Well, this
is definitely a little number that has me scratching my head. Oh don’t get me
wrong, not in a bad way. The film is amazing. It’s just that as I actually am
such a fan of Woody Allen, I’m not entirely sure why I put off watching this for
so darn long. I better not take this long getting round to watch Blue Jasmine… But I digress… Let’s get this show back on
track girls and boys, because this film has a lot to say for itself (well, what
did you expect, it is Woody Allen) and we’d better get started talking about it…
Gil (Owen
Wilson) and Inez ( Rachel McAdams) are an engaged couple who have tagged along
to Paris with Inez’s father and mother who are on a business trip. For Inez,
this is a perfect moment to select furniture for their future Malibu home. For Gil,
a screenwriter who desperately wants to “try his hand at real literature” Paris
is almost a pilgrimage. While Inez is determined to “stay a tourist”, Gil wants
to wander the streets of Paris, sit at the cafes where Hemmingway and Picasso
conversed and soak up the atmosphere. And I mean of course Paris is beautiful,
but it is not Paris at its best. This, according to Gil, is Paris in the ‘20s. But then again, Gil has so many things he is
discontented with in his current existence that it is not surprising he dreams
of an idealised past. Things however,
take a turn for the surreal when one night, when Gil is taking a slightly tipsy
walk through Paris by himself, he actually finds a way back into the ‘20s. As
he gets over his disbelief and starts exploring this strange occurrence, Gil
begins to think that he may have found the perfect solution to all his
problems. He no longer needs to just DREAM of living alongside his idols, he
can actually stay in the past and do it! So can Gil, who can barely decide
where to live in Los Angeles actually make the decision to uproot and live in a
completely different era? And more importantly, is this actually the solution
to his problems?
Actually
this is a really good follow-up to “Now You See Me” in one sense. Because when you read through
the credits, you are once again absolutely battered with celebrities. But it’s
ok you see – firstly the celebrities are in fact mostly little more than cameos
(with the notable exception of Marion Cotillard who didn’t make it into the
blurb but… I mean watch the film, there’s a reason for that). Throughout the
film we closely follow Gil and his story. There is, in fact, something
incredibly fitting about the concept of “celebrities playing celebrities”. It makes it easier for us to get into the mind
set of Gil who is literally star-struck, surrounded by every literary influence
he has ever had, living and breathing in the flesh. We get a good feeling of
the “awe” he feels in their presence and
incidentally I loved the contrast between his “day life” and his “night life”
as, especially in the second half of the movie, any exchanges he has with his fiancée
and her family are almost exclusively limited to the hotel room. All in all,
Midnight in Paris is a sweet, romantic, magical fable that I am very glad I
watched indeed.
I mean yes,
this is Woody Allen, so the film relies heavily on dialogue. And yes, this is a
fable, so there is an “inherent lesson” to be learnt from it. There is even a
scene where Owen Wilson “tells us” this lesson at the end. This may seem a tad
to didactic to you. Then again, if you’re a fan of Woody Allen, surely you can’t
have that many problems with being “talked at” and “lectured”. And credit where
it is due, the scene is neither long nor obnoxious.
I remember
when this film first came out, a lot of people sort of wrinkled their noses and
said “it isn’t like his usual stuff” (Him being Woody Allen). I agree. It is a
lot more positive, a lot less “grounded I the harsh and bitter realities of
real life” than his usual works. If you are looking for an outlet for that kind
of emotion, I would suggest you pass up on this one. This film would go much
better with a glass of wine, some chocolates and a few friends – albeit those
who can endure films with a LOT of dialogue.
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