PARIS CAN WAIT
US, 2016, 93 minutes, Colour.
Diane Lane, Arnaud Viard, Alec Baldwin.
Directed by Eleanor Coppola.
If you ever wanted to travel through the south of France, from Cannes, through some of the small towns, through Lyon to Paris, then this might be the film to see for the time being. And, if this part of the world is familiar, audiences will probably want to revisit.
This is a very leisurely film. The central character, Anne had intended to fly from the Riviera to Paris but has an ear infection and accepts the offer of a lift from a friend of her husband, both being film producers.
In fact, this film is so leisurely that one of the reviewers was champing at his bit throughout the whole film, urging them to get a move on, stop the delays – and agreed that he would have preferred the film to have them get in the car in Cannes and do an edit cut for their immediate arrival in Paris! But, look what he would have missed.
Diane Lane is always an attractive screen presence and this is her film. In her past, she has appeared in four films directed by Francis Ford Coppola. Paris Can Wait is directed by Coppola’s wife, Eleanor, who has made documentaries and accompanied her husband as support and photographer during his 1970s filming of Apocalypse Now in the Philippines. The production notes advise that Eleanor Coppola experienced a similar situation and did go for the drive from Cannes to Paris. And, Diane Lane’s Anne is a photographer and would have liked to have had photography as a career.
There is a narrative, but, keeping the French tone, it is soufflé-light. And, it is the perennial French/ American theme of French sophistication and sense of superiority over the very uncultured and up-front about it, Americans. The French stance is embodied in Jacques (Arnaud Viard), the rather happy-go-lucky producer, bad driver in his old car, and flirting unashamedly with Anne.
Anne has been married for 22 years to Michael, a busy, very busy, film producer, who has to go to Budapest and then phones to say that he has to go to Morocco where a very talented but impossible director is hugely overbudget. He is played by Alec Baldwin. We see this pressure on Anne right from the beginning as they prepare for the trip and he is continually getting calls. They do love each other but, for Anne, there is a fair amount of exasperation. She does enjoy the trip, is certainly very wise to Jacques’s preoccupation with her, and it all makes her think a bit more deeply about her relationship with Michael and also her daughter who is at college.
On the one hand, there is plenty, plenty of scenery, the countryside, rivers and lakes, as well as the towns and some Roman ruins including the aqueduct. That may be enough for some audiences but, this is also a film about food, French food, beautifully cooked, information about the ingredients, elegantly served – and always in the best hotels and restaurants. With dinners and lunches like this, obviously Paris can wait.
At a midday screening, there are quite a number in the audience, older than they used to be, but really enjoying this reverie in France.
1. An American story? A French story? A soufflé entertainment?
2. The director, her experience with her husband, her being a photographer, her documentaries, her first feature film? The family and their filmmaking, Zoetrope Company, Francis Ford Coppola, Roman Coppola, Sofia Coppola?
3. The French settings? The film festival in Cannes? The scenes of Cannes? The coast and beaches, the affluent accommodation? The range of French countryside, Provence, the towns, Roman ruins, the aqueduct? The visit to Lyon? The restaurants, the Lumiere Museum? Ordinary scenes, the roads, the car breakdown, the picnic by the water, the new car, driving through the night? The visit to the church? Paris, the street, the apartment? The audience immersed in a French experience? The musical score, the songs?
4. The situation, Michael, producer, at the festival, the phone calls, budgets, director’s whims, filming in Morocco, his need to go to Budapest? His being on the phone? His relationship to Anne? The years of marriage? Love, but busy, the promise of a holiday, but…? His character, his continued phone calls, anxious, especially about Jacques, his love for Anne?
5. Diane Lane’s screen presence, lively, charm, beauty? The introduction, the hotel, her taking photographs, her ear infection, Michael being busy, the suitcases and her taking them down? The drive to the plane? Jacques And his charm, producer? Her being advised not to fly, Jacques and his offer for the drive, her accepting?
6. Jacques, producer, Frenchman, typical or not? His charm? Flirting, seductive? His plan, the drive to Paris, his attraction to Anne? The irony of his difficulties with his credit card – and his final repayment? Audience’s suspicions? His lavish expenses? His not being married, his liking children, his expertise on food, French pride in cuisine, the various meals, his dealings with the staff, his knowing managers, the women, the director of the museum and his relationship with her? His delaying the trip, the various excursions, the meals? His comments about Anne as an American – and trying to educate her according to gourmet tastes? And his frequent comments about the difference between American sexual behaviour And French attitudes?
7. The variety of locations, audiences appreciating them, Anne and her photography? The meals, the styles, the service? The wines and appreciation?
8. The effect on Anne, the attraction, Michael and his phone calls, her girlfriend ringing? Her being wary, observing Jacques, especially with the woman in Lyon?
9. Arriving, the apartment, his return with the roses – and all the roses throughout the trip? Anne and her apprehensions about his driving? The kiss, Jacques’ expectations, Anne and her breaking off? His note, making the appointment in California – And the gift of the roses and the message?
10. The difference between Americans and the French in behaviour and attitudes? The effect of the Americans on the French? The French on the Americans?
