Halled Off

Not long ago, I watched Woody Allen's classic movie, Annie Hall. It's considered by most to be his masterpiece; it did win the Best Picture Oscar that year, after all. I can't say I've seen many of his films, but I'm going to say Match Point still stands as his best in my book.

The problem starts with Woody Allen himself as an actor -- and as a writer, when it comes to the character he's written himself. I'm not the first person to say this, but count me on the bandwagon: I think Woody Allen movies are a lot better when he's not in them. His character in this movie, Alvy Singer, is so neurotic as to be unrelatable, unsympathetic, and unbelievable. He's like George Costanza, Larry David (the real version), and Larry David (the Curb Your Enthusiasm version) all rolled up into one and magnified ten times. You just want the guy to shut the hell up by the end of the very first scene of the movie.

But Diane Keaton, as the title character, keeps you from bailing on the film on account of Woody Allen. She's endearing and likeable -- loveable -- and at the top of a pyramid of great actors in the film. Carol Kane, Shelley Duvall, and Christopher Walken all show up in small roles, Paul Simon appears in an extended cameo of sorts, and even Jeff Goldblum puts in a before-anyone-knew-who-he-was appearance.

There are a lot of very clever, even funny scenes in the movie. But unfortunately, that's all I found them to be -- scenes. The overall story of the film was rendered disjointed and awkward by this procession of styles. There are scenes in which characters step out to talk to the camera, physically witness flashbacks of their own past, or even step outside their own bodies to watch themselves. Most of these moments are worth a laugh, but they all feel artificial -- only meant to get the laugh, and each more out of place than the last. I felt that if only Woody Allen had stuck to one or two of these gimmicks, he'd have a more coherent movie. Instead, I thought it played like a hit-and-miss improv troupe performing on some sort of theme night.

I've seen worse movies that have been honored as Best Picture. But I've seen a lot better. Annie Hall gets a C-.