What is Woody Allen's Most Overrated Film?

That's probably my favorite Woody Allen film, so the most overrated I would say would be:

"Broadway Danny Rose" because Mia is wearing her insides on the outside as their life begins to crumble, and her performance is uncomfortable.

And most of my fascination with Husbands & Wives is Judy Davis' acting. I love her edginess.

Manhattan. The creepy pedo plotline really should never have been given a pass.

Husbands and Wives is a superb film, possibly his best, that was blackballed because of the scandal that broke at the time of the film's release. Judy Davis is beyond great. Most over-rated? Take your pick of the Mia Farrow years. They're mostly kind of terrible, except for Hannah.

I didn't like "Everything You Always Wanted to Know about Sex," but that was mainly because the book was so homophobic.

Husbands and Wives is my favorite of his 'later' films.

Hannah is his most overrated.

I vote for his supposed comeback film, Match Point. It was embarrassingly awful.

Judy Davis in Husbands and Wives made that film for me.

By far Purple Rose of Cairo. Critics were gaga over it, but I never understood why.

It was his masterpiece, R8

& his personal fave.

op I do not want to know you.

Really, R8? I find it rather trifling.

I think Crimes & Misdemeanors is a masterpiece. I don't think he came close to matching it after.

I agree that C&M is a masterpiece. one of the best films ever made

So many to choose from. He's overrated, period.

But I agree with R7 on Match Point. In fact, this whole European phase of his career that is supposed to be some great rejuvenation has truly been crap.

My favorite film of his is "Radio Days" -- because he's not in it...and it's about a kid and not some pervy old man. But it is his kindest and most generous and, to me, most touching. LOVE Dianne Wiest.

I thought Radio Days was twee.

I used to love Annie Hall - but if I see it now it just seems like a long commercial for how funny and loveable he wants you to think he is.

Now I know better.

Annie Hall is a near-perfect film. So is Crimes and Misdemeanors. Hannah and Her Sisters was also solid. Manhattan would be a great film, but the pedo subplot is so bad it just takes you right out of the movie. Bananas is straight up fucking hilarious.

Matchpoint was overrated in the sense that it was a good film, but it was just retread of ideas Allen had already addressed so well in Crimes. Pretty much everything since then has been way overrated, except for Blue Jasmine which was solid. I think critics are so itchy to have Allen make a great film again that they imagine his recent output to be much better than it is. Even Blue Jasmine, good as it was, was only that good because of Cate Blanchett.

He's mined his shtick to death. He really should slow down the output. He might have another great film in him but it's getting chopped up amongst a bunch of mediocre ones.

"Overrated" is the tough word here since it implies that it must be considered one of his classics: with that in mind, I might have to say "Midnight in Paris", mostly because any moment with that shrieking bitch Rachel McAdams and her equally cunty parents made me want to shoot them.

I mean, there are worse films (and I am a big fan nonetheless), things like "Scoop" and "Cassandra's Dream", but nobody thinks they are amazing so "Overrated" does not apply. There's one with Joaquin and Emma that I have yet to see. And one of his personal favorites that I don't get at all, after a few tries, is the one with Jason Biggs and Moonpie Face, even it's title is vague and cutesy and I don't want to look up if it's "Anything" or "Anybody" but it's one of the two "...Else".

Underrated is another story: "Stardust Memories" probably wins but I also like "Hollywood Ending" far more than most do. Including its colorful poster that I have hanging framed over the Woody DVDs on the shelf.

P.S. "Deconstructing Harry" is probably my personal favorite, easily the one I have watched the most times. But hardly overrated since he got yet another Oscar nom for writing it. More "forgotten" than anything.

(rather, the movie is hardly UNDERrated, above. Wish we could proof before we post sometimes).

I'll forgive' Bananas-(1971), it was very funny;; aside from that ...every single one of them are 'overrated. Critics for the most part love to suck his dick.

All of them. Woody is a creepy, neurotic person. Someone told Mia Farrow after Woody Allen married her daughter that he probably would have turned out to be a serial killer if he hadn't gone to a psychiatrist everyday.

"What is Woody Allen's Most Overrated Film?"

All of them. Every last one, OP is right.

Woody is a genius. I own everyone of his films on DVD and eagerly line up for the next one to arrive in theaters each summer.

Yes, the last 15 or haven't been as perfect as the golden age, but there's usually something to like and none of them are unwatchable.

Husbands & Wives is flat-out brilliant. Judy Davis is beyond anything one could hope for.

I agree with someone above that Anything Else is one of the weaker films, but it's not really rated highly by anyone.

Purple Rose of Cairo is my personal favorite, but really it's so hard to choose just one.

Except Woody himself, R23, somewhat inexplicably. When asked which of his films he likes most, "Anything Else" is what he chose. Do you think he was just being contrary?

Agree with you. I pride myself on my Woody Allen collection and must say I have trouble with the idea of hanging out with anyone who doesn't like SOME of his films, at least, if not most.

Most of the european movies are terrible, but for some reason Match Point was considered a great movie. But It's just a remake of Crimes with younger, sexier actors.

and BTW Husbands and wives is great Not only because of Judy Davis, also because that movie really depicts Mia Farrow for what she really is: a passive aggressive, self serving, phony and cunning bitch.

Crimes & Misdemeanors is good in a way, but it is kind of an ugly film.

Jesus Christ, R24. You really choose your friends based on what movies they like? If you're not in high school, you're a total loser.

(Though I already picked that up with the whole "I pride myself on my Woody Allen collection" part.)

Fuck off, cunt. Stay on that side of the room.

Both H&W and BJ benefit tremendously from career-high performances from JD and CB, respectively. Biut besides that, both films are hugely entertaining and eminently watchable

R29 aka phillistine cunt, why is it so strange that we would not want to be friends with someone not only lacking in taste, but stupid enough to brag about iit from their basement lair like some kind of sad badge of honor?

Oops that was directed to r28

what's BJ? and who's CB?

Blue Jasmine and Cate Blanchett sorry . I thought it was obvious

yes, it's just that he made like 250 movies so it's not that obvious

I love Love and Death, Radio Days, and have new appreciation for Stardust Memories.

Broadway Danny Rose was unbelievably hysterical when I saw it again after 20 years.

I just loved Mia in this, I bet she was basing it on the Italian broads she knew through Sinatra.

I know Blue Jasmine was inspired by A Streetcar Named Desire, but March Point was inspired by the OJ murder, right?

Stardust Memories, Zelig and Broadway Danny Rose are wonderful. And absolutely gorgeous to look at, especially Stardust.

No problem, R29. I'll stay far away. I'm allergic to kiddie porn and desperation.

And, R31, I might not have your "good" taste...but I know how to spell "philistine." Walk the walk, man.

True r35. He is very prolific. I think I better discussion than OP's (likely Ms Farrow, still in hinged) is which fils are underrated.

See you later r39. Seems we hit your sore spot--right in the cunt.

it was not overrated (actually, it was considered pure shit by both critics AND woody allen) but have you seen his Amazon series with Miley Cyrus? Jesus, that was the worst thing i have ever seen in my life. Six hours of NOTHING.

R39, Please please PLEASE tell me you are female so I don't have to be embarrassed for my entire gender.

Nobody makes their friends fill out a form and compares their choices for beloved films but everyone already knows that. Still, I find it hard to imagine having much in common with anyone who doesn't like a single Woody Allen film, not even "Annie Hall". I'd say it's a matter of education if nothing else.

By far his worst film, which I cannot call overrated because no one liked it, is Cafe Society.

Worst than his Rome movie? that's not humanly possible, R 43

Midnight in Paris is overrated. It's a nice little flick but he didn't deserve a writing Oscar for it. Juliette Lewis deserved an Oscar for having to act moist for him in Husbands and Wives.

"Vicky Cristina Barcelona" got generally good reviews. I found it unbearable - one of the most boring and trite films I've ever seen. I would have walked out of the cinema if I hadn't been with a friend. I apologized to him afterwards for having suggested the film.

Sorry, R42...I'm a gay man...who actually went to film school and works in film, unlike probably most of you. And, for the record, I do like some of his movies. As I said in R13, I love "Radio Days."

But, I refer you again to R24 where he talks about having "trouble with the idea of hanging out with anyone who doesn't like SOME of his films, at least, if not most." Call me a cunt all you want, but that's pathetic. And if you think liking Woody Allen films makes you educated...well, you're pathetic, too.

I kinda hated "Midnight in Paris". I can't stand watching - or listening to - Owen Wilson. The only thing I liked was Corey Stoll as Ernest Hemingway. And speaking of Hemingway, I love the cinematography of "Manhattan", but I find it repulsive that a 40-something year old man is having a "relationship" with a 17 year old girl. As if it's the most natural thing in the world. Woody, you are disgusting. But yes, NYC - we all love you.

in Manhattan's times for a 40 yo man having sex with 17 yo girls WAS natural. It happens today too, it's still natural even if an hysterical popular opinion would like to think it's not the case. Same thing with 40 yo men and 17 yo boys, of course. You all sound like a bunch of fraus.

R49 = Pedopussy

I've seen most of his films and this is one of my 3 favorites, along with Manhattan (#1) and Crimes and Misdemeanors.

no, i'm an european, R50. you're an adult at 18 here. so what's the difference between 17 and 18? at 17 most people are perfectly capable of knowing what they are doing. Stop treating 17 yo people like toddlers.

Agree that "Midnight in Paris" is very overrated.

I've always loved "Annie Hall" and it still makes me laugh.

"Crimes and Misdemeanors" might be his masterpiece. The final scene between Woody and Martin Landau is brilliant and gives you the one thing you needed. Hope

Having worked in show business in New York City, "Broadway Danny Rose" is a personal favorite. All those crazy-assed people hanging on to the fringes of the business are so completely real. Allen knows show biz and he perfectly presented it in this film.

Landau should have won best actor that year. Was he even nominated?

Yeah, they showed three Woody Allen movies last night on tv and it was nothing but arguing and stuttering.

"But...but.....but...but....this is crazy! It's insane! You....you...you can't do this!"

"Oh no? WHY can't I do it? Because I'm a woman? You cheated on me!"

Nominated, yes, R55, but in Supporting.

"Nominated, yes, [R55], but in Supporting."

That's insane. He should have been nominated in Lead (Woody, too) and WON. Jerry Orbach, Alan Alda, and Sam Waterston all deserved Supporting noms. An embarrassment of riches.

And yes, I agree that it is a masterpiece.

I think some were expecting Angelica Huston too in Supporting Actress. There was some dull surprise when she didn't make the cut, I recall.

The worst by far (for me) was "Deconstructing Harry". Watching Woody spout profanity constantly was very off-putting for some reason. Another one I hated was "Scenes From A Mall" (I know he didn't write or direct it, but still...any movie that had Woody and Bette Midler in it and be absolutely devoid of laughs is a true crime).

I really like "Hannah and Her Sisters", "Broadway Danny Rose" and "Crimes and Misdemeanors", but my all-time favorites are "Manhattan", "Radio Days" and strangely "Manhattan Murder Mystery".

Am glad you mentioned Alda r58. A very underrated performance. I would leave off Allen howeve

I loved Libby Waxman-Wellner's review of "Scenes From a Mall", calling it "a comedy with all the jokes snipped out."

R60 I think MMM was fairly well received.

I don't get all the applause for "Bullets Over Broadway". The Diane Wiest thing in that film (Don't Speak) was hardly as hilarious as some posters proclaim it to be.

My favorites are Manhattan and The Purple Rose of Cairo.

Take it back r64 you BITCH. You shall not disparage ms Wiest on the Datalounge.

I didn't think I would like "Alice" (I avoided it when it came out), but I saw it recently and thought it was kind of cute.

I remember a review that referred to Manhattan Murder Mystery as "Annie Small." That was perfect.

What are the 5 best performances in an Allen film. Obvious choices:

Keaton -- Annie Hall

Page -- Interiors

Davis -- Husbands and Wives

Landau -- Crimes

Blanchett -- Blue Jasmine

R69 Joy Behar in MMM?

Big Allen fan here, though I've only seen about 70% of the films he's directed in the past 15 years. He's so flippin prolific, sometimes too prolific, I think. I have to agree with a couple of posters that his "return" with Match Point was way overhyped. It was such an overly serious and dreary film. Similarly, I thought Midnight in Paris was cute, but was puzzled as to its massive (by Allen standards) global success. Guess it was good timing, the right cast and perhaps an appealing title.

I'm curious to know what others think are his underrated and underappreciated films. They don't always have to be great cinematic masterpieces, they can also just be Woody Allen films where everything clicks and you find yourself grinning and laughing for 90 solid minutes. I've always thought 'Alice' shouldn't be forgotten the way it has. It was sort of an inbetweener. It was hardly panned, but instead got solid B-ratings. But, I dunno, I find the whole film utterly charming. And, despite how disastrously their personal lives crumbled, at that moment in time, the film felt like a valentine to Mia.

That's a great list, R69. Some other great performances:

Dianne Wiest in Hannah and Her Sisters.

Jerry Orbach, Alan Alda and Sam Waterston in Crimes and Misdemeanors. Really, the whole cast is stellar.

Tony Roberts in Annie Hall. And an honorable mention to Christopher Walken.

Leo DiCaprio in Celebrity.

I think the only time I thought Allen's own acting was really good was in Zelig. I suppose because he wasn't just playing some version of himself.

And Gene Wilder needs some kind of honorable mention for Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex* because he's just so great in that segment.

People in flyover territory hate New Yorkers because they think New Yorkers are like characters in Woody Allen films. Argumentative, self-centered, living in big Park Ave or CPW apartments, neurotic, going to therapy 5 days a week, having discussions about philosophers -- having actual arguments about philosophers.

In all my years in NYC, I never met a group of people like the people who populate Woody Allen films.

I find there is something not-real about most of his characters. I know who he is trying to depict but it seems thin and false.

Charlotte Rampling in "Stardust Memories"

Jessica Harper in "Stardust Memories"

Jennifer Tilly in "Bullets Over Broadway"

Chaz P in "Bullets..."

Tracey Ullman in "Small Time Crooks"

Mira Sorvino in "Mighty Aphrodite"

Diane Keaton in "Love and Death"

Maureen Stapleton in "Interiors"

Woody Allen in "Deconstructing Harry" (though I fear this is closest to what he's really like)

[quote] I'm curious to know what others think are his underrated and underappreciated films. They don't always have to be great cinematic masterpieces, they can also just be Woody Allen films where everything clicks and you find yourself grinning and laughing for 90 solid minutes

I really, really enjoyed "Small Time Crooks", which doesn't get much love.

Is R73 ignoring us again? We thought he liked our discussions.

Match Point is easily the most overrated. It's such a miserable slog and I remember it getting slavishly good reviews when it was released. And the tennis stuff, meh. But I love Radio Days. Saw it when I was a teenager in the late 90s and it jump-started a hopelessly nerdy fascination for old time radio shows and productions that I still cultivate to this day. I was 15, ordering tons of CDs of old 30s and 40s radio dramas and stuff, listening to them all night. I loved the ads. God, what a geek I was.

Decustructing Harry- Awful! Racist, woman hating, thematically recycled trash.

"Midnight in Paris" had some lovely things in it: Corey Stoll at his hottest and funniest as Hemingway, Adrien Brody as Dali, and Mimi Kennedy as the hilariously materialistic mother-in-law-to-be ("I say, cheap is cheap. You get what you pay for.")

But it's very shallow (the literary celebrities are not celebrated because they have literary talent but simply because they're famous personalities), Owen Wilson is cringe-inducingly awful, and the finding joy by hooking up with a beautiful16 year-old is offensive.

My favorite is "Radio Days" (his masterpiece), then "Love and Death," then "Manhattan." He hasn't made any really great movies since the 1980s.

[quote]I really, really enjoyed "Small Time Crooks", which doesn't get much love.

Agreed. Hands down, one of his most consistently funny films ever -- not just of his later period(s). I can only take Tracey Ullman's sketch comedy in small doses, but she was pitch perfect as his Allen's trashy nouveau riche wife. And the brilliant Elaine May almost stole the film as Allen's dimwitted cousin.

i'll get shit for this, but as slight and silly as they were, I loved Scoop in which Allen (thank God) played a fatherly figure to ScarJo to great comic affect and in which Hugh Jackman was a surprisingly good villian. Also, the two films that followed Small Time Crooks always make me laugh -- Curse of the Jade Scorpion which used the old trope of hypnotism and Hollywood Ending in which he played a film director suffering form hysterical blindness. Screwball and physical comedy are so hard to get right and, while they're far from perfect, I remember both those films being very funny.

Yup, I agree, OP, "Husbands and Wives" is just nasty married people arguing, but straight couples LOVE it!

"Crimes and Misdemeanors", and "Match Point" also decent buy overrated as shit!

"Radio Days", "Another Woman", and "Manhattan Murder Mystery" all underrated in my opinion!

I hated Manhattan and denounced it shortly after doing it.

What are the 5 best performances in an Allen film. Obvious choices:

Diane Wiest, Don't Speak! in Bullets Over Broadway

Diane Keaton in Sleeper

Mary Beth Hurt in Interiors "She's a vulgarian!"

Mia Farrow in Broadway Danny Rose

Elaine Stritch in September

R59 - Huston did make the cut that year (1989), but not for her solid work on C&M, but for her really brilliant turn in Enemies, A Love Story.

What about Dylan's truth?

R64 agree. I always put that as his most overrated film. And I love Dianne Wiest.

Loving the love for C&M. Agree that is his masterpiece, where everything he tried to do both comedically and dramatically in previous films (with varying degrees of success) finally came to fruition.

Add to great performances Diane Keaton in Manhattan. The best part of the film, imo. She can actually be very bitchily funny (and poignant when appropriate) when she lets herself do that - she doesn't have to do the dithering bit to be effective as a performer.

He has quite a few dogs. Midnight in Paris was so fucking annoying yet a big hit with old bourgie types.

Shadows and Fog is an embarrassing mess. September is a dog. Another Woman is so fucking whiny.

Radio Days is a charmer...really, his sweetest film. Bullets Over Broadway is crippled by John Cusack's mannered imitation of Allen but Wiest and Tilly and Jim Broadbent are so good....very funny.

I'm an unapologetic woody fan. Just watched Radio Days on Amazon prime -- it's perfect charming little piece of nostalgia but nowhere near his best. The CRIMES screenplay is damn near perfect

All of them. I'm sick of hearing about that fucking breeder pedo scum and his self-serving cunt of an ex-girlfriend and the pretentious crap he keeps pulling out of his ass while their amoral sycophants keep cheering their on. They're glorified hillbillies.

I'm so glad to read that many of you agree that Radio Days is a nostalgic masterpiece. I was looking at its box office. Did you know that wonderful film LOST money?

R91 get regular with Re-LAX!!

What's your motivation, darling? You crave an enema!

Pauline Kael wrote a memorable pan of C&M. She thought Woody's lame plot point of having the rabbi go blind was a hoot.

Woody is a genius. One of the greatest filmmakers and writers, ever. Overrated doesn't apply. All of his movies even the weakest ones have enjoyable moments. My personal favorite, not saying it's his best, is little mentioned anymore. Play it Again Sam. It's the first movie I really got his sensibility and I love the life in the film, his friends, his apartment, movie stars as subconscious advisors.

I despise Mia Farrow. I know she's waiting for him to die so she can continue her revenge and lies without him being able to respond. We'll get a book, a TV movie, probably a documentary, she'll be on magazine covers etc.

Technically, Play It Again, Sam isn't a Woody Allen film. Although he starred in it and wrote the screenplay--it was directed by Herbert Ross. With everyone mentioning best performances in Allen films, what does everyone think of Michael Caine in Hannah? He's the only male to win an Oscar for an Allen film, but I've always been perplexed by both the nomination and the win. Was it because voters thought he was overdue?

My favourite is the underrated Another Woman, Gena Rowlands is great in it. Also has wonderful cameos from Betty Buckley and Sandy Dennis.

Match point is the most overrated. It is paint by Numbers dostoyevsky mixed with An american tragedy, with bland characters dressed by Harrods. It is also the favourite of everyone that doesnt like Woody Allen.

Other favourites: husbands & wives, hannah and her sisters, Alice, Manhattan Murder Mystery.

Woody Allen's Bride of Frankenstein.

I already mentioned Match Point as the most overrated Woody, but Everyone Says I Love You is another one.

My favorite Woody Allen movies are Purple Rose of Cairo, Annie Hall, and Manhattan.

Most underrated are Love and Death, Manhattan Murder Mystery, and Sweet and Lowdown.

After Sweet and Lowdown, the only film he made that I really liked is Midnight in Paris, although admittedly it's feather-weight and not in the same class as his 70s and 80s peak.

R74 nails what's gone wrong with his work: "I know who he is trying to depict but it seems thin and false." Exactly. To some extent it was always true, but it his characters became even more thin and false and his dialogue even more affected in the films he made after Bullets Over Broadway.

One problem is that he is too much of a narcissist to fully imagine what it's like to be characters other than himself. The other problem is that he's become so insulated from contemporary culture that he's out of touch with the modern world. There are practically no post-60s cultural references in his work and, as Blue Jasmine showed, he doesn't understand how people use computers.

The Soon-Yi era has not been good for his work.

Alice and Another Woman a two little, beautiful movies about loss, regrets and doing your best to live an imperfect life: they are both almost forgotten but deserve praise.

All his movies are pseudo rubbish that he alleges are "intellectual" to disguise their true mediocrity. Then we have the pathetic cinefiles who allude to his "supposed genius" by claiming to understand all the subtleties of his films, when in reality they're overrated shite.

Woody's movies run the gamut from A to B. In a sense, the work as a whole is overrated. Yes, he can be funny. But not a very diverse body of work.

Bravo, 101. I couldn't have said it better!

[quote]I find there is something not-real about most of his characters. I know who he is trying to depict but it seems thin and false.

Mia said in her book he hardly socialised at all. Clearly that's why he has such an odd idea of how people are.

He casts the sort of women who'd ALWAYS have gay friends in real life and there aren't any. I (obviously) especially notice this.

Woody Allen is the very definition of middlebrow.

More Supporting Oscar performances, both won and nominated, than probably any other living director on the planet. I'd say he's pretty respected when it comes to creating characters, people.

Mira, Chaz, Tilly, Wiest, Cate Blanchett, "Happy Go Lucky" playing her sister, Keaton, G. Page, Maureen Stapleton, Caine, Wiest again, Penn, S. Morton, who else am I missing? Someone obvious?

Oh, Mariel H., of course.

What are you listing r107 ?

And Penelope Cruz for the win, too.

Oscar nominated actors/performances from his films. Including winners.

Landau

Impressive, but he's no William Wyler.

5 Best Actress winners

2 Best Actor winners

4 Best Supporting Actor winners

2 Best Supporting Actress winners

Impressive indeed. I'd guess, of living directors, the next one after Woody would be Tarantino. But none of them can touch Wyler in terms of winners.

Forgot Judy Davis too. One of those that SHOULD have won for sure.

No love for Alan Alda in C&M? I think he steals that movie.

For completeness Sally Howkins. Interesting that Farrow isn't on that list

Woody probably has by far the most big name A list stars -- who hasn't done a woody Allen film ?

There was love for Alda above in CRIMES. He's perfect and perfectly loathesome in that film.

Agree with R46 re. Vicki Christina Barcelona. The incessant and completely unnecessary narration destroys the film.

That Barcelona movie comes across as a cheap relationship TV drama, awful!!!

The movie he did with Blanchette was awful as well. And no she didn't deserve that Oscar at all, she is a very superficial actress actually, never disappears into character. Give me Toni Colette anytime over Blanchette.

Hi Toni!

Not a DL-MIA-Troll (actually I guess I am, sort of), but odd how Mia never got a single Oscar nom. for any of his films.

Mia had an odd jinx when it came to awards.

Starting with "Rosemary's Baby". She does write in her book about being up for a Globe (so what) for one of the "Rose" movies, she doesn't even remember which (or pretends not to) but she and Woody didn't go and didn't even check to see who had won.

For a minute there, it looked like she could get a Supporting nod for "Broadway Danny Rose" since she was almost unrecognizable in it at first and it was a whole new character for her but to no avail... Not sure what else she would've been in for. "Alice" maybe if it had made more of an impact? "Purple Rose..." is nice work too.

R107, how the hell did I become "Happy Go Lucky"? You act just like Jasmine. Can't even get my name right. It would be nice if you could dig up a tiny crumb of respect for me but I wouldn't want you to strain yourself. Yes, I'm mad. I got a right to be. I got your crook for a husband bilking me to the wall over here, and-and then I'm out there in the car laying pipe for that married creep while you crumble everywhere and suck down all my vodka. Yeah, so, don't bother to remember my name. You were right. One look at my life and of course "Happy Go Lucky" will sure as shit be the only way to accurately address me.

[quote]"Purple Rose..." is nice work too.

You bet it's 'nice work'.

No nomination? Bizarre!

LOL, R123, yes, I had a feeling Sally would come back with a vengeance (and it's not even "OUR Sally" of DL fame). I could not think of her name for the life of me and I refuse to close out the thread and go look things up. I prefer learning them this way, even with Sally's wrath. Though I like my nickname for her -- another film where she was being pushed for Best Actress the year before she finally got a real nod. I was thrilled for her until I saw the damn thing and wanted to reach in and strangle her after 20 minutes of non-stop joviality. I even paid full price for the DVD so Miss Sally owes me. Lunch.

She could, of course, be back. I feel worse forgetting Penelope Cruz who actually won the damn thing.

P.S. The ultimate indignity: we forgot Woody Allen himself nominated for Best Actor, "Annie Hall".

Yeah, that was a real low point for the academy😀😀😀

It is kind of funny to see that, much as he given the same performance for the last 40 years or so, there was one that was honored with Best Actor. As opposed to all of the others.

He didn't give a shit, of course, and played his clarinet at that NYC bar the night "Annie Hall" won.

Annie Hall is famously a great film because of its editing.

I don't have a litmus test for my friends, they aren't required to appreciate Woody Allen films. I just don't have any friends who don't respect and like at least some of his work.

Mia is bitch.

[quote]Annie Hall is famously a great film because of its editing.

More than that, gurl.

Stupid comment.

I disagree too with the comment above that he makes the same move over and over. He makes about four or five types of movies and a lot of each of those types. I say this as a fan.

I first saw Husbands & Wives in London. A matinee performance. It had just opened. One other man a few rows back from me and I, laughed all the way through and got all the jokes. We were the only ones.

Mia must not be that popular in the community. She was an unrepentant husband stealer. Hollywood wives probably loathed her. And then trying to rehab her image by becoming an earth mother and adopting united nations. So phony.

[quote]Mia must not be that popular in the community.

Which community?

Hollywood, film R136

I love Woody Allen because when he's good, he's very good. But he does make a movie every year, so naturally there are quite a few clunkers. He's been doing it for, what, 50 years?

Even as creepy and skeevy as Woody is, the abuse allegations of Dylan rebounded on Mia. Allen's reputation certainly wasn't unaffected, but she became a pariah.

Because they are false R139. Woody isn't any creepier than the average guy, even outside of Hollywood.

People love people who make them laugh. They'll forgive them anything.

PLUS very rich and successful = STATUS in the USA.

I used to believe that as well R140. However, I'm no longer sure that is the case. Mia Farrow was never very believable, and came across as either a scorned partner or an enabler who couldn't ignore it anymore when the affair with Soon-Yi came to light.

[quote]came across as either a scorned partner or an enabler who couldn't ignore it anymore when the affair with Soon-Yi came to light.

Her life and livelihood was so tied up with his, she was terrified of losing him.

R142 what changed to make you think it plausible?

Match Point was painful to watch. I didn't bother with anything that came out after that.

It was years ago that I really looked into it. But if you really weigh up both sides, especially Woody's past behaviour you can see a pattern developing. He lied about going into the attic, and people are too quick to dismiss Dylan's version of what happened.

R146 I've really looked into it too and I believe Woody is innocent. I don't believe the NYC police investigators would have declined to press if they thought there was genuine evidence for molestation.

I disagree about that OP. They could have backed out due to the high amount of media interest. There was no guarantee they could get a conviction, it might have been less problematic just to drop the whole thing.

Manhattan Murder Mystery is a little gem that has mostly been forgotten -- a very fun movie, and Anjelica Huston is really good in it. Crime and Misdemeanors and Husbands and Wives are my two absolute faves.

Match Point was really overrated. His ear for British slang was laughable, and not in a good way. That movie was bad.

I would love to see the first version of September that he completely filmed (with Sam Shepard, Maureen O'Sullivan and Charles Durning before scrapping the whole thing and re-filming from scratch with Denholm Elliot, Elaine Stritch and Jack Warden. I'd bet it isn't better, but I'd love to see it for the comparison.

R147, it was a Connecticut investigation, and the prosecutor handling the case made clear he believed Allen molested Dylan. But the therapists treating her didn't think she could handle testifying at trial, so he declined to prosecute. Mia supported that decision. The NY family court judge deciding their custody case also believed Allen did something inappropriate to her and she needed protection from him.

Allen appealed, filed lawsuits and tried to get disciplinary charges brought against the prosecutor. He lost every time.

R139, Woody's reputation was most certainly affected. He was the recipient of scathing editorials at the time and even to this day, figures like Susan Sarandon publicly rebuke him.

R147, the NYC investigators have nothing to do with it. The crime was committed in Mia's Connecticut house.

He still makes films that are lauded to this day. Hollywood still fawns over him, you can't say the same for Mia Farrow.

New York state child welfare services dropped the case believing the charges were unfounded. Without their support, the Connecticut prosecutor really had no case.

No R154. CT authorities were investigating a crime in CT. Whatever NY child welfare had to say about it had no bearing. NY child welfare workers have no authority whatsoever in CT.

I prefer his early funny films.

Mighty Aphrodite. Hated it. Also not a fan of Midnight in Paris. Match point was wonderful-dark and cynical. The real Woody Allen.

Sure it had bearing R155, they would have been subpoenaed to testify in Connecticut about their findings.

They wouldn't be needed because the CT investigators would testify in CT.

Meanwhile, the Yale investigative team refused to testify in the NY custody case, which is one of the reasons the judge disregarded their report. Another reasons was they suspiciously destroyed all their notes.

Can we just leave the discussion to the films? There's threads to discuss his personal life

[quote]I prefer his early funny films.

I like Take The Money & Run.

I first saw it when I was seven when it came out. I was very alarmed by how poor they were. LOL. Didn't get the humor, I'm sure.

What are you doing out there?

Just creating the proper atmosphere, dear.

I'm a sucker for atmosphere.

Based on this thread, it seems likely that "Match Point" wins as Most Overrated. Though I am happy to see I'm not the only one left cold by "Midnight..."

We need more love for INTERIORS. I watched recently and it holds up very well. It's actually pretty funny and entertaining throughout with classic lines and performances.

It's not overrated but I HATE Midsummer's Night Sex Comedy - just doesn't work at all, and boring - something a Woody Allen movie should never be. I saw Irrational Man and was again bored. The script was so pedestrian - literally - it was like a short walk from A then pass by B and arrive at destination C....

This thread has made me want to re-watch some of his films. I'm watching Hollywood Ending (cuz I love Tea Leoni), Husbands and Wives, Celebrity, Deconstructing Harry, Scoop, Melinda and Melinda and Vicky Cristina Barcelona.

I love Manhattan Murder Mystery Myself but I think that's mostly due to Diane (and her chemistry with WOody). I can't imagine this movie working with Mia at all - not that she wasn't very good in some of Allen's films, but this role in particular required an actress who was very high energy, a natural comedianne, and who also had a very unforced, easy relaxed rapport with Woody. Which pretty much leaves Keaton and no one else.

It would've been greet to have Ruth Gordon and Sidney Blackmer in MMM (though they were probably dead by then)

Midnight In Paris

Agree with Match Point. Just seemed like he was trying way too hard to be somebody else (Hitchcock, maybe) and not doing a great job of it. And the themes were already better explored in Crimes and Misdemeanors (which really is one of his best films).

Sandy Dennis was spectacular in ANOTHER WOMAN!

Another Woman was probably my favorite of his straight dramas. Rowlands was wonderful.

[quote]I could not think of her name for the life of me and I refuse to close out the thread and go look things up

You do know you can actually open a new browser window, right?

Although you're perfectly right, R172, we should be thankful for this ignorance since it allowed us to have the brilliant response at R123.

Bullets Over Broadway is one of my all-time favorite movies. It's hysterical. And Jennifer Tilly is outstanding. Nominated for an Oscar; she should have won.

Allen had to change the setting for Matchpoint to England from (I assume) NY due to some deal with the distributor. I wonder if it would have worked better with Allen in a more familiar setting. I think it still would have been a lesser retread of Crimes and Misdemeanors, but it might have been a slightly better one.

[quote]Allen had to change the setting for Matchpoint to England from (I assume) NY due to some deal with the distributor.

I think he got government or lottery money to make it in England.

See how they waste our money?

& the English were all eeeeeww he used 'posh people'!!! Where were all the regional working class accents we love so much that make our films totally unintelligible and flop internationally?

^^^ Trainspotting film extra

Magic in the Moonlight was better than expected. A little cute movie, and the setting was beautiful. Haven't seen Cafe Society yet.

Does anyone know how Woody continues to gets funding for his movies. They never seem to make a significant profit at the box office?

I think he's known for keeping the budgets pretty low and under control, so they probably don't lose that much money, even if they don't turn much of a profit. For a time I think he was just kept around as a "prestige" artist. And once in a blue moon he'd have a hit (like Hannah or Midnight in Paris).

Don't his actors work for scale?

Bravo. I'm getting some feeling from some of these posts that he may not be the world's biggest genius after all.

His characters and his dialogue are stilted. Nobody talks like that. Not everyone knows either a student or a professor at Columbia University. Or an architect. Woody force feeds all this unrealistic dialogue into his unrealistic characters and then has the Woody character be the only real mensch among them.

It's so made-up inside his head. His idea of what worldly New Yorkers talk about and what kind of relationships they have. A bunch of wealthy, boring pseudo intellectuals.

Bravo, r184. You sound like what was left in Pandora's box.

The only movies of his that I watched after Bullets Over Broadway were: Deconstructing Harry, Match Point, Cassandra's Dream, Vicki Christina Barcelona, Blue Jasmine , and Midnight in Paris. Did I miss anything good? (I skipped a few of the earlier ones, too - Zelig, Radio Days, and the two "Rose" ones - though I saw parts of them on TV).

I thought Match Point was pretty good. Didn't really seem like a "Woody Allen" movie, kind of like a French B thriller. Cassandra's Dream, too. And I like the cast in those two. People complain about the dialogue in Cassandra's Dream and Match Point - he gets the English wrong, but if you are not English you don't really notice it. I think some of his American dialogue doesn't always seem quite right, either. Such as in VCB. VCB I thought was pretty entertaining. Bardem and Penelope Cruz are funny.

I thought "Shadows and Fog" was the worst...but then I think I skipped a lot of bad ones...

Have tried, R172, for some reason, even if I get to google, I can't hit the back arrow and end up in the thread where I was. Instead, I get Datalounge's main page, have to start over -- which is easy if I have contributed but not so much if I have to go through the feed again. And the thread isn't in my History list either, just the main page again. I am on a Mac and using an older system, granted.

There was a time when a small box appeared in whatever search engine I was using and I could at least throw down a name, get the spelling, have it fill in the blanks if all I had was Sally and it would give me options... and I wouldn't have to leave what I was typing. But not on Google Chrome.

I've heard recently that Allen has been a victim of elder abuse by Soon-Yi.

That would be an interesting form of karma.

Has Mia Farrow been in another relationship since Allen?

Yes, she was in one with Philip Roth - GOD HELP HER!

.....

All of them. Fuck. It's a no-brainer.

R191, is Roth an asshole?

[quote] All of them.

All of them, witches!

All... of... Them... Witches! *hysterically giggles*

R194 let's put it this way...Mia definitely has a type.

I think Mia is a fine actress. No one has ever complained about any of her performances in the Woody Allen films and mostly she has gotten accolades in those performances (Broadway Danny Rose, Alice, Radio Days, etc).

She was luminous as Daisy Buchanan in The Great Gatsby, as light and as fluttery as a butterfly---just the way Fitzgerald envisioned her.

We don't see much of her anymore, but when she does show up in film she remains beguiling. Does anyone recall her small but venomous roll as the nanny in the remake of "Omen"? She stole every scene she was in.

I found Mia a bit wan in Hannah and Her Sisters" (the way her character was written didn't help) -- but she did have one moment that I (and my late friend) used to love, one that shows the great oddball choices she can make. It's early in the film in the kitchen when Holly (Wiest) tells her she needs to borrow more money, Hannah asks how much, and Holly answers a few thousand (I paraphrase). And Mia does this great delicate double take as she eyes her sister and says, "Uh huh", trying to make it not a big thing though it clearly is.

I imitate that "Uh huh" a lot in life.

I think Mia was often good in Woody's films (if occasionally a bit one-note mousy) and the 80s was a pretty solid period - but maybe I just think that because that's when I started watching Allen's films. I lost interest after the 90s, when it became obvious that he was just making these things on autopilot. But Zelig, Broadway Danny Rose, Purple Rose of Cairo, Hannah, Radio Days, Another Woman, Crimes & Misdemeanors - all some of his best work imo.

Is it true Ronan uses blue contact lenses? I think he'd look a lot more like woody without the contacts and wearing glasses!!!

OK, I've seen Sleepers, Annie Hall, Manhattan, Crimes & Misdemeanors and The Purple Rose of Cairo. What others should I see?

"Deconstructing Harry" gets my vote. You haven't done any of the '90s period yet.

For comedy, Love and Death, Radio Days

Did Mia read the Claire Bloom book?

A lot of Woody's problems can be traced back to the abuse he received as a child from Fyvush Finkel.

R201 see RADIO DAYS and one of his biggest hits, HANNA AND HER SISTERS - probably one of the last to show Manhattan before it was gentrified.

I have a fondness for Oscar Winner Emma Stone in Irrational Man, which I actually think is underrated.

Midnight in Paris

Never gotten his appeal in general. I have seen at least 10 movies of his, and they were all mindblowingly boring.

Cafe Society and Blue Jasmine were ok. Most of his movies are ok-ish. But no the masterpieces the critic raves about.

Why has DL been taken over by people who think sex with an 18 year old is pedophilia??

As a victim/survivor(at ages 5-8) I find this to be very insulting and belittling towards REAL CHILDREN.

An 18 year old, hell even a 16 year old is way past puberty. And 150 years ago, many if not most of them were married and reeding.

That was never the case with 7 year olds(except perhaps in Muslim culture of old.)

The pedophile charges are not in regards to Soon Yi (though that didn't help his case) but to his daughter Dylan who says she was molested. And she was very young.

His most overrated film is all of them.

R210, you should talk to the ephebophile troll. You two could talk for hours about how adults fucking teenagers isn't a big deal at all.

R211 No, they were referencing his relationship with Mariel Hemingway in "Manhattan." Obviously had he messed with Dylan that would e pedophilia.

ahh, got it. I know it doesn't help much but 1979 was a very different time when it comes to this stuff. Just watch the Popsickle Twins on "Gong Show" tribute to Chuck Barris, both giving head to popsickles on daytime network TV and one was 17. No way now. Times have changed (for better or worse).

Bravo, r212. There's hope in America!

R183/185 and R216 must be Dylan O'Sullivan Malone Farrow.

someone said on another Woody Allen thread that the Mariel Hemmingway character was based on a real teenager that he dated

Dear God what was wrong with me in my twenties? I loved his films and actually paid money to see them in a movie theater. I'm now in my fifties and cannot tolerate five minutes of his whiny,neurotic drivel. What was wrong with me? Seriously.

Just watched "Match Point" and quite enjoyed it. At least the British setting gave it something that felt fresh. And good performances, as usual, including Scarlett to my surprise.

Was thinking as I watched and realized that, for a man with a film a year since 1972 or whatever, and tons of nominations, it's interesting that he's only had three movies ever nominated for Best Picture -- unless I am missing something but pretty sure I'm not. "Annie Hall" "Hannah and her Sisters" and "Midnight in Paris" and that's it. So, really, his films are not always Academy fare either. Some would argue there are a great many more that could've/should've been up, especially "Manhattan", but weren't.

Interiors and September bore me to distraction. Both so pretentious.

I can only take so much of Mia Farrow's angst.

And Zelig is an interminable New Yorker cartoon.

I thought Mighty Aphrodite was overrated. Best Supporting Actress? Really?

I saw Interiors tbe other day and thought it was very entertaining. Can't see how anybody would think it was boring

R220, being nominated for an oscar doesn' t make a movie necessarily good.

R218 Stacey something (Jewish girl) - went to Stuyvesant. Yes she was 17 but it was a totally consensual relationship - it may be a little "icky" to some of us but there's nothing really wrong with it per se.

And dating a 16/17 year old - having a penchant for that does not mean one is more likely to modest children. I mean it's two totally different impulses. Am I totally ruling it out? No. And the things Mariel Hemingway wrote in her book admittedly gave me pause. But one does not necessarily make the other more likely.

And the fact that Mia's brother really is a bonafide perv also gives me pause - um, where did she get all of her "ideas" and "accusations" from?

r225, dating a 16 year old girl is icky. I can see maybe a 17 year old and a 20 year old not being an issue. But when you go beyond that there is really nothing to talk about. There mental capabilities of a 17 year old today is miles apart from anyone in their 20s, so if you are old that 21 and related well to someone 17 and under what the fuck is wrong with you and why was your development arrested.

It's creepy because we know the old guy is just in it for a firm body and that is manipulative and predatory. It is obvious that the youngster is attractive to someone older. Someone to show them new things and take them out to places without a drive through, but what is in it for the older person than sex, which means creepy.

Stop trying to make it okay, it may not be pedophilla but it's creepy.

[quote]What was wrong with me? Seriously.

I went, too. People went to the movies. There weren't really a lot of good ones to see.

I started getting quite grossed out with him by Mighty Aphrodite which I did not see. The commercials were enough.

MIghty Aphrodite was horrible. That was the movie was the beginning of his rapid decline as a filmmaker. The film he made before that, Bullets Over Broadway, was very good but Mighty Aphrodite stunk on ice.

The only ones I liked after that were Sweet and Lowdown and Midnight in Paris. The Soon-Yi era has not been a good one for Woody's movies.

I too used to adore his work, but even though I still have fond memories for some of his films I have no desire to rewatch them. I was a teen living in a small town in the late 70s thru the mid 80s, and what I loved most about his films was the romantic vision of New York CIty they presented--this idealized world of witty, cultured sophisticates he presented. I desperately wanted to join it.

But when I did, I saw how limited his vision of it was, and also how thin and underwritten his movies were. They just weren't as enjoyable or meaningful as they'd been before. I'd outgrown them.

Oddly enough, he'd probably agree with every derisive comment on this thread. He seems to dislike most of his own movies once they are complete.

I put them on all the time, even if just in background like radio. Find them oddly comforting, quiet and good dialogue, no fucking car wrecks and music getting louder and LOUDER as the end credits near.

I have done that as well r230.

I find Mariel Hemingway's account exonerates Allen. He waited after all, till after she turned 18. TWO YEARS after Manhattan was finished filming! He did not do the typical Hollywood perv move by holding out a starring role in a major film in exchange for sex! It's very common for men to desire youth, whether it's young twinks for gay men or teenage girls for straight men. Woody was actually less perverted than the norm for Hollywood it seems to me.

R225, her name was Stacey Nelkin. She was a professional actress at the time she dated Woody and, unlike Tracey in the film, far from an innocent.

Interiors

Midnight in Paris

Match Point

"Husbands and Wives" was TORTURE!!

Two upscale annoying middle class white couples sniping and arguing for an hour and a half. Horrible, yet everyone seems to love it!

Blue Jasmine

I loved Zelig.

All! I hate him and his boring movies, especially I hate his fake-sad-basset-hound face, f@ckin' pedophile...

I was bored by Purple Rose of Cairo and hated Small Time Crooks (had the most predictable plot of any of his films). Loved Manhattan Murder Mystery (the line "Save a little craziness for menopause" made me howl) and Bullets Over Broadway (the "Don't Speak! Do NOT Speak! Nooooo!" schtick was brilliant). In Hannah and Her Sisters, I liked how Diane Wiest's dilettante character turned out to have a real talent.

His films are so hit or miss. In general, I dislike the way he editorializes through the mouth of his characters.

Bump. I’m just looking for a place to discuss “Café Society,” which I watched last night. It was lovely to look at but not a very compelling story. The 1930s period touches were nice except I felt Kristen Stewart should have been wearing dark lipstick and a neater hairdo. I have this theory that today’s actresses don’t want to look too vintage, but rather “contemporary” in their makeup and hair. None of them will wear a really tight 1950s perm, for example, because they don’t want to look frumpy. I say go for it.

The other thing these younger actors do is the hesitant delivery. “I…I love you.” Woody sounded very elderly in the narration, I’m afraid. Anyone else watch this? Sorry, haven’t been through the thread yet.

All of them. 😁