Disappointing first time round but I fancy seeing it again

Rating: Null/10 (27 September 2011)

I wrote the other day that a mediocre Woody Allen comedy is still a good comedy by any other standards (or something like that) and I stand by that, but this is only part comedy. I mean, you wouldn't call Sleeper a sci-fi comedy, it's a normal comedy set in the future, and you wouldn't call Curse of the Jade Scorpion a crime comedy (although it parodies detective films) or Love and Death a historical comedy, they're very witty, mildly absurd, satirical comedy films with different settings.
Anyway, this isn't just a comedy in a different setting, it's a fantasy romance with comic elements, a weak lead character and dependent to a great degree on Americans' views of Paris. The comedy isn't always the main concern, the fantasy setting is a bit stereotyped but there's a twist or two, the romance is romantic enough, suspense is kept up well, Owen Wilson is OK but not a good enough actor to make up for the lack of snappy dialogue, the dullness of the character and being vastly and madly outperformed by a certain Mr Hemingway and a Snr Dali, among others. It seems to my European eyes that this is aimed again at US viewers, rather than just being Allen's personal vision. The 'Americans Abroad' perspective just doesn't work outside the US.
Worth seeing but don't expect to laugh out loud more than 3 times.