Midnight in Paris

Spain/USA 2011. Directed by Woody Allen. With Owen Wilson, Rachel McAdams, Marion Cotillard. In English and French/Spanish with English subtitles.

After opening the Cannes Film Festival this year to high acclaim, Woody Allen’s latest romantic comedy went on to become his biggest success in the U.S. since Annie Hall. The story follows Gil (Wilson), a successful Hollywood screenwriter who had aspirations to be a serious writer when he was a younger man. As he and his fiancée Inez (McAdams) tag along on a business trip to Paris with her parents, it triggers Gil’s memories of his one-time literary ambitions. When Gil meets Adriana (Cotillard), the beautiful muse to several famous artists, he recognises a kindred spirit, as both romanticise the past and long to live in a different age. Whilst Gil pines for a bygone era he must come to terms with his present situation and decide how to move forward. The film is Allen’s valentine to the City of Light about a young man’s great love for the city and the abiding illusion that a different life would be a better one.