Copyright (c) Pedro Sena 1996. All Rights Reserved.
FILM TITLE: MIGHTY APHRODITE DIRECTOR: WOODY ALLEN COUNTRY: USA 1995 CINEMATOGRAPHY: CARLO DI PALMA MUSIC: VARIOUS 50'S JAZZ ARTISTS ( played by Woody, too. ) CAST: F. Murray Abraham, Myra Sorvino, Peter Weller, Helena Bonham Carter, Woody Allen, David Ogden Stiers SUPER FEATURES: Sorvino for sure.
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Woody Allen has always been around with some eccentric stories. This is probably as good a film as he has ever done, at least it is better centered as a story, than he usually is.
And it almost is not the story that attracts us to this film, but the way that his characters carry themselves. It is difficult not to consider this an excellent film, in the way it is done, with its ludicrous Greek chorus and all, which is just perfect, though the people I saw it with, do not understand this stuff, and did not find it funny to see the chorus break into a musical number, while also editorializing everything, which Woody Allen has always done on his own character and we got bored with it.
The story is simple, though it has its intricate turns. A Manhattan couple and their marriage are just about over, and they adopt a child. The man's curiosity wins out and he finds that the child he adopted is the son of a porn star, whom he goes after to meet. And she is a bit on the bird brain mentality, but she does have feelings. And Woody tries to help her along, but never tells her that it is her lost child that he has adopted. But in the middle of it all, in a lark, they get together, finally, and have an evening of fun, which the story suggests has her get pregnant, and she is feeling better about having lost her first child. And on the way out of town, she meets another man, and lo and behold everyone is happy ever after... well, the marriage of Woody and his wife, is probably dead too, as she has done her side thing also.
Well, if anything, this is typical Woody Allen, in that the stories are totally intricate, and intermixed so much that it is off the wall. On the other hand, it is the "innocent" side that makes this an intricate story, and Woody refuses to condemn that part of things. There are plenty of moments when we could easily get disgusted with the young girl's lifestyle, and living. But somehow, we take some pity on her, and do not spend our time judging her wrongs, or her next movie. And we definitely know that Woody's marriage in the story, is in trouble, as its fires have gone out.
Were it not for the funny stuff, this film could easily be considered styled a bit after the Godard method of filming, where a suggestion as to right and wrong is never made, and the audience has to choose, something that the Hollywood viewer can never appreciate, where all the characters have to be separated by either colors, or obvious deeds. In this film, people are just that, people. And this style, creates a lot of funny, weird moments, that are enjoyable for the discriminating seer, although terribly boring for others. In so many ways, Woody lets the camera talk, or keeps it running so that the characters have to live a bit longer, and do not become a shadow of themselves, an idea, a mere representation of who they are. And thus we never really find the girl unattractive, Woody boring, or any of the other characters in the film out of place.
But the funniest thing in this film is not even Woody, but Myra Sorvino, who ended up getting the Oscar for her portrayal, of what starts out being a blonde bimbo, and becomes a rather nice woman in the film. And it is hard to let go of F. Murray Abraham, as Woody's friend, and alter ego, as the leader of the chorus, whose staging, is what separates this film apart from others. Unfortunately one has to have known the Greek chorus in the boring Greek plays, to appreciate the style that Woody has designed for this production, which is immediately off the wall, specially when it breaks its commentary into a song and dance routine. But it never stops to make its point. It's the modern chorus for the 20th century, used in the only way that we will ever understand, or probably ever appreciate.
Magnificent film, if you want to appreciate one of America's truly great writers and directors, the Capra of the 80's and 90's. It's a shame that while he has critical success, his films rarely go beyond that. He deserves so much more than that, and he will be forever remembered for his writing and directing, never his acting, the character of which we are basically tired of. But what is around him, makes for an excellent film.
4.5 GIBLOONS out of 5
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