the theater should been serving something too. At least, that is what came in my head when Jacques ordered a bottle of Châteauneuf-du-Pape, and I thought "where is ours?". Diana Lane is delightful as Anne, radiating pretty much like she did in "Under the Tuscan Son" from over a decade ago. Alec Baldwin is perfect s the neglectful husband, and veteran French actor Arnaud Viard is fine as Jacques.

"Paris Can Wait" opened this weekend at my local art-house theater here in Cincinnati. The Saturday matinée screening was very well attended, even more so for being a matinée. I can see this film becoming a hit on the art-house theater circuit. For me personally the movie was just a little too straight-forward, and if I wanted to watch a commercial of the south of France, I could've done that for free on the French Tourist Buearu's website. But Diane Lane provides a saving grace (to a degree), so it's all good.