The French Dispatch

As "The French Dispatch of the Liberty, Kansas Evening Sun" (2021 release; 107 min) opens, we are introduced to the French fictional town of Ennui-sur-Blasé (translated from French, literally, "boredom on apathetic"), where an outpost of the Liberty, Kansas Evening News gathers one last time to bring the final issue of the French Dispatch, a weekly magazine. Within minutes, we are introduced to a myriad of characters...

Couple of comments: this is the latest from writer-director Wes Anderson. Whose work I mostly adore ("Isle of Dogs"., "The Grand Budapest Hotel", "The Royal Tenenbaums", just to name those). It feels to me as if "The French Dispatch" is the culmination of many of his earlier films, with maximum focus on style but regretfully not enough attention to the storytelling. Is this supposed t be a "comedy"? If so, I can tell you that I didn't laugh a single time. If it's supposed to be something else, that didn't resonate with me either. In the end, I simply watched but I never "bought into" the film or felt connected with any of it or the characters. Per the usual, this is an ensemble cast, but on steroids, as in: DOZENS of big names, some of which you'll miss if you blink. In the end the movie never achieves the sum of its parts, and it all felt strangely aloof and left me unmoved.

"The French Dispatch" was filmed in 2019 and its release was one of the many victims of COVID, being pushed back several times. By the time it received a US theatrical release in Fall, 2021, it almost felt like its due date had already come and gone. I missed it in the theater, and finally caught it the other day on HBO Max. If you, like myself, are a big Wes Anderson, I'd readily suggest you check it out, with low(er) expectations, and draw your own conclusion.

Whether you like it or not, there is establishment behind Wes Anderson and his style. Production designs, and soundtrack is always in its top and gets more and more artistic with each film yet, it is both positive and negative. For me, after Moonrise Kingdom (2012) (my personal favourite by him) & especially The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014), it is becoming harder to dive into the film or the characters. Don't get me wrong, it is visually stunning always and you could see the great choreography or design behind it but characters don't feel authentic like they used to.

With the exception of "The Concrete Masterpiece". It was as engaging as it was beautiful. Benicio Del Toro & Lea Seydoux maintained to give something to hold on for audience (or at least me) even though it is hindered by the style.

Also, I agree with Mr. Howitzer. The last discussion between Roebuck Wright and Nescaffier was indeed the best part literally.

I am not in a level or a position to criticize or to give an advice but, I think it is best to returning back to the roots like The Royal Tenenbaums (2001), Rushmore (1998) or even Moonrise Kingdom (2012) cause it is getting harder to watch it as a movie.

Wes Anderson has made many films people have loved as well as many films people are baffled by and don't understand nor like. This isn't a complaint...it just IS what Anderson's films are like to the average viewer. However, some of his movies are clearly much more approachable than others. "The French Dispatch" is NOT one of the more approachable films...it clearly will appeal mostly to the hard-core Anderson freaks.

The film is broken down in to several stories that are interconnected by the same narrator. The first, about an insane modern artists and the sycophants who love his art--despite his multiple beheadings...which have gotten him locked up in a psychiatric prison. I think this is a very funny and insightful look at pretentious art lovers. The other stories also involve pretentious people but to me seem to have little in the way of payoff. The young revolutionary bit is mildly amusing and pokes fun of the 1960s young peoples' revolution in Paris and the kidnapping bit really left me cold.

The bottom line is that all the stories are surreal and just plain weird.... and I assume most people will like some and hate other portions of the film. So, I am not a fan of the story overall. But I was blown away by the cinematography, artisic sets and strange look of the film...this is probably THE reason to see the movie...not the plot itself. A great example is the scene showing the transition from a young demented artist to an older one...which was very clever. Overall, a film I didn't particularly like but I definitely respected.

Incredible cast, and Wes Anderson's style is always visually appealing, but the short stories that make up The French Dispatch fell flat for me. The attention to detail and sly references were great as a concept, but seemed overdone, to the detriment of evenness (or comprehension) in the plot and characters that I cared about. It needed a better script, one that was pruned down and had more heart. It was fantastic seeing all of these actors, though most are underused to say the least. Loved Jeffrey Wright in this though.

When one goes to a Wes Anderson film, we exactly know what to expect. In French Dispatch, Wes Anderson gives us everything we expect but he seems to have focused too much on aesthetics and less in the script. The film resembles like a spiritual sequel to Grand Budapest Hotel, but lacked it's strong characters and bullet speed screenplay.

The French Dispatch is an anthology about 3 segments in a newspaper set in a French town. Each story is something Wes Anderson has never done in his previous films, he tries to convey a political satire which often falls flat. A big star cast wasn't necessary for this film but it had it anyway and many top actors have been grossly under utilized.

The biggest plus of French Dispatch is that it has a spectacular production design, original score, cinematography and costumes. The aesthetics test has been passed in flying colours, probably the best we have seen in a Wes Anderson movie. On the first watch the movie rather feels like a letdown compared to his previous work but rewatches could boost it's legacy.