My thoughts on Midnight in Paris- although late.
I recently watched Woody Allen’s Midnight in Paris. You know when you wait to see something and everyone else is going on about it, you tend to have high expectations? Well my expectations for this movie had been soaring in the heavens since I first heard about it (and that was more than six months ago). Why have I waited six months to finally see this movie? Well, I live in South Africa, and it seems our cinemas over here did not feel this enamouring Parisian gem was high on their lists.
Twilight: Breaking Dawn Part 1, started showing here TWO DAYS BEFORE America and Europe.This has nothing do to with sunny South Africa being a third world country, oh no, but it has everything to do with the fact that the cinemas over here are run by people who love money more than good films. I had to go off on this tangent to explain the context and all, obviously this has nothing to do with my tirade against big corporations befouling and besmirching our lives because of their uncontrollable lust for money…
Uhm…where was I? Ooh yes, soaring expectations. So there I was sitting in the cinema. The lights dim. The smell of popcorn and mouldy seats fill my nostrils. Ever notice there is always that slight pause before the movie begins? To quote JRR Tolkien, it is the breath before the plunge. And it was a plunge. Woody Allen snatched my silly expectations out of the air, strapped it to a rocket and sent it into the depths of space.
Two weeks have gone by since I saw it. I still can’t explain why I liked this movie so much. Was it the setting in Paris? Was it the surprisingly lifelike resurrection of beloved historic giants? Was it the soundtrack? Was it the splendid humour? Was it the acting? There were so many moments wherein I felt such familiarity with the characters- even the ‘pseudo intellectual’. I identified with them, any way as much as you can identify with Ernest Hemmingway… Lord.
Actually, it’s all of the above.
This is probably one of the best romantic comedies I have seen. This was intelligent and lovely. I will definitely buy this movie.
