WOODY ALLEN IN SAUMUR

Rich is in his element in the backyard
(NB: This is NOT Woody Allen)


Le Palais Cinema in Saumur was offering a rare treat. Usually movies in France are presented in French – even foreign movies are dubbed. Woody Allen’s latest movie – Whatever Works – was presented in VOstf (version origninale, subtitres françaises). It was a good opportunity to see how French handled coloquial English.
Except for one lone woman we were the only people at the show. Granted it was the first show of the day (at 5 in the afternoon) but even with a good discount there didn’t seem to be much interest in the movies. Christophe can download any movie that you would want to see and perhaps that is having an effect – less people going to the cinema as a social event and more people staying at home to watch pirated downloads on their big-screen TVs. Maybe also if the theatre offered salted popcorn instead of sugary kettlecorn the audience would be bigger.
As for the movie itself it was vintage Woody Allen. All the elements were there – an older neurotic Jewish man obsessed about his life, a hot nymphy starlet, cameo appearance of New York City playing itself, quirky characters who find a way to transform their lives. All the elements were there except for one – this was a classic Woody Allen movie without Woody Allen. Well worth seeing in any language.