New York I Love You

Starring: Segment 1) Hayden Christensen (Jumper), Rachel Bilson ("How I Met Your Mother"), Oscar nominee Andy Garcia (The Godfather Part III & The Pink Panther 2. Seg2) Oscar nominee Natalie Portman (Closer). Seg3) Orlando Bloom (Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End), Emmy nominee Christina Ricci ("Grey's Anatomy"). Seg4) 2X Oscar nominee Ethan Hawke (Training Day), Maggie Q (Operation Endgame), Robin Wright (A Christmas Carol), Oscar winner Chris Cooper (Adaptation & Remember Me). Seg5) Anton Yelchin (Terminator Salvation), Olivia Thirlby ("Bored to Death"), Oscar nominee James Caan (The Godfather & Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs), Blake Lively ("Gossip Girl"), David Call ("Rescue Me"). Seg6) Emmy Winner Drea de Matteo ("The Sopranos"), Bradley Cooper (The A Team), James Caan. Seg7) Oscar winner Julie Christie (Darling & Away From Her), 2X Oscar nominee John Hurt (The Elephant Man & "Merlin"), Daytime Emmy winner Shia LaBeouf ("Even Stevens"). Seg8) Jacinda Barrett (School For Scoundrels). Seg9) Qi Shu (If You Are the One). Seg10) Emmy winner Eli Wallach (The Poppy is Also a Flower & The Ghost Writer), Oscar winner Cloris Leachman (The Last Picture Show & "The Office"). Bonus seg 1) Emmy nominee Kevin Bacon [Taking Chance (tv)]. Bonus Seg 2) Carla Gugino ("Entourage"), Goran Visnjic ("ER"), Indie Spirit Winner Heather Matarazzo (Welcome to the Dollhouse & "Law & Order"). Transitions) Ethan Hawke, Magie Q, Justin Bartha (The Hangover), Eva Amurri ("House MD")

Directed by: Seg1) Cannes France Culture Award winner Wen Jiang (Devils on the Doorstep).Seg2) Cannes Audience Award winner Mira Nair (Salaam Bombay! & Amelia). Seg3) Shunji Iwai (Filmful Life). Seg4) Yvan Attal (...And They Lived Happily Ever After). Seg5) Brett Ratner (Rush Hour 3). Seg6) Indie Spirit Winner Allen Hughes (Menace II Society & The Book of Eli). Seg7) Shekhar Kapur (Elizabeth: The Golden Age). Seg8) Natalie Portman (Eve). Seg9) Cannes Golden Palm Winner Fatih Akin (Edge of Heaven). Seg10) Independent Spirit nominee Joshua Marston (Maria Full of Grace). Transitions) Randy Balsmeyer ("On the Record with Bob Costas"). Bonus seg) Scarlett Johansson.

Written by: Seg1) Israel Horovitz, Hu Hong & Yao Meng. Seg2) Suketu Mehta (64 Squares). Seg3) director & Horovitz. Seg4) Olivier Lecot (No, Not Now). Seg5) Edgar award nominee Jeff Nathanson (Catch Me If You Can). Seg6) Alexandra Cassavetes & Stephen Winter. Seg7) Oscar winner Anthony Minghella (The English Patient). Seg8) director. Seg9) director. Seg10) director. Transitions) Hall Powell, Horowitz, & James Strouse. Bonus) director. Bonus2) director.

Plot: Sometimes interconnected and other times separate stories of love in New York City. Companion film to 2006 film Paris I Love You.

Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5katNrnYb8U

Clip: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QRdQmuYRW2A

Review: New York shouldn't even be in the title because this film had nothing mush to do with New York. The 2006 companion film incorporated actual famous places and neighborhoods in Paris and used them as a secondary character in each segment, even going so far as to put the name of the area before each segment. That's what they should've done here. Except for a few obvious lines like "This is what I love about New York" and "I love this city", this film could've taken place anywhere. It felt more like a companion piece to recent release Valentine's Day then it did to Paris I Love You. There were a few standout segments like #7 written by the late great Anthony Minghella and the two bonus segments in the special features which should've been included in the final film. The rest were fine, but I've seen them before. They didn't have much depth. If this film had featured the city more and included Scarlett Johansson's directorial debut These Vagabond Shoes as the culminating segment that would've tied the hold film together, then it would've been a fit companion the the 2006 Paris I Love you. Rent this only if you haven't seen Paris I Love You. If you have seen the 2006 release then skip this. Watch this first. Then watch Paris and have your spirit truly moved. Otherwise prepare to be disappointed. I do hope they continue this series with other cities. (Check out my earlier blog post reviewing Paris I Love You)

Rating:

Writing-C

Acting-B-A few standout performances like Shia LeBeouf, but for the most part pretty average.

Directing-C

Music-A

Cinematography-A

Editing-D

Costumes-B

Art Direction-A

Hair-B

Makeup-B

** Stars