Woody Allen: A Life in Film
Woody Allen is a private person who talks about his work infrequently. So it was unprecedented when he recently spoke to the camera about the entire range of his work in an interview with Richard Schickel. Woody talked about how he makes films, why he does it, the roots of this passion in his early life, and his current thinking about the state of his art.\ The result was a critically acclaimed program for Turner Classic Movies. But the presentation contained only a small fraction of the...
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This book reprints a four-hour conversation between Mr. Schickel and Mr. Allen and includes a long essay of introduction by Mr. Schickel, which places Woody Allen's entire career in critical perspective, as well as a complete filmography. Readers will find Mr. Allen's reflections on his major preoccupations--the battle of the sexes; the conflict between reality and fantasy in his major films; mortality, religion, and the role that chance plays in the unfolding of our lives. The book also offers insights into Mr. Allen's working methods as a writer and the growth of his skills as a director. Virginia Quarterly Review Schickel is a thoughtful observer and critic, a lively writer....
A Note on the TextIntroduction: Woody in the Afternoon3The Interview71Afterword171Filmography180Index206
\ America: The National Catholic WeeklyA breezy, readable entry to Allen's vast bibliography...with an excellent Introduction and Afterword.\ — Richard A. Blake\ \ \ \ \ ForewordThe author pleads a strong case that as a gifted writer and actor of limited range, Woody Allen deserves a more prominent position in the motion picture arts.\ \ \ BooklistEven those who have lost who have lost patience with Allen's recent efforts will want to read what he has to say about his 1970s masterworks.\ — Gordon Flagg\ \ \ \ \ RAINBO ELECTRONIC REVIEWSIt's an easy read and fans will enjoy it.\ \ \ \ \ The New York TimesWhile Allen's work seems to highlight a continuing struggle in dealing with death, he makes it clear in an interview with the film critic Richard Schickel in Woody Allen: A Life in Film that he himself is not encumbered by existential gloom. For Allen, the relief from the inevitable cycle of life and death is magic and fantasy, common ingredients in his films (for example, ''Stardust Memories,'' ''Alice'' and ''The Purple Rose of Cairo''. — Richard Simon Chang\ \ \ \ \ BUFFALO NEWSSchickel may well be the smartest, most practiced and least axe-grinding interviewer Allen has ever had.\ \ \ \ \ Chicago TribuneHis analysis of the films...is...intelligent....These [films] inspire some of Schickel's most entertaining writing.\ \ \ \ \ BooklistInsightful....Even those who have lost patience with Allen's recent efforts will want to read what he has to say about his 1970s masterworks.\ \ \ \ \ Hartford CourantThoughtful, critical insights into Allen's screen works...This book also offers new stuff for Woody loyalists to savor.\ \ \ \ \ ForewordThe author pleads a strong case that as a gifted writer and actor of limited range, Woody Allen deserves a more prominent position in the motion picture arts.\ \ \ \ \ NEWPORT NEWS PRESS...Thoughtful, critical insights into Allen's screen works.\ \ \ \ \ Virginia Quarterly ReviewSchickel is a thoughtful observer and critic, a lively writer....\ \ \ \ \ Forecast...Fascinating biography of a giant in film...\ \ \ \ \ National Catholic Weekly"A breezy, readable entry to Allen's vast bibliography...with an excellent Introduction and Afterword."\ \ \ \ \ Publishers WeeklyPart overview of the director's cinematic career, part interview with Allen himself, this handy book couldn't have been written by someone with more impeccable credentials. As Time's longtime film critic, Schickel is one of the deans of the milieu. He approaches his subject with an obvious admiration (Schickel immersed himself in studying every one of Allen's films for a month each), but manages not to engage in too much idol worship. The sit-down interview with the reclusive director is the most revealing section, filled with fresh glimpses into his films. There, readers learn that Annie Hall was originally called Anhedonia, until studio execs begged Allen to rename it; and that Allen sees very few of his films as artistic successes. The book's structure is quite rambling-dwelling on one film, going on to another and returning again to the first-which can be disconcerting at times. But real conversations are like that, and the book's lack of order doesn't prevent it from being a rare window into one of the great minds of modern cinema. (Sept. 5) Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.\ \ \ \ \ Library JournalThis slim volume by Schickel (whose previous works include biographies of Cary Grant and James Cagney and a definitive expos of Walt Disney's life and practices) consists of a 70-page introduction to Allen's films and life, followed by the edited transcript of a long interview Schickel had with Allen when he was making a 90-minute television program about Allen and his films for cable. This is an urbane and readable work and will be of great interest to avid Allen fans, but it does not add very much to the general body of critical work on Allen's films. An optional purchase for academic and public libraries where there is a strong interest in Allen's work.-Andrea Slonosky, Long Island Univ., Brooklyn, NY Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.\ \ \ \ \ Virginia Quarterly ReviewSchickel is a thoughtful observer and critic, a lively writer….\ \ \ \ \ Hartford Courant...This book also offers new, tasty, nutritious stuff for Woody loyalists to savor.\ — Owen McNally\ \ \ \ \ Hartford Courant\ - Owen McNally\ ...This book also offers new, tasty, nutritious stuff for Woody loyalists to savor.\ \ \ \ \ Booklist\ - Gordon Flagg\ Even those who have lost who have lost patience with Allen's recent efforts will want to read what he has to say about his 1970s masterworks.\ \ \ \ \ Jeanine BasingerAs usual, Richard Schickel has nailed his subject, and this time his subject is a particularly hard one to nail.\ \ \ \ \ Steven BachWitty, surprising, important (but never self-important), and—best of all—moving...a compact but very real treasure...graceful and perceptive...wonderful.\ \ \ \ \ America: The National Catholic Weekly\ - Richard A. Blake\ A breezy, readable entry to Allen's vast bibliography...with an excellent Introduction and Afterword.\ \ \ \ \ Chicago TribuneClearly, Allen is comfortable talking to Schickel...a brisk read.\ \ \ \ \ Newport News Press…Thoughtful, critical insights into Allen's screen works.\ \ \ \ \ Forecast…Fascinating biography of a giant in film…\ \ \ \ \ Buffalo NewsSchickel may well be the smartest, most practiced and least axe-grinding interviewer Allen has ever had.\ \ \ \ \ ForeWord ReviewsThe author pleads a strong case that as a gifted writer and actor of limited range, Woody Allen deserves a more prominent position in the motion picture arts.\ \ \ \ \ America: The National Catholic WeeklyA breezy, readable entry to Allen's vast bibliography...with an excellent Introduction and Afterword.\ — Richard A. Blake\ \
