On Woody Allen

by The Flamingo

Woody Allen is definitely one of my favorite directors, alongside Martin Scorsese, Sophia Coppola, Tim Burton and Quentin Tarantino. I grew up with Scorsese’s mob movies all my childhood, also with “Beetlejuice” and “Edward Scissorshands”. But with Woody Allen I had the longest relationship, even without knowing it at the time, and that’s mostly because of my mother. My mother, being a very visual person, with very strong feelings and opinions on different subjects, found Woody Allen appalling, symbolizing what she dislikes most in a man, physically and also psychologically. He was exactly the opposite from her concept of what a man should be like. She couldn’t stand his movies, mostly because he had the tendency to play in most of them back in the day. So, since I started watching movies with my parents (starting with 4 or 5 years old) I knew Woody Allen was not supposed to be in them, otherwise they would change the channel. I grew up not watching his movies and thinking the same way my mother did, I was my mother’s daughter after all. Until I went away for college that is. It was then that I decided, I wanted to see my first Woody Allen movie and I was very happy to find out he didn’t play parts in them that often anymore.

It was the year of “Match Point” (2005), starring one of my favorite actresses, Scarlett Johanson, and a cast of young British actors. I loved it, I loved the personal drama, I loved the characters and also the philosophy behind it.  So I started following his new movies and became more and more enchanted with his directing and scripts: “Vicky Cristina Barcelona” and “Midnight in Paris” are between my favorites. So when “To Rome with love” came up, starring also himself, I told myself “how bad can it be?”. I watched it and surprisingly, I didn’t have any bizarre feelings towards him. I liked him and his character a lot and it was like a weight had lifted from my shoulders. I can watch Woody Allen movies now! Because that was my only problem in my 20s. 

I feel like some people from my generation and up are acquainted with Woody Allen’s work, not so much the younger generation. I think he has a very specific niche of audience and I found myself in that niche. 

Here are some of the things I like the most in Allen’s films:

• He is very visual, very artistic, his movies are cinematographic pieces of art, he works with masters like Vittorio Storaro. He is also greatly influenced by Ingmar Bergman, one of the greatest directors.  
• Cities play real characters in his movies, he knows how to exploit every nook and corner, so you get to see New York, Paris, Venice, London, Barcelona, San Francisco, Rome, South of France in all their splendor and charm.
• His movies are old fashioned and have the old Hollywood feel to them, some of them are even shot in black and white.
• His writing style is very witty, knows how to combine drama and comedy to perfection, he knows how to transform a very sophisticated idea into something simple and relatable.
• Knows the human mind like a psychologist, that’s why every character he creates is very real and genuine, some of them quirky and funny, others sad and heartbreaking. 
• The relationships between people are one of his strong points, he knows how to twist them, complicate them or simplify them in very believable ways. 
• The scenes with friends sitting at a table in a restaurant having small talk are some of his best scenes in movies, they are so well captured and iconic for his style.
• He has a way of creating very tragic scenes in a comical way, so you never lose sight of humor, even in unexpected situations.
• He is an incurable romantic, love plays a center role in all his movies through complicated relationships. He prefers love triangles and even goes to other types of geometrical forms for the comic of some situations. 
• His dramas are unbearable, heartbreaking, his comedies are genuinely hilarious, but most movies have a combination of both. 
• He uses and reuses many of the most talented women actors out there from old to young like Diane Keaton, Dianne Wiest, Judy Davis, Mia Farrow, Cate Blanchete, Geraldine Page, Julia Roberts, Goldie Hawn, Scarlett Johanson, Emma Stone, Penelope Cruz, Kristen Stewart, Kate Winslet, Meryl Streep, Naomi Watts, Helen Hunt, Charlize Theron, Tracey Ullman, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Angelica Huston, Carrie Fisher, Melanie Grifith and many many more. 
• Although I feel he tends to focus more on the feminine side, great male actors play his roles like Alan Alda, Colin Firth, Joaquin Phoenix, Alec Baldwin, Anthony Hopkins, Roberto Benigni, Larry David, Colin Farrell, Javier Bardem, Hugh Jackman, Sean Penn, Leonardo di Caprio, Chazz Palminteri, Joe Mantegna, William Hurt, Michael Caine, Hugh Grant, Evan McGregor, Danny DeVito, Robin Williams, John Cusack, Owen Wilson and of course himself. 
• Music is very important in his movies, he prefers jazz, but also classical pieces. It’s very enjoyable to hear the soundtracks he chooses, they always set the perfect mood for the plot. 
• I love his intellectual discourse in his movies, I feel I always end up learning new stuff when watching them. I find myself googling one name or another that pops up.

I watched over the last years most of his work. I have to say that he is a very prolific writer and director, with around 50 movies. Each film is special in its own way, some of them are terrific, some good and some ok. I haven’t found one yet that I didn’t like. Here are some of my favorite which I full heartedly recommend: 

1. Midnight in Paris (2011)
2. Vicky Christina Barcelona (2008)
3. Wonder Wheel (2017)
4. Manhattan murder mystery (1993)
5. Whatever works (2009)
6. Deconstructing Harry (1997)
7. Manhattan (1979)
8. Everyone says I love you (1996)
9. Irrational Man (2015)
10. Radio Days (1987)

Watching and rewatching his movies I decided to write a small review for each of them. Maybe some of you will find yourselves in this “nostalgic” old style movie niche and want to discover more. I will publish these reviews in the weeks to come over various articles. 

After watching almost his entire filmography, I reached the conclusion that I really like Woody Allen, not only as an artist, but also as the character he always plays in his movies. They say he plays himself. If that’s true, then I like his quirky personality a lot, also his genius mind and knowledgeable background. He is 84 now and he still writes and directs a movie a year. I hope I get to see more of his work in the years to come, because it’s brilliant and special.

Photo from Woody Allen’s official website.