Woody Allen's Manhattan

This is Shaping Up Like a Noel Coward Play. Somebody Should Be Making Martinis.

In 1979, Woody Allen released his film, Manhattan, starring Woody Allen as Isaac Davies, Diane Keaton as Mary, Mariel Hemingway as Tracy, and Meryl Streep as Jill (the ex-wife). Michael Murphy and Anne Byrne play Isaac's friends, Yale and Emily.

The film is set in New York amongst a group of intellectuals and writers. Isaac, a 43 year old writer who works for a SNL type comedy show is dating Tracy, a precocious 17 year-old. Yale, Isaac's friend, is having an affair with Mary, a flighty anxious intellectual writer. The sexual and emotional alliances switch up and you do feel a little as if you're in a Noel Coward play. The story moves along effortlessly with some absolutely brilliant moments.

It's a charming piece by Allen, shot in B&W, a soundtrack filled with Gershwin, and every Manhattan landmark you can think of. The Twin Towers make a ghostly appearance through the haze in the first few seconds of the film. Along with Crimes and Misdemeanors, Manhattan is my pick for best Woody Allen film. It's early morning so I won't be making a martini but I may just make myself a mimosa.

xoxo