Anything Else
Judging by the number of people who walked out of the showing I attending, the presence of both Christina Ricci and Jason Biggs will not be enough to make Woody Allen’s latest comedy Anything Else a commercial success. Much has been made of DreamWorks Pictures decision to downplay Allen’s involvement in the film and market it on the strength and youth of stars like Biggs, Ricci and Jimmy Fallon, who appears in all of about 10 minutes of the film. Not only has it set up fans of these younger actors who may be expecting a romantic comedy like the American Pie movies for disappointment, but this thinking risks alienating much of Allen’s devoted fan base, who risk missing out on one of Allen’s better films in recent years.
Anything Else centers on Jerry Falk (Mr. Biggs), a young comedy writer at a pivotal point in his life. His shrink has given up even pretending to listen to him. His contract with his manager (Danny DeVito) is up for renegotiation at a time when Jerry is having second thoughts about his representation. To make matters worse, his relationship with his girlfriend, Amanda (Ms. Ricci), is beginning to sour. And the arrival of Amanda’s mother (Stockard Channing) doesn’t help things either. In the midst of all this, Jerry begins a friendship with an older man, David Dobel (Mr. Allen), a public school teacher and amateur survivalist trying to break into the comedy business. Could Dobel be the catalyst Jerry needs to make some necessary changes in his life?
While it’s not on par with his best work, Anything Else does rank with Small Time Crooks and Manhattan Murder Mystery as one of the more amusing films of the Allen’s post-Manhattan period. The performances are uniformly good. Biggs does solid work here and he and Ricci make a good couple. Allen, relegated to the sidelines, gives himself some of films better lines. Channing is perfect and funny as Amanda’s troubled mother, an alcoholic with delusions of a lounge singing act she will never have and an unhealthy fear of aging. And as always, Mr. Allen manages to showcase the city, especially Central Park, at its best.
However, the film is far from perfect. The main problem I have with watching all Allen’s films post-Mia Farrow/Soon Yi Previn is the overwhelming urge to read into them too much. I admit I have a hard time separating the movies from the scandal. If Allen had women trouble in real life, it seems he has found a way to get even with them on screen by turning them into subservient mutes (Samantha Morton in Sweet and Lowdown), scheming shrews (any female in Deconstructing Harry) or accommodating prostitutes (Mira Sorvino in Mighty Aphrodite). As portrayed in Anything Else, the character of Amanda is best described as “difficult.” In the showing I attended, people were less kind, hurling obscenities such as “bitch” and “cunt” at the screen. While I can see the challenge in the role, I cannot imagine what Ricci was thinking. Ricci does her best to stay true to her role, but it’s tough to understand a character when her motivations seems to have less to do with logic and more to do with the insulting terms the other characters in the film can fling at her behind her back. Again, I am probably reading too much into it, but the film’s casually negative attitude towards all of its female characters made me cringe just a bit. And speaking of just a bit, the film could have been stronger if Allen trimmed it by about 15 minutes or so. Some of what occurs in the middle of the film feels superfluous.
Despite my reservations, I still found much to like in Anything Else. It has its moments and manages to be entertaining. It also shows that in his old age, some of Allen’s humor may have lost its edginess, but his views, particularly about women have not.
Submitted 23 September 03. Posted 09 October 03.
