Mystery in Paris: Netflix Movie Review

It’s been a while since Netflix implemented an industrial reproduction policy. The platform that began as a new drama promise the new HBO gave up as other platforms emerged to move the market. Quality came second and keeping subscribers became the most important thing. That’s why the streaming giant is full of productions talking to each other, broken down into what “works best.”

To support Oscarwinning movies directed by big names, Netflix bolsters its financial pillars with a vast array of movies aimed at kids, teens, and families. The most common are romantic comedies and comedies. None of these films aims for anything other than the classic superficial hypnosis, which was also nicknamed “Sessão da Tarde” in this country. Light, unpretentious and comfortable films.

The first feature film in this “franchise,” starring Jennifer Aniston and Adam Sandler, showed that his goal was to entertain for the first few minutes. Nick and Audrey’s story was fairly standard for the genre: a failed couple in life, having trouble balancing frustrations, decided to take a trip for a second honeymoon to salvage the relationship. In the middle of this journey, the two witness a murder and begin to investigate who the culprit might be.

It was a mix of romantic comedy with influences from the work of Agatha Christie, riding the wave of Between Knives and Secrets without neglecting the afternoon classic of the 80’s and 90’s: an adventurer with a clumsy partner searches for clues and solves mysteries , while a monotonous villain will do anything to kill her. In small variations in action films, the segment was common to macho stars like Bruce Willis, Chuck Norris, Steven Seagal, Jean Claude Van Damme… and, more contemporary, The Rock.

However, Mystery in the Mediterranean set very modest goals and delivered much less than it could have achieved. It is true that this perception is enhanced by the improvement of the second trait. Still, there’s no denying that the couple’s first adventure, which relied heavily on the presence of Jennifer and Adam, was a little lazy. Probably everyone was aware of this and decided to return to offer the viewer a true show of action and twists. And they did.

not so mysterious

This time the couple’s trip to Paris falls into their laps. After the events of the first feature, Nick and Audrey are bitter about the failure of the investigative agency they founded. When everything seems to be going downhill, his friend Maharajah (Adeel Akhtar) contacts him and tells him that he is getting married; and the couple travel to an Indian millionaires’ wedding with all their belongings. Paris comes into play when Maharajah is kidnapped in the middle of the party and those involved in the French city are demanding a ransom payment. Everyone will stop there.

As charismatic and compelling as Aniston and Sandler are, director Jeremy Garelick had to put in a little more effort and bring dynamism and action to the script (which is clearly not interested in evolution). This is indeed Mystery in Paris’ biggest win: there’s a lot more action, chases and twists in these sequences. Leaving minimalism behind, the film throws itself in the spirit of spectacle with fun and inspired sequences such as the chase in a van through the city streets and the apotheotic finale at the top of the Eiffel Tower. In Indian marriage, we even have a little attention to diversity.

The story remains nonsense. The “mystery” is not mysterious at all and can be solved in seconds. The flexibility of the probability is such that there is no real danger, none of the risks are taken seriously and the last 5 minutes irritate your childishness so much. The point is that Mystery in Paris was only created to amuse, distract and make us forget our problems with an hour and a half of simple and accessible entertainment. In this respect, the film deserves nothing but praise. He makes fun.

In the end, it doesn’t matter who killed or kidnapped whom… The fun part is watching Aniston and Sandler play an awkward couple in the cinema. If they go around the world solving prank crimes, maybe we’ll follow them.