WOODY ALLEN
Bil’s rating (out of 5): BB.5.
USA, 1987. Jack Rollins & Charles H. Joffe Productions, Rollins-Joffe Productions. Screenplay by Woody Allen. Cinematography by Carlo Di Palma. Produced by Robert Greenhut. Production Design by Santo Loquasto. Costume Design by Jeffrey Kurland. Film Editing by Susan E. Morse.
One of Woody Allen’s weakest films is this romantic melodrama with a bit of a murder mystery in the middle. A group of family and friends gather at Mia Farrow‘s home for the weekend and subject themselves to emotional anguish as they each discover that the person they’re coupled off with is in love with someone else. Cast members Farrow, Denholm Elliott, Elaine Stritch (as Farrow’s mother) and especially Dianne Wiest do a terrific job with the material, but it isn’t nearly as deep as Allen showed himself capable to be in the Bergman-ripoff department (see Interiors and Another Woman). A central plot movement involving a murder cover up is obviously inspired by the Lana Turner-Johnny Stompanato case, but fails to really liven the proceedings up in any way.
