“Midnight in Paris”

24 Dec 2011 2 Comments

by Jonathan Thompson in Movies Tags: Alison Pill, Corey Stoll, Ernest Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Marion Cotillard, Michael Sheen, Midnight in Paris, Owen Wilson, Paris, Rachel McAdams, Tom Hiddleston, Woody Allen

I must say, this movie was nothing like what I expected. What I expected was more of a romantic comedy, for some reason, but knowing Woody Allen, I should have known better. This movie was way better than what I was expecting, which was a nice surprise.

I found the opening of the movie to be quite remarkable. This is an example of how powerful music is to a film. If you take out the music in the opening collage of images, you get just that, a collage of images of Paris. But when the music is added, a mood is added, an atmosphere is created. The music is old-timey; the vibrancy of the saxophones and the harmonies take us to an earlier time in Paris. Conduct a little experiment — if you ever watch this movie on DVD or On Demand, mute the sound and play some other kind of music. You’ll see how completely different those images can feel with a different accompaniment. I was very taken with this opening. The music reflects our protagonist, Gil (Owen Wilson), who is physically in a modern Paris, but he longs to inhabit an earlier time in Paris. The images of the opening depict Paris in the afternoon. Then it begins to rain, and all the bustling seen in the earlier images are gone. The rain stops and people come back outside and return to their errands. Gil always expresses how he believes Paris is most beautiful in the rain. This opening shows Paris in the sun and Paris in the rain. Maybe it supports Gil’s belief in that Paris in the rain is a quiet respite from the hustle and bustle of a great city.

Woody Allen takes us to many beautiful places in the world, and his shots are just incredible. The scenes in this film capture Paris with such bright and vivid colors. The vibrancy in the shots makes particular sense when considering the many writers and painters discussed in the film; this Paris has to reflect Gil’s romantic view of the city — and of life.

The film is primarily a story about an unsuitable couple. Gil and Inez (Rachel McAdams) travel to Paris along with her parents, who are go on business. They run into an old friend of Inez, Paul (Michael Sheen), who is an irritatingly “pedantic gentleman”. Throughout the many ventures in the city, Inez is clearly fascinated with Paul, and she treats Gil — her fiancé — as if he’s a particularly burdensome puppy. Gil looks at Inez with desire and affection, but she looks at him with annoyance and habit. Content with letting Inez have fun, Gil attempts to walk home after a wine-tasting and gets lost. At the stroke of midnight, an old car appears and whisks Gil away, where he meets F. Scott Fitzgerald (Tom Hiddleston) and his wife, Zelda (Alison Pill), Ernest Hemingway (Corey Stoll), and other notable writers and artists from the past. He begins to go out every night, getting in to the old car at midnight and mingling with the great minds of the past.

His nightly adventures in 1920′s Paris are a manifestation of his development and maturation. Although a Hollywood writer by trade, he longs to write a novel, but Inez does not completely support him. As a result, he’s taken to a world where his literary heroes support and encourage his writing. And he meets a woman, Adriana (Marion Cotillard), who finds him interesting and charming. His nightly walks through the city are an enlightenment of who he is as a person and of what he wants in life. While that is very beneficial for his writing, it’s making him admit to himself that his upcoming wedding is a bad idea. They say opposites attract but not in this case. I find myself identifying with Gil’s character when it comes to finding love, because I know I want to find someone who shares particular views which I feel are most important. For Gil, those views include literature, art, and Paris in the rain. Inez is not that, but, fortunately for Gil, he finds someone who is.

This movie is an unusual and entertaining film, with the intellectual banter that you expect from Woody Allen. Owen Wilson does a fine job in a less comedic role, standing his ground among many other stars. This beautifully shot film is one about self-exploration and understanding one’s identity. I enjoyed this movie very much.

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