A Quick Trip to Paris is What Everyone Needs!

Rating: 10/10 (24 May 2016)

Midnight in Paris I will start by saying I saw this movie in the theater the month before its national release. I also saw it three more times in the theater after that point. I now own the video as well. This movie is a quintessential love letter to Paris from Woody Allen. From the cinematography to the music to the views, it has positioned itself securely in my top favorite movies of all time. I am a Paris, France lover. The details that Allen captures in this masterpiece from the monuments to the people of the era are precise. It gives the viewer the sense they are actually living in Paris from the breaking scene of Paris at dawn through night fall and finishing off with the glittering lights of the Eiffel Tower. We have our subject – Gil Pender who is unhappy with his life in Los Angeles as a "film hack." He is attempting to become a novelist. Saturated in Paris, France where all the great writers and artists of the 1920's, you hope his location has some catalyst on his writing skills. He is trapped in what appears to be a very unfulfilled relationship with his demanding fiancée Ines played by Rachel McAdams (who incidentally plays the b word so well, it is ridiculous). It takes another character in the movie Adrienne played by the lovely Marion Cotillard who embodies the essence of Coco Chanel to help Gil see where he is going wrong in life. It seems to always be the case in life, where one needs to see it happening to someone else to realize they are, in fact, making the same mistake. Gil thankfully opens his eyes by the end of the movie and experiences the peripeteia moment we all hope he has. This movie is filled from beginning to end with rich historic Parisian life. Keep your eyes open as you will see may notable historic figures within the art community from directors, singers, songwriters, writers, and painters. This movie is too good to miss. It is like bringing home a slice of a life you never knew you wish you had had!