Scanialara You won't be disappointed!

Salubfoto It's an amazing and heartbreaking story.

Erica Derrick By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

Frances Chung Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

Mark Turner For the most part there are two camps when it comes to Woody Allen movies: you love them or you hate them. There are a few of us out there who pick and choose which we do and don't like but you find far too many on either side of the issue. Those that love him think he's a genius. Those that hate him think he's not funny or dramatic. Myself, I think it depends on the movie. HUSBANDS AND WIVES to me missed the mark and for one main reason I'll get to.The movie beings with the story of two couples, Gabe and Judy Roth (Allen and Mia Farrow) and Jack and Sally (Sydney Pollack and Judy Davis). Getting ready to go out to dinner Jack and Sally announce that they've decided to separate. This surprises Gabe but devastates Judy. The dinner carries on but throughout you can tell it's affected her. When they head home she continues to go on about it with Gabe.As the movie progresses we watch as both Jack and Sally try to start their new lives on their own after all these years of marriage. It's easy for Jack because he was having an affair with a much younger woman beforehand. For Sally it's all neuroses and dealing with life alone. Jack's new flame Sam (Lysette Anthony) is as different from both Jack and Sally as you can get, a yoga instructor who is big on astrology. She screams flake from scene one.Sally has her fling with a co-worker of Judy's, someone Judy finds attractive, named Michael (Liam Neeson). Michael loves poetry and tends to lean into the romantic more than Jack did. He's much more sensitive than Sally can handle.In the meantime whether due to the situation with Jack and Sally or not, Gabe and Judy begin having problems. They argue about having another child with Judy wanting one and Gabe hesitant. As the film progresses the two of them switch sides on the matter. Judy begins to have this wistful feeling towards Michael and Gabe becomes somewhat infatuated with one of his students (Juliette Lewis).The movie plays out in vignettes from one character to another interspersed with interviews with each as well as others involved in the story. It some cases it is a psychiatrist doing the interviewing while at other times you would think it was a documentary film crew. The end result is a less that straightforward story that works sometimes and not others.For me the worst part of the film was the performance by Mia Farrow. Combines with the character she plays and the dialogue given you have to wonder if by this time Allen had felt it was time to part ways with her. That the production of the film took place they year before the couple split makes what you see understandable.Farrow's character is a self-centered passive aggressive one. She manipulates those around her to get what she wants, appearing unaware that she knows she's doing so. One of the characters even comments on how she does this. Her non-stop questioning of every single detail of the lives she and Gave lives becomes grating in a short amount of time. Worst of all it feels as if Farrow applies more of her own personal personality into the role than performance.But the entire list of characters are all insufferable. Gabe's infatuation with his student is unbelievable. Lewis as that student who gravitates from one older man to another using them along the way is contemptable. Jack's gravitation and decision to leave his wife for a younger woman is stereotypical. And Sally's jittery mannerisms, nervous habits and constant hem hawing about what to do or not to do makes one wonder how she and Jack ever married in the first place.The end result for me was a movie that left me glad I'd seen it once so I could say I'd done so but never wanting to revisit again in the future. It wasn't funny and the drama felt false. Some love the movie and proclaim it one of Allen's best. For me it didn't come close.Twilight Time is offering this as they have a number of other Allen films, in the best way possible with a 1080p hi def transfer. Extras are very limited here to only an isolated music & effects track and the original trailer. As with all of their releases Twilight Time has limited this title to just 3,000 copies so if you're an Allen fan and want to add it to your collection make sure you pick a copy soon.

HotToastyRag This Woody Allen drama combines many of his frequently used elements, bringing a fresh combination to the themes he often visits. Infidelity, marital difficulties, therapy, and mortality are all discussed ad nauseum in the film, but instead of a linear storyline, he films it as a pseudo-documentary. The four main characters are separately interviewed to discuss their thoughts and feelings, interspersed with the plot of the destruction of the two marriages, which is sometimes narrated by the interviewer.Sydney Pollack and Judy Davis announce to their closest friends Woody Allen and Mia Farrow that they're ending their marriage. As they explore the single life, Woody and Mia look at the problems in their own marriage. Mia's tempted by Liam Neeson, a co-worker, and Woody is drawn to the hero-worship of one of his students, Juliette Lewis.I didn't really like this movie, because besides Mia Farrow, none of the characters were remotely likable. Mia's given the least impetus in the plot, so for most of the movie, I became increasingly more frustrated with everyone else. Yes, everyone has problems and relationships are incredibly difficult, but is it necessary to waste 104 minutes watching an uninteresting movie about it? If a movie's going to depress me, it'd better have a reason. Plus, knowing that the twelve-year relationship between Mia and Woody went down in scandalous flames during this film makes it difficult to enjoy watching them argue on screen. This was the last of their thirteen movies together, and I can't help but think that was part of the reason audiences flocked to the theaters to see this one.DLM warning: If you suffer from vertigo or dizzy spells, like my mom does, this movie is not your friend. Pretty much the entire movie uses a hand-held cameras, and it will make you sick. In other words, "Don't Look, Mom!"

maxastree Husbands and Wives exemplifies everything that people "don't like" about Allen's work; that its Allen-centric, in that his literary leanings and obvious qualities as a writer for some reason put him in front of the camera half the time, and that the main characters are all over-privileged Manhattan creatives or academics with swanky apartments, that conveniently never seem to do any actual work, just revel in the emotional drama and romantic comedy potential of their personal lives.I don't dislike Allen's films per se, his recent picture Blue Jasmine has an excellent script, by turns witty, brilliant, insightful etc. Everything Allen would ideally like to see in himself every morning in the mirror is here, and other films of his are well known little masterpieces, but Husbands and Wives is badly overrated, and it bothers me a bit that major voices in the US media nodded approvingly when the film opened. (see Rotten Tomatoes.com).The main problem, to put it bluntly, is that 80% of the film is in hand held, head and shoulders footage of the actors, intercut with occasional locked off shots of the cast confessing guilt, contempt and regrets over their mid-life failed marriages. This, in itself, makes the film feel more like a radio play that happens to take place on screen, and although shaky hand held shots can (and do) create a 'there, in the middle of it all' feel for drama, it goes way overboard. The film feels cheap, claustrophobic and repetitive. The other problem is the plot - or lack of. Essentially, this is the story of two couples entering mid life, feeling disappointed with their relationships and going through with break-ups and affairs, and Husbands and Wives is definitely more drama than comedy. In both cases, the husbands leave their partners for younger women, in Allen's case considerably younger, and in the other guys case, just for a young blonde that likes sex. There's not much to add here plotwise, except the situation opens up a lot of space for Allen's observations on relationships and human sexuality in a mature sense that you don't find often elsewhere in Hollywood movies....But did I mention the film feels plot less? It definitely does! Woody Allen's real talents are his skills as a writer and his ability to create great female characters, so during a revelatory and surprisingly funny exchange between Allen and his extramarital crush (a 20 year old literature student, played by Juliette Lewis) the film feels finished, but for some reason drags on for yet more, and more arguments, observations, exchanges etc. Its a badly made movie, without much plot and some big name actors taking a pay cut to work with a writing talent. Is it a great movie? Well, sales aren't an indicator of quality, but its a modestly budgeted movie that only made half its investment back. Other films of his live up to their reputation, this one doesn't.

KINGJO4606-1 I am not going to recount the plot. All I will say is that this is his best movie out of all the films I have seen of his. Before I watched the movie, I saw that the movie was rated R. Surprisingly, the film was not as shrill as I thought it would be. There is, of course, sexual content and foul language in the movie. There are no sex scenes, but the language in the film is what ultimately gave the film an R rating.The film works because it has a realistic tone. It may be a drama, but it is not depressing. It is also not as cerebral as many of his other flicks (i.e. Manhattan and Crimes and Misdemeanors). So it obviously is a film that has a less pretentious mood. Combining these three qualities while also balancing the rational and non-rational elements of the relationships in the movie, the film ultimately has a very natural flow to it.The actors are all good in this movie. Woody Allen and Mia Farrow are good. Not surprisingly this is Mia Farrow's last flick; I counted her being in twelve Woody Allen flicks overall. Juliette Lewis is also good and has a role that strikingly seems to match the other types of characters that she portrays in her other films; perhaps she is typecast. Liam Neeson is decent; it is interesting to see him in a Woody Allen movie. After all, it does not seem to be the type of movie he would ordinarily star in. Sydney Pollack and Judy Davis are the actors who steal the show in the final analysis, however. Some/many will disagree, but I hold firm to my humble opinion.For all I know, my deeming of this to be his best movie may become different. My opinion may change if I see another flick of his such as Blue Jasmine or Broadway Danny Rose. It is interesting to note that the highest rated movie of his that I rated is not a comedy. It is rather unpredictable as to whether or not I will give a thumbs-up to one of his dramas or his comedies after watching one of Woody Allen's movies.Concluding note - It generally seems to be the case that Woody Allen's movies are getting better as the years go by. Of course, he may have some lulling periods, but that's to be expected of anyone's work. I highly recommend this movie; it teaches the viewer to be careful about who you marry. Entering into a relationship is obviously not to be taken lightly. Secondly, it also causes one to ask the question, "Will this relationship work?" And that, as one who would watch the movie may agree, is not a question that is easy to answer. Problems latent and seemingly easy to solve may blow up in the couple's face; conversely, problems that seem impossible to solve actually turn out to be more fixable than one would think.8/10