Movie with Abe: Midnight in Paris

Midnight in Paris
Directed by Woody Allen
Released May 20, 2011

There’s something noticeably different about Woody Allen’s new film. The Oscar-winning filmmaker has been cranking out at least one movie per year for the past two decades, and especially within the last ten years, it’s been hard to find a hit. It’s almost too easy to predict the plot of an Allen film, which always finds one partner of an unhappy to moderately happy couple considering an affair against the backdrop of some world-renowned city, often New York. A deviation from Allen’s typical formula comes as a major surprise, and it’s refreshing if not entirely effective.

“Midnight in Paris” starts out much the way most Woody Allen films do, with the signature title credits, albeit played over dialogue, a sign that Allen no longer needs to ease into his pictures in quite the same fashion. Gil (Owen Wilson) is clearly with a woman, Inez (Rachel McAdams), who isn’t right for him, prone to fits of frustration when Gil expresses his lack of desire to socialize or do anything exciting save complain about his unfinished novel. For a lonely, down-on-his-luck Gil, a stroll through the city of love after midnight gives him just the release he needs: an unbelievable audience with some of the most famous writers of all time, all in their prime.

Wilson’s nightly trips back in time to the glorious 1920s still constitute an affair of sorts. His fiancée and her disapproving parents (Kurt Fuller and Mimi Kennedy) have no idea where Gil goes each night, and his demeanor and separation from their lives causes them much resentment and anger. Gil, much like a typical Allen movie lead, also becomes a completely different person when he is in a world that welcomes rather than stifles his creativity. The reason for this rift in the space-time continuum is never explained, but that’s the magic of it all, and what makes Paris a worthwhile place to spend time with Allen’s characters.

The roaring twenties provide plenty of opportunities for amusing allusions and appearances, including F. Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald (Tom Hiddleston and Alison Pill), Ernest Hemingway (Corey Stoll), Gertrude Stein (Kathy Bates), and Salvador Dali (Adrien Brody), as well as the always alluring Marion Cotillard as the muse of many, Adriana Ivancich. All play their parts to perfection, and Wilson is the odd man out. It’s hard to believe that the seemingly unenlightened comedian would melt at the sight of a famed author or artist, and that detracts from the character’s credibility. Those in the present day, including his family-to-be and a hilariously pretentious Michael Sheen, are wonderfully entertaining, and it might have been nice to have seen more of them. Gil has trouble piecing together the mesmerizing nature of his nights the morning after they’re complete, and this film suffers from a similar lack of longevity. While it’s going, it’s entirely captivating, but it’s a fleeting story that can be quickly forgotten after and feels like it should have been much more lasting.

B

Tuesday’s Top Trailer: Midnight in Paris

Welcome to a weekly feature here at Movies with Abe, Tuesday's Top Trailer. One of my favorite parts about going to see movies is the series of trailers that airs beforehand and, more often than not, the trailer is far better than the actual film. Each week, I'll be sharing a trailer I've recently seen. Please chime in with comments on what you think of the trailer and how you think the movie is going to be.

Midnight in Paris – Opening May 20, 2011



It’s an interesting thing to see the first sneak peek at the next Woody Allen movie. Mostly that’s because it feels like something incredibly familiar that you’ve seen before, and most of the time, it is. When Owen Wilson’s character wanders off into Paris and starts cheating halfway through the trailer, it isn’t a surprise at all because that’s what we’ve come to expect from Allen. He has a number of classics, among them “Manhattan,” “Annie Hall,” “Hannah and Her Sisters,” and “Crimes and Misdemeanors,” and few films that have successfully worked in the most recent decade, with the notable exception of “Match Point,” which is a considerable departure from his usual style and might as well be unrecognizable as an Allen film. Allen has been bouncing around from city to city, transplanting his characters to Barcelona and London in recent years without properly taking the New Yorker out of them. Now, he’s back to Paris, a destination he visited in the rather peculiar 1996 musical-tinged comedy “Everyone Says I Love You.” There’s no denying that Paris is a romantic destination, and having a group of American travelers there for a limited period of time is a great setup for a film. Owen Wilson seems somewhat of an odd choice to play the male lead, but hopefully it should work. I’m thrilled with the notion of Rachel McAdams having a role that may be just right for her, and I also love having Michael Sheen as a pretentious American. I’m pleased to see the very funny Kurt Fuller, currently appearing on ABC’s “Better With You,” in the cast, and I love the way he explains that the private detective has gone missing. Throw in Kathy Bates, Adrien Brody, and Marion Cotillard, and it’s going to be hard to go wrong. Could this be another “You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger,” a film which I gave a D? Let’s hope not.