Annie Hall [Paperback]

Peter Cowie (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 1996 | ISBN-10: 0851705804 | ISBN-13: 978-0851705804 | Edition: 1st

For an entire generation, Annie Hall embodied the notion of a New York peopled by sophisticated intellectuals--all sent up by the deadpan comedy genius of Woody Allen, writer, director and of course star. It also confirmed the sparkling acting talent of Diane Keaton as a partner for Woody on screen. The film has survived as a popular comedy, however, by virtue of Allen's inventiveness as a director and the timelessness of his satire. Peter Cowrie's study of Annie Hall recaptures the mood of the 70s, and examines the myriad imaginative touches that distinguish this film from other American productions of the period. The book also includes a glossary of the many cultural references which give the film its distinctively "intellectual" tone.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Peter Cowrie has written histories of Dutch and Scandinavian film and critical biographies of Welles, Bergman, and Coppola. He recently edited the BFI's centenary book, World Cinema, and is currently International Publishing Director of Variety.

Product Details

• Paperback: 96 pages
• Publisher: British Film Institute; 1st edition (September 1, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0851705804
• ISBN-13: 978-0851705804
• Product Dimensions: 7.4 x 5.2 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,072,402 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Brief but excellent + informative study of a major U.S. film, November 24, 2001

By 

darragh o'donoghue - See all my reviews

This review is from: Annie Hall (Paperback)

Peter Cowie's monograph is the perfect companion to Woody Allen's first masterpiece, and one of the best in the BFI Classics series. 'Annie Hall' is the film that marked Allen's transition from a sketch-based, spoof/parody comedian, to the sardonic romantic comic with pretensions to seriousness that has divided critics ever since. Cowie explains the various elements of this development: Allen's confidence, perhaps on turning 40, to rework autobiography; the absorbing and rethinking, rather than jokey ticking off, of influences (literary - Kafka, Dostoevsky, Max Shulman; European cinema - Bergman (whose confessional, intimate aesthetic Allen is credited with importing to the American cinema), Fellini, Godard; American silent comedy, especially Chaplin; the Jewish stand-up tradition); the crystallising of major themes (Jewish identity in a WASP culture; the romanticising of New York and the denigration of culturally braindead L.A.; the fragility of relationships and the debilitating effects of excessive self-consciousness etc.).

Most valuably, Cowie shows how Allen, beloved for his verbal dexterity, is actually a restlessly inventive and visual film-maker: 'Annie Hall' is his most tricksy and experimental film, playing with time, narration, gags, visual effects like his previous films, but here channelled into deepening the film's central relationship and surrounding ideas.

The major chapter, 'Inside Annie Hall' is a masterly mix of synopsis and insightful commentary, as alive to the lovable throwaway details as the resonant Big Themes and complex narrative structure. An appendix offers an invaluable glossary of the film's profuse cultural references, many of which now only survive thanks to 'Annie Hall'.