Although the innovative style in which he told his story was not new- the flashbacks, walking into his past etc was all done twenty years earlier in Wild Strawberries- the film feels as though it's reinventing cinema in a simple and direct way.
The plot is basically boy gets girl, boy loses girl, etc. But the way Woody Allen tells this story, and the casting and chemistry that he concocted is just stellar. It's clear that Allen and Keaton are or were in love with each other, and they pop right off the screen. Every other role, from Colleen Dewhurst to Christopher Walken, is perfectly cast.
But the story itself, the simple way he deals with finding love, then losing it, will touch you. I don't think of this film so much as a comedy, although it's absolutely hilarious, as a film about loss with some laughs, and I appreciate it enough to watch it every few years, like an old friend.
If you've never seen this film, you're in for a wonderful evening.
The plot is basically boy gets girl, boy loses girl, etc. But the way Woody Allen tells this story, and the casting and chemistry that he concocted is just stellar. It's clear that Allen and Keaton are or were in love with each other, and they pop right off the screen. Every other role, from Colleen Dewhurst to Christopher Walken, is perfectly cast.
But the story itself, the simple way he deals with finding love, then losing it, will touch you. I don't think of this film so much as a comedy, although it's absolutely hilarious, as a film about loss with some laughs, and I appreciate it enough to watch it every few years, like an old friend.
If you've never seen this film, you're in for a wonderful evening.