TRAFFIC

'New York, I Love You' ultimately falls short

BY RENE RODRIGUEZ - MCCLATCHY NEWSPAPERS

Published: 11/27/09

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ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

NEW YORK, I LOVE YOU **

Rated: R: vulgar language, sexual situations. Starring: Hayden Christensen, Andy Garcia, Rachel Bilson, Natalie Portman, Irrfan Khan, Orlando Bloom, Christina Ricci, Ethan Hawke, Maggie Q, Chris Cooper, Robin Wright Penn, Anton Yelchin, James Caan, Olivia Thirlby, Drea De Matteo, Bradley Cooper, Julie Christie, John Hurt, Shia LaBeouf, Taylor Geare, Carlos Acosta, Ugur Yucel, Eli Wallack, Cloris Leachman, Emilie Ohana. Directors: Jiang Wen, Mira Nair, Shunji Iwai, Yvan Attal, Brett Ratner, Allen Hughes, Shekhar Kapur, Natalie Portman, Fatih Akin, Joshua Marston, Randy Balsmeyer. Running time: 103 minutes. Theater: Flicks.

"New York, I Love You," the second in an intended series of omnibus films ("Paris, Je T'Aime" was the first) called "Cities of Love," is a collection of 11 shorts and one wrap-around segment, each directed by a different filmmaker in two days, that interweaves the backdrop of New York City into some sort of anecdote dealing with love.

The result, as is always the case with short story collections, is a mixed bag, although unlike "Paris Je T'Aime," the duds outnumber the winners this time. Part of the reason is that while the roster of directors in Paris included Alfonso Cuaron, Alexander Payne, the Coen brothers and Gus Van Sant, the filmmakers behind "New York, I Love You" generally skew younger and less experienced. This results in stories that are often more trivial and banal than entrancing.

Surprisingly, the film's high note is struck by Brett Ratner, whose Hollywood career ("Red Dragon," "Family Man," "X-Men: The Last Stand") has not always been celebrated by critics. His tale about a young man (Anton Yelchin) who agrees to take the daughter of his pharmacist (James Caan) to the prom sight unseen results in a funny and surprising story perfectly suited to the confines of a short narrative.

A lot of the shorts in "New York, I Love You" encapsulate the benefits that make living in the harsh city so worthwhile, from the way in which you are forced to interact with different cultures and religions on a daily basis to how even a minor random encounter can lead to life-changing consequences. But too many of the tales here are either obvious to the point of boredom.

The structure of "New York, I Love You" guarantees that if you don't like the movie you're watching, a new one will begin just a few minutes later.

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