The Purple Rose of Cairo
Director: Woody Allen
Starring: Mia Farrow, Jeff Daniels, Danny Aiello
Another Woody Allen movie crossed off my list. Though he didn't actually act in this movie, his presence was very much felt.
The film is about a hard working woman in the Depression era who seeks to escape her dead beat husband by going to the movies. She sees one movie so many times that a character in the film falls in love with her and hops off the screen to be with her. This isn't as great as it seems, though. Problems arise within the character's film as well as in real life.
As you might imagine, this fantasy movie is very surreal. I loved the dialogue of the movie within the movie characters who grow impatient as Baxter gallivants around real New Jersey. The movie makes very interesting observations about movies as escapism and the relationship between movies and real life. It's also incredibly charming and funny.
The acting was superb, especially by Farrow and Daniels. Farrow captures her character's confusion and longing for a Hollywood romance very well. Daniels has a dual role, as the movie character Tom and the actor who portrays the character, Gil. These are two very different people and his subtle performance brings both to life.
Overall, this was movie magic. It gave me something to think about in its exploration on how movies impact our lives. The ending was not what I was expecting, but really further enforced how real life is not as predictable as the ending to a movie.
Lesson learned: Movies are better than real life.
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