Comeback

Rating: 8/10 (14 September 2008)

The critical buzz about Woody Allen's latest film, Match Point, is that it's his best since (fill in the blank), and, to a degree, that's true. The last of his films to attain even a limited greatness was 1999's Sweet And Lowdown, with the magnificent performances of Sean Penn and Samantha Morton, and the last flat out great Allen film was 1992's Husbands And Wives. But a case can be made that this film is his best since 1989's Crimes And Misdemeanors, the film which is its most obvious philosophic and narrative ancestor. That said, in a sense, this film is also sort of a 'Best Of' Woody Allen film, which reuses many of the best scenes and motifs of his best work.
There is the obvious nod to Crimes And Misdemeanors, in that this film follows a murderer who gets away with his crime of killing his mistress when she gets too clingy and demanding. But, there are nods to Interiors, with the end shot of the film, as the protagonist gazes out a window into a vacant sky, Annie Hall with the scenes of tennis, and several others. Also, as always, there is Allen's 'grand idea' that propels the film; in this case another one he has used before, that of luck being the single greatest determinant in someone's success or failure writ small or large, not ethics. Whether or not this terrific film signals a quality fluke, for Allen's stealing shamelessly from earlier great outings may belie a creative bankruptcy (although one could argue the reassemblage or collage is creative in its own right), or a renascent final Silver Age to bookend his Golden Age (1977's Annie Hall through 1992's Husbands And Wives), only the next few films will herald, but I'd love to see Allen stay away from New York for the next four or five films, and really push himself hard narratively, in a final creative burst. The editing of the film is very crisp, and at only about two hours, the film feels far longer and richer, in the best sense. The English countryside is also beautifully filmed by Allen newcomer Remi Adefarasin.
As said, without Crimes And Misdemeanors' comedy, this film does not approach the universality of experience that film does (recall the philosopher in that film's documentary within a film, and his narration over the final wedding scenes), but it is still leagues above the usual crap Hollywood puts forth.