Paris Blues

Walking around Paris reminds me a bit of Breathless. Nice to see a young pairing of Paul Newman and Sidney Poitier. The romance was kind of dull, probably because, per Poitier, there was supposed to be an interracial romance but the producers were too scared. The race talk was okay but unfortunately things definitely weren't getting better in America. Fav scene: Louis Armstrong.

The first half of this movie is a lot of fun but then it goes downhill a bit with it's melodrama and preaching. I liked the score and I loved seeing the jam session with Louis Armstrong towards the end of the film. Poitier's story wrap up annoyed me a bit and I didn't think he got enough screen time.

The jazz soundtrack is great, and the idea of using the Parisian backdrop as a way to comment on mid-20th century racial tension (as well as a sexually assertive female lead) is worthy of praise. However, it's an idea that plays second fiddle to the focus of the picture -- the romance -- which falls flat, and is carried in almost its entirety by the great performances from a stellar cast. This is made more blatant when one knows that the black characters were originally the film's sole focus.

Real cool and smooth in the setup, and then there's nothing left to say. Louis Armstrong injects some lifeblood for a moment, after which it's back to everybody being unreasonably moody.

High marks for excellent jazz music and the engaging but not terribly interesting stories. Two jazz musicians in Paris in the 1960's. When a couple of attractive girls show up for a 2 week vacation, they get romantically entangled, and their personal lives begin to compete with their professional ones. The highlights of the show are the jazz performances and appearances by Louis Armstrong and entourage. Jazz lovers will certainly find that entertaining. Also excellent locations and settings.

This movie is slow starting but it gets better as it goes on. There is great music throughout the entire film. It is great to see Paul Newman and Sidney Poitier work together.

Movies never seem to get the naturally seductive world of jazz music right. Could there be anything more romantic than expatriates plying their musical wares in dimly lit basement clubs in Paris in the early sixties? Especially when two of those musicians are played by Newman and Poitier at the height of their charisma and dazzling handsomeness. There's no life to the film, though. It's a dull slog through a predictable story, leaning too much on the built-in charms of French city life.

A terrible, terrible script--I simply can't understand why Poitier and Newman agreed to be in this movie. Duke Ellington's score is good, but sometimes overbearing and unbecoming. Seems like Poitier got all of the two lines in this movie that were actually worth saying. Can't say the ending was that bad, although a bit melodramatic.

I feel like this aims and hits a little higher than the generic romance musical that it might have been. The conflicts are somewhat corny, but there's a lot of interesting ambience surrounding them. I didn't entirely buy Newman as a jazz musician, and I wish Reggiani's role was bigger, but Poitier and Carroll are good and Louis Armstrong's appearance, however modest, is just electrifying.

Em honra do centenário de Barbara Laage. A trilha sonora de Duke Ellington de fato é sensacional, mas o filme de modo geral é bem banal, apesar do charme dos atores. DVD Versátil.

Viewed April 24, 2020.

Great soundtrack and Newman is great. You could say Paris is it's on character in a way.

Great sounds. Great performances. The race stuff is like low level Baldwin musing stuff. I dunno. Worth a watch