My Dinner with Andre

This film really does drag. Admittedly many people would think this of any film that’s set in just one location. But I found myself comparing it with other films that I’ve enjoyed that are set mostly in one place – such as Reservoir Dogs, Phone Booth and Buried. I realised that the pattern here was that they were all thrillers. Sadly, there’s nothing remotely thrilling about this film and after 13 minutes it was already failing to hold my attention. I noticed my cat licking its own anus out of my peripheral vision and ended up focusing more on this for at least 5 minutes. It was strangely mesmerising.

This film also made me think of the opening scene in Inglourious Basterds. It lasts for around 20 minutes and the vast majority of it consists simply of two men sitting at a table and talking, thus proving that such a setting doesn’t have to be boring. Admittedly the similarities between the two films don’t extend beyond this scene, but the fact is that I could have happily watched that 20 minute conversation continue for another two hours or more, whereas any given 20 minute section of My Dinner with Andre just feels like a chore. Even the camerawork struck me as bland and unimaginative.

The first half of the film might not have been quite so boring if Wally had spoken more. It wasn’t so much a conversation (like I expected) as it was just listening to one man recount a seemingly never-ending series of mundane anecdotes. Occasionally the anecdotes described random or bizarre events which struck me as an attempt at offbeat humour, but honestly it did nothing for me and did little to redeem the film.

I will admit that I enjoyed the film a little more in the second half, where the conversation became a little more philosophical and a little less abstract and Wally managed to say more than “Really amazing”. I can’t say that I understood the significance of the numerous references to Nazi Germany and the Holocaust and to me they seemed rather superfluous.

The film ended somewhat quickly to a piece of melancholy piano music which left me pondering some of the more profound points that Andre had made about the human condition… and made me contemplate whether I was wasting my life – or more accurately two particular hours that I could never get back.

I think if I were to watch My Dinner with Andre again, then perhaps I might discover some deeper insights into the film… but I’m just not sure I want to. In fact, no, I’m quite sure I don’t want to.

1 star out of 5