Hotel Chevalier

Year: 2007

Actors: Natalie Portman, Jason Schwartzman

Duration: 13 min

The concierge at a hotel answers the phone and we see Jack Whitman (Jason Schwartzman) in a hotel room, laying on the bed in a robe, ordering food in French with an American accent. He is successful in ordering in French until he forgets the word for "grilled cheese" at which point, he speaks in English asking for a grilled cheese. Jack gets a phone call from a woman asking what his hotel room number is. Jack seems somewhat perplexed and immediately begins straightening the hotel room once he hangs up. He runs a bath and starts to play a song on an iPod dock, but pauses it. Jack is now wearing a suit, laying on the bed, when there is a knock at the door. He starts the music again and opens the door. The woman who was on the phone before (Natalie Portman) offers an informal greeting and gives Jack flowers. She is intrigued by the items Jack has around the apartment, such as a music box and a painting. We see that she places a small item into Jack's suitcase without him noticing (this is important in The Darjeeling Limited). She goes into the bathroom and brushes her teeth with Jack's toothbrush, asking why Jack drew a bath. He tells her that it's for her but she doesn't respond. They are sitting apart from each other and she asks Jack how long he has been staying in the hotel. He responds that he's been there more than a month. She asks him how long he plans on staying and he replies by asking her the same, to which she says that she is leaving in the morning. There is a knock at the door and the bellhop brings in the food that Jack ordered. Once the bellhop leaves, the woman kisses Jack. They move to the bed and Jack begins to remove her clothes. She asks if he has slept with anyone and after a minute he says no, in turn asking her. She also says no after a minute but Jack points out that she paused. He notices that she has bruises on her body but she doesn't say where she got them. She tells Jack that she never intetionally hurt him, but he seems indifferent. Jack asks if she wants to see his view of Paris. Jack gives her the robe he was wearing before and they go out onto the balcony. The view is of a nondescript building across the way.

Genre: Action   Drama   Romance