When Woody Allen became great.

Rating: 10/10 (6 June 2005)

"Annie Hall" (1977): Simply one of the most innovative, interesting, insightful films you will ever experience - again and again. THIS work announced that Woody Allen would never again return to slapstick comedy, and would instead draw from deeply personal sources in the manner of other serious artists. It's innovative for his use of still camera shots that allow it's characters to leave (or never enter) a scene (yet you hear their conversation), subtitling of thoughts vs words, movies within movies, the use of animation within a "normal" film, giving the dialog to other actors on a stage, characters who leave their bodies and still carry on conversations, characters who break from the film and talk to us the audience, split screen depictions of different times or places with the characters speaking to one another across the splits, flash backs of characters that describe their futures...it's a superb break from what was expected. It's interesting on more than artistic levels, as Allen delves into references far beyond the mundane, and presents them with wit, humor, and awkward honesty. It's insightful for his honest and thoughtful look at how humans behave under different realities. "Annie Hall" is a masterpiece. (And watch for many lucky young actors (such as Jeff Goldblume, Christopher Walken, Shelley Duval, etc.) who, thirty years ago, could only dream that "Annie Hall" would help kick start their hopeful careers.