Although it has brought me some guilt being a filmmaker/critic, I’ve never really understood Woody Allen. Besides The Purple Rose of Cairo (the only movie of his that I highly enjoyed), I’ve found most of his films to be meandering and overly philosophical - yet irregularly amusing. I’ve only seen a small chunk of his filmography, and I’m not trying to sound like an expert, but I can’t seem to “get into” his movies. They’re niche films and I guess I’m not the target audience. That being said, I do like to expand my film knowledge and I will watch anything and everything, especially if the people involved are highly regarded from industry professionals. Midnight in Paris has been getting a lot of buzz from critics, touting it as being one of Allen’s best in recent years – I’m no artsy fartsy scarf-wearing intellectual, but I figured I’d give it a shot.
The movie stars Owen Wilson as a Hollywood writer, spending a vacation in Paris with his wife-to-be (Rachel McAdams), alongside some friends (including Michael Sheen) and her parents (Kurt Fuller, Mimi Kennedy). Wilson’s biggest dream is to have lived in Paris during the 1920’s where what he considered the best art and literature was produced. He wishes to stay and live in Paris to finish off a novel, but McAdams and her parents detest the idea and want him to keep his secure job writing low-shelf Hollywood productions. Wilson, while walking on his own through the city, is invited into an antique car as bells toll, confirming it is midnight. From there the film takes a slight sci-fi turn and he is taken on an introspective journey meeting some of his past idols, including F. Scott Fitzgerald and Ernest Hemingway, learning about himself in a semi-It’s a Wonderful Life manner.
While I did like that ‘Twilight Zone’ element to the film, I found the movie as ponderous and answer-less as any other of the Woody Allen films I have tried to appreciate. Even though the movie brings up some ‘heavy’ themes (self-discovery, true love, etc.) I found it to be plodding and boring. Owen Wilson is a dull lead, and we see too much of him walking around the city, wondering what the meaning of his life is. I did like to see all the different “celebrities” portrayed by some great talents (Adrien Brody, Corey Stoll, Tom Hiddleston, and Kathy Bates all turn in interesting performances, alongside Marion Cotillard, playing a lost girlfriend of Pablo Picasso), but after a while it became tiresome; after the fifth or sixth time we meet a famous personality I wished it would stop. I also found this film’s attempt at humor to be disappointing – I can at least say Allen’s early work (like Bananas) had a lot better laughs than this. One routine in ‘Midnight’ between Wilson and McAdams involving a lost earring tried to come off as a comedy-filled bit, but I just sat there awkwardly hoping for the next scene.
I’m sure real Woody Allen fans will love this movie, and those that never really “got” him in the first place won’t be converted now. In a way it’s commendable that he is still making movies (at such an old age), and still making them the same way he used to on his “classics” such as Annie Hall and Manhattan – the way he wants it. He’s a guy who, love him or hate him, has a vision and knows what he’s doing. Even though I personally find it difficult to enjoy this love note to Paris, I wouldn’t say it is a “bad” movie because of that. I couldn’t possibly give a rating to this movie, because I just don’t click with this kind of thing right off the bat. And those unfamiliar with Allen’s work should probably not use this as a starting point.
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