Is there a positive way to say “Pretentious?” Because while I enjoyed this film, at the same time I had to admire its almost comic inaccessibility – the life of an obscure, little-read publication, narrating nearly-gripping tales of an artistic murderer, a revolution fought on a chess board, and the kidnapping of a pre-teen police chief in training all shot in black and white. I suppose these are things I imagine could be part of normal lives … so long as those lives were set in mid-20th century France, maybe? Even the setting of Ennui-sur-Blasé, France is one that will only generate a smile from folks who at times find their erudition an embarrassment.
The French Dispatch of the Liberty, Kansas Evening Sun –say, why isn’t this set in Liberty, Kansas? [hint see: tentious, pre-] – is a composition of several short films that make up this fictional magazine’s final publication due to the death of its owner/editor Arthur Howitzer (Bill Murray). I will summarize each story here and now:
Owen Wilson on a Bike (aka “The Cycling Reporter”) — Herbsaint Sazerac (Wilson) takes us on a cycling tour of Ennui-sur-Blasé if only to remind us we aren’t in Kansas anymore.
Holy Cow, that Guard is HOT! (aka “The Concrete Masterpiece”) – Twice convicted murderer Moses Rosenthaler (Benicio del Toro) has the best prison life anyone can imagine… for hours a day, the convicted felon gets private time in an auditorium all to himself to paint. Well, himself and his personal jailor Simone (Léa Seydoux), who poses nude for him. People have killed for less, and I suppose there’s your proof. Somewere along the line, investor Julian Calzado (Adrien Brody) discovers Rosenthaler’s art for its unique mediocrity and makes a celebrity out of the prisoner.
The Passive Revolution (aka “Revisions to a Manifesto”) – Zeferelli (Timothée Chalamet in something very close to a Prince moustache) becomes the default leader of the world’s least impressive revolution – a student-led 
affair in which passion has yielded energy and little else. Highlighting the idiocy is the fact that Zeferelli’s manifesto has been professionally edited by the Dispatch writer he’s sleeping with, Lucinda Krementz (Frances McDormand).
Kidnapping Li’l Chief (aka “The Private Dining Room of the Police Commissioner”) – In the movie’s silliest and most thrilling tale, the pre-pubescent son of the police chief is kidnapped for the ransom of the imprisoned mob bookkeeper. Chef to the rescue!
Gee, wasn’t all that thrilling? I’m critical, but I liked the presentation. What I didn’t like was the lack of intimacy. I felt much more than usual with this material that Wes Anderson was showing me a movie, rather than telling me a story.
As a critic, I have been kind to Wes Anderson. I called The Grand Budapest Hotel the best film of 2014. I gave Mr. Anderson two consecutive four-star reviews. I don’t give anything four stars, and yet I gave Wes Anderson that twice. In a row. Was I a fool? Was I a sucker? It’s not like his style has changed – nobody frames a scene quite like Anderson. Nobody goes from storyboarding to film quite like Anderson. There is no better director in the world at subtle humor and straight-faced parody. Is The French Dispatch really so different from his other films? Well, no … and yes. The style of Wes Anderson comes through loud-and-clear here, but I’m missing the connection. The mix-and-match stories and almost surreal settings kept –for me at least- the protagonists at arm’s length. I don’t feel for any of the characters in this film the way I felt for the boy and girl in Moonrise Kingdom. Part of that is the disjointed short-story feel, and part of it is just plain pretension. I liked The French Dispatch, but I don’t need to see it again; I haven’t said that about a Wes Anderson film in quite some time.
As a framer, Anderson has no match
So his new movie I just had to catch
Another Gem from Wes?
Have film gods come to bless?
That thought I will have to Dispatch
Rated R, 107 Minutes
Director: Wes Anderson
Writer: Wes Anderson
Genre: The good kind of pretentious
Type of being most likely to enjoy this film: Wes Anderson homies
Type of being least likely to enjoy this film: The kind of person who will avoid a film for subtitles
