Woody Alan hits again
Let me start with: I don't particularly enjoy movies directed by Woody Allan. They are too slow for my taste, there's usually too much dialogue and the characters are stereotypes of some sort.
But this time, the old pervert did it right.
This movie was chosen by pure accident: being a foggy November outside (although it's January) .I wanted to spend the evening with a movie that is light and not demanding, so I've started searching... this one caught my attention as it had more than 6 stars on IMDB. Usually, romantic movies rarely get past the barrier of the '6'. Maybe it's because all of them have the same old pattern, girl or boy falls in love, finds out his partner is not what he thought it was and in the end they end up with someone else, usually some old lost romance. So by watching one movie, you will soon have the feeling that you've watched them all.
This one started as well as any regular romantic chick flick: Mr. He, a quiet, although intelligent boy has a rich, popular girlfriend and, being a movie where everything is possible, they are together.
Mr. He plans a romantic weekend with Mrs. She - where else than in New York, where Mrs. She wants to have a short, one hour interview with some famous movie actor Liev Schreiber.
This is a perfect recipe for these 5 star romantic movies you will watch and forget the next hour. When lucky, your better half will get all romantic about it and you will enjoy some joy-time in the evening.
But not this movie: Quite soon from the beginning, the perfectly planned trip is torn apart by some unforeseen events, when Mrs. She gets invited to watch the unreleased movie of this famous actor, so the one hour interview gets suddenly longer and all of Mr. He's plans will be torn apart. Also, after this happens, Mr. He meets the handsome little sister of his first crush, and they end up kissing. Not in a romantic way, no, they are part of a movie and they are being filmed...
The Woody Alan style is there, all-right, as the characters talk tremendously much, but this time it kind of feels natural: the dialogues are between people who did not meet for a very long time and they have lots to say to catch up. Also, like in any Woody Alan movie, all of the characters are put into situations where their true self comes to surface: Mrs. She will soon forget that she has a boyfriend and gets drawn into the stormy social life of several famous artists: First, Roland, who has some serious midlife crisis and obviously drinking issues as well, his friend, who by an unfortunate mistake finds out that his wife is cheating on him with his best friend or a famous Italian actor, who just wants to take advantage of her like he did with so many others. Being a naive blonde and helped by the endless drink she's offered everywhere she quickly ends up in the bedroom of this famous Italian actor .
Without spoiling the rest of the movie, all I can say that the plot is not predictable at all and very enjoyable: every time when you expect that the character will act in a very predictable way, they fuck up somehow and do exactly the opposite. Unlike other Woody Alan movies, where the dialogue seems to be overwhelming the entire movie, here it feels natural that really helps to reveal the true nature of each of the main protagonists without being over-abusive.
Overall, this is a very enjoyable movie where Elle and Timothee's acting talent really shines, but also the secondary characters shall not be neglected, as well, like Will Rogers, for example.
To conclude, if you would like to watch a good movie on a quiet evening, alone or with your better half, this is a great choice and I am sure you won't be disappointed.
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