The love story or any of its multitudes of offshoots and offspring’s has been done so often in cinema that it’s difficult to do something new.  So, when something does come along that attempts to break the mold and actually say something amidst all of the trappings and clichés that have come to be expected with the drama of dying love, then attention must be called to it, even if, in the end its reach extends what it is trying to grasp.  Julie Delpy, best known to film audiences as the woman who has an affair with Ethan Hawke in Richard Linklater’s superb Before Sunrise and Before Sunset, has taken on the clichés of the romantic comedy in her second directorial effort, 2 Days in Paris by turning the conventions in on itself while exposing the division between American and European sensibilities and expectations within a fading relationship.

Taking place at the tail end of a European trip, we find Jack (Adam Goldberg) and Marion (Delpy) arriving in Paris to visit with Marion’s folks before their return to the states.  Jack is neurotic and a hypochondriac, prone to sudden fits of sickness real or imagined.  Marion is a photographer with impaired vision and a sense of the world that is very much different than Jack’s.  She sees positivity where he sees the world in cynicism, which on the surface appears to come from their specific countries of origin.  They are true opposites, but as all opposites who fall in love tend to do, they are beginning to discover that their differences are beginning to overshadow their relationship.

By placing the film in Paris, Delpy allows for a commentary on American culture that goes beyond the standard America vs. Europe discussion that could very well doom the film to a surface level critique.  Instead, the idea of men and women and their roles within a specific culture, both as functioning members of a working society and as partners within an adult sexual relationship.  As the film moves on and Marion begins to become reacquainted with her family, her own history and old lovers, these themes come to the forefront especially when seen through the eyes of Jack who moves from being afraid of germs to a fear of Marion’s promiscuous (in his eyes) past.

The film could stand on its own with its views of personal relationships, but it manages to subtly include political parallels between America and France in the most unlikely of situations: A cab ride.  Often there is a marked difference in cultures and how the two respond to various threats, with the French portrayed as an over lenient socialist society and America the responsible hard working nation, but here that is turned on its head with the various conversation held sporadically throughout the movie with the Paris cab drivers.  Fear of terrorism, immigrants and the loss of national identity, all hot topics in America are covered within these conversations bringing the two cultures together in an unsuspecting way. Delpy, who has spent time in both countries (and is, obviously, a French native), uses these moments to underscore the tension within Jack and Marion’s relationship, using the comparison of cultures as a way to unify the ideals behind America and France, while Jack and Marion fall apart.

Ideas and themes are great, but they mean nothing if the film itself is not filmed properly and for the most part, Delpy does a great job keeping the flow of the film without losing itself in the message.  There is a bit of a blur between fiction and reality as Delpy uses her real parents as her fictional parents in the film, but they work well in their roles, which keeps it all grounded when it could quickly turn to farce.  A good amount of the movie is in French, which leads to a bit of tension with Jack (who in a lot of ways is the epitome of ‘the ugly American’ no matter how hard he tries to keep with his own self-styled liberal idealism).  But, all of this should lead to a great build up and resolution, which ultimately plays out flat and uninspired, leaving a film which had so much greatness going for it, end on a disappointing note.

Julie Delpy does have the chops as a director and a writer and it will be interesting to see where she goes next.  She’s not quite a household name, but is well known in certain circles and rightfully so.  Her ability to mix social commentary into what could be a by the numbers romantic comedy turned into something surprisingly intelligent and witty.  A better ending would have sufficed, but this was enough of a surprise that it comes with a recommendation, albeit one with reservations.  Hopefully Delpy will return to directing and bring more of her European sensibilities to American cinema, especially in genres that have long since brought anything new to the table.