Crimes and misdemeanours, part II

Rating: 9/10 (20 January 2006)

What if I'd praise this film - which is about a traditional love triangle (a handsome man, a beautiful and passionate young woman, a sweet and care-taking less-young wife) - as original? Would anybody believe me? And what if I added that it explores the tormented doubts of a husband, facing a crisis fought by an affectionate wife giving him a "choose a life"-Trainspotting-lifestyle on one side, and a lust affair, adding - again - a praise for its originality? Would anyone believe me? How many hundreds of films like this have already been written? Well, the first part of the film is all about this and, in fact, is NOT original at all. It is simply well filmed and directed and acted. And that's the strength of the story: the non-originality, the already-seen, which compel the spectator to wait for an equally non-original and obviously already seen twisted plot made up of divorces, break ups, etc etc. BUT the spectator is going to find something very different from the expected, and is thus trapped by an anguish which I'd never expect from a Woody Allen's film. He caught me by surprise.
It's a film terrifically different from all his other works. A murder! Oh well, yes, there was "Manhattan murder mystery", but it was clearly a funny comedy. And there was "Crimes and misdemeanours", as tragic as it could be, which however threw a totally different ethical responsibility upon the author of the crime. Match Point is a film about luck, which wickedly determines whether or not a homicide shall be punished. A question of fraction of millimetres, in a wedding ring which hits a railing as well as a tennis ball hits the net.
Technically, I had the impression that Woody took longer than usual in the "introduction" of the film, for the presentation of the characters. In the same way and time, I had the impression that he needed to "introduce" an unusually new character for him: London.
As for the comic side, I'll cite Trainspotting again, because Woody chose its Ewen Bremner to give us one of the few tiny (and great) spots of comicity in Match Point.
Enjoy the film - and good luck!