Julie Delpy is like an exquisite tour guide. A radiant vision in white and a warm companion on a train to Vienna. It's hard not to imagine falling in love with her instantly while shopping for records, spending strolls through cemeteries and gardens lost in her pondering splendor, tingling with anticipation for impending reunions, and melting to her mesmerizing "Waltz for a Night." For all that extensive walking and talking with this unique Parisian beauty, somehow she never gets lost in translation. Julie's gifts are fluent to acting, writing, directing, music and European tourism. She teaches the sights, the sounds, and surely by the end, "Baby, you are gonna miss that plane." But we wouldn't have it any other way.
Her turn as Celine in Richard Linklater's ode to passions and idealized encounters is a trip worth taking not once, not twice, but thrice. So enthralled by her ability to be knowledgeable, funny, noble and neurotic, Linklater gave Julie the showcase she deserves, and by Before Sunset, he couldn't resist letting Julie put words into Celine's mouth; a character she lives and breathes so flawlessly even in the smoke of small Paris cafés. Writing her part, acting her part, singing her part... as we take this nine year reunion tour with Jesse and Celine, it's a veritable sightseeing of Julie's own passions. She better make it a rule from now on: never fall in love with your tour guide.
But so impressive it was that we decided to stay for another 2 Days in Paris. And while this trip went less smoothly than last, Julie's tour was just as thoughtful, and this time she was in complete control. Taking the directorial reigns, writing once again, composing an offbeat score - she continues to venture out on her own and see things in a new way. So much so she's in the midst of a trip back to 17th-century Hungary. There's no doubt her travelogue will be vivid and rich with detail, beautifully constructed and told with her own unique voice. There's something worth seeing on all sides of the camera - and they're all named Julie Delpy.
