Woody Allen has been creating unique, interesting, engaging, funny, clever and inspirational films for a long time now and Midnight in Paris is no exception. With a great cast, a raft of excellent characters and the occasional captivating cameo, it’s a lot of fun to watch and get lost in.
Set in present day Paris, the story follows movie screenwriter, Gil Pender (Owen Wilson) as he visits Paris with his annoying fiancee, Inez (Rachel McAdams) and her staunchly conservative parents. Struggling with his first novel and romanticising about Paris in the 1920s, he is swept back to the time of his icons, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Cole Porter and Earnest Hemingway.
Michael Sheen puts in a great performance as Paul Bates, the annoying long-time friend of Inez, and his dim and doting wife Carol is one of the funniest characters in the film. Carla Bruni adds a little natural glamour to the film in a cameo role as a museum guide. Kathy Bates is convincing as Gertrude Stein, and Adrien Brody plays Salvadore Dali with just the right level of comic timing and authenticity.
Owen Wilson’s performance is riddled with Woody Allen affectations, favouring the irrepressibly romantic, idealistic innocence as opposed to the sarcastic, neurotic self-critic.
Midnight in Paris is far from perfect. The acting slips here and there and the storyline is fantastical without qualification. However, it remains an entertaining and interesting film from start to end, with more that a few brilliant moments of dialogue.
Midnight in Paris film review – 4.1/5
