Paris (2008) - 5 stars out of 10

Paris (2008) - 5 stars out of 10

"Paris" is another of those films with a dozen random characters whose lives intersect at some point during the film but for me, this script just seemed disjointed.  I do enjoy films that develop a few seperate characters and have their paths meet in a very significant event, but some of these coincidental meetings were inconsequential and did not really enhance the story (particularly the storyline randomly taking place in Africa).  I think that the biggest problem is that there are so many characters that they begin to look alike and difficult to keep track of.  That being said, this is an enjoyable film with nice performances by Juliette Binoche, Fabrice Luchini, and Melanie Laurent.  Each of these actors brings a solid (but sometimes unexpected) interpretation to their role.  The language is pretty strong but, for some reason, it never bothers me as much when I'm reading it in subtitles rather than hearing it.  More than anything, this is a fantastic film to watch if you have ever visited Paris.  As the title would indicate, many of Paris' landmarks are on display like the Moulin Rouge, Montmartre, Sacre Coeur, Eiffel Tower, and just the general sensation of walking down the streets of Paris.  I was pretty iffy throughout the movie, wondering if things would conclude the right way or the wrong way, but the writers found the perfect ending so I give it a thumbs up, though there's a list of foreign films that I would watch a second time ahead of this one.