Review: ‘Paris Can Wait,’ at Least Until After the Crème Brûlée

“Paris Can Wait,” a smugly affluent Euro trifle and the first narrative feature from Eleanor Coppola (the wife of Francis Ford Coppola), is little more than an indulgent wallow in gustatory privilege. By the time the final meal is devoured, you’ll be wanting nothing so much as an antacid.

Inspired by similar events in Ms. Coppola’s past, the story fusses around Anne (an overqualified Diane Lane) as she trundles from Cannes to Paris in an old Peugeot. Anne’s husband, a frantic Hollywood producer (a barely seen Alec Baldwin), has been urgently summoned to Budapest. So his amiable French business partner, Jacques (Arnaud Viard), has offered to drive Anne to her destination — via seemingly every notable restaurant en route.

What follows is a Michelin-starred commercial for French cuisine gussied up as Anne’s journey of self-discovery. When not inhaling jus d’agneau and crème brûlée — and a cheese basket the size of a small fishing boat — the two visit famous landmarks and exchange flirty glances. But when Anne finally peels off her pantyhose, it isn’t to indulge in a roadside quickie; it’s to repair the Peugeot’s broken fan belt. So practical, these American women!

Between promoting her son-in-law’s band and tediously freeze-framing Anne’s amateur snapshots, Ms. Coppola (best known for her riveting 1991 documentary about the making of “Apocalypse Now”) never realizes Anne as more than a bland accessory who lets men tell her what to eat. Unlike Martine (Élise Tielrooy), a forthright Venusian beauty from Jacques’s past.

“You’ll never forget your travels with Jacques,” Martine promises, flushed with remembered ecstasies. Oh, Martine, I’m pretty sure we will.

‘It’s about the woman’: Meet rising French band, Her

The future stars talk about Her Tape No.1, their influences + being mistaken for an English band

“We are focussing on Her Tape No.1. It begins by talking about the dreaming, the lust for a woman, and that’s our track ‘Quite Like’. Then you have the love encounter with ‘Five Minutes’,” reveals Her’s Victor Solf, as co-founder and fellow band leader Simon Carpentier nods in agreement. “Then you have the experience of missing someone in ‘Her’, and finally you have the wedding in ‘Union’.”

This love story EP has won a lot of hearts in France since the Rennes-based band released it on vinyl through a French indie last month. However, their first ever digital release was ‘Quite Like’ in April. Although the full EP isn’t out digitally yet, Soundcloud streams have hit over a quarter of a million across their two releases, and plays have largely come from the UK and the US. [ . . . ]

Source: ‘It’s about the woman’: Meet rising French band, Her | Gigwise

The Last Rose (Wines) of Summer

Rose Wines for summer’s end

 

Recommended rose wines from France and Spain to enjoy during final days of summer.

After Labor Day, summer can seem like it’s a quickly fading memory. But the reality is there’s still technically a week or so left of summer (which ends on Sept. 21) depending on when you’re reading this article.

And when it comes to wine, nothing symbolizes summer better than rose wines.

Fortunately, there’s more than just one rose of summer still in full bloom. In fact, according to several wine store owners I’ve talked to over the years, if they could stock rose wines year-round, they probably would since they seem to sell like wildfire anytime they’re on the shelves. [ . . . ]

More at: Wine Press: The Last Rose (Wines) of Summer | masslive.com

Groundhog Day, Facebook, and Healthcare in USA

by Michael Stevenson

GROUNDHOG DAY EXPERIMENT
Yesterday I rewatched a favorite film, Harold Ramis’ Groundhog Day (1993). I’ve seen this Buddhist-themed movie dozens of times. After last night’s viewing, I decided to attempt an experiment whereby I would try to experience each day as if I was revisiting each moment and encounter.

Superficially, Groundhog Day is a about a cynical, egocentric weatherman Phil (Bill Murray) who repeats the same day over and over again (February 2nd, aka Groundhog Day) until he convinces Rita (Andie MacDowell) to fall in love with him. On a deeper level, it is a profound work of contemporary metaphysics, albeit, with occasionally hilarious sight gags (“Am I right or am I right? – Needle-nose Ned Ryersen)

Like Bill Murray’s main character Phil Connors, I will reincarnate each moment of each Continue reading “Groundhog Day, Facebook, and Healthcare in USA”