How many movies can you name where people have sex with broken limbs?
“Girl on a Bicycle” has just that: a couple that has just recently met engage in passionate lovemaking, even though the woman has a broken arm and a broken leg. I can’t say I’ve seen anything like that before, but then again maybe I haven’t watched enough movies.
As you mature, you realize people are basically the same wherever you go: Paris, London, Detroit, etc. The same seems to go for movies, although “Girl on a Bicycle,” similar to most European films, has a different attitude when it comes to sex. Sex is had in this movie freely and without shame and is presented as a casual fact of life rather than a cathartic event.
Our main character is Paolo (Vincenzo Amato). Paolo is a funny guy. He’s not “haha” funny, not intentionally, but funny as in “I’m engaged to my wife, and now I’m in love with this random girl on a bicycle, right on, I’d better follow through on that and chase her with a bus.” That kind of funny.
Paolo’s oddness is the catalyst for the events in “Girl on a Bicycle,” released in Germany in March of last year. It’s set in Paris, the romantic, cosmopolitan hub of cultures European and otherwise. In the first 10 minutes we hear no less than four languages: English, French, German and Italian. Even the four main characters all have different nationalities. This film was practically designed for international distribution.
Our main man, Paolo, is the Italian. He drives a tour bus around Paris, always pointing out that “Paris is the most Italian city outside Italy,” among other observations, like that the Arc D’Triomphe is a shoddy copy of an ancient Roman arch. Imagine the exasperation of the tourists, who signed up for a tour of Paris and got a tour of Venice instead. There’s also Paolo’s best friend Derek (Paddy Considine, the Brit), who also drives a tour bus for a living, and often finds himself covering for Paolo in his “misadventures.”
Paolo is engaged to, Greta (Nora Tschirner, the German), who works as a flight attendant. When Paolo proposes to her, he presents a very fancy box holding the ring, complete with a small mirror and even a miniature spotlight shining on the ring. Greta accepts his proposal, and for the next few scenes the two of them have some tender moments in bed together.
The plot gets going when Paolo finds himself inexplicably infatuated with a girl on a bicycle (Lousie Monot, the French one), who he sees every day while driving his tour bus. One day, while foolishly chasing her through the narrow backstreets of Paris (on his huge double-decker tour bus), Paolo accidentally runs her over. He ends up having to care for her and her two children, while trying to keep the ordeal a secret from his wife.
“Girl on a Bicycle” is clever enough to keep its premise afloat and charming enough to keep most audiences interested. It’s still quite conventional and bland in many ways, but in the end it’s a harmless, somewhat competent rom-com.
It will make a fun distraction for those interested in foreign romantic comedies. For others, it’s nothing to write home about.
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