Review of Café Society (2016) by Junelkean — 21 Jan 2018

As a fan of his crafts, it's easy to provide a checklist of the elements and trademarks of a classic Woody Allen film - beautiful presentation of cities, sarcastic yet witty dialogue, use of jazz music and complicated love stories. Allen's latest entry "Café Society" retains the formula. But despite criticisms that he makes the same kinds of films over and over, that won't stop Hollywood from making everything he writes into moving pictures.

Call him a virtuoso in writing slick and sophisticated humor, but Allen's latest works have been hits-and-misses. Café Society, fortunately, takes the path of hits, rather than a miss. The three central actors (Eisenberg, Stewart & Carell) are casted perfectly in their roles as a love triangle. Moreover, the highlights and homages to the 1930s Hollywood industry are perfectly realized by flawless set details and shots by Vittorio Storaro.

However, as the film reaches its second half, things get too rushed and some scenes become under-developed. Also, the storylines don't always tie together well for a whole.

VERDICT: Café Society is no "Annie Hall" and "Midnight in Paris", but it sure is lovely and magical with a polite amount of dark humor and bittersweetness.