Review of The Purple Rose of Cairo (1985) by Ben L — 03 Mar 2017

I see in this film some of the roots of what made Midnight in Paris so amazing. I love the way the story starts in a normal Depression-era world and then suddenly something insane happens and the movie really takes off. I thought it was great how everyone acted as if a character in a movie walking off the screen actually made sense. I knew nothing about the movie going in so that surprised me, and added to the humor when I'm the only one acting like something impossible occurred.

Jeff Daniels was great in his dual role and I could see differences in his performance depending on which character he was portraying. Mia Farrow was a perfect love interest because she is so sweet and unassuming, and her passion for the movies makes it believable that she could connect with these men. I also loved all the familiar faces on the screen in the movie within the movie. Their scenes were absolutely hilarious.

Most of this movie worked like a charm for me. Hearing the stories of what was happening at other theaters showing the movie made me laugh. It was great watching the studio executives debating what to do, as if the obvious question of "how is this happening?" never even enters their minds. Then there's even a scene where the characters walk back into the screen and everything goes crazy.

I wish they had shown a little more of the movie within the movie just so we had a better idea of the themes and who Tom Baxter was within his world (then we wouldn't need him to tell us so often.) Also there's the terribly disappointing conclusion to the film. After all that magic and fun throughout the movie it made me sad to step back down to reality at the end.

With my slight complaints aside I have to say this is easily my second favorite Woody Allen film. It speaks to the cinema lover in me because the magic of movies is on full display in The Purple Rose of Cairo. It had me laughing frequently, and had charm to spare. What a nice treat.