An Old Story in a Dynamic and New Light

Rating: 9/10 (16 February 2009)

This film can be characterized as a movie about the roller coaster love life between the protagonist, Alvy Singer, and the title character, Annie Hall. Comedic, tragic, and even a little philosophical, the film portrays what could have simply been "another Hollywood love story" in a highly stylized and engaging fashion, reminiscent of the French New Wave. To start, the opening scene tosses the concept of "suspension of disbelief" out the window when Woody Allen speaks directly to the audience, foreshadowing the ending of the film itself. Yet, suspense is only heightened, rather than diminished as we come to pay special attention to each scene as they are individually displayed rather than viewing them as a collective sequence building up to one formal climactic event. As such, this movie breaks a lot of barriers in a lot of ways. The fourth wall, linear progression, and the properties of time and space are broken throughout the movie, adding much more to the film than that of a traditional love story.
This movie is anti-climactic in establishing Alvy and Annie's relationship. Every traditional-looking love scene is blundered by brilliantly written awkward dialogue. In fact, the two main character's "first kiss" scene could not have been any less emotional or deep. Yet as a 3rd person viewer, I could not have perceived the event any more realistically.
In the end its not about what happens to these characters, but why. This is Woody Allen's explanation that one can try to control and change the people around him, but this may change the person into a someone very different than who he had fallen in love with. The only constant in this highly volatile and jumpy film is Allen's character, who suggests at the end that possibly it is he who needs to be the one to change.
Watching this unorthodox film was an extreme pleasure, and I have to congratulate and thank Ralph Rosenbloom for his less acknowledged, yet vitally important role in the creation of this film through his ingenious editing.
9/10