Showing posts with label Woody Allen. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Woody Allen. Show all posts

Wednesday, September 29, 2010

Hannah And Her Sisters, A Mess

Must say, this wasn't all that funny for a Woody Allen movie. Not that it wasn't, but it was slightly more serious but not uncomfortably heavy.

I think when Woody Allen thought about the script, he was under depression and had many thoughts running in his mind. The movie has many themes, each quite suitably handled by the actors.

Hannah's husband Elliot gets entangled in a relationship with her sister, Lee. He seems to have lost it for Hannah because of self-sufficiency and resentment of her emotional strength (picked from Wikipedia). Lee, herself, is living-in with a reclusive artist, Frederick. And seems like she has lost it for him as she doesn't feel equal.

Then there is the third sister, Holly, who is not too sure what she wants in life. She is contemptuous of Hannah despite the financial dependency.

The only comic relief in the entire set-up is neurotic Mickey, Hannah's ex-husband. Of course, Allen plays that role, so you can be rest assured that he is funnily irritating. Now, his part in the movie explores life, death religion and spiritual awakening.

It is a typical Woody Allen movie, albeit a bit serious.

Monday, September 27, 2010

The Purple Rose Of Cairo, The Real & The Reel

Woody Allen never disappoints. If you are looking for meaningful cinema about serious issues without getting a headache but certainly that can exercise muscles in the face and gut, chose any one of his flicks. You will never be disappointed.

The Purple Rose of Cairo is a very interesting film with an innovative treatment.

The movie, set in the Great Depression era, is  about a Cecilia (Mia Farrow) who is married to an abusive Monk (Danny Aiello). She makes many failed attempts at moving out of the marriage but returns, finding no place to go. The only solace in her life is movies.

While watching The Purple Rose of Cairo for the fifth time, Tom Baxter (Jeff Daniels), a character in the movie breaks the fourth wall, and runs away with Cecilia. They begin to like each other and fall in love. A pandemonium breaks out as the cast in the movie are now not sure what to do with Baxter gone and movie goers are puzzled with how the movie will proceed.

Gil Shepherd (Jeff Daniels) who plays Baxter on the screen is brought into solve this peculiar situation. In the process, he also falls in love with Cecilia. An interesting scenario.

This is a very intelligent movie that keeps you entertained in every scene. I loved the scenes involving Baxter in the real world and the cast of the movie on the screen conversing with people in the real world. Must watch!