Paris, je t'aime is a love letter to the City of Light. There are plenty of novels on the big screen, but this film is a rare collection of short stories created by 18 leading directors. Paris, je t'aime consists of 18 stories set in that city -- a mix of drama, humour and fantasy, and all of them on the subject of love. Each tale is named for one of the city's 20 districts (arrondissements); two of the stories didn't make it.

The tiny tales in Paris, je t'aime are about love lost, love found, love renewed, love exchanged and love unrequited. Some are great, some are confusing, but they're all a delight to look at, being set in Paris as they are.

Some of the highlights are Gurinder Chadha's film, Quais de Seine, which concerns a Muslim girl and touches on ethnic tensions in the city; likewise, Loin du 16e, directed by Walter Salles and Daniela Thomas, is a heartbreaking little film about rich and poor and a mother's love.

Joel and Ethan Coen (Tuileries) offer a very funny bit set in the subway station, with Steve Buscemi as a tourist trying to understand love in Paris and getting smacked around for his efforts.

Isabel Coixet's short story, Bastille, is a study in how familiarity doesn't have to breed contempt. Maggie Gyllenhaal plays an American actress who fancies her drug dealer in Olivier Assayas' Quartier des Enfants Rouges. Then there's Gus Van Sant's take on love and language barriers in Le Marais.

All the mini-movies in Paris, je t'aime have a certain energy, a spirit that suggests the filmmakers may have felt competitive with one another. There's a playful air about several of the films. This one is different and it's charming, two strong selling points in the current crop of movies.

Paris, je t'aime is in French with English subtitles.

(This film is rated 14-A)
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