Post by StevePulaski on Jul 14, 2013 22:50:18 GMT -5
Manhattan (1979)
Directed by: Woody Allen
Directed by: Woody Allen
Rating: ★★★★
Woody Allen's Manhattan is proof that the smallest things do in fact make a film great, even when they're put to use in a projects that seems as if it could do no wrong. To put it simply, this is a glorious film, that utilizes character development, poignancy, deep thought, personal flaws, and love to tell a story that is one for the history books of cinema.
The film focuses on forty-two year old, comedy writer Isaac Davis (Woody Allen) who is going out with seventeen year old Tracy (Mariel Hemingway). Tracy views their relationship as a precocious one that is directly built off of love. Isaac views it as a passing diversion that will soon be forgotten by the both of them. Isaac feels as if he is the last thinking man in a world that is made up of a cesspool of idiots and pseudo-intellectual mouthbreathers. He winds up meeting Mary Wilkie (Diane Keaton), who rubs him the wrong way at first, but eventually begins to grow on him for her the intelligence she provides and the waves of passion that seemingly flow off her body.
Isaac still continues his relationship with Tracy, even though, at this point, why bother? He personally believes it will go nowhere. Tracy clings to hope that it will go somewhere and frets over the idea it won't and, in the end, feels as if she will soon be facing a dark inevitability of life. The only thing seemingly stopping Isaac from going all the way with Mary is that she is currently dating his friend Yale (Michael Murphy) is dating her. But, then again, it doesn't stop him so much to become romantically invested with her, spending all the time in the world and even having sex; so what is exactly stopping him.
This is when Manhattan becomes one of the most involved pictures Allen has ever made. Nothing is truly stopping Isaac, but he is paranoid over small details and sees most everything as either trivial (his relationship with Tracy) or effectively makes it achieve a level of intimacy and success that cannot be passed (his relationship with Mary). Isaac wants his relationship with Mary to pass unfathomable heights that may not exist in reality, and his attachment to Tracy is one out of pure convenience. He is in dire need of a wake up call.
Not many filmmakers could portray a relationship between a forty-year-old and a teenager to such great power and believability, and with Woody Allen's reputation as of now, one entering this picture blindly could base the premise too much on reality. The fact is he does a brilliant job taking a controversial subject into light. The scene at the diner between Isaac and Tracy, among many other things, is terrific and captivating and accentuates truly what Allen is about in making deeply involved human dramas.
Combine the plot and character elements of the film with amazing black and white photography by Gordon Willis and an amazingly elegant score by George Gershwin and you have a picture that delights on every level for your senses. It's extremely rare a film hit many areas of a film on the head with such confidence and style, but Woody Allen's Manhattan does it and does it boldly, making this one of the best romantic films I have yet to see.
Starring: Woody Allen, Diane Keaton, Mariel Hemingway, and Michael Murphy. Directed by: Woody Allen.