All things Woody Allen – a fansite, news and reviews
September marks the beginning of a series of serious dramas, many of them troublesome, that Allen directed. It is one of Allen’s most humble films – with one setting and a handful of characters, it is a play on film. It has some great performances, but in the end it lacks much of Allen’s flair. […]
Radio Days marks the culmination of everything Woody Allen had done to that point. Featuring plenty of Allen’s past cast, and mixes European feel, directing flair, old time entertainment, the documentary form and something very American into a great film. Woody Allen narrates an almost biographical story, about a child who grows up in the […]
Woody Allen returns to modern day NYC for the first time since Manhattan with Hannah And Her Sisters is one of Woody Allen’s most loved films. A sprawling, rambling tale of three sisters who live in New York, and the lives they lead. It is little more than that – but the charm and flair […]
The Purple Rose Of Cairo holds a special place in Woody Allen’s filmography. It is Woody Allen’s own favourite of his films, whilst he consistently rags on just about every other one. Even now, he claims it is the film that is closest to his original vision. From it, we can see what it is […]
Broadway Danny Rose marks the end of Allen’s fascination with European cinema, and marks a film that is very much his own. It’s a small story – and a short one – but Allen’s story is full of heart and he creates two of his best characters. It also marks the first knockout performance by […]
Zelig is not one of Woody Allen’s most recognised films, but it is one of his very best. Perhaps it’s the strange title, or the pseudo documentary format. It’s certainly a far cry from his witty, neurotic, New York comedies. But it is touching, funny, clever and a spectacular special effects ride. For anyone else […]
Woody Allen continues his tribute to European cinema, and delivers what could almost be a remake of Ingmar Bergman‘s ‘Smiles On A Summer Night‘. Allen’s at his most romantic, and this small film with just 6 actors and one set is one his most unashamed love stories. It helps that one of those 6 actors […]
Woody Allen returns to Europe and returns to acting in his 41st directed feature film. To Rome With Love has a lot to live up to, after the unexpected sucess of Midnight In Paris. However, the two films have almost nothing in common. ‘To Rome With Love‘ is Woody Allen’s most comical farce – his […]
Stardust Memories is considered Woody Allen’s first cinematic misstep. It is a film with a lot of problems. Amongst the problems are hidden some wonderful moments, but for some, they are overshadowed. For us, we think it’s a lovely, but extremely flawed film. Woody Allen plays Sandy Bates – a reknown director looking for a […]
Manhattan is Woody Allen’s most beautiful film. Beautiful in many ways. The stunning black and white photography. The lush and gorgeous score. And, of course, the set. The island of Manhattan, from bookshops to skylines. In the middle of all this, Allen plops some of his greatest characters, one of his greatest moral questions and […]
Interiors is Woody Allen’s first serious work – a quiet drama about a family. It’s not only his first dramatic film – it’s his first dramatic ANYTHING. Years of stand up, playwriting, acting and writing comic short stories was put aside for 100 minutes. Allen has said that when he was young he realised he […]
Annie Hall is a difficult one to review. We’ve seen this film so many times. For most people, it’s the first Woody Allen film you hear about, and the first you ever saw. It’s been with us long enough to inspire a love that led to a whole website. It’s considered the best Woody Allen […]
Love And Death marks the end of Woody Allen’s ‘early, funny’ period. Although not as openly mad and frenetic as Everything You Always Wanted To Know About Sex…, it sees Allen flirting with influences beyond his stand up and TV persona. It’s one of his funniest films, but it also hints at something a lot […]
Sleeper is Woody Allen’s 4th film as a director, lead actor and writer. Another farcical comedy, it continues his growth as a visual director, a writer with more than just jokes and probably most importantly of all – the arrival of Diane Keaton into his films. Keaton and Allen had appeared together in Play It […]
Now we’re getting somewhere. Everythng You Always Wanted To Know About Sex (But Was Afraid To Ask) is leaps and bounds from what came before. It begins a number of Woody Allen traits that he would always return to. The large ensemble cast. The clever use of film stocks and period footage. The stylish font […]
Bananas is the second film written, directed and starring Woody Allen. It is a straight farcical comedy, about a man who gets caught up in a revolution of a small fictional country of San Marcos. Allen stars as Fielding Mellish, although he plays pretty much the same character, or kind of character, that he does […]
Cast: Woody Allen, Janet Margolin Released: 1969 Take the Money And Run is the first movie written, directed and starring Woody Allen (What’s Up, Tiger Lily? doesn’t really count in our books). It is the first time he took complete creative control – having been burnt on both …Tiger Lily and Casino Royale. It is […]
Wild Man Blues is a documentary about the other side of Woody Allen – the musician. For decades, Allen has been playing clarinet publicly with various jazz bands. He has a regular Monday night appointment at the Cafe Carlyle in New York and according to him, he practises every day. His love and understanding of […]
We have seen some great large, sprawling biographies of great musicans. Be it Scorcese‘s Bob Dylan documentary No Direction Home, Peter Bogdonavich‘s Tom Petty documentary Runnin’ Down A Dream and of course, the Beatles Anthology. In film, there was the wonderful Monty Python documentary Almost The Truth. They are fan bait, taking the time to […]