Review of Manhattan (1979) by Alejandro R — 24 Sep 2016
Always great to see NYC back in the day, as it arouses a certain nostalgia in me. .
Lots of wit and banter, which sometimes seems to be the ultimate ground of the film. .
People driven by self-destructive impulses due to a lack of maturity and direction, which leads to forest fires that they then try to put out with more fire causing a downward spiral of self-absorbed ever-escalating drama.
It was best summed up by Woody Allen's ex-wife in her book telling all of their marriage and divorce. My rendition of it is my own observation. .
And then at the end there's a excellent summation of the lunacy of it all with the great simple wisdom, "It's very important to have some kind of personal integrity." .
The one with the greatest wisdom is the 17-year old played Mariel Hemingway.
Loved hearing of the psychoanalyst that goes into a coma due to a bad acid experience. There were some very funny scenes. Listening to that and hearing of EST really grounded it in its time. Despite it being a 1979 New York film, it fortunately isn't weighted down with too many references of its time. Also, the deep emotional and behavioral themes it deals with has it be entered into the cinematic annals as a timeless work of art. .
Presenting it in black and white works really well as a nice artistic touch. .
This review of Manhattan (1979) was written by Alejandro R on 24 September 2016.
Manhattan has generally received very positive reviews.
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