From Paris With Love

If you’ve ever wanted to see an English language version of the French action hit ‘District B13’ (also directed by Pierre Morrel), ‘From Paris with Love’ is the perfect meal for you. It’s disposable, action-packed, cheesy fare that is bound to satisfy hardcore action lovers but unfortunately not many more outside that audience.

James Reece (Jonathan Rhys Meyers) has the perfect life in Paris as the aid to the U.S. Ambassador in France. He’s got a beautiful wife and home but he aspires to be a CIA operative. The good news is his wish gets fulfilled – Reece is offered his first assignment that pairs him with a partner from the U.S. The bad news – his partner is Charlie Wax (John Travolta), a gun toting, wisecracking canon that shoots before he speaks a word. As they ride through Paris uncovering deep dark corruptions and fighting bad guys, they realize that they are the only ones who can stop a larger conspiracy that threatens the government.

If you’re hoping for a solid story and emotional depth here, let me tell you something about the filmmakers here. The producer and story writer is Luc Besson, famous for his adrenaline filled action films (The Transporter, Leon) and the director is Pierre Morrel (District B13, Taken). These Frenchmen know action is their forte and that’s exactly what they offer here. There’s no hint of character development or refined plot points here because the action never takes a break for long enough to do so. This is an action movie at its purest definition.

Fortunately, it gets the action right. The long shooting sequences are tightly directed and look great and there is a chase scene on the freeway in particular that’s enthralling to say the least. Pierre Morell definitely has the knacks for gun-blazing and martial arts and he proves it here once again. But the biggest attraction here is John Travolta himself. Take his performances in ‘The Taking of Pehlam 1 2 3’ and ‘Face Off’ and tenfold them and you get Charlie Wax. Travolta steals the show in every single scene and effortlessly carries the film as the gun-blazing operative that knows no bounds. He’s also given some crazy and hilarious one-liners that add to his balls-out performance. They say a bad-ass lead character and great action scenes are all you need to craft a good action film and both are present here.

But this is also the film’s real weakness – it’s unlikely to cater to or satisfy anyone who doesn’t enjoy hardcore action. Lacking any emotion or drama, the average moviegoer will probably leave the theater disappointed. Apart from a major twist mid-movie that shakes you off your chair, the action is purely formulaic and follows the buddy cop movie formula a little too closely and that leads it to become forgettable fare rather than being a classic that shall be remembered.

While Travolta is brilliant casting, Rhys Meyers is not. Casting an actor known primarily for his dramatic roles into a pure action film was not the ideal choice. Even though he suits the character of a calm individual thrust into action-packed situations, the script gives him nothing to do for the most part and that really translates into a mediocre performance that stands out oddly as if it belongs to another film. The rest of the cast does a commendable job.

In the end, ‘From Paris with Love’ is one of the most adrenaline-rushed and pure action experiences to come out of Hollywood in a long time. Action fans should lap it up before it’s gone but if you’re looking for more serious fare, this is not the movie for you. It could very well be summed up in three words from the film that reference Travolta’s classic Pulp Fiction – ‘Royale with Cheese’.

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