Annie Hall

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Annie Hall is a 1977 romantic comedy film directed by Woody Allen from a script he co-wrote with Marshall Brickman. Allen's working title for the film was Anhedonia, but this was considered unmarketable. Brickman's suggested alternative, It Had to Be Jew, was considered even less marketable, and ultimately Annie Hall was settled upon as the release title. Because of biographical similarities with the character Alvy and Woody Allen (including Allen's previous relationship with co-star Diane Keaton (real name Diane Hall) who portrays the character Annie Hall), Annie Hall has been widely assumed to be semi-autobiographical, but Allen has denied this.

This film is number 28 on Bravo's 100 Funniest Movies.

Plot

The film is set in New York City and Los Angeles.

Allen plays Alvy Singer, a comedian obsessed with death, attempting to maintain a relationship with the ditzy title character (played by Diane Keaton), who loves life. The film chronicles their relationship over several years, intercut with various trips into each others' history (Annie is able to "see" Alvy's family when Alvy was only a child, and likewise Alvy experiences Annie's past sexual relationships). After several years, the two realize they are fundamentally different and split up. However, they are able to meet later on good terms and have no regrets about the relationship.

Alvy Singer grew up in Brooklyn. His father operated a bumper cars concession. He claims the family home was located below a roller coaster on Coney Island.

Film technique

The film makes use of various techniques such as split-screen imagery, double exposure, breaks in character to address the camera directly (breaking the "fourth wall"), subtitles expounding the characters' real thoughts (as contrasted with the dialogue) and elements of magic realism. For instance, Allen's character, standing in a cinema queue with Annie and listening to someone behind him expound on Marshall McLuhan's work, leaves the line to speak to the camera directly. The man comes to speak to the camera in his defense, and Allen resolves the dispute by pulling McLuhan himself from behind a counter to tell the man that his interpretation is wrong.

Another scene is animated, featuring a cartoon Allen and the Witch from Snow White.

Awards

Academy Awards

Award	Person
Best Actress in a Leading Role	Diane Keaton
Best Director	Woody Allen
Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen	Woody Allen Marshall Brickman
Best Picture	Charles H. Joffe
Nominated:
Best Actor in a Leading Role	Woody Allen

The American Film Institute places Annie Hall on the following lists of its 100 Years series:

• AFI's 100 Years... 100 Movies (#31)
• AFI's 100 Years... 100 Laughs (#4)
• AFI's 100 Years... 100 Passions (#11)
• AFI's 100 Years... 100 Songs (#90; "Seems Like Old Times," performed by Diane Keaton)
• AFI's 100 Years... 100 Movie Quotes (#55; Annie: "La-dee-da, la-dee-da...")

The film is consistently in the top 150 on the Internet Movie Database's list of top 250 films, and has been selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry. Zagat Survey Movie Guide (2002) ranks Annie Hall one of the top ten comedies of all time, one of the top ten movies of the 1970s and as Allen's best film as a director. In 2000, readers of Total Film magazine voted it the forty-second greatest comedy film of all time.

Influence

Annie Hall is a benchmark for modern romantic comedies, with a large influence over future films. In fashion, Keaton dressed in layers with a tie (by Ralph Lauren), which became a popular style. This movie was also Christopher Walken's first notable performance as Annie's strange and suicidally fixated brother. It brought the actor and his unusual qualities to the attention of the mainstream viewing public.

Cast and roles include

• Woody Allen — Alvy Singer
• Diane Keaton — Annie Hall
• Tony Roberts — Rob
• Carol Kane — Allison Portchnik
• Paul Simon — Tony Lacey, a music producer
• Shelley Duvall — Pam, Alvy's one-night stand
• Janet Margolin — Robin
• Colleen Dewhurst — Mrs. Hall
• Christopher Walken — Duane Hall
• Donald Symington — Mr. Hall
• Helen Ludlam — Grammy Hall
• Mordecai Lawner — Mr. Singer
• Joan Neuman — Mrs. Singer
• Jonathan Munk — Alvy Singer at 9
• Ruth Volner — Alvy's Aunt
• Martin Rosenblatt — Alvy's Uncle
• Hy Anzell — Joey Nichols
• Rashel Novikoff — Aunt Tessie
• Russell Horton — Man in theatre line
• Marshall McLuhan — Himself

Trivia

• The film features a number of appearances by actors and actresses who went on to later fame, including Jeff Goldblum, Sigourney Weaver, Christopher Walken, Michael Keaton and Beverly D'Angelo.

• In the scene in which Alvy and Annie are observing passersby in the park and Alvy comments, "Oh, there goes the winner of the Truman Capote Look-Alike Contest," the passerby is actually Truman Capote (who appeared in the film uncredited).

• The scene where Alvy sneezes into the cocaine was purely accidental. They decided to keep it in the movie and when they tested it with audiences they burst out laughing. The filmmakers had to add more footage after the scene so the audience wouldn't laugh through important conversations afterwards.

• The film was originally meant to be a drama centered around a murder mystery with a comic and romantic subplot, but the film's editor persuaded Woody Allen to make it a comedy fully.

External links

• [Annie Hall] - synopsis, production details, etc.
• [Greatest Films Essay] - Filmsite.org essay

 

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