New York, I love You! : aimless amble that gets you nowhere

the Poster:

the Trailer:

the Plot:

New York, I Love You tells of  11 segments, starting with Ben (Hayden Christensen), a pickpocket who finally meets his match in Garry (Andy Garcia) who is in relationship with Molly (Rachel Bilson). 

Ben is scouting for his victim

Molly is waiting for Garry at the bar

Garry confronted Ben who picked his pocket earlier

Molly drops by to see Ben

They leave the place together

 

then it proceeds to the story of Rifka (Natalie Portman), an Orthodox Jewish bride to be married in a wedding ceremony steeped in Jewish tradition negotiating for a diamond sale with Mansukhbai (Irrfan Khan), an Indian jeweler of Jain faith with 2 kids, jilted by his wife who left for India to be a saint. 

 

Over the course of a few minutes, the densely packed script covers language, dietary restrictions, religion, love; all of it delivered with a narrative punch. and Mansukhbai was later portrayed to wistfully daydream that he is the groom Rifka is marrying.

Rifka with her REAL groom

Next, is about a sleep-deprived composer, David Cooler (Orlando Bloom), carrying on a phone flirtation with his director's unseen assistant, Camille (Christina Ricci). after David threatened to quit his job, only Camille appeared at his apartment to help him understand the book assignment related to his current piece.

a composer struggling to finish his assignments

David struggles to finish the book

Camille finally shows up. David teases that now they are getting married.

Then the dangerous push-pull of flashfire attraction of Lydia (Drea de Matteo) and Gus (Bradley Cooper) who struggle with the after effects of their blazingly intense one-night stand.

Lydia berates herself for fantasizing about the one night stand

they met again as Gus about to enter a taxi

no need to guess of how the night shall end

in the end, they met in front of a bar as Gus stopped a taxi. they then proceed to make out in the taxi, perhaps to spend another night together.

there is also an Upper East Side Hotel ghost story featuring Jacob (Shia LaBeouf) as a hunchbacked bellhop interacting with Isabelle (Julie Christie), a faded opera star which put a damper on the latter's wish to kill herself.

Jacob surprises Isabelle with violets

they share a drink together

we were then showed that the hunchbacked bellhop is a ghost that died falling from the open window.

Jacob lying on the pavement, dead

 

and the real bellhop (John Hurt) mentioned that the violet is from the hotel management who still remembers her preference.

this movie also includes a comic prom-night ode to teen hormones and Central Park. Mr Riccoli (James Caan), a pharmacist in full grump offers his wheelchair-bound daughter (April Bowlby) to accompany his customer (Anton Yelchin) to a senior prom night after he got jilted by his girlfriend, Gabrielle (Blake Lively).

sporting father Mr Riccoli is.

they stumbled upon Gabrielle with her more matured escort

having a good time

they spend the night at the Central Park

rushing her home the morning after

things do happen beyond our expectation, non?

what happened that night and the morning after really puts a smile on the boy's face.

then there was a writer (Ethan Hawke) as a fast talker trying to pick up Janice (Maggie Q) through sharing sexual innuendos and whatnots, which comes off as an extended joke with a predictable punchline. 

they shared a lighter

sexual innuendos dripping here and there

he tried to convince her to follow him back to his place

However she tells him that she's a hooker and men who wants to sleep with her have to pay. the scene by the street in front of a restaurant was later reenacted by a couple of strangers at first it seems. Alex (Chris Cooper) and Anna (Robin Wright Penn) talked by the street, with Anna seducing Alex before entering the restaurant.

Anna flirts with Alex

a married couple rupanya

 it is later revealed that Alex was her estranged husband whom she refers to in their by street conversation. and the night ends with them talking with ease and much intimacy, perhaps due to the initial conversation as strangers.

we then are treated to the story where a Chinese herbalist (Shu Qi) becomes the object of fantasy for an alcoholic Painter (Uğur Yücel). 

the Painter is obsessed with the painting

he follows her around

He pursued her and asked her to come visit his place for a painting session. later, as she went to his apartment, it was later found out that the Painter has died, leaving sketches of her face sans her eyes.

Dante (Carlos Acosta) is a Cuban dancer taking care of a little blond Caucasian girl, Teya (Taylor Geare). 

Dante's love for Teya is apparent

heading home to meet Teya's mom

His affections for her impressed the onlooking mothers who mistaken him for a manny though the girl is in fact his daughter, out on their time together. he then returns Teya to Maggie (Jacinda Barrett) who reprimands him for being too soft on Teya. 

then there were scenes of Sarah (Eva Amurri) who berates her boyfriend, Justin (Justin Bartha) for not taking her on a trip. 

:laments: :laments:

impulsively he took her to the american airline agent and booked a trip to Rome, promising to buy her a toothbrush when they got there.

Abe (Eli Wallach) and  Mitzie (Cloris Leachman) as a married old couple took a jaunt in the city, constantly poking at each other with sarcastic comments. it was revealed that it was their 63rd anniversary and as they leave the pier, their affections for each other is more apparent.

the loving couple, despite the constant bickering

itn the end, it was made known that the 11 segments were connected by the snapshots taken by a videographer, Zoe (Emilie Ohana). 

Zoe is filming random people around New York

the moment she met Gus

spending time with the Chinese herbalist

the Review:

this movie frustrates me much with its slow pace and incomprehensible plots. i have to rewatch and pay attention to the dialogue just not to miss the point. should i watch this in the cinema hall, i would have fallen asleep or worst, ended up frustrated.

however, there are segments of this movie that i like. the one with Natalie Portman and Irrfan Khan, Anton with April and last but not least, the old couple. sweet sangat :)

the scenes in this movie is a bit dry. and you kinda lost your objectivity in its quest to be artistic. as i said, it's an aimless amble around New York, showcasing the places of interest which are very nice to look at.