Dilip
    <arasa@fastmail.com>                                       10 Feb 2022
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                              The French Dispatch.

    After several years, there is a movie I enjoyed watching: The French
    Dispatch.

    The first thing you should know about this movie is that it is not a
    movie for everyone. I refer to the primary expectation in a movie that
    most subsections of mainstream audience have: a plot.

    Now, the French Dispatch isn't a movie without a plot - quite the
    opposite actually, I enjoyed the plot elements in the movie. But the
    movie isn't structured to have a single primary plot arc from start to
    finish. Think of the movie as a collection of short stories wrapped up
    together into a movie. Unlike any other movie that tries to do
    something like this, The French Dispatch actually manages to pull this
    off and entertain you in the process.

    What's astonishing about the movie is the subject: a single magazine
    issue. If you told me that it was possible to write a sharp and
    engaging screenplay adaptation of a single magazine issue, I would have
    questioned your sanity. It could not be done I would have proclaimed.
    "It's also stupid" I would amend and walk away and never think about it
    again.

    I would have missed out on this movie.

    The movie is a movie adaptation of a fictional magazine issue. It has
    sections on Food, Art, Obituaries, Current Events - basically what you
    would expect from a magazine issue. It is also visually stunning -
    watching this movie on a large screen in a dark room will yield an
    improved viewing experience in this instance (not true for most movies:
    garbage is still garbage irrespective of lighting conditions in the
    end).

    The movie is a visual masterpiece. The performances by the cast are
    adequate for this film. The soundtracks work. The writing is
    spectacular. The movie is, on the whole, unusual.

    I would rate this movie a solid 9. (I refrain from 10 because this
    movie did not significantly change my life in any meaningful way).

    Watch this movie when you have run out of artistic drive and need a
    spark of inspiration.