And how when they had been dating for a year she started telling him...
...what he could do to please her more, and it freaked him out.
- Why? - Totally.
He thought it meant he was a bad lover...
Maybe she shouldn't have waited so long.
- After a year... - But men are so easily offended.
- What, more than women? - Definitely on that subject.
- You think so? - Yeah, yeah.
Well, maybe it's because, you know...
...men are easier to... To please. - To please?
- Well, I don't know. - Yeah, they are. They're definitely.
Anyway, this friend, she was telling me...
...next time she dates a man, she's gonna make a little questionnaire...
...about what they like and dislike... - What, written down, or out loud?
Yeah, mostly written down.
But it wouldn't be just yes or no. It would be a bit more complex than that.
Like, for example, if the question is: "Are you into S & M?"
The answer could be: "No, but a good spanking once in a while doesn't hurt."
Right, or like: "Do you like talking dirty in bed?"
- That kind of thing? - Yeah, but not just like any dirty talk.
Just "What specific word would you like to hear?"
- What, me? - Well, yeah.
For example what specific word would you like to hear?
I don't know.
What do you feel about the word "pussy"?
I love it.
Good.
It's amazing what perverts we've become in the past nine years.
At least now we don't have to pretend each new sexual experience...
...is, like, a life-altering event.
I know. By now, you've stuck it in so many places it's about to fall off.
And I can't realistically expect you've become anything but a total ho.
- Yeah, thank you. - No, I'm s...
- That's true. What can you do? - What can you do?
So, what kind of songs do you write? I didn't know you did that.
- What kind? - Yeah, sure.
- I don't know, just songs. - Like?
Like, some are about, you know, people.
Relationships. One's about my cat.
- Sing one. - No, I can't. I don't have a guitar.
- Come on. A cappella. - No, no, no.
I'm not singing a song without a guitar. You're nuts.
Why not?
- No, okay. Not now. No. - One.
If not now, when? You want to meet here in six months with a guitar?
I'll fly all the way over here.
- You may or may not make the Métro. - Okay, that's funny.
- We've got to get back. - We'll be all right.
- You're gonna miss your flight. - All right.
We can walk down La Seine. It's nice.
Okay.
- So you're flying back to New York? - Yeah, yeah.
So I read in that article that you're married with a kid. That's great.
Yeah, he's... He's 4.
- What's his name? - Henry. Little Hank.
- He's so much fun. - Oh, wow, I'm sure.
- Your wife, what does she do? - She teaches elementary school.
- Do you have kids? - Yes, two... Shit!
- What? - I left them in the car!
With the windows up, six months ago! Think they're okay?
No, I'm kidding. No, but I want to have kids someday.
- I'm just not ready yet. - No?
- I'm in a good relationship, though. - Oh yeah? That's good.
- What's he do? - He's a photojournalist.
He does war coverage.
He's away a lot, which is good because I'm so busy.
But isn't that dangerous? Aren't a lot of those guys getting killed these days?
He promises me he doesn't take risks, but I often worry.
He goes in this trance when he photographs something.
- What do you mean? - Well, once we were in New Delhi...
...and we passed a bum on the...
- A bomb? - A bum. A homeless.
All right, right.
He looked like he needed help, but his first reaction was to photograph him.
He went really close to his face, fixing his collar...
...totally detached from the person.
But don't you have to be like that to be good at that job?
Yeah, I mean, I'm not...
I'm not judging him. What he does is essential and incredible.
All I'm saying is that I could never do it.
Let's get on that boat. Come on.
- No! - Come on, it'll be fun.
- You don't have time! - They're about to take off.
I've got 15 more minutes. Do you have a cell phone?
- Yeah. - All right, I've got that driver's number.
I can call him to pick us up at the next stop.
I've never been on those boats. It's for tourists, it's embarrassing.
Okay. All right.
No, I'll get it, I'll get it.
All right. All right, all right.
Thank you.
- So are you in love with that guy? - What guy?
- The war photographer. - Yes, of course.
So do you have that cell phone?
Oh, yeah.
- Okay, let's see... - Okay.
What do I tell him?
Tell him to pick you up at Quai Henri Quatre.
Oh, shit. Quai...?
Henri Quatre. Quai Henri Quatre.
Henri Quatre.
What's wrong with you? No, do you want me to...? Henri Quatre.
- Henry Four? - Yes!
- Come on, why didn't you say so? - I'm sorry. Okay.
Yeah, is this Philippe?
Yeah. Philippe, this is Jesse Wallace.
Yeah.
Well, listen, I'm on one of those boats, right?
And we're gonna arrive at Henry Four.
At Port Henry Four. You know what that is?
All right, great. And you have my bags, right?
Yeah, so we'll be there in... I don't know, it's the next stop.
Okay. Au revoir.
- It's okay? - Yeah, yeah.
Oh, wow.
- Notre Dame, man. Check that out. - Oh, wow.
I heard this story once about when the Germans were occupying Paris...
...and they had to retreat back.
They wired Notre Dame to blow...
...but they had to leave one guy in charge of hitting the switch.
And the guy, the soldier, he couldn't do it.
He just sat there, knocked out by how beautiful the place was.
Then, when the Allied troops came in...
...they found all the explosives lying there and the switch unturned...
...and they found the same thing at the Sacré-Coeur, Eiffel Tower...
...couple other places, I think.
Is that true?
I don't know. I always liked the story, though.
Yeah, that's a great story.
But you have to think that Notre Dame will be gone one day.
There used to be another church at the Seine, right there.
- What, right in the same spot? - Yeah.
You know, this is great. I've never done this.
- Yeah. - I forget about how beautiful Paris is.
It's not so bad, being a tourist.
- Thanks for getting me on the boat. - You're welcome.
I think that book that I wrote was like building something...
...so that I wouldn't forget the details of the time that we spent together.
You know, like, just as a reminder, that once, we really did meet.
You know, that this was real, this happened.
I'm happy you're saying that, because...
I mean, I always feel like a freak because I'm never able to move on like this:
People just have an affair, or even entire relationships...
...they break up and they forget.
They move on like they would have changed brand of cereals.
I feel I was never able to forget anyone I've been with...
...because each person had their own specific qualities.
You can never replace anyone. What is lost is lost.
Each relationship, when it ends, really damages me. I never fully recover.
That's why I'm very careful with getting involved...
...because it hurts too much.
Even getting laid, I actually don't do that...
...because I will miss of the person the most mundane things.
Like I'm obsessed with little things.
Maybe I'm crazy, but when I was a little girl...
...my mom told me that I was always late to school.
One day she followed me to see why.
I was looking at chestnuts falling from the trees, rolling on the sidewalk...
...or ants crossing the road, the way a leaf casts a shadow on a tree trunk.
Little things.
I think it's the same with people.
I see in them little details, so specific to each of them...
...that move me and that I miss and will always miss.
You can never replace anyone...
...because everyone is made of such beautiful, specific details.
Like, I remember the way your beard has a bit of red in it...
...and how the sun was making it glow...
...that morning right before you left.
I remembered that, and I missed it.
Really crazy, right?
Now I know for sure. You wanna know why I wrote that stupid book?
- Why? - So you'd come to a reading in Paris...
...and I could walk up to you and ask, "Where the fuck were you?"
No... You think I'd be here today?
I'm serious. I think I wrote it, in a way, to try to find you.
Okay, that's... I know that's not true...
...but that's sweet of you. - I think it is true.
What were the chances of us ever meeting again?
After that December, I'd say almost zero.
But we're not real anyway, right?
We're just characters in that old lady's dream.
She's on her deathbed, fantasizing about her youth.
So of course we had to meet again.
Oh, God. Why weren't you there in Vienna?
- I told you why. - I know why, I just...
I wish you would have been.
Our lives might have been so much different.
You think so?
I actually do.
Maybe not. Maybe we would have hated each other eventually.
What, like we hate each other now?
You know, maybe we're... We're only good at brief encounters...
...walking around in European cities, in warm climate.
Oh, God. Why didn't we exchange phone numbers and stuff?
Why didn't we do that?
Because we were young and stupid.
Do you think we still are?
I guess when you're young you just believe...
...there'll be many people you'll connect with.
Later in life you realize it only happens a few times.
And you can screw it up, you know. Misconnect.
The past is the past. It was meant to be that way.
You really believe that? That everything's fated?
Well, you know, the world might be less free than we think.
Yeah?
When given these exact circumstances, that's what will happen every time.
Two part hydrogen, one part oxygen, you'll get water every time.
No, I mean, what if your grandmother had lived a week longer, you know?
Or passed away a week earlier? Days, even?
Things might have been different.
- You can't think like that, it's... - You shouldn't on most things, but...
It's just, on this one, it seemed like something was off, you know.
In the months leading up to my wedding, I was thinking about you all the time.
Even on my way there, I'm in the car, a buddy of mine is driving me downtown...
...and I'm staring out the window and I think I see you...
...not far from the church, right...
...folding up an umbrella and walking into a deli...
...on the corner of 13th and Broadway.
And I thought I was going crazy. But now I think it probably was you.
I lived on 11 th and Broadway.
You see?
So, what is it like to be married? You haven't talked much about that.
I haven't? How weird.
I don't know. We met, you know, when I was in college.
And we broke up and got back together for a period of years, and then...
What? We were sort of back together and she was pregnant...
...so marriage.
What is she like?
She's a great teacher, a good mom.
She's smart, pretty, you know.
I remember thinking at the time...
...that so many of the men that I admired most...
...that their lives were dedicated to something greater than themselves.
So you got married because men you admired were married?
No, no. It's more like I had this... This idea of my best self, you know?
And I wanted to pursue that...
...even if it might have been overriding my honest self.
You know what I'm saying?
In the moment, I remember thinking it didn't much matter, the who of it all.
I mean, that nobody is gonna be everything to you...
...and that it's just the action of committing yourself...
...you know, meeting your responsibilities, that matters.
I mean, what is love, right, if it's not respect, trust, admiration?
And l... I felt all those things.
Cut to the present, and I feel like I'm running a nursery...
...with somebody I used to date, you know.
I mean, I'm like a monk, you know.
I mean, I've had sex less than 10 times in the last four years.
- What, what? You laughing at me? - No.
- It sounds pathetic? - What monastery do monks have sex...?
Okay, you're right, I'm doing better than most monks.
But I do, I feel like if somebody were to touch me...
...I would dissolve into molecules.
Well, we're here. We've gotta go. Come on.
Shit.
- I'm sorry to hear that, you know. - What?
You're not that happy with your marriage.
- This friend of mine, she's a shrink... - How's she doing?
She's a mess, but...
No, she said she's been dealing with couples that are breaking up...
...for the same reason. - What reason is that?
They all expected, after a few years of living together...
...for the passion, that desire, to be the same.
- Yeah, right. - It's impossible.
And thank God...
...we'd end up with aneurysms in that constant state of excitement, right?
We'd do nothing at all with our lives.
Would you have finished your book if you were fucking every five minutes?
I might have welcomed the challenge, I mean...
It's natural for your wife after the birth of your son...
...to give all her love to the little one. - Of course.
If she was obsessed with sex, riding you like a wildcat...
That wouldn't make any sense, right?
Everything you're saying makes sense. It's not about sex.
No, I know. It's obvious.
I...
You know, couples are so confused lately.
I think it must be that...
...men need to feel essential and they don't anymore.
It's been imprinted in their head for so many years...
...that they had to be the provider.
Like, I'm a strong, independent woman in my professional life.
I don't need a man to feed me...
...but I still need a man to love me and that I could love.
- So your driver's here. - Yeah.
Well, I guess this is goodbye.
- You better give me your... - No, no.
Why don't we just give you a ride home?
- Well, I can take the Métro. I'm fine. - No, l...
My flight's not until 10. I'll be arriving two hours early.
This way we can keep talking.
- Monsieur, can...? - It's not on the way.
You told him where you are and all that?
Yeah.
- He knows where he's going? - Yes.
Glad somebody does.
- But this is better than the Métro, right? - Definitely.
I was thinking, for me it's better I don't romanticize things as much anymore.
I was suffering so much all the time.
I still have lots of dreams, but they're not in regard to my love life.
It doesn't make me sad, it's just the way it is.
Is that why you're in a relationship with somebody who's never around?
Yes, obviously I can't deal with the day-to-day life of a relationship.
Yeah, we have this exciting time together...
...and he leaves and I miss him, but at least I'm not dying inside.
When someone's always around me, I'm suffocating.
No, wait, you just said that you need to love and be loved.
Yeah, but when I do, it quickly makes me nauseous.
It's a disaster.
I mean, I'm really happy only when I'm on my own.
Even being alone, it's better than sitting next to a lover and feeling lonely.
It's not so easy for me to be a romantic.
You start off that way, and after you've been screwed over a few times...
...you forget about your delusional ideas and you take what comes into your life.
That's not even true. I haven't been screwed over...
...l've just had too many blah relationships.
They weren't mean, they cared for me...
...but there were no real connection or excitement.
At least, not from my side.
God, I'm sorry, is it really that bad?
It's not, right?
You know, it's not even that. I was...
I was fine until I read your fucking book.
It stirred shit up, you know?
It reminded me how genuinely romantic I was...
...how I had so much hope in things...
...and now it's like I don't believe in anything that relates to love.
I don't feel things for people anymore.
In a way, I put all my romanticism into that one night...
...and I was never able to feel all this again.
Like, somehow this night took things away from me...
...and I expressed them to you, and you took them with you.
It made me feel cold, like love wasn't for me.
I don't believe that. I don't believe that.
You know what? Reality and love are almost contradictory for me.
It's funny, every single of my exes, they're now married.
Men go out with me, we break up, and then they get married.
And later they call me to thank me for teaching them what love is...
...and that I taught them to care and respect women.
- I think I'm one of those. - I want to kill them!
Why didn't they ask me? I would have said no, but they could have asked!
I know it's my fault because I never felt it was the right man.
Never. But what does it mean, the right man, the love of your life?
The concept is absurd. We can only be complete with another person.
- It's evil, right? - Can I talk?
I guess I've been heartbroken too many times and then I recovered.
So now, you know, from the starts, I make no effort.
- I know it's not gonna work out. - You can't do that.
You can't live trying to avoid pain...
...at the expense... - Those are words.
I've gotta get away from you.
- Stop the car, I wanna get out. - No, don't...
- Keep talking. - It's being around you.
Don't touch me, you know. I want to get on a cab.
No, don't. No, no, keep going.
Listen, I'm just so happy... Thank you, just keep going.
All right.
Look, I'm just so happy, all right, to be with you.
I am. I'm so glad you didn't forget about me, okay?
No, I didn't. And it pisses me off, okay?
You come here to Paris, all romantic, and married.
Okay? Screw you.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not trying to get you.
I mean, all I need is a married man.
There's been so much water under the bridge, it's not even about you.
It's about that moment in time that's forever gone.
You say that, but you didn't even remember having sex, so...
Of course I remembered.
- You did? - Yes.
- Women pretend things like that. - They do?
What was I supposed to say? That I remember the wine in the park...
...and us looking up at the stars fading away as the sun came up?
We had sex twice, you idiot!
All right, you know what, I'm just happy to see you.
Even if you've become an angry, manic-depressive activist...
...I still like you, I still enjoy being around you.
And I feel the same. I'm sorry. I don't know what happened, I just...
- I had to let it all out. - Don't worry about it.
I'm so miserable in my love life, in my relationship.
I always act as... Like, you know, I'm detached.
But I'm dying inside. I'm dying because I'm so numb.
I don't feel pain or excitement, I'm not even bitter, I'm just...
You think you're the one dying inside?
My life is 24/7 bad.
- I'm sorry. - No, no.
I mean, the only happiness I get is when I'm out with my son.
I've been to marriage counseling...
...l've done things I never thought I would have to do.
I've lit candles, bought self-help books, lingerie.
- Did the candles help? - Hell, no.
I don't love her the way she needs to be loved...
...and I don't even see a future for us, but then I look at my little boy...
...sitting across from me, and I think I'd suffer any torture...
...to be with him for all the minutes of his life.
I don't want to miss out on one.
But then, there's no joy or laughter in my home, you know?
- I don't want him growing up in that. - No laughter? That's terrible.
My parents have been together 35 years...
...and even when they fight they end up laughing.
I don't want to be one of those people who are getting divorced at 52...
...and falling down into tears, admitting they never really loved their spouse...
...and they feel their life has been sucked up into a vacuum cleaner.
You know, I want a great life. I want her to have a great life...
...she deserves that.
But we're just living in the pretense of a marriage, responsibility...
...you know, all these ideas of how people are supposed to live.
But then l... I have these dreams...
What dreams?
I have these dreams, you know, that...
...l'm standing on a platform...
...and you keep going by on a train...
...and you go by, and you go by, and you go by, you go by.
And I wake up with the fucking sweats.
And then I have this other dream...
...where you're pregnant in bed beside me naked...
...and I want so badly to touch you, but you tell me not to and you look away.
And l... And I touch you anyway...
...right on your ankle, and your skin is so soft that I wake up in sobs, all right?
My wife is there looking at me, and I feel I'm a million miles from her.
And I know that there's something wrong, that l...
God, that I can't keep living like this...
...that there's gotta be more to love than commitment.
But then I think that I might have given up...
...on the whole idea of romantic love.
That I might have put it to bed that...
That day when you weren't there.
You know, I think I might have done that.
Why are you telling me all this?
I'm sorry. I don't know. I'm... I should...
I shouldn't have.
You know, it's so weird.
People think they are the only one going through tough times.
I mean, when I read the article, I thought your life was perfect.
A wife, a kid, published author.
But your personal life is more of a mess than mine.
I'm sorry.
Well, I'm glad it's good for something.
- This is where you live? - Yeah.
So you're just relieved that I'm in even more deep shit than you are?
Yes, you've made me feel better.
Oh, good, I'm glad.
No, I really wish you the best.
It's not because I'm incapable of having a good relationship or a family...
...that I wish everyone to be doomed like me.
I'm sure you'd make... Be a great mom someday.
- Really? You think so? - Yeah...
...a few antidepressants, you know, you'll do great.
- Okay, say stop. - Stop.
- Okay. - You ready? Okay.
- So I want to try something. - What?
I want to see if you stay together or if you dissolve into molecules.
How am I doing?
Still here.
Good. I like being here.
Is this your apartment?
No, I live down there.
- Down there? - Yeah.
Monsieur, I'm gonna walk her to her door.
This is incredible.
- This is where you live? - Yeah.
- How long have you been here? - Four years.
- So tell me... - What?
Is it all true about your dreams...
...or did you say that to hopefully get in my pants?
I said that to get in your pants.
- I use that all the time. - Oh, okay. Does it work?
You know. Sometimes.
Here's my kitty. Oh, so cute. Look at him.
You know what I love about this cat?
Every morning I bring him to the courtyard...
...and every single morning he looks at everything like it was the first time.
Every corner, every tree, every plant.
Smells everything with his little cute nose.
Oh, I love my kitty. I love my kitty.
- What's his name? - Che.
Che?
- What? - Commie.
No, "che" in Argentina means "hey."
- Okay. - Yes.
Oh, baby. Oh, yes, yes, yes.
We're having a little party. It's so much fun.
- So... - So.
You know what? I was thinking, would you play me one of your songs?
- You're gonna miss your flight. - I won't.
I'm gonna be in the airport for over an hour, reading...
...wishing you'd played me one of your songs.
One song? Okay, but quickly.
Okay.
God, I love these old staircases.
- Hold this. - What, for me?
Hey there, buddy.
Che.
- Would you like some tea? - Yeah, sure.
Wow.
- Is chamomile okay? - Yeah. Great.
- Merci. - Messy?
- You think my apartment is messy? - No, no. Merci.
- Merci beaucoup. - Ah, merci.
I meant to tell you, your French has improved a lot.
- Really? - Yeah.
Yeah, you've really mastered the language.
All right, all right, what song are you gonna play me?
No, I can't. It's too embarrassing. It's been...
Whoa. No way. No way. I came up here, you cannot crap out on me now.
One song. Anything will be great.
But listen, you're gonna laugh at me.
- You think so? - Yes.
I doubt it.
Okay.
What do you want to hear? I have...
I have three songs in English.
One's about my cat...
...one's about my ex-boyfriend... Well, ex-ex-boyfriend...
...and there's one about...
Well, it's just a little waltz.
A waltz? Yeah.
- Play the waltz. - Right.
I haven't played it in a while. You sure?
Okay.
All right, the waltz.
Let me sing you a waltz
Out of nowhere, out of my thoughts
Let me sing you a waltz
About this one-night stand
You were, for me, that night
Everything I always dreamt of in life
But now you're gone
You are far-gone
All the way to your island of rain
It was, for you, just a one-night thing
But you were much more to me
Just so you know
I don't care what they say
I know what you meant For me that day
I just want another try
I just want another night
Even if it doesn't seem quite right
You meant, for me, much more
Than anyone I've met before
One single night with you, little Jesse
Is worth a thousand with anybody
I have no bitterness, my sweet
I'll never forget this one-night thing
Even tomorrow, in other arms
My heart will stay yours until I die
Let me sing you a waltz
Out of nowhere, out of my blues
Let me sing you a waltz
About this lovely one-night stand
- No, one more! Please, please. - No! It was our deal.
One... One song. No, no, no.
You can have your tea and then...
- All right, let me ask you one question. - What?
Do you just plug that name in for every guy that comes up here?
Yes, of course.
What do you think, that I wrote the song about you? Are you nuts?
Is this you? Little cross-eyed Celine?
- Yes. That's funny. - Cute.
- Is that your grandmother? - Yeah.
Oh, wow.
- You want some honey? - Yeah, sure.
Did you ever see Nina Simone in concert?
No, I never did. I can't believe she's gone.
I know, it's so sad.
Thanks.
It's hot.
I saw her twice in concert.
She was so great.
That's one of my favorite songs of hers.
She was so great.
She was so funny in concert too.
She would... She would be right in the middle of a song and then...
...you know, stop...
...and walk from the piano all the way to the edge of the stage.
Like, really slowly.
And she'd start talking to someone in the audience.
"Oh, yeah, baby. Oh, yeah.
I love you too."
And then she'd walk back. Take her time, no hurry, you know.
She had that big, cute ass.
She would move.
And then she would go back to the piano and play some more, you know.
And then she would, I don't know...
...just start another song in the middle of another.
You know, like, stop again, and be like:
"You over there, can you move that fan.
You're cute.
Oh, yeah."
Baby, you are gonna miss that plane.
I know.