My review of "Melinda and Melinda"
Dual Disappointement
Woody Allen is a director I feel comfortable calling an “auteur”, a director who maintains creative control over his projects and has cultivated a distinctive style over the years. I’m glad to say that I am a card carrying Woody-phile. We share the same taste and sense of humor, but luckily not the receding hairline. His bittersweet masterpieces “Annie Hall” and “Manhattan” rank among my favorite films of all time. While there are a few intelligent and witty lines in “Melinda and Melinda” that are what I would call “Woody-isms”, the film fails to reignite the magic of his classics much like many of his other recent projects. I would be fine with that if the film was at least satisfying, but I didn’t even see much of a spark here.
As Woody Allen’s trademark opening credits appear, operatic music starts to play. After a minute, the music which accompanies the modest credits changes to a jazzy comedic score. This switch will soon reflect the brilliant concept of the movie. Four friends are out to dinner and among their chatter one brings up a philosophical question. What is the essence of life - comedy or drama? In search of an answer, one friend sets up a plot about an unexpected guest named Melinda who drops in on a NYC dinner party. This story is played out in two different (but similarly structured) sections - a tragedy and a comedy. Allen weaves these distinct stories by utilizing two separate casts with only the luminous Radha Mitchell as the titular character in both.
Aside from Will Ferrell and Amanda Peet, the cast is comprised of talented actors who usually stay under the radar. Although many of these actors have given great performances in their past films, many seem to be fully conscious that they are in a Woody Allen film and feel obligated to act a certain way. At one point these personalities were neurotically charming, but now they just seem unnatural. Radha Mitchell, Chloe Sevigny and Chiwetel Ejiofor all do their best to bring life to their characters and for the most part they succeed. Radha Mitchell, as the titular character Melinda, manages to create two believable characters (both are unstable and helpless, but in different ways) and Chiwetel Ejiofor performs with seamless charm. However, many jokes seem to have been squandered by poor delivery. For the lead role (filled by a hit-or-miss Will Ferrell), I’m beginning to believe that Woody just holds auditions to see who can deliver lines with the best stutter. Ferrell is serviceable, but as Jonny Lee Miller’s struggling actor says in the film, “They always want a big name even if the big name isn’t the best for the job”.
More appealing in concept than in execution, “Melinda and Melinda” feels too vapid. Much like in Shakespearean tragedies and comedies, the two stories share very similar elements. In a drama, the potential for tragedy is always realized, but in comedy the potential for tragedy is averted by comedic events. However, this film itself is failed potential - and that is just plain tragic. It attempts to show two outlooks on life, but what the film itself lacks is vitality. Some scenes play out well but most are plagued by lethargic direction. Woody has maintained some of his wit, but none of his sharpness.
Many characters in the film are described as “passionate” and it seems as if Woody has unfortunately lost his passion. Due to its philosophical main idea, the film has many chances to explore the abstract question, but decides to take an indirect approach and gloss it over with aimless melodrama and a slightly amusing comedy. Although the film is quite obvious (especially when considering all of the creative possibilities), it does succeed in sending one subtle message: comedy permeates drama and vice versa. However, I don’t find much humor in my disappointment.
Woody Allen is a director I feel comfortable calling an “auteur”, a director who maintains creative control over his projects and has cultivated a distinctive style over the years. I’m glad to say that I am a card carrying Woody-phile. We share the same taste and sense of humor, but luckily not the receding hairline. His bittersweet masterpieces “Annie Hall” and “Manhattan” rank among my favorite films of all time. While there are a few intelligent and witty lines in “Melinda and Melinda” that are what I would call “Woody-isms”, the film fails to reignite the magic of his classics much like many of his other recent projects. I would be fine with that if the film was at least satisfying, but I didn’t even see much of a spark here.
As Woody Allen’s trademark opening credits appear, operatic music starts to play. After a minute, the music which accompanies the modest credits changes to a jazzy comedic score. This switch will soon reflect the brilliant concept of the movie. Four friends are out to dinner and among their chatter one brings up a philosophical question. What is the essence of life - comedy or drama? In search of an answer, one friend sets up a plot about an unexpected guest named Melinda who drops in on a NYC dinner party. This story is played out in two different (but similarly structured) sections - a tragedy and a comedy. Allen weaves these distinct stories by utilizing two separate casts with only the luminous Radha Mitchell as the titular character in both.
Aside from Will Ferrell and Amanda Peet, the cast is comprised of talented actors who usually stay under the radar. Although many of these actors have given great performances in their past films, many seem to be fully conscious that they are in a Woody Allen film and feel obligated to act a certain way. At one point these personalities were neurotically charming, but now they just seem unnatural. Radha Mitchell, Chloe Sevigny and Chiwetel Ejiofor all do their best to bring life to their characters and for the most part they succeed. Radha Mitchell, as the titular character Melinda, manages to create two believable characters (both are unstable and helpless, but in different ways) and Chiwetel Ejiofor performs with seamless charm. However, many jokes seem to have been squandered by poor delivery. For the lead role (filled by a hit-or-miss Will Ferrell), I’m beginning to believe that Woody just holds auditions to see who can deliver lines with the best stutter. Ferrell is serviceable, but as Jonny Lee Miller’s struggling actor says in the film, “They always want a big name even if the big name isn’t the best for the job”.
More appealing in concept than in execution, “Melinda and Melinda” feels too vapid. Much like in Shakespearean tragedies and comedies, the two stories share very similar elements. In a drama, the potential for tragedy is always realized, but in comedy the potential for tragedy is averted by comedic events. However, this film itself is failed potential - and that is just plain tragic. It attempts to show two outlooks on life, but what the film itself lacks is vitality. Some scenes play out well but most are plagued by lethargic direction. Woody has maintained some of his wit, but none of his sharpness.
Many characters in the film are described as “passionate” and it seems as if Woody has unfortunately lost his passion. Due to its philosophical main idea, the film has many chances to explore the abstract question, but decides to take an indirect approach and gloss it over with aimless melodrama and a slightly amusing comedy. Although the film is quite obvious (especially when considering all of the creative possibilities), it does succeed in sending one subtle message: comedy permeates drama and vice versa. However, I don’t find much humor in my disappointment.