Blogcritics: Comments on Movie Review: Match Point

Comment by Tom Kennedy

Sun, 6 Nov 2005 17:09:58 EST

Just seen the movie. I have not seen such a wooden, one-paced, stilted movie in years. I am so disappointed as Woody Allen has made such classics. I have never come so close to walking out of a movie but felt I owed it to W.A to stay and give fair judgement on it. Wooden acting, leaden dialogue, cliched plot - the only good bit is the twist about which side of the fence the ball comes down on. Otherwise a complete turkey. Either Woody Allen is past it or he is incapable of making this kind of movie. Spend your money on something else but not this film.

Comment by Steve Jacobs

Tue, 1 Nov 2005 06:08:14 EST

Thanks for the comment, Aaman. To explain, there are certain tropes (New York, Judaism, self-deprecating humor, etc.) that are ubiquitous in most Woody Allen films. While these familiar characteristics can be comforting for Woody Allen's fans, they also open him up to the all-too-common (and completely unsupportable) criticism that he basically just makes the same movie over and over again. This movie dodges that bullet because it eschews almost all of those tropes. Superficially speaking, Match Point is nearly unrecognizable as an Allen film. The visual style is very much his (I entirely agree with you that his other films have been fabulous in this respect, as well), but the narrative elements represent a very new move for him. I hope that answers your question, and I hope you see the movie! Thanks again for the comment; my apologies for taking a few days to reply.

Comment by Temple A. Stark

Mon, 31 Oct 2005 13:36:44 EST

This post was chosen by the section editor as a BC pick of the week. Go HERE (link) to find out why. And thank you - Temple

Comment by Evan

Sun, 30 Oct 2005 00:05:26 EDT

Great review! I've been looking forward to this (and the next Allen/Johansson) project for quite some time.

Comment by Aaman

Sat, 29 Oct 2005 23:34:26 EDT

Good review - why do you feel it is untethered from the Woody Allen canon? Aren't his films all about the unpredictability of events and the comic tragedy of life? Also, numerous Allen films since Annie Hall, IMHO were rich cinematically - for example, again IMHO, Mighty Aphrodite Will look forward to the film on DVD, though - thanks for the insights