Rating of
3.5/4
Love-Letter to Journalists in Anderson Style
Chris Kavan - wrote on 03/04/22
I'm an unasbashed Wes Anderson fan and really wanted to see this in theaters, but, alas, never got the change. Still, the film lost none of its Anderson flair at home as the visuals and Anderson's signature style - including a great animated sequence - really pop.
The French Dispatch is made up of three distinct stories told from the point-of-view of the reporter of said story - bookended by the making of the final issue of said paper due to death of owener Arthur Howitzer, Jr. (Bill Murray). Before the first major story, we are introduced to the French community of Ennui-sur-Blasé (entirely fictional but filmed in the very real city of Angoulême) in a cycling commentary from reporter Herbsaint Sazerac (Owen Wilson) - who compares the old and current districts as well as not glossing over things like rats in the subway. From here we join arts reporter J.K.L. Berensen (Tilda Swinton) and her contribution of artist Moses Rosenthaler (Benicio Del Toro) who went from mental asylum murderer to highly regarded artist thanks to the keen eye (and money-hungry) nature of art critic Julian Cadazio (Adrien Brody) - in prison for tax evasion - as well as the help from his muse, Simone (Léa Seydoux) - a guard who is very good at keeping still even in the most uncomfortable of poses. The dialogue is snappy and both Del Toro and Swinton are perfectly cast. Also, there's a great freeze-frame fight at the end.
The story comes from Lucinda Krementz (Frances McDormand) who is reporting (and kind of helping) a student rebellion led by Zeffirelli (Timothée Chalamet). The two engage in a small tryst, but Lucinda tries to stay out of the picture, even as she makes a few edits to his manifesto (and not the first one she's helped write, either). Juliette (Lyna Khoudri) is his biggest critic - but also turns out to be a potential partner as Lucinda urges the young lovers to consummate their relationship. And, of course, every rebellion needs a martyr... The mid piece, to me, was the weakest entry but still a fine characters study and I would love to see Chalamet become a new edition to Anderson's expanding family of recurring actors.
The final segment is food critic Roebuck Wright's (Jeffrey Wright) report on the sublime police cuisine of Nescaffier (Steve Park) hosted by the Commissaire (Mathieu Amalric). Of course, things quickly devolve when the Commissaire's son, Gigi (Winston Ait Hellal) is kidnapped in hope of freeing underworld accountant Albert 'the Abacus' (Willem Dafoe) before he can implicate anyone in his crimes. Wright finds himself on a major police undertaking as the kidnappers, led by The Chauffeur (Edward Norton) won't go down easy. This is the portion that features the animated sequence and it fits perfectly with the rest of the action. This is my favorite piece out of the three and is a joy to behold as I think is tells the most personal story while also having the most fun with its subjects.
The film ends where it begins, with the staff coming up with the obituary for Arthur - which serves as the final issue of their publication. The film is filled to the brim with supporting actors - Henry Winkler, Tony Revolori, Lois Smith, Liev Schreiber, Saoirse Ronan, Elisabeth Moss, Fisher Stevens, Christoph Waltz, Bob Balaban, Jason Schwartzman and Larry Pine are some of the big names who have smaller parts but still manage to stand out in their own way.
The entire film is essentially a dedication to journalists - with the style of The French Dispatch cover clearly inspired by The New Yorker and several journalists are given thanks at the end credits, who inspired the fictional reporters depicted in the film. As a one-time journalism major, it's nice to see the medium through the lens of Anderson and his unique style. While some may find the vignettes a big disjointed compared to a typical Anderson film, I found it refreshing and was just something different and it worked fine for me.
In the end, I think what you get out of this film depends on what you think of Anderson as a filmmaker. I am clearly not on the fence as I find Anderson fascinating and The French Dispatch is just another jewel in his crown.
