Stephen Cole

(2012-04-26 12:37:37)

What makes Match Point, a coolly deliberate murder mystery from Woody Allen, so startling is that it feels as if the director himself has been done away with.

Tom Long

(2012-04-26 01:19:49)

This is Woody beyond Woody, his best work in more than a decade and the antithesis of most fans' expectations.

(2012-04-19 08:16:41)

Hitchcock Would Have Done Better

How does a young man get rid of an obsessed lover that he himself was onced obsessed with? That is the plot that Woody Allen crafts in Match Point. In typical Allen fashion, the young man happens to be married and the object of his lust was the fiancee of his wife's brother. We see once again Allen's interest in human relations. Only this time comedy, satire, and neurotic compulsiveness are not at the forefront; murder is. I felt that Allen didn't fully explore the depth of character needed to keep this viewer emotionally engaged. Scarlett Johansson is beautiful, but her role as the seductress turned stalker is uneven. Allen did not get enough from her and I believe she still has much more to give. Jonathan Meyers in the lead is good, but he is no Ray Milland (Dial M for Murder) or Michael Douglass ( Fatal Attraction). The film lacks suspenseful editing and it never really reaches a climatic pitch. The exterior shots of London and the use of tennis, highbrow English nobilty, and opera add to the film's plot, but not enough to save it from its first gear pace. I did like the twist that concluded the movie though. The supporting roles of the British police investigators were- how shall I say "splendid".

Mike Ward

(2012-04-18 10:30:50)

Match Point crafts the beginning of a better than average fish-out-of-water tale, bores us for an hour with a milquetoast affair, then gives us a wild sucker punch of an ending that even a Nostradamus / John Edward tag team couldn't predict.

leo1

(2012-04-10 23:36:15)

A passable story ruined by miscasting

Rhys-Meyers is talentless. I have never seen such a wooden performancein my life. It's not often that Allen makes such a disastrous mistake.Hopefully we will not have to endure this actor again. Even the usuallycaptivating Johansson is left drifting in this movie as she tries toact against a wooden plank. The story is passable, and the movie issomewhat redeemed by the twist and turns at the end and greatperformances from James Nesbitt and Ewan Bremner in the last 10 minutesof the movie. However the otherwise strong British cast is inexplicablyunder utilised. Great character actors such as John Fortune, RupertPenry Jones and Penelope Wilton are reduced to bit parts with noredeeming dialogue. I am disappointed to say this about a movie by theMaster, but my heartfelt advice would be to avoid this movie at allcosts. 1/5

windigerwicht

(2012-04-10 09:39:50)

the story lacks credibility

I have read some good critics on the movie and i knew before that itwould be a different Woody Allen movie. So we (2 couples) went to thecinema, expecting a thoroughly thought through crime and passion movie.At the beginning i felt comfortable with the plot and the scenery. Thecast did o.k., especially Matthew Good left a good impression. By themiddle of the film I was getting more and more annoyed that the clumsy,incautious handling of the affair between Chris and Nola remainedundetected. I also couldn't follow the motivation of Chris. A richdivorce would have been a fabulous option. In a crime movie, the storyhas to be perfect. Compared to "Crimes to Misdemeanors" it's muchweaker, a 4 out of 10.

Rogue-32

(2012-04-09 08:42:08)

The Woodman Goes Out On A Limb

I'm a huge follower of Woody's work, from the very beginning (even gotto meet him in his Play It Again Sam Broadway dressing room in NYC along time back). Some of his movies are disappointing, but most of themhave delighted me, even the more serious ones, like Interiors and C&M.This one is a real departure of sorts, not necessarily in the subjectmatter but rather in the execution. Gone are the nauseating jumpycamera moves from Husbands & Wives (which I liked nonetheless, what canI tell ya), gone are the snappy one-liners, gone is the jazzysoundtrack, gone is his beloved New York City. Instead, we get slow,subtle panning shots, arch dialogue with hardly any obvious humor tothem, an opera soundtrack, and London, of all places. It works, though,this noir-ish concoction; it lures you in, sweeps you along and then itturns the screws in a most surprising way, leaving the viewer - thisviewer, anyway - entirely jaw-dropped.This is a thought-provoking work that no doubt has precipitated manyphilosophical discussions, and for that alone it's a winner. Not quiteperfect, however - some of the dialog feels a little phony, the operagets a little bit much in places, and some of the plot points are a tadheavy-handed. I forgive Woody for this. The Big Question is (aside fromthe question of karma): can his leading character in the moviegenuinely forgive himself for what he does, in the name of 'survival'?

Scott Nash

(2012-04-08 15:16:58)

Game, set and match to Woody Allen.

happy_hangman

(2012-04-02 05:59:11)

Allen Loses the Match

'Match Point' is Woody Allen's most serious film in many years. Likethe superb 'Crimes and Misdemeanours' it has at it's heart a cheatinghusband who seeks to murderously remove the obstacle posed to hisprized familial happiness by a pushy mistress. Sadly JonathanRhys-Meyers Chris (the poshest working-class-boy-made-good in cinemahistory) is no Martin Landau, and, though he sweats and pouts in aconspicuously angst-ridden manner in the latter stages of the film, hisperformance, overall, is seriously wooden - a woodenness whichsurprisingly extends to many of the supporting characters, which isunusual for Allen. Emily Mortimer as his doting wife and ScarletJohansson are capable and consistent as, respectively, the love andlust of his life, but Rhys-Meyers' character is not solid enough forthem to work with, or for audiences to care about them or him. Giventhe murderous conclusion to the film this makes for a peculiarlypassionless love-triangle. Penelope Wilton and Brian Cox, as Mortimer'sparents enjoy much less screen time, but are more convincing ascharacters than any of the younger leads. John Fortune, Mark Gattis,Ewan Bremner and a host of very fine British actors are given verylittle to do other than stand around like extras. A shocking waste ofpotential uncommon in a director who can normally be counted upon touse character actors well.Odd trans-Atlantic clunkers in the script ("I thing you've had one toomany G-and-T's, dear!" – the British middle-classes only ever talk likethat in US films) aside, the serious tone of the script is maintaineduntil, surprisingly, the final twenty minutes, when we are confrontedby a few staggeringly ill-judged comic moment which jar astonishinglywith what has gone before – and with the sudden spectral visitations ofChris's victims which follow. The ending is muddled and discordant. Ashame – as otherwise it's a creditable addition to the Allen canon, farsuperior to other recent efforts.

Louis Proyect

(2012-04-01 19:16:18)

The first new Woody Allen film I have been able to watch to conclusion in over a decade.

(2012-03-20 01:04:43)

Empty Void

The only thing I found worth watching in this film was Jonathan Rhys Meyers. He kept me happily distracted from the awful storyline. Woody has hit rock bottom. How original: boy wants to rise to the top and marries boss's daughter and then falls in love with a would-be actress.Allen has made a film about English Upper Class that he obviously knows nothing about. Woody Allen has done some less than great movies in recent years, but now he just seems to be going through the motions. Where's the clever dialog, the deep character studies and the intriguing plots and subplots that are hallmarks of his better work? The script and the direction seemed like the work of a college film major with a big budget. It was lamentably long and so predictable to be excruciating.There is no chemistry between any of the characters. It is dull and there doesn't seem to be any meaning at all, or reason. It's hard to care about any of the characters. The dialog is so written, as in, it seems as if the actors are reading written lines. The entire film seems as if it's a rehearsal rather than a film. The story centers on a young man who is a tennis instructor for the rich and then he marries into a very nice (much too nice) rich family. He then, for no apparent reason other than lust, has an affair with an American actress, girlfriend of his brother-in-law. This film is compared to 'Crimes and Misdemeanors' because of the basic theme, and that is a travesty. 'Crimes and Misdemeaners' is one of the best films of all time. This movie is horrific. Avoid it at any cost

Jeff Otto

(2012-03-19 14:35:17)

Allen's direction is superb, evoking the best performances from his cast and unraveling the story at the perfect pace.

hardrockstar27

(2012-03-19 03:06:41)

Allen's Best Since Crimes and Misdemeanors

Woody Allen's Match Point is an extremely entertaining, well-madethriller about lust, greed and ambition and the tragic consequences ofthese aspects, but in the process we identify with Chris Wilton(Jonathan Rhys Myers), a poor boy from Ireland who had a brief careerin tennis, but at one point in the movie he says: "I was never going tobe an Andre Agassi, so I decided to give it up." Then later on in themovie we find out more about why he gave tennis up and the reason isthe theme Allen uses throughout the film.Instead, he is a tennis instructor at a London tennis club and one day,by chance, he meets Tom Hewitt (Matthew Goode) who's family is veryrich and part of high society London. He invites Chris to the opera,and there he meets Tom's sister Chloe (Emily Mortimer) she isimmediately attracted to Chris. This becomes the turning point in hislife for the good, or so he thinks. Chris likes Chloe, but he's not inlove with her. She loves him, her father Alec (Brian Cox) likes him andwants to get him started in one of his companies and her mother Eleanor(Penelope Wilton) is also fond of him and she wants to see her daughterhave what she wants. Chris sees Chloe's attraction to him as anopportunity to climb up the social latter. The problem with Chris'splan is that his relationship with Chloe is mechanical because he isonly with her to enter the royal family.But when he does meet a woman he is very attracted to, she turns out tobe Tom's fiancГѓВ©. He meets her at the house, when he finds her playingping ping. In their first flirtatious encounter, after the woman beatssomeone else at ping ping, she says: "next victim." Chris comes overand is already filled with lust. Then, the woman says to him "how aboutplaying for $1000 a game"? Chris agrees and after one quick serve, shesays to him, "anybody ever tell you play a very aggressive game." Chrisreplies: "Did anybody ever tell you that you have very sensual lips."The woman is Nola (Scarlett Johansson), a struggling American actresswho Chris begins an affair with and then can't seem to shake her.The strength of the movie is Allen's deceptive plot. It has manycunning, ingenious twists that are not anticipated. I will be diligentfor the rest of this review so I won't reveal any of the surprises thatmakes this movie one of the best of the year and Allen's best in years.This movie resembles Crimes and Misdemeanors, where the main characterfinds himself in a situation that would jeopardize his comfortable lifeof wealth and privilege. It conveys how far he is willing to go for hisown greed. The movie is more about plot than characters, and the waythe drama of the plot unfolds is the joy of watching the film. The plotis clockwork. The movie is rich in irony, like many of Allen's filmsand here it's like he's trying to convince you he's still one of thesmartest writers in the business.There are three very good performances in the movie. Jonathan RhysMyers carries his main character very well. He expresses his anguish atthe events that unfold in a very effective way. He is especially goodin the scenes with Scarlett Johansson. He conveys the lust he feels forher through his face and eyes that makes it all the more convincing. Healso evokes empathy for his tragic flaw of ambition that leads him tolie, cheat, deceive and then even worse. He doesn't deserveforgiveness, but pity. Johansson is very sexy and juicy in her role.Allen gives her the sexy flirtatious dialogue she needs to thoroughlyconvince us that she loves to edge men on, especially Chris for thatmatter. Emily Mortimer is also very effective as Chloe as she strivesto bring Chris closer to her because for some reason she can't put herfinger on, he often seems distant.There is a crucial scene near the middle of the movie when Chris meetsan old friend on the street. He turns out to be a tennis player he onceknew on the tour. At one point in their conversation he says to Chris:"If a couple bounces would have went your way, you could have been achampion." That two minute scene is one of the dark undercurrentslurking beneath the surface. The theme of luck is set up so clearlythat it sets up for the single best shot of the film. The shot is onlyabout five seconds long, and it comes towards the end of the film whensomething is thrown and doesn't clear a railing that leads into theThames River. The shot is so perfect, it'll make you gasp.When it comes down to Chris Wilton's Match Point, does he get lucky andthe ball clears the net and he wins or does he get a dose of bad luckwhen the ball falls backward and he loses? That's for you to see. All Iwill say is that the police are involved and are trying to get to thebottom of what happened in the events that unfolded, but they run intoa little bad luck and as for Chris, he runs into some good luck, butstill doesn't know whether he's won or lost the point. A masterful filmnoir from Woody Allen. Extremely cleverly written and directed. HighlyRecommended. 4 stars out of four.

Randy Shulman

(2012-03-18 09:22:02)

In leaving America, Woody Allen has, at long last, put himself back on the map.

(2012-03-18 12:36:04)

Another example of Woody Allen "Classturbation"

I find it sad that audiences and critics feel compelled to blow so much sunshine up Woody Allen's you-know-what just because he finally made another even watchable film. The utter mediocrity of his last dozen or so movies is no reason to trumpet the release of Match Point, a film that is at best bearable and probably most accurately described as, well... pointless.Even a return to more fundamental narrative style doesn't prevent huge doses of classic Woody Allen "classturbation," in which lavish settings and the details of an exhorbitant lifetsyle become characters as important as any of the ones embodied by the actors. Bryan Cox's character seems to be drowning in his own affluence in just about every scene; it is downright painful how many times he mutters the same line, "You know you two will never have to worry about money" to his daughter and son-in-law. Cox's performance seeks to reinforce Allen's cinematic creedo, which his own personal roles usually spend countless scenes belaboring: no amount of personal or financial success can ease the basic human restlessness and discomfort within all of us.Match Point, however, disembarks from the usual Allen blueprint of disjointed, exhaustively expositional dialogue-driven scenes in favor of a more plot-driven narrative. But with such a simplistic plot, bereft of complexity and subtext, this isn't even necessarily a positive departure for the filmmaker. The slow buildup of tension within the second act is the closest this story gets to engaging its audience, before a twist at the second act climax that sends the tale spinning off beyond unbelievability into downright absurdity. Any value that Allen derives from his little third act twist-within-a-twist (involving use of a metaphorical "net ball" in tennis) is promptly squashed by more heavy-handed expositional dialogue between his too-dim-to-believe police investigators. It is as if Allen himself grew too excited by his newly rediscovered skill with more conventional narrative, and lost sight of how subtlty fits into that equation.If anything, the commercial and critical success of Match Point will hopefully encourage Woody Allen to pursue a disciplined approach to his storytelling in the future. But that is not a good enough reason to sing the praises of such a lackluster effort as this.

GratefulJBG

(2012-03-17 23:04:52)

What happened?

One can usually say that even a mediocre Woody Allen film is betterthan most of the films released today. But this one was justmatch-pointless. It went nowhere. The entire movie up until the last 40minutes were useless. The theme of luck (which is a great one) wasunderdeveloped, and there was no investment in this back story of theprotagonist. We are just told he has come from a poor upbringing, andare expected to be invested in his nascent success and social climbing.His character was almost totally uninteresting. I'd rather have watcheda movie about the Tom Hewett character. The introduction of thedetective characters near the end of the film made it seem likeanother, more interesting movie had been going on, which we had beenmissing watching the main one. I liked this movie better when it wascalled Crimes and Misdemeanors. One saving grace is that ScarlettJohansson is hot. But why no gratuitous boob shots like those ofChristina Ricci in Anything Else?

Rob Thomas

(2012-03-17 00:07:10)

He's covered some of this same thematic territory before -- infidelity, obsession, class struggles -- but rarely has developed them with such focus and such a palpable tension.

valadas

(2012-03-16 13:19:27)

Good movie weak story

If you still remember Woody Allen's movies just forget it whilewatching this movie because it has nothing to do with his style or hisfavourite themata. We are thousands of miles away from a movie builtalong a series of witty, rich and vivid intellectual dialogues andmonologues. We watch here only a serious psychological drama. It'sdoubtless a movie made with great mastery upon a weak and trite story.As a matter of fact we have already seen lots of movies and read lotsof novels about the parvenu who climbs the social ladder by beginningto marry a tycoon's daughter and getting a good job in one offather-in-law's companies till his love affair with a woman out of hisnew acquired social ring comes to compromise everything, leading from acertain moment on to dangerous crossroads where dramatic choices mustbe quickly made. We remember for instance the excellent "Room at theTop" (1959) by Jack Clayton with Lawrence Harvey and Simone Signoret.In conclusion I think that although this is not a bad movie the storyis too trivial for the genius of someone like Woody Allen to be wastedupon it.

jzappa

(2012-03-16 13:26:42)

A Seamless Convergence of Philosophical Matters and Unfaltering Emotional Experience

Match Point, an utterly absorbing and stimulatingly tight experience,seems to imply that you can just commit any horrible deed you want andget away with it, but really, we have to accept that life is arbitraryand existence is indiscriminate, often an insignificant and dismalexperience with no purpose, and that love relationships are exceedinglyarduous, and that in spite of everything we need to stumble on a way tonot only survive but lead an honest and gratifying life. Many interpretthat what the film is saying is that anything goes, but I think itessentially poses the matters: given an impossible situation in whichwe're all alone, how does a certain individual persevere, or even whyshould he choose to persevere? Sure enough, the choice is hardwiredinto him, and us. Spiritual people don't want to allow the truth thatcancels out their myth. And if it is an arbitrary life, they're bust.There are masses of us who choose to lead totally self-interested,careless lives. They feel, because nothing signifies any absolutes andone can prospectively get away with anything, they will. But one canalso make the choice that we're alive, other people are alive, we'reall hanging by the same interdependent threads and we've got to try tomake it as honorable as we can for ourselves and everybody. This is whyMatch Point's story makes such perfect sense to me, because this is somuch more virtuous and even much more Christian. If you accept theuncomfortable reality of human life and choose to be an honorableperson despite it instead of living in denial that there's going to besome sacred prize or some penalty, it feels more sincerely dignified.If there's a prize or penalty and you act well, then you're acting wellnot out of such selfless intentions, the same professed "Christian"intentions.The lack of God in the universe matters, however. It's a shame, and yetjust when you can acknowledge that, ironically, can you then continueto lead what people call a Christian life, namely an honest, just life.You can only truly lead it if you recognize what you're up against atthe outset and shuck off all the fabrications that lead you to makechoices in life that you're making not truly for honorable reasons butfor securing a nest egg in the next world.Match Point is a millennial fable about class, the unpredictablereversals of destiny, the base thirst for gaining access to the socialechelons, and living with skeletons in the closet. And this shiftyfable of social luxury merges Allen's droll scripting with thepuzzlement and difficulty of making such crucial life choices. Our maincharacter likes the easy life he's married into but is claustrophobic.He's a character who gives us no traditional, conventional or ethicalreason to care about him, but we follow him and hope that he gets whathe wants. It's not that what he wants is bad, it's that it's a shamethat that's what he wants. But this is his life at this…point. This isall he, and we, have. What difference does the outside world's moralitymake if the outside world has no bearing on his truest feelings anddoings.It's a silky ethical dilemma, well thought out to its very last shot.Much of the story's friction grows from the expectation that our manwill soon be exposed. This genre anticipation is generally gratified instories concerning infidelity, deceit or higher crimes. Also, not thatthis is by any means one of his comic efforts, Allen also draws on theBritish setting to infuse a dormant sort of social satire technicallyreminiscent of a comedy of manners, which also brings the convention ofa class impostor. Allen outwits the anticipated finale by having thedecisive clincher work opposite its conventional purpose as the strawin the wind.It's this understatedly amusing and roguish attitude merged with suchan acutely urbane and stately atmosphere that makes Match Point notactually a homecoming to form for Woody Allen but one of growth: anelegant piece of gliding camera movements, artfully composed shots andseamless edits. He gives conceptions of his characters and tensionswith palpable sharpness. But honestly, Match Point is a story intendedmore to demonstrate a line of reasoning than to observe a societalsituation or a certain cast of characters. It is one of the very fewfilm experiences that is at once an object of scholarship---anexemplary merged perspective of the contemporary cultural andenvironmental situation as a psychological and anthropological schoolof thought---as well as a seamlessly inflected emotionalexperience---insatiably carnal abandon, crossed with the pervasivesocial pressure for gaining right of entry to privilege and money, andliving with shameful secrets you can never, ever, share or confess toanyone, that you must carry with you to your grave, when you cease toexist.

scarletminded

(2012-03-15 23:14:51)

Best Woody Allen movie in a long time...

This is one of the best movies Woody Allen has put out as of late. Iwasn't that big of fan of Vicky Cristina Barcelona, but I got this filmfrom the library, because I liked one of the supporting actors in it.But I found out Jonathan Rhys Meyers was one of the leads and I likemuch of his work. I got this not expecting anything about the film,didn't know it was a thriller or anything like that. I was quitesurprised. It almost plays out like a romantic comedy at first, butthen takes a more sinister turn. Just when you think the once cop hashad his Twin Peaks Cooper moment, seeing things in what I think was adream, it turns again. I thought there might be even more turns, butthe ending was decent. It was a far cry from Woody Allen films that aremainly talking without much action. It is a very nice modern film noirand I would recommend it to people who like good acting and interestingstories with a bit of darkness thrown in their for good measure. And italso has a good deal of psychology and philosophy put in there as well.