Lovely

Rating: 9/10 (13 September 2019)

Highlights:

Gorgeous shot of Paris, making the film practically a love letter to the city.
Whimsical story-telling of magically going back to the Années folles (and La Belle Époque).
The central message, that we're a little silly to look back on earlier eras as more preferable, that the present is "a little unsatisfying because life is a little unsatisfying" ... and also, how history repeats itself in this regard, with each age looking back at the past. It's ironic that it's the annoying pedantic guy (Michael Sheens) who points out the fallacy of "golden-age thinking" first.
All of the cultural references and characterization of artists, authors, filmmakers etc., which tickled me. Kathy Bates as Gertrude Stein stands out.
Beautiful soundtrack.
Sweet ending. Léa Seydoux is lovely.
This line: "By the way, it's fine for your father and I to disagree. That's what a democracy is. Your father defends the right-wing of the Republican Party, and I happen to think you've almost got to be, like, a demented lunatic ... But it doesn't mean we don't respect each other's views, am I right?" ... which so perfectly skewers both the far right and polarization in politics.

Lowlights:

Some of the characters, like the fiancé (Rachel McAdams) and Ernest Hemingway (Tom Hiddleston), are rather extreme.
Many shots in Paris seemed cast in a warmer than normal color tint, making them look unnatural.