Midnight in Paris & Happy New Year

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Be careful!  This post may contain spoilers!!

I’ve never been the biggest fan of Woody Allen but when I saw the preview for Midnight in Paris, I knew I had to see it.  I am a sucker for the 1920’s, F. Scott Fitzgerald and Salvador Dali.   And the premise made the literary nerd in me jump for joy.                                                                         Basically, the story goes like this: Gil (Owen Wilson) is in Paris with his fiancé and her family.  He is a screenwriter who is trying to make the transition to novels and has an utterly romantic view on life.  The movie opens with amazing shots of Paris and then Gil rhapsodising about how wonderful Paris would have been in the1920’s and in the rain.  Anyway, he eventually ends up taking a walk through the streets of Paris, and at midnight, he finds himself transported back in time to 1920’s Paris!  He meets Hemingway, Picasso, the Fitzgeralds and Gertrude Stein.  He drinks wine with Dali who is obsessed with rhinoceroses and jumps in a car with T.S Eliot.  I think if this had to happen to me, I would die with a smile on my face.

I really enjoyed this movie, it was witty and inspiring and made me think about all sorts of things; the past, how we always think we are born in the wrong time, about travelling and about writing.   If I didn’t love Paris before I am now dying to go back!  There are also some truly great lines in the movie, like this one from Gil:

"That's what the present is. It's a little unsatisfying because life is unsatisfying."

Or this one from Gertrude Stein:

"The artist's job is not to succumb to despair but to find an antidote for the emptiness of existence."

If you don’t want to take my word for it, check out this review from Rolling Stone.

Anyway, this movie was just part of a fun morning out with a good friend.  She spoilt me with coffee from a little place called Larney’s.  Its attached to the Space store in Gateway and it’s just the right amount of quirky!  Check out the awesome cups:

This is my last post for 2011!  I can't believe we are on the threshold of another year.  I have a really good feeling about 2012 and I am excited to see what becomes of this little blog.  

Happy New Years!!

 PS.  The quotes above are from IMDB.  If you’ve seen the movie, let me know what you thought.