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Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
It doesn't take a Nostradamus to see that the interconnected lives in Woody Allen's You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger are going to be troubled indeed--and yet the clairvoyant hired by newly divorced Helena (Gemma Jones) fails to predict the complications to come. Well, then there wouldn't be a movie, would there? Helena's restless old goat of an ex-husband, Alfie (Anthony Hopkins), has taken up with a loud hooker (Lucy Punch, Dinner for Schmucks), who he somehow believes to be his dream girl. Helena's daughter Sally (Naomi Watts) is enduring her marriage to blocked novelist Roy (Josh Brolin) while growing enchanted by her boss, a gallery owner (Antonio Banderas) with an accent. Meanwhile, Roy is spending too little time writing and too much time mooning over the knockout (Slumdog Millionaire's Freida Pinto) who lives in the apartment across the street. Allen's morose-go-round spreads itself across this collection of potentially intriguing people, yet the individual scenes feel slack and under-rehearsed, and the London locations are basically irrelevant. And while the cast is stocked with talented players, almost everybody looks slightly miscast, so the film doesn't seem to have an anchor anywhere. It comes to an interesting ending, but by then Allen's purpose seems increasingly casual--when what this roundelay really needs is urgency. --Robert Horton
Product Description
Two couples discover the grass may not always be greener on the other side in Woody Allen’s breezy comedy on wry, You Will Meet A Tall Dark Stranger. Hoping to relive the pleasures of youth, Alfie Shepridge (Anthony Hopkins) dumps his wife of 40 years (Gemma Jones) and pursues a young call girl (Lucy Punch). So when daughter Sally (Naomi Watts) develops a crush on her boss (Antonio Banderas) and husband Roy (Josh Brolin) becomes obsessed with the beauty (Freida Pinto) who lives across the way, the entire clan’s fantasies take on reality as their passions not only drive them out of their marriages, but out of their minds as well.
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
90 of 100 people found the following review helpful
By Ron
Format:DVD
This is like a Zen version of an Eric Rohmer film. After seeing YOU WILL MEET A TALL DARK STRANGER, it's obvious why Woody Allen is much more highly regarded--and respected-in France than the U.S. The French appreciate films about relationships--especially Rohmer's films about relationships, such as MY NIGHT AT MAUD'S, CLAIRE'S KNEE, SUMMER, PAULINE AT THE BEACH, BOYFRIENDS AND GIRLFRIENDS, AN AUTUMN TALE, etc. Like Woody's recent films--especially MATCH POINT and VICKY CHRISTINA BARCELONA--YOU WILL MEET A TALL DARK STRANGER follows in the same footsteps. The common denominator amongst those films is FATE or PREDESTINATION. Woody seems to be saying that no matter what we do, things will work out in their own way. He is getting much more Zen-like in his golden years. Although YOU WILL MEET A TALL DARK STRANGER wasn't as funny like MANHATTAN MURDER MYSTERY, ANNIE HALL or PLAY IT AGAIN SAM nor was it as deep like CRIMES AND MISDEMEANORS, HANNAH AND HER SISTERS, or MANHATTAN--it is still a worthwhile film to see. Especially for Woody Allen fans. And the French.
43 of 49 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
An odd film for Allen, neither an overt comedy or one of his dark serious films (e.g. `Crimes and Misdemeanors'). This is a `light' drama, something he hasn't done much. While not Allen's best work, I felt far more warmly towards it than most of the press, especially on 2nd viewing. Some of the criticisms are valid; the voice over narration is out of tone with the piece and at times tells us too literally what we already know. Yet, in the current American cinema, how many film-makers are getting to even and try and address the complex subtle questions of grown-up relationships, aging and the fear of death, and the lies we tell ourselves to get through it all? Or deal with the paradox that humans seem to need something to believe in, and yet that same belief can also lead us astray? Or give great older actors like Anthony Hopkins and Gemma Jones really meaty roles? As long as Allen keeps asking questions, he'll remain a voice worth listening to.
13 of 13 people found the following review helpful
3.0 out of 5 stars
New Woody Allen movie.Great cast. Not outrageously funny, but not terrible either. It was good, I say B
February 18, 2011
By Tony Heck
Format:DVD
The new comedy from Woody Allen. Story about a family who is falling apart...Husband (Hopkins) leaves his wife of 40 years...and that's just the beginning. The subject matter doesn't seem funny, but it works as a comedy, Woody Allen has a way of doing that. Husband leaves his wife, who is seeing a psychic, for a woman half his age, daughter has crush on her boss, her husband has crush on the neighbor. I've never been a Woody Allen fan, I have only really liked a few of his movies. This one was not that bad. It was very entertaining and enjoyable, but not one of my favorites. If you like Woody Allen I'm sure you will really enjoy this. If you are like me and are not a huge fan, this is still very watchable and a pretty good time. The cast is excellent and it's worth watching for that. I give it a B.
Would I watch again? - Most likely not.
Would I watch again? - Most likely not.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent
Considering this film was of such recent vintage, I was very impressed with Woody's masterful direction. Read more
Published 6 days ago by Joseph R. Aziz
3.0 out of 5 stars
You will see a fair to middling movie.
Woody Allen's "You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger" simmers entertainingly for a while, thanks largely to a gifted cast, but it never comes amywhere near a boil. Read more
Published 29 days ago by Miles D. Moore
4.0 out of 5 stars
Good acting and a Tight Script
Fairly well-made, intelligent movie. Much of the movie seems to be about the unfairness of life & how smart, desperate people do stupid, immoral things. Read more
Published 1 month ago by NoOneYouKnow
3.0 out of 5 stars
sufficiently entertaining
In Woody Allen's later period (1998 / now) - a comparatively weak period - this movie is one of his better ones, along with Anything else, Match point, Vicky Christina Barcelona,... Read more
Published 2 months ago by Ram de Leeuw
4.0 out of 5 stars
Believe Me
You will like You will meet a Tall Dark Stranger.
The acting is superb. It is a grown up film about grown ups making bad choices and having to live with them. Read more
The acting is superb. It is a grown up film about grown ups making bad choices and having to live with them. Read more
Published 3 months ago by Tina
2.0 out of 5 stars
Sad and Open Ended
If you're looking for another Midnight in Paris, don't look here. Although billed as a comedy I would say this is more of a drama somewhat akin to the very serious movies Allan... Read more
Published 4 months ago by Thomas
3.0 out of 5 stars
Best on the first viewing
This doesn't rate for me as one of Woody's films that you never get sick of, though it's quite good the first time or two. Read more
Published 4 months ago by Sam Hamill
3.0 out of 5 stars
Pretty Good
The characterizations were great. So was the acting. It did seem that the production company ran out of money at the end because the ending is a bit abrupt. Read more
Published 4 months ago by val b.
3.0 out of 5 stars
Formulaic Woody Allen
This is the fourth Woody Allen film set in London, though, unlike "Midnight in Paris," the story could be anywhere. Read more
Published 5 months ago by Tsuyoshi
5.0 out of 5 stars
The innocence wins
I like sarcasm. I like the idea, that those, who want to succeed by any means, lose quite often. The innocents (not really completely innocents, just wise) will do better. Read more
Published 5 months ago by M. Abramovich
