Midnight Magical Movable Feast

Rating: 10/10 (10 September 2011)

It had to happen sooner or later, and finally it did. Woody Allen and Paris "fell" in love with each other, and, as the result, we, the viewers, received a precious gift from the master of subtle, intelligent and charming dra-medies, gentle and charming "movable feast," the new movie "Midnight in Paris ".
I have been a fan of Woody Allen for long time and seen all his movies, those that he made, and those in which he starred or only wrote the screenplay for. I look forward to each of his films and I am ready to love them before I even see them. I knew I would like Midnight in Paris, but I had no idea how good it was. From the first frame, following the Darius Khondji's camera on such familiar but uniquely beautiful streets, alleys, boulevards and quays of the City of Light, it was hard not to fall in love with Paris and with the film of Allen, his love letter to the most famous city in the world, capital of love and Mecca for writers, artists, musicians and artists to whom Paris gave inspiration during all times and epochs - Belle Époque 1890s, the Golden days of the 1920s, and today, right now...
Midnight in Paris is a delightful, kind (yes, this is Woody Allen), light, and charming film, which can be described as A Paris Midnight Magical Movable Feast. Paris in the film is beautiful during day light, night time, bright sun, and rainy hours. Oscar nominee, the master cinematographer of many remarkable films, including Panic Room, Se7en and Evita, Darius Khondji worked with Allen on three films: Anything Else (2003), Midnight in Paris (2011), and the next film, the Roman project Bop Decameron (2012).
Soundtrack consists of Allen's favorite songs from the 1920s-30s by such songwriters as Cole Porter, Glen Miller, and Enoch Light, and from the repertoire of Josephine Baker and Juliet Greco. For the original film theme, Allen picked the guitar composition of the French jazz guitarist Stephane Wrembel "Bistro Fada". Wrembel's influence and source of inspiration has been the music of the famous French Gypsy guitarist Django Reinhardt, whose longtime fan and admirer is Woody Allen himself. According Wrembel, Allen was searching for a typical French-Parisian melody, reflecting the spirit and atmosphere of Paris. I can confirm that the film theme and the songs that Allen picked up for Midnight in Paris are important, integral component of the film's charm and add to the romantic and joyous feeling that the film brings to the viewers.
As always, in Woody Allen's movies, the actors give uniformly good performances. Owen Wilson is very convincing and likable as Gil, Hollywood's successful screenplay writer who works on a first novel, a protagonist, a much younger, attractive, and funny Woody Allen stand-in. Adrien Brody played the best role since The Pianist (very small cameo, but memorable and hilarious). Kathy Bates was very believable as a famous literary critic and friend to the struggling talented writers and artists. Alison Pill was impressive as the bright, outgoing but showing the signs of instability wife of the celebrated American writer. I hardly recognized Corey Stoll but liked him a lot as another famous American writer. Watching Marion Cotillard, I had no problems believing that the character she played, Adriana, could have been the muse and the girlfriend of not just one but three amazingly and uniquely talented world renowned painters. Rachel McAdams (Inez, Gil's not so romantic fiancée), Kurt Fuller and Mimi Kennedy (Inez's parents on the business trip in Paris who don't seem to approve their daughter's choice), and Michael Sheen (Paul, Inez's pedantic and arrogant former boyfriend from college) were quite good as not very likable Americans. The First Lady of France, Carla Bruni appeared in a small role of a museum guide.
The story itself was so lovely in using the time travel as the plot device and brought so many funny and sharp one-liners, dialogs and scenes as well as the plenty moments of recognizing the beloved literature and art figures of the past, that I sat and smiled happily during the whole film. Like I mentioned in the beginning, I expected to love the film even before I saw it and knew from the very first scene that I was in for something very special but my husband, who is much more reserved in his ratings and not often calls a film a masterpiece, used the word for Midnight in Paris and asked whether the film has won some prestigious prizes. Well, the awards season is several months away, but for me, and I am sure for all Woody Allen's fans, Midnight in Paris is a great prize from the writer/director.