Review of Match Point (2005) by Carlos H — 23 Feb 2015

People often tell me that they don't like Woody Allen movies because they find him annoying, but what is often overlooked is his skill at making a dramatic film. While Interiors is weighty and overwrought Match Point is daringly reserved in-spite of it's dark and foreboding tone. This is a moral & philosophical thriller that accomplishes an operatic level of tension, which Crimes & Misdemeanors only skimmed the surface of. A film about class & luck, two social climbers try to make their way into a wealthy family, but only one has the grace and wit to succeed. Jonathan Rhys Meyers' Chris is well-mannered and modest but he's equally detached as he stealthily maneuvers his way into success. Scarlett Johansson's Nola on the other hand is blatantly rudderless with only her sensuality to keep her afloat. While the two have the same aims, their unbridled lust for one another could disrupt both their paths.

The third act of this film is my favorite. It's a calmly sadistic in it's tension as every slight movement and choice of the character brings into question what will get these two caught in the act. Having seen this 3 times already I was surprised by how much anxiety I had, despite knowing the outcome. There are long moments of artful quietness but the tension comes from knowing that luck is the only determining factor.

For a director who has made 50 movies over the past 48 years some of the best Woody Allen movies are the ones that have the least of his fingerprints. This is the first of his 2000's European career renaissance which includes Vicky Cristina Barcelona & Midnight In Paris. Both of those films are very Woody-esque, whereas Match Point has fewer recurring themes and is a half-hour longer than almost all of this movies. There is doomed adultery, unresolvable sins, nihilistic life views, henpecking mothers, the absence of sensuality within marriage and a moral dilemma. But what it doesn't have is monologizing or humor. Chris has dilemmas and judgements but he never discusses them. His greed and passions are private, and in the end he has to live with the darkness in his empty, albeit lucky world.