Your Favorite Woody Allen Film?- Page 3

[Cruel_Sandwich]

Posted: 6/4/07 at 1:26pm

I really respect Julie Kavner. How is she able to do the voices for the entire Bouvier family for nearly twenty years and still able to talk?

[lildogs]

Posted: 6/4/07 at 1:37pm

I'd say SHADOWS was more Murnau than Lang btw...a litle Dreyer in there too

[Cruel_Sandwich]

Posted: 6/4/07 at 1:40pm

*cumcumcumcumcumcum* must......rent.......

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 6/4/07 at 1:41pm

Shadows and Fog should be seen just for the cast alone (most of whom are cameos):

Julie Kavner
Mia Farrow
John Cusack
Lily Tomlin
Madonna
Kathy Bates
Jodie Foster
John Malkovich
Donald Pleasance
Fred Gwynne
William H. Macy
John C. Reilly
Philip Bosco
Kate Nelligan
Wallace Shawn
Robert Joy
Kenneth Mars

[lildogs]

Posted: 6/4/07 at 1:49pm

Woody's "homaged" alot of directors, esp Bergman and Fellini

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 6/4/07 at 1:58pm

The first time I watched Amarcord, I instantly noticed how Woody Allen must have used him for inspiration, especially for many of his middle works (late 70s-late 80s). Bergman was pretty obvious when watching Love and Death (duh) and Interiors.

Personally, I think Zelig was Allen's most innovative film. It's pure genius. I don't care for him as a person, but he has proven to be a brilliant writer/director.

I also like Allen's period homages, such as Radio Days, Purple Rose of Cairo and Sweet and Lowdown. You can tell they exist purely as love letters to a bygone era.

Updated On: 6/4/07 at 01:58 PM

[lildogs]

Posted: 6/4/07 at 2:04pm

Radio Days is ALOT like Amarcord--Stardust is Fellini-esque too

I do like ZELIG alot--but I think ANNIE HALL is the real groundbreaker--the template for modern romatic comedies and it's structure and screenplay really are quite unique.

Woody has always surrounded himself with great artists like Gordon Willis, Santo Loquasto, Sven Nykvist and Jeffrey Kurland...he hasn't used his usual roster in some time.

[Cruel_Sandwich]

Posted: 6/4/07 at 2:09pm

The only thing I kind of wish he would do more of is stretch his acting range. I'd love to see him play a Samuel L. Jackson type or something.

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 6/4/07 at 2:35pm

lildogs - I do agree that Annie Hall is definitely Allen's most influential film, but I always felt like you saw it coming. In is earlier works, he seemed to be laying the groundwork for Annie Hall, especially in Play It Again, Sam (oddly enough, not directed by Allen).

But Zelig seemed to come out of nowhere and was so original not only in concept, but in its use of cinematography and editing. As soon as I saw Forrest Gump, I thought, "Zelig did it first". I had never seen a film before that superimposed current footage with so much historical documentary footage so realistically and seamlessly. I was flabbergasted the first time I watched it.

[lildogs]

Posted: 6/4/07 at 3:25pm

Oh--don't get me wrong--ZELIG is amazing--both subject material and style are very innovative.

I really didn't see much of ANNIE coming--the use of animation, talking to the camera, chronology, the use of montage, are all still used today--though you're right on about FORREST GUMP--Woody went there already. And he didn't need CGI.

[misschung]

Posted: 6/4/07 at 3:28pm

Forrest Gump - don't even get me started. I am still in shock that people coin that as Hanks' best work

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 6/4/07 at 3:44pm

As much as I love Annie Hall, I'm still pissed it stole the Oscar from Star Wars.

[Jane2]

Posted: 6/4/07 at 3:56pm

Bullets Over Broadway
Sleeper

those two make me laugh the most. I think my favorite scene in Bullets was the one when the thugs first go over to Jennifer Tilly's house and that whole dialogue between Tilly and the thugs and Tilly and the maid. Hysterical!

In Sleeper, I love when Allen is running across the meadow in that blow up suit.

[doodlenyc]

Posted: 6/4/07 at 4:01pm

Tilly so deserved that nomination. I thought she was wonderful.

"Charmed, Charmed...charmed, charmed"

[misschung]

Posted: 6/4/07 at 4:02pm

oh God, Bullets... I forgot about that one.

"Before we start....ooo, a little poultry!"

[Jane2]

Posted: 6/4/07 at 4:36pm

"I'm not servin no horse dovers!"

[D2]

Posted: 6/4/07 at 4:47pm

"Olive, you're a horrible actress!"

Bang. Bang, bang.

[blueroses]

Posted: 6/4/07 at 5:04pm

"Don't speak!"

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Posted: 6/4/07 at 5:58pm

Ohhh, "Don't speak!" Pure genius. I think I love everything about BULLETS OVER BROADWAY. Definitely my favorite Allen film.
No one likes ALICE? I think it's such a fun movie.

[Mr Roxy]

Posted: 6/4/07 at 6:00pm

His early strictly comedy ones are some.

Some later ones

Broadway Danny Rose
Everyone Say I Love You

[SeanMartin]

Posted: 6/4/07 at 7:41pm

MANHATTAN. Arguably the most beautiful film ever made.

[Roscoe]

Posted: 6/4/07 at 8:55pm

SHADOWS AND FOG should be pretty well avoided, except as a piece of very beautiful black and white cinematography. The story is warmed over bogus Kafka. Useless.

ALICE is pretty well useless, too, except for a couple of amusing moments from Mia Farrow under the influence of assorted drugs. The highlight is a great scene where she morphs from mousy little nebbish into confident pickup artist in one unbroken shot.

I usually think that Allen's most obviously derivative ones are his weakest, like SHADOWS AND FOG and STARDUST MEMORIES and the unspeakable ANOTHER WOMAN. RADIO DAYS doesn't strike me as being particularly Fellini-esque, unlike the unfortunate STARDUST MEMORIES which works overtime at ripping off the master.