First off I must say I am dreading watching and reviewing this month's 1001 Movie Club selections. In the first two months there was at least one selection I found myself remotely enjoying, but this time around I feel it might be my lowest four film average in the brief club history thus far. So bear with my ultimate bitter distaste of the upcoming movie club reviews throughout the week, most of these reviews will probably be quite brief.
Let me start my review by prefacing that I have never liked Woody Allen, as a person, as a director, as a writer, and especially as an actor. In my opinon he's an incredibly ornate acquired taste, and it's a taste that my palate just cannot digest. I've seen two Woody Allen film's in the past, Scoop (which I didn't think was all that bad) and Small Time Crooks (which I was split on). Like a large percentage of his films Woody Allen stars as the lead character in Manhattan. Allen plays Issac a frantic TV show writer whose ex-wife divorced him for another woman, he's dating a seventeen year old girl, and falling for his best friend's mistress... how's that for screwed up!?! Well none of its really a stretch for Allen considering the guy married his adoptive daughter!
To be completely honest and brutally frank, Manhattan was completely uninteresting to me, I wouldn't go as far to say boring but I would venture to guess uninteresting is in the same ballpark. I cared nothing about the characters, and I cared nothing about their ridiculous situations or screwed up lives. Chalk this up to once again another film that receives unbelievable praise for following around people who are responsible for their own messed up lives. Lives that really aren't all that interesting either, where's the entertainment here? Are our lives that dull and meaningless that watching someone else's mundane life is entertaining? What sets this "story-line" apart from something I might find in Manhattan myself by randomly following around a couple of people for a week? What's the difference? Where's the flare? What's the point?
My main problem with Woody Allen is he's annoying, and shouldn't be acting, unfortunately he sticks himself as the lead in about half his film's so you're forced to endure a performance that is the exact replicate of every character he's ever done, a fast talking loser who rarely says anything worth listening to. There should be an unwritten rule in film making, if you're considered a director by trade then you shouldn't act. You don't see Steven Spielberg or Ridley Scott starring in their own films, why not? Because they're not actors, if they could act that's probably what they'd be doing instead of directing. Are their people in the world who actually find Woody Allen to be a great actor? If so please explain to me why, because I don't see it. In the end, Manhattan didn't do it for me, I'm really not even sure what exactly it was supposed to do! But I'll give it some props for a few good shots of New York City and some outstanding musical scores which I've heard many times before but never knew what film they came from.
3/10
Fair enough on this one. I generally agree with your opinions on Allen himself, and I also thought the film bordered on the dull, drab and meaningless. I still enjoyed it more than I thought I would, so that might account for a higher than usual score for me. I guess when you expect to be miserable and you aren't you get excited.
ReplyDeleteManhattan deserves to be taken down a notch or two, even if I'm not the man to do. Nice review.
I expected it to be incredibly boring, surprisingly it wasn't boring for me only pointless. I get the whole idea that this is some homage to New York City, what I don't get is why should it interest me... why should I care?
ReplyDeleteMy rating shouldn't me much of a surprise to most people, but at least you can always count on me to knock a few notches out of some over loved "classics". That's what I'm here for. :)
Damn - I never expected to be the one giving this movie it's top score for the 1001 Club. I'll admit that Woody is a somewhat acquired taste, but still you gotta admit that there are some funny lines in this sucker...what about:
ReplyDelete"I've never had the wrong kind of orgasm. My worst one was right on the money".
I think this film is a grower...one that you might end up liking more with a few repeated viewings. But then, i can understand how it ain't for everybody.
By the by - the score of this film isn't original...it's all Gershwin tunes. The wink being that Gershwin himself, is quintessential New York.
I might have laughed at a few lines, don't quite remember what they were now. As I said in my review I've only seen two other Allen films and the one I liked the most he only had a supporting role in. He's just not enjoyable for me to watch, one of those kinds of people who rambles on and you almost naturally block him out.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the clarification on the music. That's what I enjoyed the most, they played a lot of those songs in the television show Northern Exposure too. I might download a few now that I know who composed them.