Name: Hannah and Her Sisters (1986)
IMDb: link to IMDb
Genres: Comedy Country of Origin: USA.
Cast: Michael Caine as Elliot, Mia Farrow as Hannah, Max von Sydow as Frederick, Barbara Hershey as Lee, Dianne Wiest as Holly, Maureen O'Sullivan as Norma, Lloyd Nolan as Evan, Sam Waterston as David, Carrie Fisher as April.
Woody Allen as Mickey, Julie Kavner as Gail, John Turturro as writer, Tony Roberts as Norman, Julia Louis-Dreyfus as Mary, Richard Jenkins as Doctor Wilkes, Helen Miller as Mickey's mother, Leo Postrel as Mickey's father, J. T. Walsh as Ed Smythe, Lewis Black as Paul.
Written and directed by: Woody Allen.
The initial tableaux: We start with a Thanksgiving dinner gathering at Hannah and Elliot's house. Sisters Lee and Holly are there. Lee's husband Frederick is a bit too stand-offish for such gatherings. Holly might start in catering, and asks Hannah for a loan to get started. Elliot muses in the opening narration about his attraction to Lee, and how he should stifle it, but cannot. Father Evan and mother Norma, two veteran entertainers, entertain at piano and song.
Mickey (Hannah's ex) is a hypochondriac who produces an edgy television show that is frequently in conflict with the censors. Gail tries to keep Mickey on track as he bounces from memory to memory of his past marriage and his past partnership with Norman. Perhaps worst of all, Mickey becomes convinced that he has a brain tumor.
Delineation of conflicts: Mickey has to fight his hypochondria, and his slowly waning binding to Hannah. Lee and Elliot have to figure out whatever it is that is going on between them. Holly needs to figure out where she's going in life.
Resolution: The threads move forward more or less organically. Nicely done.
One line summary: Three sisters' interactions with others.
Statistics:
a. Cinematography: 10/10 Beautifully shot. The cinematographer clearly loves the faces of women, the interiors of apartments, the riverfront, and the singular architecture in New York City.
b. Sound: 10/10 I loved the big band music, piano tunes from days gone by, jazz singing, and even the rock music. The harpsichord music was a bit of a surprise, but still nice. The actors were quite well miked.
c. Acting: 10/10 The big cast of stellar actors performed quite well with the warm script.
d. Screenplay: 8/10 The film has four main threads (the three sisters plus Mickey) and several lesser ones, depending on how one classifies the threads. The four main ones travel well, but many of the others seem to be dead ends.
Final rating: 9/10
No comments:
Post a Comment