Product Description

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #670146 in Books
• Published on: 1995-11
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 288 pages

Amazon.com
Fans of Woody Allen have long waited to hear him tell us in his own words about his life, his tastes, and his films, but until recently he has been reluctant to give lengthy interviews. This book is the conversation we've been waiting for, a dialogue with Stig Bjorkman in which Allen speaks openly about himself and his art. Bjorkman invites the writer/director to talk at length about his lesser-known movies as well as his famous ones. We also learn about Allen's filmmaking technique, his feelings about his stock company of actors, his influences, and why Stardust Memories and The Purple Rose of Cairo are his two personal favorites.

From Publishers Weekly
In this collection of interviews with Bjorkman, a Swedish filmmaker, Allen emerges as a disciplined worker, far different from his famed persona as self-pitying and neurotic. The book will delight-and relieve-his fans. Allen discusses his craft and ouevre, with a chapter devoted to each film in chronological order from Take the Money and Run to Manhattan Murder Mystery. He recommends "Socratic" learning rather than film school and reveals that he once did many takes but now, with increased confidence, infrequently reshoots scenes. He defends his portrayals of blacks against criticism from African American groups that he casts them only as menial characters, explains that his temperament determines the length of his films ("Scorsese's body rhythm is longer") and knocks American movie reviewers who "gush tremendously over populist junk films." There's virtually nothing here about his recently turbulent personal life, though Allen comments that, "one must be very lucky" to achieve a deep, lasting relationship. Photos.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist
Swedish filmmaker Bj{™}orkman compiled this volume from several weeks of interviews, conducted over a six-month period, in which he led Allen through a film-by-film discussion of his quarter century as director, actor, and writer. Allen's thoughtful examination of his career should come as no surprise, since his neurotic, nebbishy film persona has long since been supplanted by that of the serious, reflective artist. Although the tone is rather too conversational (Bj{™}orkman seems to have enjoyed his time with Allen too much to ask many critical, probing questions) and questions of proportion arise (less than 4 pages devoted to Hannah and Her Sisters but 15 to the turgid September), the conversation is rich in anecdotes, trivia (Allen's first choice for the Marshall McLuhan cameo in Annie Hall was Fellini), and insight into Allen's surprisingly loose approach to filmmaking. Despite recent personal and professional downturns, Allen retains a loyal cadre of fans eager to read what he has to say in this worthwhile supplement to the various Allen biographies. Gordon Flagg

Customer Reviews

A must for Woody Allen fans.
I was going through some old books today and came across this. I remember buying it quite a long time ago -- at the height of my Woody Allen worship. It's an absolutely fabulous book, made up of a long series of Q&As the author conducted with Woody Allen about his films. It starts with his early career and then devotes each new chapter to a specific movie, working chronologically. Allen, as always, is brutally honest about his movies -- he's modest, if anything. The insights are wonderful and Allen is a terrific, articulate interview subject. Unfortunately, the book ends with "Manhattan Murder Mystery." I've often hoped Mr. Bjorkman and Allen would do a sequel and pick up where they left off.

This is an essential book for any Woody Allen fan.

Fascinating insight into Woody and his craft
Woody holds off the humour here. Far from the declaiming neurotic he plays in his films, he emerges here as a disciplined writer, director and actor who clearly takes his craft very seriously and works hard at it. This is perhaps obvious. No neurotic slacker could be as prolific as Woody Allen has been over the years.

Woody is frank about his influences (Bergman, Fellini, Truffaut and others). He opens up about films that emerged differntly to the initial plan (Sleeper was conceived as a 2 part epic), talks about the process of dealing with his actors and chosing music (from his own collection, usually).

He defends himself for not featuring more black actors, except in menial roles (that's just the way things are, he says, in his political life he supports the emancipation of blacks, but he cannot distort the reality he perceives for political correctness). He also talks interestingly about the cinematography - many of his features were shot by Gordon Willis, 'a genius' in Allen's eyes, who created many of the effects Woody wanted in his films.

The format is to take each of Woody's films up to Manhattan Murder Mystery in chronological order, and feature a short discussion on the making of each one. Some of the interviews are a little dry, but I would recommend this book for anyone who has more than just a passing interest in Allen's movies, and wants a greater insight into how he conceives, scripts, directs, casts, produces and scores his movies.

My Dinner With Woody
Reading this book was like having dinner with Woody Allen while his films played on a wall behind us. I appreciated the European interviewer because it brought a fresh perspective to Allen's material. Getting Allen's insights into the characters in his films was worth the price, and, as you know, we all need the eggs.