Apropos of Nothing
Ratings3
Average rating2.5
15
Ratings3
Average rating2.5
In this candid and often hilarious memoir, the celebrated director, comedian, writer, and actor offers a comprehensive, personal look at his tumultuous life. Beginning with his Brooklyn childhood and his stint as a writer for the Sid Caesar variety show in the early days of television, working alongside comedy greats, Allen tells of his difficult early days doing standup before he achieved recognition and success. With his unique storytelling pizzazz, he recounts his departure into moviemaking, with such slapstick comedies as Take the Money and Run, and revisits his entire, sixty-year-long, and enormously productive career as a writer and director, from his classics Annie Hall, Manhattan, and Annie and Her Sisters to his most recent films, including Midnight in Paris. Along the way, he discusses his marriages, his romances and famous friendships, his jazz playing, and his books and plays. We learn about his demons, his mistakes, his successes, and those he loved, worked with, and learned from in equal measure.
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I'm really torn on this book -
1) It could have used a better editor. I can hear Woody's voice all the way through, but it jumps pretty abruptly in time and topic. It can be a slog.
2) He downplays all his good work, which is unfortunate. Annie Hall is a truly great movie, and he spends most of his time dismissing it. Sleeper (probably his best “funny” movie) is mentioned in passing. We get more discussion on September (which he admits isn't good) than we do on Hannah and Her Sisters.
3) The back half of the book is about the situation with Mia and Dylan. He builds a factual case. But he spends a lot, a lot of pages on it. So, if the purpose of the book was to muddy the waters around the situation even more, he succeeded. I read Ronan's book also, and that has a whole different story attached to it. BTW- Ronan doesn't get a pass in this. This book thrashes Ronan pretty hard, even go so far to questioning who Ronan's father is. I honestly don't know what to think anymore.
4) I personally struggle with the relationship with Stacey Nelkin and Soon Yi. Woody's approach to both - that dating significantly younger women (who were both of legal age...which he points out several times) is normal, just doesn't sit right in my head. He's not the first well known man to date/marry much younger, and he won't be the last. The casualness of it all just didn't sit right.
In all - maybe steer clear of this. I chuckled in a few spots - he can still turn a phrase - but it raised more questions than it probably should have or wanted to.
