Pullquote political correspondent Carlos has reemerged post-midterm elections to share the following headscratcher from Hizzoner:
Movie Review: “You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger” (-)
Like every Woody Allen cult fan, I have seen all his movies. I’ll continue to do so although, regrettably, it appears his days of making great films are over.
The script of Allen’s latest picture sucks. More than a half-dozen people are involved in intimate relationships, but none of those interactions were profound enough to affect my emotions. Although the cast includes outstanding actors, their artistic abilities are not displayed in this movie.
Roy (Josh Brolin) is a failed novelist married to Sally (Naomi Watts). Sally is the daughter of Alfie (Anthony Hopkins) who heretofore divorced Helena (Gemma Jones). Alfie is looking for sexual excitement which he seems to have found in Charmaine (Lucy Punch) a former prostitute whom he marries. The actor who made the least impression on me was Antonio Banderas in the role of Greg, Sally’s boss.
As I have written before when reviewing Allen’s movies, I had the pleasure of appearing in his terrific 1989 picture, “New York Stories,” in which I played myself as mayor at the time. Woody and I have grown old together and, I believe, have reached our career heights at the same time, although he is 75 and I am 85. Statistically, 50 percent of Americans over the age of 85 suffer from some form of dementia, the worst being the degenerative Alzheimer’s. We are fortunate in that neither of us is suffering from dementia. We continue to enjoy our work and are capable of performing our professions. His bad films excel the best of many noted filmmakers, and I hope my reviews and commentaries continue to interest my readers.
I saw the picture at the Angelika Film Center located at 18 West Houston Street.
Henry Stern said: “I too have been a Woody Allen fan for years. He has basically written and directed a film every year since 1969, sometimes two. His movies were considered New York chic, often based on psychoanalysis, and appealed to the crowd that used to go to the New Yorker and Thalia theaters. I like those people. They elected me to the City Council in 1973 and 1977. Somebody has to believe the Rosenbergs were innocent. We are all getting older and perhaps less demanding, but I rather liked Tall Dark Stranger, except for the off-putting title, which is unwieldy. The movie was lively, the players were very good, the plot was ridiculous but so are most operas, that’s not why you see them. I enjoyed the London scenery, the interactions of the characters, the combination of stodginess and absurdity in their semi-British behavior. For me, the movie ended too soon.”
So much muchness! On to another New York story, this one about uber-WASPy UHB director Whit Stillman's long awaited latest. It's been making the rounds, but it's such a wonderfully written profile that I'd feel remiss not drawing your attention to it. A taste here, but the whole thing is delicious:
Stillman likes Dunkin’ Donuts; it’s another well-run institution, and unpretentious besides. What Whit Stillman is not is someone who’s about to pay $25 for a Cobb salad; who cares if it has lobster and mango-pineapple dressing? His cheapness seems at odds with his plaid blazer, but a plaid blazer, in Stillman’s world, is not about money. Like the characters in his films, he also seems to inhabit a special space, a space he created—a Jet Blue of spaces, where people quote directors from the 1930s and are inspired by Balzac novels, and where plaid blazers are as all-purpose as three-packs of white T-shirts. Besides, saving money these days has become a pathology: He’s found he can save money by ordering an espresso and adding milk from the canteens over by the sugar, napkins, and swizzle sticks. It’s a latte with a slight detour. Potential places to meet are the library and Bryant Park; both are free, as is the cachet of the front of the Harvard Club. Each dollar Stillman saves will expand his movie budget by a dollar.
This next one's on the hush-hush, as it were. Get a gander while you can.
