Annie Hall (1977)

5/5

Woody Allen's Annie Hall is the quintessential indie romantic comedy. Much like Psycho, it set the stage for all the parodies and homages to come (When Harry Met Sally, 500 Days of Summer). And watching it 35 years later, it loses none of its humor or warmth. It is still as engaging and moving as the day it came out. The bevy of flattering imitations and cheap knock-offs to emerge from the bowels of Hollywood since have only made me more nostalgic for the original. Because none of the replicas have the same charm that made this a classic; none have the same inventive curiosity and ceaseless awe about love that peppers every scene.

The film's structure jumps back and forth in time, focusing on the emotions of relationships rather than the chronology. This has been attempted in romantic stories since time immemorial, but never have I felt it as keenly as in Annie Hall. We see their moments of happiness, vivaciously experience that pure exhilarating joy. We cringe at the anger and resentment that builds up as their relationship falls apart, comes back together, and continues to breed turmoil. We want them to be together, because we love both of them, but life isn't always so sweet. Sometimes it's bittersweet.

There is so much about the directing to love. I'm constantly amazed that Allen put so much creativity into this film; anybody lesser would have spaced it out over several movies to keep people coming back for more. Annie Hall is filled to the brim and delightfully overflowing with ingenuity and novelty. He breaks down common filmic conventions--like split screen, subtitles, and the fourth wall--then rearchitects them for his own purposes. He has so much to say, and doesn't care how he gets his point across, so he uses anything and everything film has to offer.

But what makes this movie so good is none of that. It is the people. In Alvy Singer, Woody Allen both created and perfected the neurotic Jewish New Yorker; Harry Burns and Jerry Seinfeld are nowhere near as compelling or fulfilling to watch. There is something about how wiry and wimpy he looks, how piercing his voice sounds when he whines, that manages just the right amount of pity and sympathy. And Annie Hall is played to perfection by Diane Keaton, as beautifully awkward and fiercely independent as can be. She is soft, tender, naive, mature, and strong, all in one breath. The characters are nothing special, except that they are human beings, and that makes them more special than the characters inhabiting most movies. This movie will always stay in my heart. It is the first and best independent romantic comedy.

IMDb link:  http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0075686/

3 Women (1977)

3/5

Robert Altman's 3 Women is a curious, intriguing film. It follows the amusing and awkward interactions between the optimistic and oblivious Millie (Duvall), the shy and idolizing Pinky (Spacek), and the silent and artistic Willie (Rule). The plot is apparently based on a dream Altman had, and indeed the mood is very surreal. That is perhaps its strongest aspect, thanks to stellar cinematography and editing, and is reminiscent of the unsettling environment in Kubrick's The Shining. You have no idea where it's going, but you won't be satisfied until you find out. While the film might be called slow, it's never boring. While it might be called dull, it's never uninteresting. This is largely due to the strong performances and rich characterizations.

Near the end, unfortunately, it loses coherence and tightness. It spins wildly out of control and it's difficult to keep track of everything that's going on. It starts quite a few new threads and leaves quite a few loose ends. Worst of all, it fails to answer the questions it raises and leaves everything ambiguous. There's good ambiguous (where you have a few option to choose from), and there's bad ambiguous (where you have no idea what's going on). This was bad ambiguous. Still, for the first 90 minutes, I simply could not take my eyes off the screen. This is a fantastic movie with an end that will frustrate many, but might fascinate a few. If it sounds interesting, I suggest you give it a chance. Otherwise, leave it unwatched.

IMDb link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0075612/

Star Wars: A New Hope (1977)

4/5

Despite all my jocular poopooing of the film, Star Wars is a great movie. I really enjoyed watching it. For the first time, I understand the devotion its fans give it. I saw it slightly inebriated, but quite in command of my faculties, and I saw it when about five people not watching it were in the apartment cooking and talking such that I couldn't hear the dialogue a lot of the time. (This may have actually improved its rating as it forced me to focus on the better aspects of the movie, such as cinematography and overall sound design, and less on the worse aspects, like the dialogue.) Now, onto the review.

Without a doubt, the best part about this movie is its unparalleled sound design. It was also extremely well-shot, with crisp and evocative cinematography. The set design and costumes were really well-done too. The plot progressed and blossomed very fluidly. There were many thrilling action scenes that put you on the edge of your seat, all within an imaginative and all-encompassing new world. But I found the characters to be two-dimensional and emotionless, spewing horrendously corny dialogue. Even when their foster parents get brutally murdered and their home planet gets destroyed, not a single tear is shed (although the uninspired requisite visual of a man sitting alone before the setting sun(s) did find its way into the piece). I cringed at the acting by whiny Mark Hamill and annoying Carrie Fisher, but most offensive of all were the ubiquitous scene wipes. How much cheesier can you get? Also, there was one major cut I really didn't appreciate, during the fight scene between Obi-Wan Kenobi and Darth Vader. Lucas cut to Luke/Leia/Han in the middle of one of the most climactic and iconic battles in all of science fiction history, and in so doing completely deflated the tension. It absolutely destroyed the entire scene for me. (Michael Bay does this in the Optimus Prime/Megatron fight in Transformers, so maybe he is paying homage to this?) Review over.

Now for my own ranting. I understand the need for directors to come out with "Director's Cuts" if the theatrical vision was not what they intended and had been changed from their original vision by the studio, but seriously what is Lucas doing? Leave this movie alone.

IMDb link: http://imdb.com/title/tt0076759/