User reviews

Wes Anderson has made many films people have loved as well as many films people are baffled by and don't understand nor like. This isn't a complaint...it just IS what Anderson's films are like to the average viewer. However, some of his movies are clearly much more approachable than others. "The French Dispatch" is NOT one of the more approachable films...it clearly will appeal mostly to the hard-core Anderson freaks.

The film is broken down in to several stories that are interconnected by the same narrator. The first, about an insane modern artists and the sycophants who love his art--despite his multiple beheadings...which have gotten him locked up in a psychiatric prison. I think this is a very funny and insightful look at pretentious art lovers. The other stories also involve pretentious people but to me seem to have little in the way of payoff. The young revolutionary bit is mildly amusing and pokes fun of the 1960s young peoples' revolution in Paris and the kidnapping bit really left me cold.

The bottom line is that all the stories are surreal and just plain weird.... and I assume most people will like some and hate other portions of the film. So, I am not a fan of the story overall. But I was blown away by the cinematography, artisic sets and strange look of the film...this is probably THE reason to see the movie...not the plot itself. A great example is the scene showing the transition from a young demented artist to an older one...which was very clever. Overall, a film I didn't particularly like but I definitely respected.

When one goes to a Wes Anderson film, we exactly know what to expect. In French Dispatch, Wes Anderson gives us everything we expect but he seems to have focused too much on aesthetics and less in the script. The film resembles like a spiritual sequel to Grand Budapest Hotel, but lacked it's strong characters and bullet speed screenplay.

The French Dispatch is an anthology about 3 segments in a newspaper set in a French town. Each story is something Wes Anderson has never done in his previous films, he tries to convey a political satire which often falls flat. A big star cast wasn't necessary for this film but it had it anyway and many top actors have been grossly under utilized.

The biggest plus of French Dispatch is that it has a spectacular production design, original score, cinematography and costumes. The aesthetics test has been passed in flying colours, probably the best we have seen in a Wes Anderson movie. On the first watch the movie rather feels like a letdown compared to his previous work but rewatches could boost it's legacy.

I suppose the gamble of any film told in a series of vignettes is to capture the rapt attention of your audience in one segment only to lose it in the next (see: The Ballad of Buster Scruggs).

None of the vignettes in The French Dispatch ever truly lost me, but one came close. And it's not to say that particular story was poorly written or directed or performed, it's simply that the one preceding it was so dazzling and fantastic I wasn't quite ready to move on from it.

Moving on is a large part of this film as it never stops marching forward both literally and figuratively. It has (a) large story(ries) to get through and if you can't keep up...sorry. No crying.

The French Dispatch is a film told in five parts. Three articles bookended by an introduction and an epilogue. These five pieces make up the final issue of the magazine titled (wait for it): The French Dispatch. We "read" the final issue by watching the articles unfold through Wes Anderson's beautiful, obsessive, whimsical lens.

Visually this is an Anderson film cranked to 11. The photogenic establishing shots, contrasting symmetry, and pastel color scheme of his entire career drenches every shot of this film. The picture beautifully shifts from black and white to color, and always at the perfect moment. His creative and effective use of animation and miniature sets are mesmerizing.

Basically if you don't like Anderson's style you're really, truly going to hate this movie, but your mind was probably already made up.

Seeing this in a theater packed full of micro-beanie, gold wire framed glasses wearing hipsters reminded me of why I don't typically like seeing Anderson's films on opening weekends. There is exactly one reason to ever talk during a movie, and that's if there is a fire, after that there is not one good reason to ever speak in a theater, especially if you're talking directly to the screen which a handful of these people did.

The French Dispatch is an excellent film and Anderson is an excellent filmmaker. I think his style and creativity are a much needed burst of originality on the canvas of filmmaking. It also just made me feel nice after watching The Last Duel, that movie stole a piece of my soul... I like unconventional filmmakers, I like divisive filmmakers, and even in his missteps, I'll continue to be excited by and support Wes Anderson.

Incredible cast, and Wes Anderson's style is always visually appealing, but the short stories that make up The French Dispatch fell flat for me. The attention to detail and sly references were great as a concept, but seemed overdone, to the detriment of evenness (or comprehension) in the plot and characters that I cared about. It needed a better script, one that was pruned down and had more heart. It was fantastic seeing all of these actors, though most are underused to say the least. Loved Jeffrey Wright in this though.

I couldn't care. I just couldn't bring myself to care for anything that happens in this film or for any character who inhabits this story or for any actor who is a part of its ensemble or for any stylistic choices the director makes. A Wes Anderson film at first looked wonderfully quaint & quirky to me and I've given them the benefit of doubt over the years. But not anymore. This is it. His films are not for me.

The French Dispatch is a Wes Anderson film through n through. And I don't mean it in a good way. Like most of his works that I've seen so far, the visual aesthetic is no doubt appealing to the eye, it is beautifully shot, comes decorated with exquisite set pieces, and is steered by an ensemble of Hollywood A-listers. And just like most of his films, it is emotionally disconnected, tediously paced, and devoid of any flavours.

The story finds the American filmmaker in self-indulgent mode and he surely makes the most of it, thus resulting in a movie that's not only unbearable but also one that feels twice as long. Add to that, the oddball characters remain cold & distant, the nonsensical ramblings goes on forever yet never create any intrigue or interest, the laughs in store are few n far between and Alexandre Desplat's score only adds to the eccentricity.

Overall, The French Dispatch is one of the blandest films I've sat through and is arguably the worst film of the year for me, and certainly the most disappointing. Fans of the filmmaker will have a better time with it than I did and may even find it delightful & amusing. But for me, this was an absolute chore from start to finish that also affirmed what I've known for a while now. Wes Anderson films are simply not to my taste and I'm perfectly okay with that.

Whether you like it or not, there is establishment behind Wes Anderson and his style. Production designs, and soundtrack is always in its top and gets more and more artistic with each film yet, it is both positive and negative. For me, after Moonrise Kingdom (2012) (my personal favourite by him) & especially The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014), it is becoming harder to dive into the film or the characters. Don't get me wrong, it is visually stunning always and you could see the great choreography or design behind it but characters don't feel authentic like they used to.

With the exception of "The Concrete Masterpiece". It was as engaging as it was beautiful. Benicio Del Toro & Lea Seydoux maintained to give something to hold on for audience (or at least me) even though it is hindered by the style.

Also, I agree with Mr. Howitzer. The last discussion between Roebuck Wright and Nescaffier was indeed the best part literally.

I am not in a level or a position to criticize or to give an advice but, I think it is best to returning back to the roots like The Royal Tenenbaums (2001), Rushmore (1998) or even Moonrise Kingdom (2012) cause it is getting harder to watch it as a movie.

*Watched at Cannes 2021*

With each subsequent entry into his distinct filmography, Wes Anderson seems to make it a mission to make the most Wes Anderson film. The intricacies of 2001's "The Royal Tenenbaums" seemed quaint around the time "The Grand Budapest Hotel" was released in 2013. Even his side ventures into stop-motion animation contain a great distance in production quality between 2009's "Fantastic Mr. Fox" and 2018's "Isle of Dogs." With Anderson's tenth feature film, "The French Dispatch" towers over all of his previous works with its masterful production qualities and international ensemble cast.

Set within 20th century France in the fictional city of Ennui-sur-Blasé, "The French Dispatch" opens with the untimely news that the editor of the titular magazine, Arthur Howitzer Jr. (Bill Murray), son of the magazine's founder and holder of a supreme eye for talent, has died. As per his wishes, his life is to be tied directly to that of the magazine, meaning that the publication dies with him. His team of writers - an eccentric bunch of expatriates all recruited over the years by Howitzer in one way or another - are granted one final issue, which they decide will contain "an obituary, a brief travel guide, and three feature stories."

The obituary is, of course, for Arthur, while the travel guide takes one through the historic village that has acted as the publication's home for nearly half a century. The three retrospective stories selected are considered to be the best in the publication's long history: an account by the paper's art critic (Tilda Swinton) of the deranged painter Moses Rosenthal (Benicio Del Toro) and a brash art dealer (Adrien Brody); an on-the-ground report by political correspondent Lucinda Krementz (Frances McDormand) of the student revolution led by the charismatic Zeffirelli (Timothee Chalamet); and a retelling by food critic Roebuck Wright (Jeffrey Wright) of how he got entangled in a kidnapping involving the son of the chief of police (Matthieu Almaric).

While there is no central story to fully move the film from start to finish, the anthology-style structure still allows Anderson to explore several of the themes found within his previous works, such as human curiosity and the ironic relationship we share with the world and its other characters. The final story of the food critic ranks as the best in terms of what's on the page, giving Jeffrey Wright a wonderfully complex character who unintentionally learns several valuable lessons about his place in the world.

Some will find that the anthology structure limits the emotional connection one can have to the characters, especially since Anderson has built his career on wonderfully layered characters such as Royal Tenenbaum and M. Gustave. On the contrary, while many of his characters tend to overstay their welcome in a 100-minute narrative, the anthologies force Anderson to be as efficient as possible with character development, creating several sequences of mise-en-scène where the direction tells just as much of the story as the script.

After gradually becoming more confident as a director, Anderson has finally allowed himself to fully unleash his unique brand of filmmaking. Visually, this is one of the most accomplished works ever made as Anderson toys with aspect ratios (very similar to the strategy within "The Grand Budapest Hotel"), color and black & white cinematography, ingeniously hilarious freeze frames, and a period-accurate soundtrack that seems to always be perfectly queued. Ironically, the major complaint I have against the film is that there are dozens of expertly crafted shots that come and go in mere seconds even though they could be dissected for hours. Every frame truly is a painting as several hidden treasures can be found in every nook and cranny. This is a film that demands to be rewatched several times over to soak in every last detail.

There are no weak links within the Robert Altman-sized cast, with players such as Adrien Brody (who seems to only deliver a good performance nowadays when directed by Anderson), Frances McDormand, and Jeffrey Wright. The phrase "there are no small parts, only small actors" doesn't apply here as people such as Christoph Waltz and Saoirse Ronan are reduced to minuscule cameos. Still, Henry Winkler and Willem Dafoe are able to do a lot with the little that they are given.

A visual masterpiece bursting at the seams with talent both on and off the screen, "The French Dispatch" is a film by a director working at the absolute height of his powers. More importantly, the film gave me one of the most enjoyable theatrical experiences in a long time, with several rounds of applause from the Cannes crowd that seemed to be in love with the film as much as I was.

I worry about how Anderson will be able to top this with his next film. But until then, I'll stay in the present and be thankful that something this magical is allowed to exist in a world that only seems to get bleaker.

Kansas Evening Sun is closing with the death of its editor. It has a foreign bureau in post-war Paris run by Arthur Howitzer Jr. (Bill Murray) who has cultivated a stable of eccentric writers. This follows three of the articles. This is a Wes Anderson film.

This has the Wes Anderson cohorts with a few new members. The style is all him and I love it. I love Moses and Simone. I really like the first story. I wouldn't mind if that's the whole movie. The second story is interesting but Wes is essentially taking pot shots at young idealistic protesters. I kept thinking that some younger viewers are going yell out Boomer at the screen. It's trying to be humorous but it's missing that other point of view. The third story is the least interesting to me. I'm not sure if it's the structure or the actual story. I really lost interest by that point. I wish that this is a whole movie about Moses and his artistic adventures.

After leaving the theatre I am having a Wes Anderson overload. By far the writer/ directors most ambitious project. I really do understand the criticism, but in the words of Rhett Butler "Frankly my dear, I dont give a damn"! This was an absolute joy to watch. A meticulously intricate set design and great performances by a stellar cast pulled the story from the pages, and gave it a heartbeat.

All that being said, it is not without its flaws. The French Dispatch lacked a human element. Unlike the rest of his films, the movie was not rooted in family relationships, which is something I've always admired in his stories. However, this did not bother as much as it did other people. The French Dispatch is an absolute blast and a nice change from the boring, overdone Oscar bait movies that always come out in the fall.

A triumph of style and artistry, The French Despatch is also witty and clever, but it might leave you cold if you don't like the quirky, arty, and, frankly, sometimes quite pretentious and self-indulgent Wes Anderson approach. Like other films of his, it's marvellous to look at, there are some funny moments from the huge star studded cast, and despite the reservations mentioned, the French Despatch is classy.

I suppose my only qualm with this movie is that it's very talky (as many of his films are), and if you have a short attention span like myself, it can be easy to miss important dialogue. I had to ask the friend I was with for explanation on one or two things I didn't fully comprehend. However, once you really immerse yourself in the world of the film, you'll miss less and less.

This film was an absolute delight from start to finish. I thought each of the three stories were captivating in their own, unique way (though I definitely liked Chalamet's the most), and the bookends about Murray's character tied everything together perfectly.

Anderson has this marvelous talent for luring you into his fantastical films with unbelievable set design and whimsical details and oddly delightful performances, and then hitting you over the head with reality. There are plenty of moments in this film that truly struck me in a profound way, especially one during story two that included a stellar performance from Alex Lawther, who expertly utilized what little screen time he had. One line of dialogue still haunts me hours later.

It's also one of his funniest movies; the absurdity of some of the visuals and performances are really a sight to behold. The cartoon sections in the third story had me ROLLING for a good few minutes.

So go see it. It's wildly original and has that trademark Wes Anderson touch dialed up to 11.

I really enjoyed other films by Wes Anderson, but this one I really didn't like. The only reason I watched it until the end was because I was in the cinema. It was really nice to look at but the stories I thought were really boring. I was very disappointed, cause I love his other films. Don't go to the cinema for it, just stream it and see for yourself.

The French Dispatch is a French subsidiary of a Kansas newspaper. Every week it provides articles from renowned journalists. When the long-serving editor dies, as per his wishes The French Dispatch closes but not before a final edition. In it are four articles, details of which the film illustrates.

I generally enjoy Wes Anderson's films and have seen all of them with Rushmore, The Fantastic Mr Fox and The Royal Tenenbaums being my favourites. They tend to be quirkily funny but can be difficult to get into. With his recent films Anderson has also amped up the special effects and cinematography, making the films visually more stylish and art-like.

This is not a problem as long as the visual effects don't replace a good plot. With The French Dispatch, that's exactly where the problem lies.

We have a central story - the final edition of a newspaper - plus four sub-stories (the four articles) none of which prove to be very engaging. Things just happen, sometimes in very haphazard, random ways with no attempt to draw in the audience. While quirky, none of the stories are funny enough to make the film a comedy and carry it that way.

The cinematography and special effects are stunning but without a decent plot and level of engagement they're just nice-to-look-at images, bereft of meaning.

Also can't fault the cast which is heavily star-laden: Benicio Del Toro, Bill Murray (as always, for a Wes Anderson film), Adrien Brody, Tilda Swinton, Frances McDormand, Lea Seydoux, Timothee Chalamet, Jeffrey Wright, Owen Wilson, Bob Balaban, Henry Winkler, Elisabeth Moss, Christoph Waltz, Alex Lawther, Liev Schreiber, Willem Dafoe, Edward Norton, Saoirse Ronan, Jason Schwartzman. Such is the saturation of stars that some only appear for 20 seconds or so!

Mr. Anderson is one of my all time favorite directors, having made some of my very favorite and beloved films. This one has its charms.. and its moments. It's a collage of separate stories being covered by different American ex-pat journalists living in France, working for Bill Murray (who instead of going to New York and starting the New Yorker, went to France). The best of these is the Benicio Del Toro/Adrien Brody contribution, which I found riveting and moving and all that it could be. Overall, the film is intelligent - yes, certainly. However, there is a level of pretention and condescension that is really not enjoyable. I think I have come to expect something known from Mr. Anderson - true heart and soul in what may otherwise seem vapid or angry (or otherwise one dimensional) characters, humour, pathos, and something bright - something that gets the serotonin running.. bright colours, bright feelings - something ultimately uplifting. Maybe it's not fair of me to expect more of the same. The artist has to grow and has the right to create.. but as the consumer, I can feel a little disappointed when the flavour is just a bit off. And yet, I would recommend this file and I certainly don't regret seeing it.

If you know the style of Wes Anderson, this will be more of that.

A moving diorama of actors acting odd for the sake of oddness. This is actually four stories in one about American ex-pats who write for a French paper.

Everything is stylized in this film and works effectively. Watching the Benicio Del Toro story unfold is the most fun. The rest seem to be muddled in more pretention.

One gets the feeling Wes just sits around like an overgrown child and makes vroom vroom noises as he drags a toy car on the carpet. This is quitessential Wes.

Very well crafted.

Having been a long time WA fan, I waited anxiously for this film and saw it in the first screening at the BFI Film Festival. For viewers new into Wes Anderson's style it will certainly feel charming. But movie throws up so much "cute detail", there is almost nothing else left to watch. Almost all dialogues are short one-liners and none of the characters get a chance develop any real gravitas. Mélanie Thierry, Benicio Del Toro and Frances McDormand merely deliver a fraction of what they are capable of, while the rest of the all-star cast drown in the "noise". In particular, Bill Murray's role is inconsequential - a huge disappointment considering his potential and how he and Wes created fireworks in almost all their previous movies together. The fast-paced story-telling doesn't work and the whole movie feels like a machine gun assault with Wes Anderson elements. The movie also lacks the emotional depth that usually underlies his other movies. Disappointed. Especially, considering what it could have been.

'The French Dispatch' consists of three main stories, so it is probably inevitable that one of them is less successful than the others. It is nothing to do with the actors concerned - principally Tilda Swinton, Benicio Del Toro, Adrien Brody and Léa Seydoux - simply that the story of an imprisoned artist becoming The Next Big Thing drags a bit. The other main segments - Frances McDormand and Timothée (still not sure how to pronounce that) Chalamet in a tale of student unrest; and Jeffrey Wright, Mathieu Amalric and Liev Schreiber caught up in a police operation including a kidnapped child and fine dining - are rollicking good fun.

The conceit of these tales is they are all articles in the final issue of the 'French Dispatch', a supplement to a Kansas newspaper that brings French culture to the American Midwest. As the journalists tell their stories, the audience sees artistic pretentions and student naivety knowingly skewered. The acting is universally good and it would be hard to single out one performance - although how the whippet-thin Chalamet twice managed to deliver the line "I'm embarrassed by my new muscles" with a straight face is beyond me.

The film is a mixture of black-and-white, colour and - in an inspired choice for a chase sequence - animation. Even the opening- and closing credits are entertaining (indeed, if there were an Oscar for best opening credits 'The French Dispatch' would win hands down). I saw this at the 2021 London Film Festival and will definitely watch it again - although possibly I will put on the kettle during the jailbird artist sequence.

As Wes Anderson has shifted settings from a boarding school to a Jaques Costeau homage to a brothers' expedition across the Indian subcontinent, I've gobbled up pretty much everything Wes Anderson has given me in the previous six films I've seen of his.

The French Dispatch, however, shows that even great directors can have an off day.

Anderson's style is pretty instantly recognizable by the carefully constructed mise-en-scenes and a whole-hearted embrace of anachronisms. But there's more than the visual artistry. There's also a quietly uplifting sentiment of people being vulnerable about their need to belong and finding connection in found or real families.

While the same theme is here with the newspaper crew being united in their love by the editor (Bill Murray), the decision to divert from the main story into three vignettes takes away from the film's main emotional arc. The end result is a feeling of cold remoteness that's a thin line between what Anderson delivers on and what he can be seen as at his most indulgent.

Still, it's not a complete failure of a film. It gets a lot of points for ambition.

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I'm not a diehard Wes Anderson fan (I loathed "The Royal Tannenbaums) but I bloody loved this film. It's a loving tribute to the lost age of journalism, when giants stalked the corridors of The New Yorker, as well as an inventive and inspired paean to the art of storytelling, as plots, subplots and digressions are juggled like plates or nested inside one another like Russian dolls. While there's certainly a surfeit of whimsy and Gallic je ne sais quoi, it's stylish, beautifully photographed and boasts a cast to die for. I wasn't entirely sure why it kept switching from colour to black-and-white, but there are also delightful animated sections, sly humour, dry wit and...oh, so much, it's almost overwhelming and would definitely reward a second look. Great stuff.

Despite the outstanding production design, beautiful soundtrack and stellar cast, the movie just didn't tell me much. It is not the best Wes Anderson film at all. I hope the next one he makes recovers the level of Tenenbaums or Moonrise Kingdom.

As "The French Dispatch of the Liberty, Kansas Evening Sun" (2021 release; 107 min) opens, we are introduced to the French fictional town of Ennui-sur-Blasé (translated from French, literally, "boredom on apathetic"), where an outpost of the Liberty, Kansas Evening News gathers one last time to bring the final issue of the French Dispatch, a weekly magazine. Within minutes, we are introduced to a myriad of characters...

Couple of comments: this is the latest from writer-director Wes Anderson. Whose work I mostly adore ("Isle of Dogs"., "The Grand Budapest Hotel", "The Royal Tenenbaums", just to name those). It feels to me as if "The French Dispatch" is the culmination of many of his earlier films, with maximum focus on style but regretfully not enough attention to the storytelling. Is this supposed t be a "comedy"? If so, I can tell you that I didn't laugh a single time. If it's supposed to be something else, that didn't resonate with me either. In the end, I simply watched but I never "bought into" the film or felt connected with any of it or the characters. Per the usual, this is an ensemble cast, but on steroids, as in: DOZENS of big names, some of which you'll miss if you blink. In the end the movie never achieves the sum of its parts, and it all felt strangely aloof and left me unmoved.

"The French Dispatch" was filmed in 2019 and its release was one of the many victims of COVID, being pushed back several times. By the time it received a US theatrical release in Fall, 2021, it almost felt like its due date had already come and gone. I missed it in the theater, and finally caught it the other day on HBO Max. If you, like myself, are a big Wes Anderson, I'd readily suggest you check it out, with low(er) expectations, and draw your own conclusion.