User Reviews

This is a creative film with an interesting premise that unfortunately doesn't exactly make sense in how the whole film is resolved in the end. Jean Reno and Juliette Binoche are travelers who are stuck at the airport during both a strike and bad weather. As the film unfolds, the lives of these two strangers intertwines and you slowly begin to see what a mess they have made of their lives. The contrived aspect of this is that the viewer KNOWS exactly where all this is going and it isn't exactly surprising that these two very different people were destined to fall in love--something that if you think about it made no sense at all since they were so different. After all, she is the child of two ardent Communists and he is a self-involved rich Capitalist! So, no matter how good the dialog and acting are, the film is stuck in the average range. It still is worth seeing but is ultimately too predictable to be a better film.

FYI--Like many contemporary French films, this one has some very brief nudity, language and adult themes, so think twice before letting your younger kids see this one. It's probably fine for older teens.

Movies are personal experiences. Jet Lag touched my emotions. If you're patient, you might be rewarded too. I say patient because it's a foreign film; unless you're fluent in the language, reading subtitles detracts from the performance. Rewarding because the acting is superb. Fortunately, the English language dubbing for the film was done by the lead actors themselves. So if you choose, you can watch Jean Reno and Juliette Binoche act out their parts, free from translation.

The story itself is slight and critics found the Paris airport setting contrived. But the film's director, Daniele Thompson, sees loneliness in the crowds there. In an interview, she says, Life comes to a standstill in airports. People can become vulnerable in the forced cessation of familiar routines. The situation allows her to explore the romantic possibilities between total strangers. Enter Rose and Felix, a beautician and a chef become businessman. In the style common to romantic comedy, coincidences bring and keep them together. Here, the chance meetings serve a twofold purpose: to depict their differences and also allow each to catch inadvertently personal glimpses of the other's life. Like the most modern of men, Felix conducts his affairs over a cell phone. En route to a funeral in Munich, he's preoccupied with launching a new line of frozen food products. Rose is fragile, seeking a new life in Mexico and leave behind a man, who required her to abort their child. The story arc builds to a room service dinner in the Airport Hilton.

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It's prickly. Simple disagreements over the food--mostly uneaten--become confrontations of character. When Felix inquiries about her sex life, Rose divines the meaning of his invitation to dine together. She voices the potential of the occasion. "Let's take advantage of this situation," she says. "We'll never meet again. So go ahead and ask me all the questions you're burning to ask." Felix does so then invites Rose to do the same. It gets personal. She takes her leave. By contrast, Felix has been taken utterly by surprise. Rose's fragility is matched by a simple strength of character. He rushes after, demanding to know her plans. "I'm going home," she says. Felix is infuriated, thinking she's retreating in confusion. He stops her. Gaining access to the hotel kitchen, he cooks fresh food for them both, while telling his life story. In the middle, he stops and asks, "Are you staying or going? What's the current trend?"

The best stories have self-revelation about them. Here, total strangers make the most of an opportunity to engage in some soul searching, which under other circumstances they might well avoid. When their flights are finally called, they part company as people transformed by a shared experience. Each goes on to make a meaningful change in life. The performances make it all believable and I found it great fun to see people acting with an enlightened sense of themselves. It seems such a rare thing; neurosis is the order of the day. So I watched closely: engaged by the adult themes and fascinated by accomplished actors expressing subtle emotions in a romantic comedy.

One of my favorites scenes occurs at the end in the Acapulco airport. Rose is met with a note, containing a cell phone PIN number. In one wordless moment, her face passes from puzzlement to epiphany as she realizes the only logical explanation. Others who've commented on this film note how lovingly a camera can dwell on Ms. Binoche. Beyond her beauty, there's a distinct emotional intelligence. In an interview, she notes Jet Lag was her first romantic comedy. "I took the opportunity as a gift, and every time I see Daniele, I thank her."

Speaking personally, I've never seen her or Jean Reno so at ease with their clear abilities. And the bit players fulfill their roles too. Witness Felix' father, as initial curiosity in his face turns to longing when he recognizes his son standing in the driveway. The abundance of good acting in this films brings me back to the beginning. The performances must be seen to be believed. Subtitles necessarily distract. Put it this way, if the players can't act, the observer misses nothing; but if they can, missing the performance becomes a personal loss.

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Just as movies are personal, so is music. If you're susceptible to the moods music makes, you'll also be rewarded by Jet Lag's score. Ms. Thompson's choices combine American material from W. C. Handy to John Barry and the original work of a fine French composer named Eric Serra. The music resonates, especially towards the end. Two of the pieces employ the harmonica to underscore the poignancy of separation and feelings unspoken between the man and woman. Finally there's the memorable music over the closing credits. The piece is titled Vas Adelante, by M. Serra, with lyrics written and sung by Clementine Celarie. I don't pretend to understand the words, but the song sure makes a joyous sound. If you end up as captivated by it as I, a CD of the film score (not the soundtrack) was distributed in England & France. It contains M. Serra's compositions including the end title theme.