Woody Allen's unique tapestry of historical and intellectual interactions with 20th century's greatest creators.

Rating: 9/10 (1 August 2017)

The word clever comes to mind – a word my 1920's-born mother used. Clever defines Midnight in Paris, which is about a struggling millennial writer visiting Paris with his bride-to-be and her family, juxtaposed with artists and writers in Paris in the 1920's and earlier. Woody Allen's brilliantly creative mind illuminates this work-of- art.
Gil (Owen Wilson) negotiates his desire to please his bride-to-be, Inez (Rachel McAdams), with his longing to stay in Paris and write a novel. Tensions rise between Gil and Inez as ghosts of the past visit Gil, on several occasions, when he sits on cement steps of a building never revealed to the audience. When the church bells chime at midnight, Gil is invited to hang-out with artists and writers of the past.
For example, Gil hangs out in bars and goes to parties on different occasions with Hemingway and Fitzgerald – who are hilarious together. The writers are keenly interested in Gil and his writing, and some of them offer critiques to help him out. Owens' portrayal of Gil is authentic, as Gil gets excited with each visitor and has trouble believing the appearance of each one – like "How long have you been dating Picasomy God, did I really just say that?" But Gil gets into trouble when he starts ditching his bride-to-be to hang out on the steps for more visits.
The fun includes: F. Scott Fitzgerald (Tom Hiddleston) and his wife Zelda (Allison Pill), Ernest Hemingway (Cory Stoll), Gertrude Stein (Kathy Bates), Pablo Picaso (Marcial De Fonzo Bo), Cole Porter (Yves Heck), Salvatore Dali (Adrien Brody), T. S. Eliot (David Lowe), Henri Matisse (Yves-Antoine Spoto), Toulouse-Lautrec (Vincent Menjou Cortes), Paul Gauguin (Olivier Rabourdin), and Edgar Degas (Francois Rostain). And there are others.
The movie is inspiring, and gives us a glimpse into the real-life struggles of these earlier artists and writers. Sure, the dialogue is re-created and well researched. When you hear how Brody repeats Dali's name in the movie, see if you don't chuckle the way I did, or the way Stoll speaks like Hemingway. The movie is moderately paced and catchy, and a nice tribute to these greats of the past.
The only part I didn't like was Gertrude Stein (Kathy Bates) referring to "Hemingway" when she spoke about him and with him. I would have liked her calling him Ernest. And the audience can disregard the handicap sidewalks and curbs in the Paris streets, which would not have been there in the 1920's.
I give this movie a 9: 4 for Woody Allen's creative writing and brilliant directing, 3 for the acting, and 2 for shooting in Paris.
I watched on Netflix.