"Love Songs:" The Musical that didn't need music

     After watching a Musical, your first thought probably shouldn't be, "that would have been a really good movie if it wasn't for the music."  Unfortunately, this is the case for Christophe Honore's film, "Love Songs."  Released in 2007, it is considered a "modern" musical, set in present day Paris, following the relationships of three young people, Julie, Alice, and Ismael, how they manage their three-way romance, and how they deal with their immediate grief when Julie dies unexpectedly.  The musical numbers are not elaborately staged, but take place while the characters are walking down the street or sitting in their apartments, however, the problem with the musical elements is not the lack of big production, but the type of music.  Not that there's anything wrong with mumbling French indie rock, it's just too insipid to be an effective device in complementing the plot.  The music should enhance our emotional commitment to the film, not leave us hoping for it to stop so we can get back to the narrative.  There are some wonderful moments in the film, from the look of the cold, damp Parisian streets, the black and white still-photograph sequence of Julie's funeral, to Ismael's seemingly desperate fling with another man that turns into a serious romance.  While I was left thinking of these moments, I forgot the musical numbers almost immediately, and began to wonder if they were even necessary in the first place. 
     Once the films was over, I started to think of certain scenes not with its original music, but with a song by Johnny Flynn and Laura Marling called "The Water."  I first became aware of this song when it was included in the second half of the trailer for another French film, "Goodbye First Love," directed by Mia Hansen-Love.  Though it only took up thirty seconds of the trailer, Flynn's song managed to create a greater sense of young people living in Paris (or another French city) more so than any of the musical numbers in "Love Songs."  It's hard to say if Honore should have just scrapped the whole musical idea and included music in a more traditional manner, or maybe the characters simply could have sung better songs.  Whatever the reason may be, if I ever become more fond of mumbling French music, I will give Honore's film another try, but until that day happens, I'd rather listen to Johnny Flynn.