Not your "typical" Woody Allen film!

Rating: 9/10 (27 April 2006)

I just saw it last night, and boy (!) was I impressed. I'm a big fan of Woody's, but that in no part relates to my appreciation of this magnificent piece of film. The "trademarks" that make his films likable (or dislikable) are absent in this one: no jerky-poignant-mid-life-crisis-humour, even though it still (and always) relates to the conflicts of people, the struggle between doing "the right thing" and what we really want from life, the battle between love and lust. It could have been a cliché for all of this, but it's smart and refreshing instead. In fact, the only thing that gives it away early on (as a Woody Allen film) is probably the main title, as it is so "woody-allenish"! It's a story that demands a certain commitment from the viewer. Anyway, you can't just drop into the story; you have to sit through it!
The story telling is terrific, and even though it seems slow at the beginning, it only seems that: the rhythm of the film is masterful, and there's always something going on, character and story wise.
The performances are delivered with accuracy. Especially the role of Rhys Meyers, who reminded me of Joaquin Phoenix in "the Gladiator": that same fiendish look in the eye, that cynical stance that gives him a predatory gait, as if he knew what was going to happen first hand. It's a guy whose ambition knows no bounds, yet has the brains to keep himself innocuous and small. The other anchor of the storyline is Scarlet, in her most daring role yet. She is the unwilling Femme Fatalle; she doesn't make things happen, but is instead a catalyst of the events that unfold (so "anti-Catherine Tramell").
One thing that I didn't find in character with Chris Wilton's (Meyers) attitude was that he always seemed (throughout the film) quite a cold, calculating guy, that would feel no more remorse for doing what he did that for ordering fried chicken at a vegetarian restaurant. At the end, the finale would have been perfect (IMO) if he had smiled. That simple gesture would show how he came to grips with his actions, as a character that never looks back. As it is, we feel like, somehow, he could be overcome with grief. But that's only speculation, of course.
The character point of view is so well defined, that you find yourself thinking like him, considering the "necessary evil". You can love him or hate him all you want, but it will never make you feel indifferent.
Even though there's a lot of morality involved, the script isn't cheap and cynical, and you get that at the very end. Woody might have gone for the moral approach, but he ditched it, and that's one of the many reasons why the film is plausible: sometimes the bad guys win and justice isn't always served! He's a truly Machiavellian character, struggling to remove every nuisance from his life on his path to glory. Fortitude is always at his side, from the little ironies to the people that stand around him. Reminds me of an illustration from the book in the "the ninth gate", in which there's a caption saying: "virtue lies defeated". It sure has in "Match Point"; it's about doing the wrong thing to do the right thing.
9 out of 10!