I went to the outdoor movies last night. The movie can't start until it gets dark here in the city where I live just two hours South of Stockholm, at 10.40 PM.  I would guess that about 400 people were out there; both young and old alike. Not necessarily for the movie itself, but because it's a sort of "happening" - outdoor movies; a place to meet your friends and even new people.  The weather was great, but they show movies outdoors even in the pouring rain! You sit there for about 45 minutes in your portable beach chair and start talking with your new "neighbors" and watch people, eat popcorn and cotton candy. Fun!

The movie, Two Days In Paris, is a fable of modern day relationships which explores our insecurities and vulnerabilities in witty dialog that is very funny with it's satire and sarcasm. Cultural prejudices and hysterical behavior look neurotic and made me feel a tickling laugh all through the movie. The character, Marion, strips her soul bare in this portrayal of a modern relationship with two 35 year old yuppies who still have not settled down and matured.  Having lived in a foreign country and been married to someone of an entirely different culture, I can appreciate the culture clash the couple experienced.  I thought the film was accurate and hilarious, and the acting didn't seem like acting at all.  The relationship issues were relevant and believable, even for people from the same country but of different cultural backgrounds.

Will have to look for more movies by the same writer, director, producer and star of the film, Julie Delpy. Her real-life parents played… her parents! The boyfriend was played by Adam Goldberg, who starts off like a jerk, but in the end, I feel sympathy for the character; he discovers that we can never really know anyone else before we know ourselves.  So true. This comes in the end like a flash of lightning, giving him a glimpse of the path ahead. But the glimpse of this is very precious; at first they break up and there are tears and serious discussion, even insults. However, this couple knows that they love each other; they know there is a possibility. Who knows if it will last? The narration at the end wants us to think so, but so much anxiety in a relationship is bound to be rocky.  I loved the movie, but their relationship, if they continue along the same path, the prospects do not seem promising.  Still, I enjoyed it, as well as the outing, and I would see the movie again.

Angela Wickenberg

Tags: Exporing_Relationships"Two_Days_In_Paris" Angela_Wickenberg