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Woody Allen (1977)
This is my fourth viewing of Annie Hall. I love it more each and every time I see it. It truly is Woody Allen's masterpiece. When you talk about Allen you have to start with the dialogue. Few people write as well as Allen. He is funny, of course, but he adds to that an intelligence that just takes his scripts to the next level. The humor is so biting and on point. His references are quick and vast. There is a scene where Annie sees Alvy's stand-up and she tells him, “you know I really think I am starting to get your references”. I don't know if I would go far as to say that, but I do think the more Allen I watch the more I catch and the more I re-watch his films the more I can take in. This movie is not long anyway but this last viewing just felt like it flew by. His story telling is very tight.
Annie Hall is a very simple story. Like most Allen films it is simply about relationships and the complexities within them. This movie is extremely unique however, and I think that is what sets it apart from his other films. He uses every technique that I can think of as it pertains to telling stories on film. He breaks the fourth wall, he uses narration, and there is an animation sequence. There is not a strict time line in Annie Hall. There is a scene where the characters in the present are in the same room as people from Alvy's past. There is a scene where Alvy stops and talk to random people walking within the scene about things that he is narrating to us. I honestly can't think of another movie that uses this many devices to tell its story. Every bit of it works for me without fail. It all makes me laugh and makes me engage with the characters. My guess is that all of these devices were used in films previous to Annie Hall but I would love to hear of another example of a film that uses them all and this effectively. Please let me know if I am incorrect because I will see that film immediately.
There are so many great scenes in Annie Hall. I am currently planning on watching my top ten movies in reverse order. I want to write a bit about all of them and within that I really wanted to choose my favorite scene from each film. I was not easily able to land on one scene here. I will choose but it seems like every scene that came along I thought this could be the one. The scene where we see Alvy talking to Max about antisemitism for the first time is funny and technically very cool to watch. The camera is with them the whole time as they walk down the sidewalk. It never zooms or retreats however until they have walked the whole length right up to where we are. Allen is not normally known for his camera work but this scene is a standout, but not my favorite. We also have the scene where Max sets Alvy up on a date with a journalist from the Rolling Stones. Shelly Duvall is a lot of fun here as the date. Allen steals the show though. His reactions to what she is saying are priceless. Then after having sex Duvall apologizes for taking so long. A conversation about orgasms begins but the whole time Alvy is rubbing his jaw. It is an absolutely priceless scene, but not my favorite. My favorite scene is the lobster scene. Alvy and Annie are away at a beach house and are cooking lobsters. The lobsters have made their way to the floor and are crawling around. It is a very cute and playful scene but what I really like is the call back later when Alvy is trying to recreate that moment with a new women. Of course it is not the same. Alvy wonders what is wrong with his date, she wonders what is wrong with him, and we wonder why our two main characters are not together.
I love watching Annie Hall. I think it is the perfect storm of all the things that Allen does so well. It is funny, charming, neurotic, and poignant. Its characters are well written, self-involved, and tragically flawed. It sums up Allen's style and films very well. Full of humanity and tragedy just like Allen himself. Perfect film and firmly in my top ten after this viewing.
This is my fourth viewing of Annie Hall. I love it more each and every time I see it. It truly is Woody Allen's masterpiece. When you talk about Allen you have to start with the dialogue. Few people write as well as Allen. He is funny, of course, but he adds to that an intelligence that just takes his scripts to the next level. The humor is so biting and on point. His references are quick and vast. There is a scene where Annie sees Alvy's stand-up and she tells him, “you know I really think I am starting to get your references”. I don't know if I would go far as to say that, but I do think the more Allen I watch the more I catch and the more I re-watch his films the more I can take in. This movie is not long anyway but this last viewing just felt like it flew by. His story telling is very tight.
Annie Hall is a very simple story. Like most Allen films it is simply about relationships and the complexities within them. This movie is extremely unique however, and I think that is what sets it apart from his other films. He uses every technique that I can think of as it pertains to telling stories on film. He breaks the fourth wall, he uses narration, and there is an animation sequence. There is not a strict time line in Annie Hall. There is a scene where the characters in the present are in the same room as people from Alvy's past. There is a scene where Alvy stops and talk to random people walking within the scene about things that he is narrating to us. I honestly can't think of another movie that uses this many devices to tell its story. Every bit of it works for me without fail. It all makes me laugh and makes me engage with the characters. My guess is that all of these devices were used in films previous to Annie Hall but I would love to hear of another example of a film that uses them all and this effectively. Please let me know if I am incorrect because I will see that film immediately.
There are so many great scenes in Annie Hall. I am currently planning on watching my top ten movies in reverse order. I want to write a bit about all of them and within that I really wanted to choose my favorite scene from each film. I was not easily able to land on one scene here. I will choose but it seems like every scene that came along I thought this could be the one. The scene where we see Alvy talking to Max about antisemitism for the first time is funny and technically very cool to watch. The camera is with them the whole time as they walk down the sidewalk. It never zooms or retreats however until they have walked the whole length right up to where we are. Allen is not normally known for his camera work but this scene is a standout, but not my favorite. We also have the scene where Max sets Alvy up on a date with a journalist from the Rolling Stones. Shelly Duvall is a lot of fun here as the date. Allen steals the show though. His reactions to what she is saying are priceless. Then after having sex Duvall apologizes for taking so long. A conversation about orgasms begins but the whole time Alvy is rubbing his jaw. It is an absolutely priceless scene, but not my favorite. My favorite scene is the lobster scene. Alvy and Annie are away at a beach house and are cooking lobsters. The lobsters have made their way to the floor and are crawling around. It is a very cute and playful scene but what I really like is the call back later when Alvy is trying to recreate that moment with a new women. Of course it is not the same. Alvy wonders what is wrong with his date, she wonders what is wrong with him, and we wonder why our two main characters are not together.
I love watching Annie Hall. I think it is the perfect storm of all the things that Allen does so well. It is funny, charming, neurotic, and poignant. Its characters are well written, self-involved, and tragically flawed. It sums up Allen's style and films very well. Full of humanity and tragedy just like Allen himself. Perfect film and firmly in my top ten after this viewing.