YNOT at the Movies

Whether you are a regular reader of The New Yorker magazine, you will be delighted and charmed by "The French Dispatch" (Germany/USA 2021 | 108 min.), the meticulously crafted love letter to this legendary publication, and to literary culture and journalism in general, from the acclaimed writer-director Wes Anderson. In addition to the written words, amusing illustrations, sly humor, and elegant style displayed in almost every issue of the magazine, the film features a fine ensemble performance from an impressive list of the most prominent actors. Of course, it will make you grin again and again, as if you are seeing the clever cartoons scattered in the magazine.

The film is set in the '60s in a fictional town in France called Ennui-Sur-Blasé. Arthur Howitzer Jr. (Bill Murray), the editor of a magazine The French Dispatch which he founded 50 years ago, is dead. His hand-picked writers whom he spent a lifetime to nurture and support are planning to publish the final issue of the magazine according to his will.

Like the real magazine that covers art, literature, sex, politics, food, and cinema, the film is a collage of a few unrelated short films on some of these subjects. It contains three feature stories, one travel column, and an obituary of the editor.

The film begins with a travel column, written by the cycling reporter Herbsaint Sazerac (Owen Wilson) who observes the city and connects with its history on and off his bicycles from his distinct perspective.

The first feature story, The Concrete Masterpiece, is told by modern art critic J. K. L. Berensen (Tilda Swinton) in a lecture hall. The masterpiece she is referring to is painted in prison by a convicted murder Moses Rosenthaler (Benicio Del Toro) who has a bizarre affair with the prison guard/model/muse Simone (Léa Seydoux). Moses's work in prison is discovered by an art dealer Julian Cadazio (Adrien Brody). Julian turns Moses into an international sensation in the modern art circle and even causes a prison riot.

The second feature story, Revisions to a Manifesto, covers French politics by essayist Lucinda Krementz (Frances McDormand). She revises the manifesto for the student movement leader, a chess master Zeffirelli (Timothée Chalamet), and she writes it while in bed with him, no less, without compromising her journalistic neutrality.

The last feature story, The Private Dining Room of the Police Commissioner, is reported by food critic Roebuck Wright (Jeffrey Wright) who is interviewed on TV by a talk show host (Liev Schreiber). Roebuck dramatically recalls the heroic act of the Commissaire's (Mathieu Amalric) personal chef Nescafier (Steve Park) in a rescue operation after the Commissaire's son is kidnapped by a group of thugs demanding the release of their leader Albert the Abacus (Willem Dafoe).

The director Wes Anderson and his collaborators must have had a blast in composing this exquisite piece of art. He playfully alters media and formats throughout the film such as changing screen aspect ratios or switching from color to black and white. He even adds an animated action car chase sequence on the curly streets of France. Sometimes he freezes the live action performance into a photograph. But he is able to have all the fun while keeping the overall elegant style intact, as if you are still reading the same magazine, page after page.

The film's humorous tone closely aligns with The New Yorker's cleverness and subtlety. Even though this is not a laugh out loud comedy, it's definitely a charmer that brings a lot of smiles. And the most impressive and mesmerizing aspect of the film is its production design (Adam Stockhausen). It's a stunning achievement to be marveled with. How can you forget what you see in the scene where the drinks are delivered to the editor's office at the beginning of the film?

The French Dispatch may have ceased to publish, but Wes Anderson made it last forever.

"The French Dispatch" opens on Friday, October 22, 2021 in the San Francisco Bay Area.