Midnight in Paris (2011) has been praised by critics and audiences alike since its cinematic release last winter, hailed as a return to form for Woody Allen, a director thought to be himself past his belle époque. Recent Allen films have been criticised for weak humour, with the depth of earlier triumphs like Annie Hall and Manhattan largely absent. However, with a well-chosen cast championed by Owen Wilson, Allen has succeeded in once again delivering an Oscarworthy accomplishment. Even if he never attends the shindig anyway.
Briefly. Gil Pender (Owen Wilson) plays a struggling writer who has traded in his Hollywood hack job for the chance to write the great American novel. Holidaying in France with soon to be wife Inez (Rachel McAdams), Gil happens upon the mysticism of Paris at midnight, whereupon he encounters a gauntlet of expatriate artists from the 1920s, including Gertrude Stein (Kathy Bates), Scott Fitzgerald (Tom Hiddleston) and a marvellously brash Ernest Hemingway (Corey Stoll). Meeting everyone from Eliot to Faulkner teaches Gil important lessons about the past, present and his future.
Given little attention in other reviews is the glorious soundtrack at work in Midnight in Paris. It too, is filled with nostalgia for the past, featuring classic jazz musicians like Francois Parisi and Sidney Bechet. As a fan of modernist art and writing, I enjoyed how Allen manages to introduce modernist themes, such as city life and progress/tradition, with a kind of unexplained magical realism (itself associated with the postmodernist world Gil comes from, interestingly). Wilson is effective as a neurotic Allen-type, McAdams (perhaps appropriately, given the plot) makes an unconvincing fiancee, but the real fun comes with the cast of the Lost Generation, particularly Hemingway, Adriana (Marion Cotillard) and a surreal Salvador Dali (Adrien Brody).
Admittedly, Midnight in Paris does not reach the heights of the aforementioned Diane Keaton classics. Though well-directed and cast by Allen, it does feel a tad boring at the beginning, and the humour is not some of his best. However, as a billet-doux to the City of Light, one can see that it is certainly something he is passionate about, making it difficult not to be equally passionate about Midnight in Paris.
4/5
artsandhumanity 