Customer Reviews

Annie Hall (Widescreen/Full Screen) [Import]

5 star:		(86)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Just to add my voice to the choir: Quite simply one of the best films
about romantic relationships ever made. Brilliantly written.
Brilliantly acted -- Diane Keaton is tremendous, the supporting cast is
full of gems and Allen himself takes the leap to present himself as a
real (if funny) human being and not a walking joke. And brilliantly
photographed by the great Gordon Willis of 'The Godfather' and many of
most important films of the 70s and 80s.

Wildly funny and ultimately heartbreaking. It's hard to imagine anyone
who has ever been in love, or struggled through grown-up relationships
NOT identifying with a lot of this film. I loved it in my late teens
when it first came out, and I love it even more 32 years later. Every
time I see it I notice different details, depending on my own current
life experiences. A film of enormous wit, humor, invention, and
understanding of the human heart. Its completely unique, playful and
idiosyncratic in style and approach, but that experimentation somehow
only makes it more accessible and universal. If you haven't seen it,
you owe yourself a try, even if you're not a Woody Allen 'fan'. And if
you saw it long ago, it may be time for another look.

For some insane reason, the North American DVD is not
even enhanced for 16x9 TVs.

And while the new blu-ray isn't quite reference quality (probably
due to the age and condition of the source materials) it does
look very, very good. A considerable step up from the DVD,
and very much worth it if you love the film. There's more
depth, sharpness, richness. More immediacy. Of course, some
things never change, and there are still no extras (sigh...)
but worth the up-grade none-the-less.

People just adore Annie Hall. I like Annie Hall. Manhattan and Hannah and Her Sisters work better for me but I can think of about a billion worse ways to spend 90 minutes than watching Annie Hall. Even though I'm not particularly charmed by it, I freely admit Annie Hall is better than 98% of all American movies ever. Funny, smart and endearingly offbeat. Certainly worth the going price.

Woody's self searching and unique form of humor make this a brilliant movie. Diane Keaton is the perfect co-star.

I saw this last year after not seeing it since it came out in the late 1970's...still just as fresh and wonderful. I just wish my wife liked Woody Allen humor as much as I do.

Ok, let me get this one thing out of the way: when I was 12, Annie Hall beat Star Wars for the Best Picture Academy Award, and I was not a happy kid. However, time can do funny things...

I first saw this picture a few years later, with my first real girlfriend (hi, Lisa!) on the revival circuit. I found it witty and intelligent, as I have with most of Woody Allen's films. I have to say that, to my 16-year-old mind, it still didn't make a huge impression. Twenty years and a failed marriage later, however, I think I can honestly say that I now get it.

Annie Hall is, to me, Woody Allen's greatest triumph as a filmmaker and a storyteller. It's a bittersweet, often hilarious recounting of a relationship from its start to its inevitable end. We see Allen at his most honest, at times brutal examination of himself and his destructive approach to relationships as he plays Alvy Singer, a funny, neurotic comedian (not a great stretch for Woody, granted). All the angst, the neuroses, and manic phobias that at first seem so idiosyncratic and charming, eventually become tiring and sad. Here is a man who is so attached to his psychoses that he would be an empty shell without them, and we see the painful fact of this in his reflections of previous relationships and marriages throughout the course of his adult life. Ultimately, this is a character so galvanized by his fears and phobias that he is simply incapable of managing a complex adult relationship, one free of paranoia and anxiety and this is his tragic downfall. In short, he is a small child trapped in the body of a small man.

This is not, however, one of Allen's Bergmanesque forays into introspection. The knee-slapping hilarity of many of the scenes help draw us into his world and the relationship he has with Annie (Diane Keaton, marvelous as always), his friends, his family, and the world around him. A particular favorite is when, on their first meeting, Alvy and Annie exchange basic getting-to-know-you small talk, and their hidden meanings and anxieties are shown to us in subtitles. Other scenes involving a movie-line blowhard, a lost mantra, and Annie's decidedly white-bread family are the stuff of legend, and they never fail to bring a smile to my face.

Though this film is nearing thirty-years old, it shows no sign of aging. The themes are familiar and universal; who hasn't fallen desperately in love, only to feel the painful tentacles of fear come creeping in the moment they've opened their heart for all the world to see? This film will never lose its place in my heart as one of the best films I've ever seen.

Woody Allen is definitely a "love him or hate him" kind of guy. If you hate him, then you're probably not even reading this. For those who like/love him, there is little disagreement that Annie Hall is his Crown Jewel. For those that don't know much about him or his work, this movie is a wonderful place to start.

Although it's a bit difficult to see what Annie sees in Alvy (though this adds to the charm), Keaton's Annie is absolutely adorable in her awkward self-consciousness. Fantasy, nostalgia, tenderness, and some of the funniest dialogue in movie history make this one of the best movies ever.

I've seen it several times now (I own it), and I love it more with each viewing. My highest recommendation.

I have a confession to make.

Until now, I've never seen a Woody Allen movie.

Boy, I sure was a "miss out".

Annie Hall, made in 1977, is a classic. Why, oh why, did I wait so long?

First of all it's a story, and a very funny story at that, about a New York Jewish comedian, played by Woody Allen and his WASP girlfriend, played by Diane Keaton. It pokes fun at many social mores that we take for granted and I found myself laughing throughout. There's the New Yorker who never learns to drive, the mid-westerner who orders a pastrami sandwich on white bread with mayonnaise (which seems almost grotesque to a New Yorker like me), the pretentious movie critic, the neuroses of modern romances, and the differences between the New York and Los Angeles way of life.

The film runs along at such a fast pace that there is almost no time at all between funny moments. And, to make it even better, there are some wonderful film techniques. For example, while Diane Keaton and Woody Allen are talking about photography, there are subtitles on the screen about the physical relationship that they are really thinking about.

If the film were made today the phone calls would have been made on cell phones. But surprisingly, that is the only detail that might be changed. Annie Hall has really truly stood the test of time. And I loved it.

This was the best movie Woody made from the time when he was still making great movies! It centers on Woody's on and off relationship with the ditzy Annie. Probably the movie that Seinfied got the humor for his show from! There are scenes like Woody standing in line for a movie that some loudmouth is explaining the meaning of to a bunch of women. When Woody disagrees with the man the man says that he should know because he teaches a college course about the movie to which Woody replies by bringing foward the movie's director. The director then tells the man he has no clue as to what the movie is about!

Another involves Michael Moriarity as Annie's wierd brother. He tells Woody that he fantasizes about wrecking his car when he is driving. Sure enough the next scene has Moriarity driving Annie and Woody home and Woody has this terrified expression on his face as Moriarity is driving.

There are so many more of these types of hilarious scenes! This is a great film to own so you could memorize the lines.

The first thing that grabbed me about this film was the interaction with the viewer. When Woody Allen starts the film by illustrating its themes directly to the audience with a couple of jokes, I realized that this was not an ordinary romantic comedy. Furthermore, there are a number of scenes where the line between screen reality and fantasy are fantastically blurred. I especially enjoyed Alvy's experience while waiting in line at the movie theater. If only we could all have such an ample comeback!

The story doesn't have any tidy closure, and that's a lot more reflective of the general state of relationship today. No "happily ever after" here! Just confusion, laughter, love, and depression. Part of the joy in this film is seeing some brief cameos from the "soon to be famous" (Sigourney Weaver, Jeff Goldblum, etc). All in all, not a bad way to spend a couple of hours.

Woody Allen may have been funny once, but no longer. The age of the hyper-sensitive male is most definitely and thankfully over. Anyone who relates to Allen OR Keaton's character is troubled. Furthermore, Allen's humor is annoying and unconvincing - his own friend in the movie (Tony Roberts) looked like he wanted to punch him in the face half the time.

Whomever gives this classic less than 5 stars should be stricken from any list of movie reviewers...forever. You know nothing about media, and I have Mr. McLuhan right here to prove it! You're banished from all theaters, in perpetuity, as you may have a detrimental effect on your children and all succeeding generations.