Play It Again Sam Details

Great Film

Considering Annie Hall was Woody Allen's early masterpiece (in 77), I figured that this film, coming five years early would show some potential but ultimately be a bit of a let down. Luckily, that was not the case. This is textbook Woody Allen, subtle, hilarious and moving.

The concept of a man being haunted by hallucinations of Humphrey Bogart sounds funny, even if a little silly. But this part of the film is understated.. and it doesn't seem that odd at all. It's very cleverly done and the advice of Bogart, along with parts of Casablanca, help to tell this very good story.

Woody and Diane are great, and show as much chemistry as they did in later works. The one-liners are here as always and are very funny.

Good to see Allen under somebody elses direction. It's still very 'Woody', but it's good to see a slight change in directional style.

[Highly rated reviewer]

Woody Allen, please come back...

... and make films like this again. This is the third time I have seen this film, the last being about 8 years ago, and I still get belly-laughs from it. The scene where Allen is introduced to his first post-marital date in his flat is a comedy masterclass as he attempts to remain calm, cool, and collected and achieves the complete opposite. This is a film that is perfectly cast, has a gem-of-a-moment every couple of minutes, and Allen plays his neurotic character to sublime perfection. The editing is slick and complements the snappy, well-paced dialogue, throw-away comments, and wise-cracks, perfectly. Highly recommended.