Paris Memories

Directed by Alice Winocour, Paris Memories follows Virginie Efira’s Mia as she attempts to put her life back together after surviving a deadly terrorist attack inside a crowded restaurant. Filmmaker Winocour, working from her own screenplay, kicks Paris Memories off with a harrowing, almost unbearably tense opening stretch detailing the buildup to said attack, and it’s clear, certainly, that the instantly engrossing atmosphere is heightened by Efira’s stirring and sympathetic efforts as the central character – with the picture, beyond that point, progressing into a deliberate midsection that is, comparatively, not quite as taut or compelling (ie it’s fairly hit and miss, ultimately). The ongoing emphasis on Mia’s investigation into what happened admittedly does wreak a little havoc on the picture’s forward momentum, as it becomes a little difficult to work up continuous interest in the protgonist’s low-key exploits and her tentative friendship/relationship with a fellow survivor – although, on the other hand, Winocour has infused the proceedings with a number of unexpectedly gripping and flat-out emotional interludes that essentially (and effectively) compensate. (There is, for example, a sequence involving a character’s discovery of a painting that packs one heck of an emotional punch.) By the time the satisfying final stretch rolls around, Paris Memories has cemented its place as an erratic yet rewarding drama that’s perhaps just a little too long.

*** out of ****