Paris (2003)
Paris follows rookie detective Jason Bartok on his disturbing journey through the shadowy underworld of Los Angeles and Las Vegas, illuminated only by a sweet but short-lived romance with a strikingly beautiful, enigmatic woman. As the tale unfolds, Jason accidentally shoots his corrupt partner, Leon, grabbing stolen money from the crime scene at the older policeman's urging. The guilt-ridden young man quickly takes to the road to track down Leon's lover, Linda/Shen Li, an illegal Chinese immigrant, to deliver the bag of cash to her. Jason's search takes in seedy motels and rough bars, an L.A. massage parlor and a Nevada ranch, until finally in a dingy Vegas dive, he discovers the irresistible Linda, a sparkling jewel ensnared by the sex trade. Stalked by thugs, the money's "rightful owners", Jason and Linda are thrust together to make their escape through the haunting landscape that is the California desert.
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There are moments in this movie where the great movie it could've been peek out... They're fleeting, here, but they're worth savoring, and they happen often enough to make it worth your while.
The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.
Ill watch Bai Ling in anything which is explaining why I have seen a lot of strange things mostly off of the internet. But this was an actual movie and I really enjoyed it because of it. Chad Allen is also great but, I GUESS WE ALREAD KNEW THAT!! By "we" I mean it is the girls know it!~! But now the boys can too. Although I am a guy. Also Chad and Ling have such good chemistry which is great but also very sexual. Also this movie was so good because they are both in it at the same time. Not apart like before!!! You will loove this movie especially, if you love Paris--which I do of course. And not that Paris Hilton! Yuch! The city.
The love story between Bai Ling and Chad Allen is powerful and I thought very tender. The two have very potent on-screen chemistry that heightens their plight as star-crossed lovers on the run. The movie has some great locations in Las Vegas and then out in the desert, and some fun cameos (remember Karen Black? Oh, and RON JEREMY! :) BTW. Chad Allen is HOTTT. he's the reason I decided to watch this film, but I wasn't expecting to enjoy the romance of the two main characters nearly so much, and now I want to go and watch all of Bai Ling's other films!
Paris is a crime cop genre film that has some great elements of romance.The intimacy between Jason and Linda is well delivered by Bai Ling and Chad Allen. I felt an actual spark of love between the two characters. Bai Ling is gorgeous and the photography looks excellent. This is a film that looks great having been shot on DV. There are gorgeous shots of the California/Nevada desert. The seedy parts of LA and Las Vegas could be a bit seedier.James Russo does a great job of playing the creepy bad cop.Karen Black adds an interesting texture to the already colorful film.Overall I say Paris is worth watching and would recommend it to those intersted in watching a decent film shot on DV. The love story is the highlight and Bai Ling just looks great.
Paris is an impressive combination of a unique, socially-minded, film-noir plot, beautiful visual motifs, and further exploration of what DV filmmaking can look like.Bai Ling is captivating in every scene she's in, and Chad Allen is perfectly suited for the role of the young, struggling cop. We really come to care about both of their conflicted characters.Throughout the film the repetitive use of mirrors is just one of several visual elements that serve to make Paris artistically moving, and this, in combination with a twisiting plot that takes us between the seedier parts of Los Angeles and Los Vegas, makes this a film you can't stop once you've started.