New York, I Love You
Director: Brett Ratner, Joshua Marston, Mira Nair and others
Stars: Ethan Hawke, Natalie Portman, Julie Christie
Classification: STC
Rating: **

In 2006, filmgoers were charmed by Paris Je T’aime, an anthology film comprised of short love letters to Paris by 21 different filmmakers. The project was surprisingly consistent for a film of it’s kind and proved to be a minor hit.

Three years later, a few producers have tried to repeat the trick with New York, I Love You. The plan was to apply the same format to New York and it should have worked. But, unfortunately the roster of filmmakers hired for this omnibus is not nearly as impressive as the previous lineup. There are a few nice shorts, but overall the film is quite bland and predictable.

Hollywood hack Brett Ratner (Rush Hour) surprisingly directed the funniest segment about a teenager who inadvertently takes James Caan’s disabled daughter to his prom. Maria Full Of Grace director Joshua Marston also contributed an amazing segment featuring Cloris Leachman and Eli Wallach as a sweetly co-dependent bickering old couple. But sadly, the other shorts fall flat. While Paris Je T’aime succeeded on the strength of the directors, New York, I Love You succeeds mainly because of its all star cast that includes Ethan Hawke, John Hurt, Natalie Portman, Julie Christie, and others.

Anthology movies are always inconsistent. There has never been a perfect one made, so judging them depends entirely on the number of hits vs. the number of misses and New York, I Love You fails more than it succeeds.