Martin Scorsese & Woody Allen

[Kieran]

An interview with two New York Giants.

New York Times

I watched a documentary about Woody Allen the other night, a two-parter on BBC, it was really fascinating. The guy is most likely a genius, so many ideas tumbling out of his clown's head. He was interviewed, his sister, a cast of modern great actors, so many of them, who worked with him and described his process. Martin Scorsese was interviewed too, and tellingly, he said that Woody's New York is a foreign country to him. His NY is Mean Streets and Taxi Driver, not existential comedic routines. Both are marvelous, however, truly great directors.

And Woody writes his films, acts in them and edits them. One movie a year for almost half a century.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy reading the interview above. It's actually more a chat between them. No real sparring. Just shop talk, actually, the kind of thing goes down in every single business in the world...

 

[Riotbeard]

"Allen: But that stuff is for kids. That stuff doesn't really hold the interest of serious-minded people. Right? The problem with all these technical advances in film is that many, many film makers don't see them as tools. They are only tools for telling a story of some sort or giving you an effect of some sort that is primary."

Great discussion Kieran. I thought this was a particularly prescient criticism, and it has gotten so much worse. Just think this is pre-Lord of the Rings and the new Star Wars, and they hit the nail on the head about the problem of special effects.

 

[Kieran]

Yeah, Woody is sharp. I think they both rightly see the problem of putting the plot at the mercy of technique, and Woody uses that great Copa scene in Goodfellas as an example. There's too much crescendo in almost all pop art nowadays, including music. The subtlety is gone and also, there seems no point to it.

Not many great filmmakers discuss death and God and the meaning of life like Woody Allen. In so many ways, he's the antidote to blockbuster movies...

 

[tented]

I haven't read the NYT piece yet, but I did see the two-part documentary several months ago. I agree that it's fascinating. The guy has no off-switch, and he's 77.

I'm looking forward to seeing his latest film, Blue Jasmine, which is getting great reviews. It has an 85% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

 

[Kieran]

Looks good! Again, great cast. Very few actors would turn down Woody, although he says he gets them cut-price. Back to America for Woody too, which is refreshing, but I thought we'd get a film based in Dublin while he was traipsing about Europe...

 

[Moxie]

Looks good! Again, great cast. Very few actors would turn down Woody, although he says he gets them cut-price. Back to America for Woody too, which is refreshing, but I thought we'd get a film based in Dublin while he was traipsing about Europe...

He does get them for cut-price. The way he gets to make a film a year is by being really economical. That's what took him to Europe, which I think really re-vamped his career. I look forward to the article...thanks for sharing, Kieran. (I loved that you referred to them as the New York Giants. I'm assuming you know that's also a football team.)

I went to see "Only God Forgives" today, at a theatre that was playing the new Woody Allen. It was a mad house! It was playing in 3 theaters, and by 3pm they were telling people it was sold out until 6pm. My intel says it was a bigger opening weekend than "Midnight in Paris."

 

[tented]

I went to see "Only God Forgives" today, at a theatre that was playing the new Woody Allen. It was a mad house! It was playing in 3 theaters, and by 3pm they were telling people it was sold out until 6pm. My intel says it was a bigger opening weekend than "Midnight in Paris."

It's a tricky question, because Midnight had an initial limited release, followed by a wide release. Nevertheless, Blue Jasmine's numbers look awfully good for a Woody Allen film:

Blue Jasmine: http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=bluejasmine.htm
Midnight in Paris: http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=midnightinparis.htm

 

[Moxie]

I read that piece, Kieran. It was fascinating! Thanks for sharing.

 

[shawnbm]

Yes, it certainly was. And Moxie, you didn't forget the legendary New York Giants of baseball, did you? ;0