List by Devon Torrey Bryant
Woody Allen.
Often brilliant, occasionally mediocre, sometimes quite terrible, Woody Allen is nonetheless one of my favorite filmmakers. Inspired by @LilySchmidt's list, this is my attempt to rank his films from most favoritest to least likedliest.
I love your list! Woody really is so great.
What didn't you like about Hollywood Ending? Not that I think it's one of his best or anything, just curious.
Well, the five at the bottom are ones that disappointed me so spectacularly that I've never even considered seeing them a second time, and even the mention of them makes me make lemon-lime, bad smell faces.
Hollywood Ending in particular I thought was his very lowest point. Not only did I find no laughs in the film (in fact, the only memorable joke in it is a masturbation joke that is a pale shadow of the zinger in Annie Hall), but it was one of the only films from his career where Woody himself looked like he didn't believe in what was happening. I don't think it's a coincidence that he effectively stopped appearing in his films after that point (Scoop & Anything Else notwithstanding).
And I just hated Celebrity. Kenneth Branagh is my least favorite Woody-alike in the whole canon, he just does not know how to own that dialogue. Certainly not in the way that John Cusack does in Bullets, or Larry David in Whatever Works.
I am realizing that Shadows & Fog is way too low on this list...I think this bottom half needs a little maintenance...
Oh man, I could not agree more about Kenneth Branagh! He was awful!
With Hollywood Ending I liked the whole blind director gag. That cracked me up and I thought Woody played it perfectly. For some reason I had always been sort of prejudiced to that film so I went into it with extremely low expectations. I think that helped. You make a very good argument against it though.
Did you know Midsummer Nights Sex Comedy is loosely based on a Bergman film? He kind of borrows from Bergman a lot actually. I love it.
Yes, Midsummer Night's is from Smiles Of A Summer's Night, right? September is a little like one of the Bergmans I've seen as well. And Interiors has tons of Bergman visual references. That is precisely what I love about Woody, especially when there are Bergman visual quotes in Sleeper and Love & Death. Slapstick comedies with Ingmar Bergman cinematography jokes! So appeals to a film nerd like me :)
I think I feel about Curse Of The Jade Scorpion like you do about Hollywood Ending. I went in with no expectations, in fact, expecting to hate it, and I laughed lots and just enjoyed it. Then, the next year came Hollywood Ending, so I was really excited, and then I didn't laugh at all and was horribly disappointed.
Okay, so I will watch Hollywood Ending again if you watch Another Woman again. Deal?
It's a deal.
You were right, Another Woman was really good. I'd forgotten it was the one that draws from Wild Strawberries. I love how he gets such amazing actors to play even the smaller parts.
Thanks for giving me a reason to watch this one again. I'll have to move my list around now.
Yay! I'm glad you liked it better this time. I love the scenario, I love the dream sequences, and I just love Gena Rowlands. You are right, everyone wants to be in a Woody Allen film, so he's able to cast like 14 or 15 great actors deep every time...Tonight I'll give Hollywood Ending a round two and see what happens :)