Hannah & Her Sisters (A- or 3.5/4 stars)
'Hannah & Her Sisters' (written & directed by Woody Allen) spans 2 yrs. in the lives of a tightly-knit, yet problematic group of friends & family members in NYC. Each character is fairly well-off (working in art & money). And the 3 sisters make up a whole of the plot. Hannah (Mia Farrow) is the pivot of the family; a warm, competent, commonsensical mother/wife/sister/daughter. Lee (Barbara Hershey) is sensuous, emotional & flighty. She can't decide if she wants to be a writer, actress, or whomever. And Holly (Dianne Wiest) is witty, yet always a bundle of nerves. Cocaine enables her myriad of insecurities. Hannah regularly meets with her sisters Holly & Lee to discuss the week's events. And though they're close, it's what they DON'T tell each other that form the loose narrative of this movie. Now, Hannah is married to financial planner/accountant Elliot (Michael Caine), but he's suddenly realized that he's in love with Lee.
Lee lives in a loft with misanthropic Soho artist, Frederick (Max von Sydow). But his domineering & damaging ego bothers the much-younger Lee and, she turns an eye to Elliot. All the while, Holly, a neurotic actress & loser-in-love, dates hypochondriac TV executive Mickey (Woody Allen), who used to be married to Hannah. Mickey's personality? Well ... he's convinced he's about to acquire a disease and/or die. Though he's moved on, he still yearns to 'belong'; hence, dating Hannah's weaker sister, Holly. Appearing in supporting roles are Maureen O'Sullivan (Farrow's real life mother) & Lloyd Nolan as the aging show-business couple & bickering parents of Hannah & her sisters. The movie begins & ends during the family's traditional Thanksgiving dinner, filmed in Farrow's actual NY apartment. And it's the film's centerpiece Thanksgiving dinner which kicks-off the love affairs that could irreparably damage the family's already-tenuous balance.
Though this film does not have a traditional narrative (no beginning, middle, end story, per say) ... as a slice of life portrait of sibling rivalry, it's intoxicating to watch. The tangled web of relationships is extremely well done. I would classify this movie as a drama. But there is so much low-key humor & amusing spurts that you wouldn't be mistaken for considering it a dark comedy. Basically, we watch one big neurotic family going through 2 iffy years of their lives. But trust me, as written & acted, it's so much more intelligent, familiar & intuitive about humanity than you could imagine. Everything about 'HAHS' feels real -- the wonderful NY locales (which Woody loves so much), the situations, the well-rounded characters, as well as the tart observations of life. I even loved the upper-middle class vibe of the characters: what they talk about, how they dress, where they go, etc.
You know, most of the characters onscreen are easy to 'judge'. They're not perfect. And they're often irritating. But because we feel like we know their types so well, we can relate to them in some way. Mia Farrow is great, here. She makes you really feel for the character because though she hasn't a clue (early on), WE know that people in her family are doing wrong by her. Barbara Hershey is exceptional as the unsteady Lee; just watch her during a contentious lunch scene with her 2 sisters. Dianne Wiest gives us a wonderful tornado of neurotic emotions. Michael Caine is not very sympathetic here, but at no point do we not completely believe his portrayal. And the rest of the supporting cast makes us feel like we're watching real people, as well. I just loved this film; perfect to cozy up to on the couch & let the serio-comedic family hijinks unfold before you.
Lee lives in a loft with misanthropic Soho artist, Frederick (Max von Sydow). But his domineering & damaging ego bothers the much-younger Lee and, she turns an eye to Elliot. All the while, Holly, a neurotic actress & loser-in-love, dates hypochondriac TV executive Mickey (Woody Allen), who used to be married to Hannah. Mickey's personality? Well ... he's convinced he's about to acquire a disease and/or die. Though he's moved on, he still yearns to 'belong'; hence, dating Hannah's weaker sister, Holly. Appearing in supporting roles are Maureen O'Sullivan (Farrow's real life mother) & Lloyd Nolan as the aging show-business couple & bickering parents of Hannah & her sisters. The movie begins & ends during the family's traditional Thanksgiving dinner, filmed in Farrow's actual NY apartment. And it's the film's centerpiece Thanksgiving dinner which kicks-off the love affairs that could irreparably damage the family's already-tenuous balance.
Though this film does not have a traditional narrative (no beginning, middle, end story, per say) ... as a slice of life portrait of sibling rivalry, it's intoxicating to watch. The tangled web of relationships is extremely well done. I would classify this movie as a drama. But there is so much low-key humor & amusing spurts that you wouldn't be mistaken for considering it a dark comedy. Basically, we watch one big neurotic family going through 2 iffy years of their lives. But trust me, as written & acted, it's so much more intelligent, familiar & intuitive about humanity than you could imagine. Everything about 'HAHS' feels real -- the wonderful NY locales (which Woody loves so much), the situations, the well-rounded characters, as well as the tart observations of life. I even loved the upper-middle class vibe of the characters: what they talk about, how they dress, where they go, etc.
You know, most of the characters onscreen are easy to 'judge'. They're not perfect. And they're often irritating. But because we feel like we know their types so well, we can relate to them in some way. Mia Farrow is great, here. She makes you really feel for the character because though she hasn't a clue (early on), WE know that people in her family are doing wrong by her. Barbara Hershey is exceptional as the unsteady Lee; just watch her during a contentious lunch scene with her 2 sisters. Dianne Wiest gives us a wonderful tornado of neurotic emotions. Michael Caine is not very sympathetic here, but at no point do we not completely believe his portrayal. And the rest of the supporting cast makes us feel like we're watching real people, as well. I just loved this film; perfect to cozy up to on the couch & let the serio-comedic family hijinks unfold before you.