CHINESE PUZZLE marks the third in a trilogy of films that began with THE SPANISH APARTMENT, segued into RUSSIAN DOLLS and has made a triumphant hatrick with this beautifully mature, madcap and audacious film.
These three films, that writer/ director Cedric Klapisch now calls “The Trilogy of Xavier’s Travels” tell the story of how the lives of the people from a generation have been marked by the culture of travel– former students have become true “citizens of the world”.
These three films describe a generation of people who grew up in parallel with the construction of Europe and the notion of globalization.
In CHINESE PUZZLE, Xavier’s marriage to Wendy is over and she takes the kids to New York to live with her new man. Xavier decides to relocate as well to stay close to his kids and rekindles his relationship with Isabelle who lives with her lesbian lover and the child Xavier sired through artificial insemination.
Isabelle’s lover, Ju, is instrumental in getting Xavier digs in an old apartment in Chinatown, an ancient legacy from her student days. Xavier’s old flame, Martine, jets in from Paris on a business trip, and they soon find themselves in the sack.
Meanwhile, Xavier, a burgeoning bestselling author in France, makes ends meet in the Big Apple by working as a bike courier.
Applying for custodial rights concerning his children and potential residency in America, he receives legal advice to seek a spouse.
A marriage of convenience is arranged as a mark of honour from a Chinese cabbie Xavier saved from a fit of road rage.
And so the scene is set for a visit from the philosopher, Hegel, who demonstrates his tapestry theory of life – to the outside world all is smooth and decorous. Turn it over and the threads are a Medusa mess- such is life. Schopenhauer turns up too to share philosophical insights into the tangled web of interconnecting and interdependent lives. It’s as if shooting in New York, a little bit of Woody Allen has rubbed off on Cedric.
Reprising their roles from the previous pictures, Romain Duris as Xavier, Audrey Tautou as Martine, Cecile de France as Isabelle and Kelly Reilly as Wendy makes this a homecoming event that is both comforting and thrillingly surprising.
They are joined by a marvellous and diverse supporting cast that mirrors the melting pot of New York and add to the tapestry of these intertwined lives. Even in scenes of adversity, there’s an open hearted humour and embracing humanity at work here, sometimes breaking out into absolute hilarity.
Like Richard Linklater’s Before Sunrise/Sunset/Midnight trilogy, CHINESE PUZZLE has the added fascination of following the characters, and by proxy, to a certain extent, the actors who portray them, over a number of years, a sort of 7UP effect that gives an extra, nourishing dimension.
Entertaining, engaging, invigorating, you don’t have to have seen the preceding pictures to enjoy CHINESE PUZZLE, but chances are you’ll want to track them down after seeing to triple your pleasure, triple your fun.