Review of Scoop (2006) by Ashley C — 14 Jul 2009

Cute, and about on a par with late period Woody; if I had to compare this with something from his heyday, it'd probably be Oedipus Wrecks. It was a little distressing to see as many one-liners fail as succeed, particularly coming from Allen's own mouth; his delivery does seem to have gotten a little off, and this may help explain why he cast Larry David instead of himself in Whatever Works. As against that, Scarlett, while not exactly at the top of her game, did have one beautifully timed wisecrack that was vintage Woody and, I thought, recalled none other than Diane Keaton in its delivery. Only one, alas. I assume the repeated use of Peer Gynt on the soundtrack was meant to ironically evoke Fritz Lang's M.

Even so, while not what I'd call brilliant, the movie did evidence a spirit that was becoming renewed. The pace was brisk and the cinematography gorgeous. I do think that stint in Europe may have been one of the best decisions Woody's made of late.