Midnight in Paris (Woody Allen, 2011): USA/Spain

Reviewed by Byron Potau. Viewed at the Palm Theatre in San Luis Obispo.

Midnight in Paris

As Woody Allen’s career has progressed, now in its sixth decade, his masterpieces have become fewer and further between. If you’re a fan it is very seldom that Woody isn’t at least watchable, but it has been some time since he gave us anything to be excited about. I suppose that could explain a bit of an overreaction to his latest film, Midnight in Paris. While it is a fun film and the freshest Woody has been in quite some time, it is not among his masterpieces.

Hollywood screenwriter Gil (Owen Wilson) is in Paris with his fiancée Inez (Rachel McAdams) and her parents. Gil, who is trying to become a serious writer, is working on a novel and attempting to draw inspiration from the city of lights. He fantasizes about living in Paris and writing like the writers of the “Lost Generation” in 1920’s Paris, but Inez doesn’t know what he sees in his romanticized view of Paris and dreams only of living in Malibu. They meet up with Paul (Michael Sheen), an old friend of Inez’s, who begins accompanying them all over Paris, pontificating on everything Paris has to offer to the delight of Inez who seems captivated by his every word.

As Gil decides one evening not to accompany Inez and Paul dancing and instead walk home through the streets of Paris he becomes lost. As he tries to figure out where he is and how to get back to his hotel the clock strikes midnight and an old car drives up. The occupants persuade Gil to get in and he is chauffeured to 1920’s Paris where he finds himself in the company of Zelda and F. Scott Fitzgerald (Alison Pill and Tom Hiddleston). After partying with them for most of the evening they introduce him to Ernest Hemingway who agrees to show Gil’s book to Gertrude Stein. When Gil leaves to fetch his book he finds himself back in present time and realizes he can only return to his ideal Paris at the stroke of midnight.

Woody Allen’s freshest idea in several years yields a very charming, yet lighthearted film. To give some perspective, I would place it somewhere between Everyone Says I Love You and Zelig in Woody’s oeuvre.

Owen Wilson hits the mark as Gil channeling just enough Woody in his delivery without becoming an annoying copy, a trap other actors, such as Kenneth Branagh and John Cusack, playing the Woody role have fallen into. Wilson brings his own charm to the role and has excellent comic timing. The pairing of Allen and Wilson seems a perfect match and it is hopefully not their last.

There are several wonderful performances among the cast. Marion Cotillard plays the mistress of Pablo Picasso who catches the eye of Gil. She displays a certain je ne sais quoi that embodies the era.

Woody has fun with his cavalcade of 1920’s celebrities; Kathy Bates in a confident performance as the matriarch of the artists, Gertrude Stein; Ernest Hemingway, played by Corey Stoll, who repeatedly challenges Gil and others to a fight; a delightfully wild eyed Adrien Brody as Salvador Dali, is obsessed with the rhinoceros; and Luis Bunuel, played by Adrien de Van, who simply doesn’t get it when Gil tells him the plot to his future film The Exterminating Angel.

While certainly enjoyable and sure to nab Woody yet another Best Original Screenplay nomination, and possibly a Best Supporting Actress nod for Marion Cotillard or Kathy Bates or both, make no mistake about it, this is light Woody. It is not the homage to Paris that Manhattan was to, well Manhattan.

He does effectively use the idea of nostalgia and the old adage that the grass is always greener to make his point that every period has its flaws and to learn to make what you can of the present rather than long for some long ago idealized era. It all feels easy going and may be a theme Woody reworks in the near future with a little more punch to it. Delightful as it is it just feels like a warm up to something bigger. Surely, Woody has at least one more masterpiece left in him.

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Published:
09.07.11 / 10pm
Category:
Films