MOVIE REVIEW ... MIDNIGHT IN PARIS

 

Woody Allen is a director steadfastly doing his own thing.  One of the original movie mavericks, his career has lasted decades with varying degrees of success.  Midnight in Paris is his latest cinematic foray with a journey into a mind of someone wanting escapism.  Whilst perhaps not vintage Allen, it proves he still has the ability to craft accessible works while putting his own creative stamp on stories.

Travelling to Paris with his fiancé Inez (Rachel McAdams), Gil (Owen Wilson) is a lost soul.  Although a successful Hollywood writer, his attempts at writing his first novel appear doomed.  Inspiration arrives when he arrives in the French capital and falls for its beauty.  Whilst Inez socialises with her friends, he walks the streets at midnight and is magically transported to the 1920’s.   With fantasy and reality converging, he takes stock of his existence and discovers new ways in enjoying what life offers.

A lighter confection than his recent works, Midnight in Paris finds Woody Allen in whimsical mode.  He’s been down this road many times with movies such as ‘Broadway Danny Rose’, of which this shares some similarities.  Exploring our nature in looking back, the screenplay shows how too much nostalgia can prevent us from living in the moment.  Such a temptation seems too great for Gil as his chaotic present is contrasted to the smoothness of his adventures in the past.

These elements are crafted in Allen’s usual laconic style with the camera lovingly showing Paris at its finest.   He is ably assisted by a fine ensemble led by Wilson who channels the ‘Allen persona’ well.  Whilst the story tends to lose its way towards the end, it’s one of the more engaging ones Allen has recently produced.  The foreign climes seem to suit him with his last several movies benefitting from different sceneries broadening the style of films he makes.

Midnight in Paris is a fine addition to Allen’s catalogue with the mix of humour and drama perfectly blending.  For someone still making the type of films he wants after fifty years it’s quite an achievement and hopefully he will continue doing so for some time yet.

Movie Review Rating out of 10:  7

Movie Review by Patrick Moore

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