The French Dispatch is a 2021 movie by American director Wes Anderson. Anderson describes the movie as his love letter to the journalists whose adventures serve as the main source of inspiration for this movie. The movie has a typical Wes Anderson signature all over it. The filming of this project took place between November 2018 and March 2019, with Robert Yeoman as cinematographer, in the city of Angoulême, France. During post-production, editing was completed by Andrew Weisblum and the musical score was composed by Alexandre Desplat.
If you have seen a Wes Anderson movie before, it will be quite a treat for you. On the other hand, if you are not well acquainted with Anderson’s work, fret not. We are here to get you all caught up.
Before getting into the plot of the movie, let us first explore Anderson’s style as seen frequently in his movies.
The Anderson Style
What Anderson makes is more than a movie. It is more than a singular linear storyline. Rather, his movies may be seen as montages; kind of like separate frames brought together and each of them has its story. This is exactly the style Anderson followed in The French Dispatch.
The French dispatch is going to be a unique experience for its viewers. The director brilliant handling of details and eye-popping scenes with the perfect colour balance. The tchotchke plays an important part in his movies. Scenes, as well as characters, have certain small details about them that stand to carry special significance. A lot goes on in Anderson’s movies. They are full of events, characters and actions and demand every part of the attention of the viewers.
This young director is slowly paving his style in movie making. His own thoughts and psychology too come to matter in his content, as admitted by Anderson in an interview.
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Plot of The French Dispatch
Wes Anderson himself has the following regarding the storyline of the movie;
“The story is not easy to explain,” Anderson said. “[It’s about an] American journalist based in France [who] creates his magazine. It is more a portrait of this man, of this journalist who fights to write what he wants to write. It’s not a movie about freedom of the press, but when you talk about reporters you also talk about what’s going on in the real world.”
The movie is set in a French town, Ennui Sur Balise. Here we have Arthur Howizilt who works for an English magazine. This French-based American journalist and colleagues are the main interest of the movie.
The movie is presented through a collection of stories. It has three stories and follows a story within a story format.
The first story features Leah Seydoux and Benicio Del Toro, Adrian Brody and Tilda Swinton. Del Toro is a prisoner and Seydoux is his muse. He paints her picture. Adrian Brody is an art dealer who wants to buy Del Toro’s pictures.
Tilda Swinton’s character is one of the complicated ones. She has an intimate relationship with all things related to Art.
The second story follows a staff reporter played by Frances McDormand and her young subject played by Timothee Chalamet. This duo presents the odd and inexplicable nature of human beings. Their conversation, communication and concoction serve as a typical Anderson move.
The third and final story revolves around the kidnapping of a Police officer’s son.
These unrelated stories come together to form the narrative of the movie. The stories shown in the movie are based on real events which were published in The New Yorker to which Anderson dedicated this sincere effort.
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Bill Murray in The French Dispatch
Bill Murray plays the role of the editor. There are several strange dialogues uttered by him that just cemented his role as an editor. The dry and dark humour of Murray will surely leave a mark on the viewers.
Art of Wes of Anderson
Anderson movies are always known for three things– cinematography, costumes and production design. The French Dispatch fulfils this list perfectly. The scenes are shot with a lot of care and attention. Even the use of black and white as cinematic components has worked out perfectly.
The costume is accurate. It successfully portrays the timeline, mood and colour pallet of the movie.
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Availability of The French Dispatch
The movie is available in the area. Nothing was mentioned about online streaming
Conclusion
Wes Anderson movies are very different from what we usually see. His movies are strange quirky experiences full of deliberate shifts in tone. If you like experimenting with it, is something you can check out.
The French Dispatch is going to be a treat for you, irrespective of your choice. This anticipated enterprise will be on the big screen very soon.
