Day 57: Whatever Works (2009)

Whatever Works
Director: Woody Allen
Starring: Larry David, Evan Rachel Wood, Patricia Clarkson

Two days of Woody. These are movies separated by decades that seem like they could have been released in the same year. This movie was not well received by critics, and I am not surprised. This shows no growth and really shows nothing new for Woody as a writer or director (probably because it was a screenplay he wrote in the 70's). However, it should come as no surprise that I did like it quite a bit even through it did show some of Woody's big weaknesses.

The movie centers around Boris, an elderly self-proclaimed genius and cynic who stumbles across Melodie, a young runaway from the South. The two develop a relationship that starts fairly simply, but gets complicated when Melodie's mother and father both arrive at Boris' doorstep.

Larry David was made for this movie (he and Woody seem two sides of the same coin). Though this part definitely has flashes of Woody's usual morbid neuroses, Allen could have never pulled this role off. It is way too mean and aggressive to be played by a wuss like Allen. David has just the right amount of pompous rage to portray a self important man like Boris (who refers to all other humans as insects). Wood is also very sweet and likable as Melodie. The way she tries to understand Boris and admire him is endearing. Her character's transformation and growth are done very well.

There were some big weaknesses in this movie, though, that Allen has always had. He has no idea how young people talk. All of his dialogue for younger people comes off so unnaturally that I wondered if he has any understanding of modern culture. He really seems to live in a past world where things like rock music and the internet are just not important. Also, Allen's philosophical ramblings start to get repetitive by the end of the film.

However, I loved seeing a movie like this in theaters. The pseudo-philosophical bull that spouts from David's mouth is the sort of dialogue that I LOVE seeing in a movie. Allen's movies put on a front of having a pessimistic view of humanity, but rarely end that way. He usually lets us know that even though life is temporary and painful and unfair, that it is really all worth it in the end. I like that.

Even though many of the laughs were cheap, I found this to be a really refreshing trip to the movies of yesterday.

Lesson learned: It takes two rounds of "Happy Birthday" to get all the germs off your hands.