| Directed by | Woody Allen |
|---|---|
| Produced by | Charles H. Joffe |
| Written by | Woody Allen Marshall Brickman |
| Starring | Woody Allen Diane Keaton Michael Murphy Mariel Hemingway Meryl Streep Anne Byrne |
| Music by | George Gershwin played by the New York Philharmonic, Zubin Mehta and the Buffalo Philharmonic, Michael Tilson Thomas |
| Cinematography | Gordon Willis |
| Edited by | Susan E. Morse |
| Distributed by | United Artists |
| Release dates |
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| Running time | 96 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $9 million[1] |
| Box office | $39,946,780[2] |
Hey everybody, I'm back again with yet another Movie Thoughts. I think from here on out, I'm going to include the little box of info along with the poster (credit to Wikipedia) with all future Movie Thought posts. Just makes it look a little more professional. Speaking of professional (which I am not), I have been feeling rather trapped by using Blogger mainly due to the restrictions of website design. I'm not master of website making myself, but I am hoping that one day, the Wigwam can be moved to a better domain. So keep an eye out for that in the near future (or it may take a while).
Anyways, let's jump right into today's movie. Woody Allen's 1979 Manhattan. Shot entirely in black and white, it is a movie that grabbed my attention just from the look of it. I've always been a fan of NYC both older and modern renditions. I youtubed the opening scene of this movie and I immediately had to go watch it. A feast for the eyes with beautiful shots of Manhattan along with Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue and a magnificent narration by Allen himself sold me.
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| One of my favourite shots from the opening |
And unlike many other movies who start out strong, this beautiful piece of cinematography carries throughout the entire movie. There are three scenes that stand out for me (aside from the opening and the ending which acts as a bookend for the opening) and they are the talk by the path under Queensboro bridge, the many driving scenes, and the carriage ride through Central Park.
I'm no Yankee myself but the atmosphere of New York that Manhattan captures is truly something magnificent. Allegedly, Allen wanted to create Manhattan after he felt that his more discrete attempt at a homage for New York in Annie Hall went unnoticed. Because of this, there are many people who feel that the setting of Manhattan is fairly irrelevant to the story. I'm not going to say something is wrong or right, but I will try to share my opinions on this. Although Manhattan is a fairly simple Romantic Comedy that can be interpreted quite literally, there are definitely some deeper messages throughout. Of course in true Allen fashion, the themes are found in the character to character interactions rather than the plot mechanics. I find that the opening and closing narrations capture the message of this movie quite well. My main takeaway is that Romance is often idealized but that is exactly what is required for it to work.
Allow me to explain. Throughout the movie, the handful of characters swap romantic interests more often than radio stations being swapped in a 5 hour car ride with 6 agitated teenagers. Each time their romantic status changes, their blind idealization is what compels them to do so. It is strong enough to compel a man in a 10 year marriage to divorce and pursue a woman who clearly is a detriment. More often than not, the relationship breaks and fails soon after because this idealized relationship has faced reality. The two are now no longer blindly infatuated because they must overcome obstacles and make decisions together. And they hate it. Off all the characters in this movie, there is only one character who maintains this idealization throughout the course of the relationship and that is Tracy, the high school girl that Isaac is dating.
Isaac constantly belittle Tracy and reminds her that he is most likely not going to be a long term partner. Is this realistic? Probably. However, despite Isaac almost dedicating the relationship to breaking it apart, Tracy always holds Isaac in this romantic idealization. This is what makes their relationship (semi) work while the others do not. If Isaac could do the same (which he does in the end), their relationship could turn into a long term one.
This is exactly why the setting of this movie is important. Manhattan itself is a metaphor for this romanced idealistic world. It may not really be all that great but it certainly compels you to believe that it is. It is the city that never sleeps, the crossroads of the world, capital of the universe all in one.
All in all, Manhattan is a beautiful film that captures Manhattan in its truest form. With amazing cinematography, this is truly one of Allen's finest works. I would definitely suggest watching this film.
This is exactly why the setting of this movie is important. Manhattan itself is a metaphor for this romanced idealistic world. It may not really be all that great but it certainly compels you to believe that it is. It is the city that never sleeps, the crossroads of the world, capital of the universe all in one.
All in all, Manhattan is a beautiful film that captures Manhattan in its truest form. With amazing cinematography, this is truly one of Allen's finest works. I would definitely suggest watching this film.
