Midnight in Paris

Midnight in Paris may honestly be the perfect comfort/ airplane movie I've watched in a while. I yearn to be a writer who can just enjoy the beauty of the world around him (tho I wouldn't choose Paris, I have problems with them) . To state the unfortunate obvious, the film is directed and written by the infamous Woody Allen. While it is said you can separate Art from the Artist, we shouldn't do so without acknowledging the problems from having a man like him make this ovie. .From start to finish, Midnight in Paris can suck its audience into the world of Paris, France. I think the fact that the montage at the beginning is the RAW is impressive and goes to show how beautiful that city truly is. The music meets with the environment, along with the lighting in this film, just brings such a sense of comfort. . The main thing about this film is the ideas of nostalgia and how, no matter how much we yearn for the past, those in the past likely yearn for their own past. If we were to remake this film today, our main character would be yearning for 2016 and the peak of social media, and people of 2016 would yearn for the hip hop days of the 90s, and those people would yearn for the 60s rock and roll craze. It's true, tho, and unfortunately, forced nostalgia is something that just drives me up a wall. We don't appreciate what we have now, and we don't value our lives. If we keep thinking about how good 2016 was, then we forget just how much we have now, the experiences, the technology, the people, etc..But I am truly glad that the film calls out this idea of ignoring the present. Owen Wilson's character, Gil, feels so real, from his dialogue to his actions. Gil knows that his escape was wrong, but learns that the past can teach us our mistakes so that we may make ourselves a better future. Adriana (Marion Cotillard) is such a delight; her idea of the golden years offers such a good clash with Gil. Her motives don't feel forced as she gets to live out her wildest dreams. .I do have to say I really do enjoy the stylings of the 1920s world, from F Scott Fitzgerald (Tom Hiddleston), Ernest Hemingway ( Corey Stoll), or even Salvador Dali (Adrian Brody) do such a fun job setting the scene for 1920s Paris. Big shout out to Kathy Bates as Gertrude Stein. I love Kathy Bates so much, and she's always a pleasure to watch. Of course, I doubt there is any historical accuracy, but I'd like to imagine that Gil's imagination is able to create these fake scenarios. The outfits are nicely picked out, the sets are beautifully constructed, etc..I do have to say what loses me about the film is the way it handles Gil's relationship with his fiancée, Inez. Some parts feel like they drag, while others just feel like they were rushed so that we could wrap up the movie. Also, not a big fan that Gil cheats on Inez in his own way and doesn't face much repercussion from it as he should. The last moment in the rain is nice, but a bit random when you remember that Gil had been engaged to Inez for quite some time. But it is still such a well-written film overall, and so enjoyable when you watch it without any prior context. -.5 cuz Woody Allen is a horrible person. 4/5