Woody starts the film in stand up mode addressing the camera introducing us to his subject, the break up of his affair with Annie Hall. But everything has changed. It's unmistakable. His hair has been cut and his bald patch has been concealed under a comb-over. The wild hair from his early funny films has gone. He has been styled into a suit, though the glasses remain.
More important is the quality of the writing in this opening monologue. It's beautiful. Woody name-drops Freud, Groucho Marx and the Catskills and we're away. When Diane Keaton appears, she's been made over by a stylist into a preppy look that would be copied across the world. In a non linear narrative, Woody reflects on his relationship and his break up with Diane Keaton whose comic performance stands comparison with anyone from any era.
A Woody Allen release is now is aimed at a mainstream audience, and can win multiple Oscars. It has genuine drama that we are asked to believe in, and these moments are no longer punctured by a joke about bodily functions. The film looks innovative and idiosyncratic, but is warm and has moments of delicious romance. Woody's comic persona has a dark side. But it is also his funniest film to date.
Nothing doesn't work, every joke hits the mark (like the scene when Woody sneezes into a lot of dollars worth of cocaine) with exquisite timing. It has one of the most brilliant cinema scripts, which has been widely copied, but never improved on. This is one of the great American films.
I watched about 20 min of this and gave up. It seems to be totally focused on Woody Allen himself. Is he just a narcissist?. I don't really get the zany stuff either although I have enjoyed Steve Martin films sometimes. Perhaps I was not in the right mood for this and chose the wrong film for my tastes..
I agree with GW, but endured it to the end. Woody's character has a relationship with a beautiful intelligent woman, but is totally self obsessed, anti-social & miserable. More than likely a screenplay of his own persona. His constant arty-farty over-intellectual jabbering is irritating & pretentious; why doesn't he just say what he means ? It's not that funny, except a couple of wise quotes at the start taken from Groucho Marx.