Divorce, Le
Director: James Ivory
Year Released: 2003
Rating: 1.0
Several Woody Allen archetypes populate Paris with their concerns over paintings and fine wine and expensive lunches and the good life ('I wouldn't want to have to take the Metro!') - trouble is, Allen's self-depreciating wit and humor are what make his better films still approachable and human, terms no one ever associates with the names Ismail Merchant, James Ivory or Ruth Prawer Jhabvala. Leaden dialogue along with irritating characters and plot details - a gruesome suicide attempt and an ugly murder are quickly covered and then moved past; of course there's Glenn Close, too, getting so very close to a stereotype and Matthew Modine's crazy-ass American - are but a few of the problems in this neo-romance, and there's a noticeable lack of fun in the film itself (casting Reno 9-1-1's Thomas Lennon as a money-hungry American is inspired but minor).
