Romantic Comedy at its finest

Rating: 10/10 (5 April 2001)

Has there ever been a romantic comedy better than Annie Hall? Has there ever been a better MOVIE better than Annie Hall? One of the funniest, most honest, challeging, interesting movies I've seen. And I never get tired of watching it.
Woody Allen co-wrote, directed, and stars as Alvy Singer, a Jewish comedian living in New York City (Sound familiar?). The film chronicles the years he spends with Annie Hall, a particularly long and important relationship in his life. Jumping around in time, it presents the "big picture" of what it's like to be that guy, in that place, in that time.
The film is very, very funny, one of Allen's funniest, and filled with lines that you laugh at once, then realize how smart they are and laugh again. No one could really be that quick, but when it feels so good, go with it. Alvy often breaks the fourth wall and talks directly to the camera, to great comic effect. My favorite time he does it is when he argues with Annie about the phrase "my wife."
But for all it's humor, Annie Hall offers some really telling insights into Allen's head. The speaking directly to the camera only makes the story more intimate and personal. Alvy, Annie, Max, they seem like real people not characters. Everyone is relatable, and I can see a lot of myself in Alvy especially.
Bittersweet but not sad, touching but not sappy, Annie Hall strikes note after perfect note. I don't think I could ever get tired of it. And I think it's a movie that most everybody should see.