REVIEW: THE FRENCH DISPATCH OF THE LIBERTY, KANSAS EVENING SUN

4/5

The French Connection.

108 Mins. Starring: Benicio del Toro, Adrien Brody, Tilda Swinton, Léa Seydoux, Frances McDormand, Timothée Chalamet, Lyna Khoudri, Jeffrey Wright, Bill Murray, Owen Wilson, Christoph Waltz, Edward Norton, Jason Schwartzman, Stephen Park, Tony Revolori, Bob Balaban, Henry Winkler, Liev Schreiber, Willem Dafoe, Saorise Ronan, Elisabeth Moss & Anjelica Huston. Director: Wes Anderson. 

Wes, I've a feeling we're not in Kansas anymore. 'The French Dispatch', or 'The French Dispatch Of The Liberty, Kansas Evening Sun' for you 'Birdman Or (The Unexpected Virtue Of Ignorance)' theatrical fans is a four part anthology with animation like the alternative artwork to its Beatles inspired 'Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band' album cover poster, or a Tadanori Yokoo artistic cartoon creation. A love letter pecked on a typewriter to journalism, The New Yorker magazine covers, Charlie Hebdo and like Japan in 'Isle Of Dogs', the most romantic country in the world, France. Its iconic architecture stacked up like 'The Grand Budapest'. Making accommodations for an all star cast that could cancel that reservation between a 'Rushmore' rush of stylised legends like a red Adidas 'Royal Tenenbaum' and 'Darjeeling Limited' reunions that are just your cup of tea. 'Fantastic' like Fox, Mr. with 'Life Aquatic' depth and 'Moonrise Kingdom' signature sweetness. Wes Anderson is one of those weirdly wonderful directors that could even make the PTA PSA of Paul Thomas Anderson, Haim reuniting with Alana and a Seymour Hoffman for his best slice of 'Licorice Pizza', seem normal. Thank God, neither of them are. All as this French bureau of a story compiled and conceived by a Copolla, a Guinness, frequent like all the classic collaborators Jason Schwartzman (also on acting hand here) in all these epic ensembles features the last issue of a fictional press and quite possibly one of Mr. Anderson most impressive, cinematic pieces of artwork yet. One that takes is back to the delightful joy of life. All the way to the closing credit covers that will have you sticking around like a Marvel spider on the wall. 

Lost in transcription, what do you expect when Bill Murray is your editor in chief? And the legend with 'Afterlife' here like a 'Ghostbusters' reunion (no spoiler, I haven't seen it yet. We get it in Japan this week. At this point this is merely movie educated guesswork). And as an aside, he's got a lot to proofread. Well, thankfully he has Anjelica Huston for some nuanced narration to read and talk all about it. Now what better way to spoke set us off on this tour de France as we get to pedalling, than having a beret wearing Owen Wilson take us on the back of his bicycle though the rue and ruins of a down, but not out like Orwell wrote Paris for 'The Cycling Reporter'? Especially after his favourite turn on the Marvel and Disney + 'Loki' series minus the blonde curls that still make us, "WOW!" From giving us a sidecar like a mellow and petrol-less 'Motorcycle Diaries', to disappearing down the Metro like the morning commute. But from past to present, that's just the butter to your morning baguette. The real art comes in 'The Concrete Masterpiece' in the black and white walls of prison than can't cage Benicio del Toro's animalistic art (with a fantastic flash of 'Spider-Man' star Tony Revolori in his youth, that's truly spectacular), or the beautiful body of work of Bond star Léa Seydoux, more than a muse in this cinematic classic. No matter how much a best in years Adrien Brody, Bob Balaban and Henry Winker (yes, that Henry Winkler) try to turn it for moustache twitching profit. All to Tilda Swinton's staged storytelling in the 'guise of an academic lecture to this piece of fictional artistic history. Benicio, Brody and Léa make for one beautiful love for art triangle. This act alone, makes this move mesmerising and as a short story serves as a Wes signature like no other sealed. Delivered by the paperboy with a wrapped newspaper from a sandwich board. 

Dispatching more liberty under the evening sun, that's just the first move in this queen's gambit like a 'Last Night In Soho' with Edgar Wright. The 'Chessboard Revolution' of Frances McDormand's 'Revisons To A Manifesto' turns a pamphlet into powerful prose as the 'Nomadland' and 'Three Billboards Outside Of Ebbing, Missouri' double Oscar winner gives us another mouthful, the same fall this Lady is in Denzel Washington's ear like Cohen Shakespeare for 'The Tragedy Of Macbeth' on Apple TV. But 'Call Me By Your Name' in the month of 'Dune', this is a tweed suit and Dylan biograph ready, Einstein frazzled wool hair, Timothée Chalamet playing the fourth wall at chess and French actress and 74th Venice International Film Festival standout star Lyna Khoudri ('Most Promising' in 'Papicha') shoes off, motorbike helmet on's moment either side of the jukebox. Where's the Fonz when you need him? As her moped takes off like something out of a Bowie video for your life on Mars. Journalistic neutrality, my left foot. This is pirate like radio...the best kind of revolutions are the ones not televised. Word to like Kanye said what the late Gil Scott was hearing. In this movie dedicated to Harold Ross, William Shawn, Rosamond Bernier, Mavis Gallant, James Baldwin, A. J. Liebling, S. N. Behrman, Lillian Ross, Janet Flanner, Lucy Sante, James Thurber, Joseph Mitchell, Wolcott Gibbs, St. Clair McKelway, Ved Mehta, Brendan Gill, E. B. White, and Katharine White, the final part 'The Private Dining Room Of The Police Commissioner' has a never better, walking across sets and screens Jeffrey Wright (months before he actually becomes police commissioner for 'The Batman') and that unmistakable drawl telling us his story in fine print to 'Ray Donovan' himself Liev Schreiber, like the narration of his animated Marvel 'Watcher'. Adding a cartoon Citroën to these ooh la, la, wrestling stand offs between a Korean chef (Stephen Park) whose name sounds like coffee and Edward Norton (always at his best with Wes, alongside 'Motherless Brooklyn' of course) and a brief, but beautiful in cinematic colour, Saorise Ronan. Send the cook to this Mexican standoff in France and to an Abacus behind bars in Willem Dafoe green gobbling up omelettes in a single Van Gogh gesture. Because this is the food of life and this print, the recipe. Add the 'Inglorious' likes of Christoph Waltz and 'Handmaid' Elisabeth Moss in the margins of this tale in small, but significant, fabulous footnotes and you really have some great copy here. One that's pitch ready to print until the ink dries. In postscript, lets just hope and put our hands together as we close the morning paper and pray that this doesn't read as an obituary to journalism itself. Don't stop the press! TIM DAVID HARVEY. 

Further Filming: 'The Grand Budapest Hotel', 'The Darjeeling Limited', 'Isle Of Dogs'.