My Thoughts on “Anything Else”


We all know the themes that are addressed in Woody Allen's films.  This film is no different, in that respect.  Knowing these themes will be a part of the film, what makes or breaks them, for me, are the situations his characters find themselves in, the twists and turns of the plot, and the growth, or the comeuppance, of those characters.  In "Small Time Crooks", for example, the twist of the plot in that story was unexpected and wonderful.  In "Curse Of The Jade Scorpion", the fun was in the mystery.   In "Anything Else", I thought none of this existed.  I found the twist and turns predictable.  The film doesn't say anything that hasn't been said before by Woody Allen.  He has expressed more poignancy before, even in "Small Time Crooks".  

This film seemed to move away from the "lightness" that I thought existed in his two previous films, trying to support more weighty material, but he did this with characters unable to support it.  I honestly didn't care for these characters, I didn't care to invest any of my emotions in them.  The characters were familiar to me-- I have seen them before in other Woody Allen films-- but when came the resolution of their dilemmas, I was indifferent in my opinion/emotional response to them. 

I was not pleased with this film.  Remember this, though: You are your own best critic.  Watch it for yourself. 

9-20-03


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