As The French Dispatch, a publication dedicated to the happenings of the fictional town of Ennui, France, shuts its doors for the final time, the staff highlight three memorable stories for their last-ever edition. The resulting anthologies follow an imprisoned artist (Benicio del Toro) exploited for one last hurrah, a French student (Timothée Chalamet) concocting a student revolution and a food writer (Jeffrey Wright) in the midst of a hostage negotiation.
Within Wes Anderson’s familiar pastel whimsy, a sense of melancholy lurks under the surface that makes his other films work—a kind of nostalgia that’s hard to peg. One might also question whether something as superlative as Anderson’s The Grand Budapest Hotel can ever be topped. The French Dispatch answers such a question: Not just yet.
There will be the requisite Andersonheads who find the typical elementary-school-art-project vibes to be beyond reproach, particularly as they come from one of the last regularly funded auteurs in Hollywood. But The French Dispatch only proves there’s a little life behind the camera; it’ll likely (and rightfully) go down as one of Anderson’s lesser works (see Darjeeling Limited).
Ennui doesn’t feel like the place-as-character locale it ought to be, whereas Anderson’s settings usually become characters unto themselves. By the end, you likely won’t know Ennui any better than when you were first introduced. If these tales hold any particular meaning, it’s so subtle as to be easily missed. That isn’t to say you can’t have fun with empty whimsy—just note there’s a feeling like a once hidden museum now packed with tourist types who make it harder for the longtime visitors to enjoy.
This means an unusual lack of personality within the screenplay from Anderson, like a trés-expensive impersonation of an old man recalling a foggy version of his teenage years. The usual check marks are there, though, from the same Anderson-y cast members like Bill Murray, Owen Wilson, Adrian Brody and Tilda Swinton, to the symmetry of a subject and the snippy dialogue. That’s just what it is, though—a checklist of expectations so we can, presumably, move along to the actual passion project (fingers crossed for the next one).
Calling the town Ennui was right on the money.
6
+ There’s some fun to be had
- This crew has made better films
The French Dispatch
Directed by Anderson
With Del Toro, Chalamet and Wright
CCA and Violet Crown, R, 108 min