We all trudge through life looking for someone or something we can relate to. For me, I do most of my relating with characters in books and in movies. While some might find that depressing it's just how it is and I don't mind at all. What a wonderful feeling when you find people or things or characters that you see some of yourself in. It makes you feel less alone. So naturally, when I stumbled across my first Allen film it was love at first sight. Cue the fireworks.
Suddenly there were other people in the world that I identified with! Ok, I'm no rich Manhattan-ite but here were chatty, intelligent neurotics, something I had never seen on screen before. When you see your faults (or charms, depending on how you look at it) magnified on screen it's funny! Who knew?!
The other thing I instantly loved was how dialogue heavy all of his films were (are). Exactly how I like 'em! I don't need there to be a lot going on in a movie but what I do need is well written dialogue and a lot of it. I don't care if absolutely nothing happens in a film for 2 hours, but I better be watching and listening in on some good conversation. That's what's wrong with so many films out there; there's often a simple, generic formula to follow in writing a film but so many people fail in the dialogue department. Not my boyfriend Woody. He gets an A+!
And above all else, he's funny. When I meet someone and they don't think so, I think less of them. I won't judge you on many things but I will judge you on that. He's a comic genius! Have you seen Play It Again, Sam?! It's a film that he didn't direct but he wrote and starred in it and if you dare say he's not funny then I challenge you to go rent it and just try not to laugh! If you don't find the way he eats rice or the way he dances in it hilarious then there's something seriously wrong with you. A real laugh riot that guy!
I meet many people that say they hate Woody Allen when I speak of his movies. I always ask the same question when I hear that: Have you actually seen one of his films? In most cases they have not and in every case they bring up the fact that he fucked his daughter. WELL then! I could write plenty about that.* I just don't see how any of that has to do with whether or not he makes good movies!
I will talk about many of his films in the future, in fact it's possible that I will touch on every single one of them but over the next few weeks I'd like to focus on my top five starting with Crimes and Misdemeanors which I'll post about later today.
*All I'll say, because I have to, is that he was not married to Mia Farrow and they didn't live together. Soon-Yi Previn was adopted when she was 8 years old by Farrow and her then husband, Andre Previn. Woody was never a father figure to her, she had a father! I admit that cheating on your partner with her daughter is a sleazy thing to do (Soon-Yi should also take some of the blame) but he's not into incest and pedophilia. Soon-Yi was 22 years old, an adult! And they've been together now for 17 years, married for 12. They also have 2 children. To quote the man himself: "The heart wants what it wants." The situation was definitely unfortunate and there was a lack of class on both Soon-Yi and Woddy's parts, but love prevailed so maybe what was meant to be was meant to be. Jus' sayin'.
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