Midnight in Paris
Laura Flippin's latest blog post:
All right, I love movies about travel, movies that take place in other locations, and now I also seem to be on a time-travel kick. Another time travel movie, Midnight in Paris (2011), caught my attention. This one takes place in Paris. And first of all, let me say, I’m not a Woody Allen fan. In fact I resisted seeing this movie precisely because it’s a Woody Allen movie, but I also must admit, I loved it. Paris is beautiful and this movie captures Paris in all its beauty throughout time. Owen Wilson- who actually IS one of my favorites- plays a writer who travels through Paris and travels through time to the Paris in the 1920s. He meets the great artists of that time- Fitzgerald, Hemingway, Dalí and Picasso. One of my favorites is Zelda Fitzgerald, Scott Fitzgerald’s wife. She was an icon of the 1920s- young, beautiful, energetic and even a feminist icon. Her and her husband were considered part of the Lost Generation- expats who moves to Paris in the 1920s.
Many critique this movie because it implements a great deal of nostalgia. First is the historical nostalgia, a desire to experience a time in the past that one hasn’t actually experienced. I would love to be at those parties with Hemmingway, Dalí and especially Zelda. But there’s also personal nostalgia. Personal nostalgia refers to one’s personal memories. Sometimes people develop certain associations to people, places, or things because of past experiences that have made an impact. A character in the film defines nostalgia as “denial of the painful present.” To some, a feeling of nostalgia is bad because it means one is not satisfied the present. I agree with this to some extent. I try not to find myself feeling nostalgic all the time. One of the reasons I like traveling is to have new experiences, but another reason I like to travel to learn about historical events that happened in the past. The past defines us and it is important to acknowledge that. Without memories, we may not be who we are today. Anyway, I recommend this movie!
from Laura Flippin Movie Reviews http://ift.tt/1iV2LPt