Midnight In Paris - Opening Scene (HD) - Woody Allen, Sidney Bechet

The wonderful opening sequence to Midnight In Paris, the 2011 film written and directed by Woody Allen.
The music is Si tu vous ma mere, performed by Sidney Bechet.

[@user-skdkqodkwodkdoeoej]

The best Movie in my life...

[@MrGwarpy]

One of my favourite intros to a film ever. I'm in Paris before the story even begins

[@leonelaranda8701]

Te engancha apenas empieza la película

[@chrisapfelbach3438]

To me, this opening accomplishes three very important narrative goals in just over 3 minutes. First, it establishes Paris as a character within the film. It has its own rhythms, its own tempo, and its own cycle of sleeping and waking. Even as Gil falls in and out of love with the women of the film, the relationship he's actually struggling with is his relationship with Paris. This brings me to my second point, which is perhaps less obvious to those who've never been to Paris: this series of shots reflects a *romanticized* version of the city that excludes many of the less well-heeled arrondissements, or the banlieues just outside of the city. These areas are generally poorer, but also more diverse; their inclusion would represent a truer portrait of what Paris is like (and has always been like, dating back to the medieval era) than just the touristy shots of the Champs-Elysées or Les Invalides. Gil's character arc in the movie is about moving from infatuation with the romanticized version of Paris we see in the opening shots to the more adult love of Paris he shows by the end of the film. What does it mean to love something if you have to place constraints on what it is or is not? If you have to ignore large swaths of the reality of a relationship in order to fit it into your capital-R Romantic mold, is that truly love? And, coming full circle, I think the film's themes help us to reinterpret its opening on a second viewing, giving it a third, distinct meaning: the majority of people in these shots are simply living normal lives in Paris. They live in apartments that are probably of average or below-average quality; they commute to work every day on the Métro or the RER; their workplaces don't have a view of the Tour Eiffel; they drive a cab, work as a waiter, and have troubles and struggles like anyone else. The nameless passersby we see in the intro have a fuller, more realistic relationship with Paris than Gil does at the start of the film. They are what he ultimately needs to become in order to love Paris--warts and all--with the kind of mature love that it deserves.

[@davecheng4201]

This is absolutely perfect analysis. The relationship between the city and the women is something I understood but never quite connected the dots on. And this is one of my favorite movies. Thank you.

[@johndoe7171]

This is good, but I think it's missing one major element. Throughout the movie we're shown the beauty of Paris' past - the roaring 20s and then the Belle Époque. It was special, it had magical moments in time, and at the start of the movie that's what Gil was in love with. He was in love with the past, a romantic, nostalgic fantasy. What this scene is showing us, foreshadowing actually, is that Paris is still, to this day, a magical place. Yes, as you say, it has unsavory elements. But it certainly did in the 20s and most definitely did at the turn of the century (as that pedantic man is so keen to point out). But it had charm, and if you look closely, it still does. The things that made it great in the past still make it great, and that's what Gil sees at the end. The people may have changed and the art and music are different, but the City's natural poetry is still vibrant. This scene is Woody Allen's love-letter to Paris. It's showing us what Gil will see by the end of the movie and what WE should all see today as tourists or locals.

[@DavidRamos-sr8cx]

The same guy that tried to steal my watch but his budy probably can’t speak now. 😂

[@stephanejourdren3668]

So nice.

[@johnrowley3296]

Love the music and the movie

[@stephanejourdren3668]

Beautiful

[@tarnopol]

Damn, the way the song's rhythm and the editing play off each other is just phenomenal.

[@Desuetus]

Strange, I was thinking the exact opposite. At least for the first half there isn't a single cut "on the rhythm", just random pics, like a slideshow on your computer. They come together towards the end.

[@chrisapfelbach3438]

​@@Desuetus It's funny--musically, it's a little off-kilter. You'll get long segments where you're getting a cut every 4 musical beats (usually on beat 4, which is a little strange in and of itself) but then there will also be little moments where it holds long or cuts short. I have no idea whether the editor was trying to convey anything with the timing of the cuts, but it's cool to think about.

[@jazzbeaux6154]

I love Paris. This brought back so many memories. I loved the movie, too.

[@rogeralsop3479]

Excellent film - superb Sidney Bechet.

[@nes_nick]

Say what you will about Woody Allen.... brilliant filmmaker

[@MarcusAurelius7777]

RIP LEGEND SIDNEY BECHET

[@nochtrollsegundoh3220]

I Love this opening scene

[@58christiansful]

The best and most charming of the later WA films! And his love letter to Paris - where he is always most welcome.

[@IndigoPhoenix-wc9lh]

What a movie, what a music, what a city!

[@anamariagutierrez2019]

Lovely and goes to the point we really want.

[@goatjunie0720]

OMG.... I'm so touched (: Thanks for the lovely and romantic video sharing!

[@estephanieroxan179]

I love it 💓

[@almavaillancourt5010]

Tellement beau !!

[@marcelloapicella4653]

Una meraviglia ❤️

[@Kooltonelove]

woody the goat!

[@jorgecabrerapaiser553]

Oh comme je t'aime tellement Paris. tu me manques tellement

[@doradelgado6529]

👍👏👏 linda música!

[@valeriaamicarelli6049]

Semplicemente"Magia!"

[@armyparrot9353]

Don't fool yourselves this is the prettiest city in the world...

[@Jim_in_AR]

In this, is Bechet playing a soprano sax or clarinet?

[@CapnBubbaa]

Soprano Sax

[@zennabella1676]

ITS THE GREAT MUSIC THAT GETS YOU IN AT THE BEGINNING. APART FROM THAT I LIKED THE STORY AND HOW THE MAIN ACTOR WANTED TO GO BACK INTO THE PAST AND DI JUST THAT. I HAVE THIS MOVIE HERE AND SO FAR IVE WATCHED IT TIWCE. AFTER ANOTHER SIX MONTHS I WILL WATCH IT AGAIN.

[@thomasfisher5742]

Romanticizing the past....only to find those living there are romanticizing the past lol

[@luisekeller8955]

Armastan nii väga❤

[@sabbadin7942]

Quero morar nesse filme e não sair nunca mais.

[@ChrisValera]

Now that’s a French filter.

[@luisekeller8955]

suu la vuu vms