The little master meets the little dictator

Rating: Null/10 (27 April 2002)

There are some critics who believe that in order to truly appreciate this film you need to have a good understanding of Russian literature. Nyet. I don't know my Dostoevski from my Tolstoy, and for years I thought the Brothers Karamazov were a family of Soviet trapeze artists, but that did not stop Love and Death from leaping straight to the top of my list of alltime favourite films.
Made in 1975 (I've always thought Allen's best work was done in the Seventies), it is the story of a cowardly Russian who (very) accidentally becomes a war hero.
It is the early 1800's and Russia is at war with Napoleonic France. Allen is Boris Grushenko, the youngest of three brothers in a rural family. Madly in love with Sonia, his cousin twice removed, played by a luminous Diane Keaton, he would rather philosophise and write poetry, but is instead drafted into the army. During the height of battle he hides in a cannon. The cannon is fired and he becomes a human cannonball who happens to land on a tent killing several French generals. He becomes the toast of Moscow, desired by beautiful women and reviled by their jealous lovers. But always in the back of his mind is his cousin Sonia. He even keeps a lock of her husband's hair to remind him of her. She is trapped in a loveless marriage to a herring obsessed businessman, and she has many affairs. They eventually find each other but just when life seems perfect she hatches a plan to assasinate Napoleon.
If truth be told, any review of this comic gem would only do it scant justice. One has to see it to really appreciate the humour. It has sight gags aplenty, but also some marvellous dialogue. I also loved the incongruity of Allen's New York accent juxtapositioned against the perfect Russian accents of the supporting cast. There are many memorable scenes, highlights for me being the Black Russian drill sergeant, the verbal exchanges between Allen and Harold Gould, and the meeting between the real and the fake Napoleons.
Prior to the success of Annie Hall, Allen's films were generally made with a limited budget, but this was no hindrance in this film. There was good costume design and lovely cinematography. I also enjoyed the use of composer Sergei Prokofiev's music to score the film.
A sheer joy from beginning to end Love and Death is a lively and hilarious comedy to be savoured again and again.