Directed by: Woody Allen
Run Time: 94 minutes
"Nostalgia is denial - denial of the painful present... the name for this denial is golden age thinking - the erroneous notion that a different time period is better than the one ones living in - its a flaw in the romantic imagination of those people who find it difficult to cope with the present. "
The grass is greener on the other side. That is the simple premise of this newest Woody Allen film. As for me I always enjoy his films, although haven't seen all of his works. I like Annie Hall, Match Point, Scoops, heck I even like Cassandra's Dream.
Just like the title, it is set in Paris and the main protagonist is Gil (Owen Wilson) a successful screenwriter apparently unhappy with the present time. He is in Paris accompanied by his fiancée, Inez (Rachel McAdams), on vacation together with her conservative parents. One night, after saying that he would rather live in a 1920 Paris (he worshiped the aura and ambiance of Paris even wanted to live there to the dismay of the upper class Inez), he stroll the Parisian street and voila, 'transported' into that period in Paris.
He encounter many famous people like F . Scott Fitzgerald (Tom Hiddleston), Ernest Hemmingway (Carey Stoll), Gertrude Stein (Kathy Bates), and Adriana (Marion Cotillard). He even met Luis Buñuel and on a party apparently giving an inspiration for Buñuel's famous work; The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeois. If you read, then you will know who they are in history.
Coming back and forth between present time and the 1920's changes Gil into an enthusiastic person. He even let his novel being read by Gertrude Stein. But is it just a dream or the time travel really does happen? What sort of influence does these famous people give to Gil and his views of life?
I think whether it is a time travel or just an imagination is not the case. The core of the film is being dissatisfied with present time and wanting to go to a golden age which the person think, suit best for them. But in it lies the seed of discontent that the person cannot accept life as it is in their present time, thus finding escapes in the so called 'golden' past. But we have all been in that position, daydreaming what if we lived in a different time. Would we be more content? or not?
What comes as a surprise is that the message is not hidden in some sophisticated symbol, it is in plain view. This is not Allen's best but surely fun to watch. Wilson is the appeal of this film, together with Adrien Brody and Kathy Bates's performance that steal the spotlight.
Run Time: 94 minutes
"Nostalgia is denial - denial of the painful present... the name for this denial is golden age thinking - the erroneous notion that a different time period is better than the one ones living in - its a flaw in the romantic imagination of those people who find it difficult to cope with the present. "
The grass is greener on the other side. That is the simple premise of this newest Woody Allen film. As for me I always enjoy his films, although haven't seen all of his works. I like Annie Hall, Match Point, Scoops, heck I even like Cassandra's Dream.
Just like the title, it is set in Paris and the main protagonist is Gil (Owen Wilson) a successful screenwriter apparently unhappy with the present time. He is in Paris accompanied by his fiancée, Inez (Rachel McAdams), on vacation together with her conservative parents. One night, after saying that he would rather live in a 1920 Paris (he worshiped the aura and ambiance of Paris even wanted to live there to the dismay of the upper class Inez), he stroll the Parisian street and voila, 'transported' into that period in Paris.
He encounter many famous people like F . Scott Fitzgerald (Tom Hiddleston), Ernest Hemmingway (Carey Stoll), Gertrude Stein (Kathy Bates), and Adriana (Marion Cotillard). He even met Luis Buñuel and on a party apparently giving an inspiration for Buñuel's famous work; The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeois. If you read, then you will know who they are in history.
Coming back and forth between present time and the 1920's changes Gil into an enthusiastic person. He even let his novel being read by Gertrude Stein. But is it just a dream or the time travel really does happen? What sort of influence does these famous people give to Gil and his views of life?
I think whether it is a time travel or just an imagination is not the case. The core of the film is being dissatisfied with present time and wanting to go to a golden age which the person think, suit best for them. But in it lies the seed of discontent that the person cannot accept life as it is in their present time, thus finding escapes in the so called 'golden' past. But we have all been in that position, daydreaming what if we lived in a different time. Would we be more content? or not?
What comes as a surprise is that the message is not hidden in some sophisticated symbol, it is in plain view. This is not Allen's best but surely fun to watch. Wilson is the appeal of this film, together with Adrien Brody and Kathy Bates's performance that steal the spotlight.
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