2 DAYS IN NEW YORK

Frothy cross-cultural romp. (Review by John Harley)

Forming part of the Durban International Film Festival, 2 Days In New York is written and directed by Julie Delpy who also appears in the lead female role.

In this sequel to 2 Days in Paris, Marion (Delpy) has broken up with Jack and lives in New York with their young son and her new American boyfriend, Mingus (Chris Rock). When her family decide to visit from France, Marion fails to consider the explosive possibilities presented by the different cultural backgrounds of Mingus, her outrageously eccentric father and her sister, who had decided to bring her boyfriend (also Marion’s ex) along.

True to form, this adds another engagingly honest (at times idiosyncratic) film to her extensive body of work.

There are no super, fancy special effects in this situational comedy which runs along at a steady pace creating a light-hearted sense of comedy which does not burst at the seams, yet also does not put one to sleep.

Although English subtitles were advertised in the programmes, they were nowhere to be seen on the screen and this impacted in a significant way. This stilted the dialogue at times and made the audience miss a lot of the inherent humour of the film – even though the plot was rather simple to follow - with a bit of imagination.

The pace of the piece was fast and furious and typical of European movies; with some outrageous camera angles and shots creating a most unusual visual impact. There was an easy, relaxed sense of flow throughout the film with moments of high humour, but mostly creating a sense of amusement rather than loud outbursts or raucous laughter.

Performances also reflected the ultra-naturalistic European style of film-making, keeping one on one’s toes to catch little gems of comedy that suddenly pop into the mix. As the momentum developed, different layers of meaning began to appear lending promise to a film that could be more than just a mere light-hearted romp but would rather take its audience into more profound levels related to the complexities of relationships, not only on cross-cultural levels but even in so-called normal circumstances.

There were great opportunities to take this movie to these levels but somehow they were never exploited. A good example was the scene when Marion sells her soul, and then wants it back – this triggered some deep moments of insight into the human psyche and, if explored further, would have given much greater substance to the film. After all, can we sell our souls? If so - if we sell it, does it still exist – and how would it feel without one’s soul?

All these aspects (and others) gave evidence at an attempt to make this film really take off – moving it into new dimensions and greater significances .... yet it never quite reached such profound levels. In the end, this was a movie that was pleasing to watch (and listen to); never really having the audience in stitches but fully engaging them to the very end. A worthwhile experience – see it! (Review by John Harley)