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February
12
2007
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Delpy Comedy Stirs Buyers
Categories: Film News
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Julie Delpy’s “2 Days in Paris” is one of the hot films so far, particularly among U.S. execs who have been buzzing about the movie since its world premiere on Saturday. A sort of “Meet The Parents” set in Paris, Delpy’s sharp, entertaining low-budget movie offers both hilarious and poignant elements after lead character Marion (played by Delpy) brings her liberal yet neurotic New Yorker boyfriend Jack (Adam Goldberg) to visit her loud, sometimes brash family in Paris (played by Delpy’s own parents) at the end of a vacation in Venice.
Cut to their two-day stay in Paris, the couple experience the good and bad of modern French life, and along the way run into a several of her ex-boyfriends and a noteworthy “fairy” terrorist, played by Daniel Bruhl. A few buyers informally polled indieWIRE about the movie in recent days to gauge critical response to the winning comedy, some expressing concern that it might be a bit too similar to the recent “Before Sunset.” Insiders expect the movie to easily strike a theatrical deal with a U.S. buyer, with one distributor telling indieWIRE that a sale was expected to close on Sunday night.
"Every time I went back to France, after spending a lot of time in Los Angeles, I was so amused by Parisians and how rude they were," smiled Delpy during a Berlinale press conference over the weekend, noting that people back home are, "very rustic and tough and rude and disrespectful. And I kind of like that in people."
As noted, for some Delpy's new film evokes her recent "Before Sunset," which also depicts a couple's relationship at a crossroads in Europe. "It could be like 'Before Sunset'," Delpy agreed, cautioning, "But it is not at all. This one is not really a romantic comedy--people are rude and people (are) tough... 'Before Sunset' expressed a romantic side...with this one I wanted to express something else." Concluding the thought, she added, "It's a comedy, it's a funny film, (but) underneath, (there is) something serious about it. In typical Amer-indie style, Delpy not only wrote, directed and stars in the film, but she also wrote music for the movie and also edited the picture. The film was shot in HD in just 20 days.
Having already made short films, and with an Oscar nomination under her belt for writing "Before Sunset" with Richard Linklater and Ethan Hawke, Delpy sees "Two Days in Paris" as a stepping stone towards a much anticipated new film that she hopes to make next called, "The Countess," a project she calls a "dark drama about murder and cruelty." Delpy said during the press conference that for years she has been developing what she describes as a dark, ambitious 16th century drama. "It took me awhile to put it together," she noted, adding that she expects Ethan Hawke, Radha Mitchell, and Daniel Bruhl to star, with additional roles still to be cast.
"Now people know I won't have a breakdown two weeks into the shoot because I am an actress, (they) know I am not crazy, or at least I am hiding it well," Delpy laughed and expressing excitement about the upcoming project. "The Countess," she added, "to me is the favorite thing I have written. I feel more of a (sense) of achievement than everything else."
Source: indiewire.com
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