New York, I Love You

STARRING Natalie Portman, Shia LaBeouf
WRITTEN AND DIRECTED BY Brett Ratner, Mira Nair, etc.

The producers of 2007’s anthology film Paris, JeT’aime return with a collection of Gotham-set love stories from directors such as Mira Nair (The Namesake) and Brett Ratner (Rush Hour 3), who submitted seven-page scripts then shot the shorts in just two days. Natalie Portman pulls double duty, acting in Nair’s segment as well as writing and directing her own film. ”Usually, shorts end up in festivals,” says Portman, whose story follows a father dealing with racial and gender prejudices. ”That’s lovely, but it’s nice to get an actual audience.” Turning 10 films into a single feature led to some tough decisions for producer Emmanuel Benbihy. Two segments — including Scarlett Johansson’s directorial debut, about a man walking to Coney Island — were cut because they didn’t fit the romantic theme. (They may become DVD extras.)