Amazon Studios opened their cheque books for Woody Allen meaning he could make more period pieces. Its a shame he didn't go the full autobiographical route like Neil Simon did with his Biloxi trilogy, and like he did with Radio Days and Annie Hall. I'd love to see accounts of him being a teenager, and working in TV and early stand up.
He's got a lot of money here to recreate Coney Island 1950s - it looks fantastic, with rides and extras and it's beautifully shot.
But instead of anything autobiographical he's come up with what seems to be a first draft attempt to recreate kitchen sink realism plays of the 1950s/60s - the sort of thing that popped up on the Golden Years of Television.
Allen has enough craft to ensure there's at least a story. Maybe he pinched the structure off another play like he did in Blue Jasmine (Streetcar Named Desire) and Play It Again Sam (The Seven Year Itch). Juno Temple visits father Jim Belushi fleeing her gangster husband. Belushi is married to Kate Winslet who starts sleeping with Justin Timberlake who becomes taken with Temple.
There is talk of fate and destiny, with Timberlake acting as a Greek chorus - I didn't mind this. The dialogue is incredibly self conscious and on the nose, as it would often be in Allen dramas, like it's translated subtitles as opposed to real dialogue, but once I got used to the style I didn't mind.
Modern day Allen films offer their pleasures - production design, cinematography (the colours are amazing), a fine cast. Belushi is a bit self conscious at times, as if acting in a play to the galleys. Winslet is sensational. Timberlake is fine, Temple is extremely good.
And again Allen re-uses tropes and themes - there's a nutty actress character who goes increasingly bonkers (Winslet), a womanising man who rationalises his lust and is self aware about his tendency to change his "heart" so to speak; love scenes in the rain and talking about rain being romantic.
I actually went with this for a bit - I didn't intend to keep watching but I stuck with it, the story proceeded logically and was building towards some good ticking clocks (Belushi's alcholism, Winslet's nuttiness, the kid's pyromania). That is, until the ending which was so damp and nothing. Temple goes missing but we never find out what happened to her - why not see she's killed. We never meet her ex husband - why not? Why no confrontation with him and Belushi. Belushi doesn't find out about Winslet's adultery - why not? Too exciting? Why don't we pay off the kid more? i.e. him setting fire to things. All he really serves is a reason for Winslet to not take off... I thought he'd betray his mother or Belushi or something. Why not have something interesting happen to Timberlake? Really he and Temple should have been killed and Belushi finds out about it and he kills Winsley and the kid burns down the building. That's what should have happened.
Is Woody scared of drama? Did he wanted to be unexpected?
There's a potentially interesting subplot where Winslet hints at Belushi having a weird attraction to his daughter - which would have been dramatically interesting, and fascinating considering the Dylan Farrow-Woody stuff... and also would have worked dramatically as it did in View from a Bridge by Arthur Miller... but nothing much is made of it and I think Woody is saying "oh that sort of thing is just what a crazy jealous actress would say like Mia". It's got Justin Timberlake leaving a woman for her step daughter... and he gets to be self righteous and leave at the end when his character really should die.
Interesting to look at, great look and some fine acting, but flawed.
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