Directed by:
Woody AllenScreenplay:
Woody AllenCinematography:
Darius KhondjiCast:
Owen Wilson, Rachel McAdams, Marion Cotillard, Kurt Fuller, Mimi Kennedy, Michael Sheen, Alison Pill, Adrien Brody, Sonia Rolland, Léa Seydoux, Kathy Bates (more)VOD (3)
Plots(1)
This is a romantic comedy set in Paris about a family that goes there because of business, and two young people who are engaged to be married in the fall have experiences there that change their lives. It's about a young man`s great love for a city, Paris, and the illusion people have that a life different from theirs would be much better. (official distributor synopsis)
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Reviews (13)
Woody Allen is certainly an American, but he has always somewhat defied the idea of a typical American because he belongs to the circle of New York liberals who have always been culturally closer to Europe than to the American South or Midwest. In Europe, his intellectually-oriented work was also more embraced by audiences than in America. Woody makes fun of this in his film Hollywood Ending, where a blind director makes a film that, for understandable reasons, makes no sense, and when the American studio throws it overboard, the film receives recognition at a European film festival and also from European viewers. In the later stage of his career, Woody truly fell in love with Paris, and when he decided to leave his beloved New York, he began creating there. This film is nothing more than a tribute to Paris as a cultural center and a city with an amazing history, and the whole gimmick tries to sell the viewer as many famous figures of European culture that once passed through Paris in the 1920s. He chose this period so he could showcase his favorite musical melodies. Unfortunately, it had to happen one day - my favorite director Woody, to whom I usually give 4 stars, even in the weaker films that I forget about after a few days, managed to reliably entertain me only to the level of three stars this time. I am not surprised by Woody thematically or in the choice of actors, but somehow I didn't enjoy this panoply of characters, and in the first half, I was downright bored. The second half is a bit better, but even the few functioning jokes were not particularly original, and during Allen's overproduction, I remembered them from other films. It is a pleasant film, but I just could not get into it. Overall impression: 45%.
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The picture has a certain vibration about it and I (it seems I alone of the watching ensemble) enjoyed listening to it. Maybe it was the magic of Paris, pulling me back into the past... I often think that I was born at the wrong moment in time... maybe I have an understanding for the indecisiveness of the main protagonist and his search for (women?) himself. Very well-cast. Wlison’s slightly dumbfounded expression is well-placed, Rachel McAdams is absolutely modern, Marion Cotillard beautifully period and the familiar faces of famous people were fine. And the final “decision"? I think I know what I would have done, but it would be a hard choice.
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Woody Allen is a magician. As a lover of Paris and an admirer of times past, I got lost somewhere between the opening titles and the first dialogue. Not that I expected anything else after a discreet whisper announcing a minor masterpiece, but the dreamy atmosphere, the sexy Marion Cotillard, and Owen Wilson made in the image of a young Allen? This is how to take the breath away from your devoted fans. Manhattan at last has an equally fascinating sequel after more than thirty years.
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Woody Allen is fantastic at staging dialogue passages that demand a lot from the actors, but when it works out, it's beautiful. The actors for this project were brilliantly chosen and the film is flawless in its formal style. Owen Wilson's Gill is perfect as a torn artist who is smarter in his mind than in spoken words, the superficial characters are detailed and iconic, just like Hermes Birkin, playing a supporting role, and the "golden age characters" are timeless and warming, supported by excellently fitting sets and period music. The outcome is not as cathartic as most of the audience would probably want, but I think Woody is just playing and teasing with the viewer in this case, there was no deeper intention here, Paris is enchanting even in this rendition. Perhaps slightly self-indulgent and unnecessary, but a refined and formally grandiose film that is intelligent enough to be liked.
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Like all Woody Allen films, Midnight in Paris has its own unmistakable charm. I became convinced of this with the initial montage of shots of Paris. Owen Wilson, whom I didn't find too convincing at first, pleasantly surprised me. The interweaving of today with the 1920s is fantastic and I think both eras were captured perfectly. I feel like I've returned from a lovely walk through Paris, which I hadn't experienced in this light before. Nice, 4 stars.
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