X
- 1989
- PG-13
- Orion Pictures
- 1 h 44 m
- 1989
- PG-13
- Orion Pictures
- 1 h 44 m
Summary The film's title indicates the themes of two separate stories: 1) a renowned opthalmologist is desperate to cut off an adulterous relationship...which ends up in murder; and 2) an ethically frustrated documentary filmmaker woos an attractive television producer while making a film about her insufferably self-centered boss. [MGM]
Directed By: Woody Allen
Written By: Woody Allen
- 1989
- PG-13
- Orion Pictures
- 1 h 44 m
- 1989
- PG-13
- Orion Pictures
- 1 h 44 m
Crimes and Misdemeanors
77
8.2
Summary The film's title indicates the themes of two separate stories: 1) a renowned opthalmologist is desperate to cut off an adulterous relationship...which ends up in murder; and 2) an ethically frustrated documentary filmmaker woos an attractive television producer while making a film about her insufferably self-centered boss. [MGM]
Directed By: Woody Allen
Written By: Woody Allen
Top Cast
Metascore
Generally Favorable
Based on 10 Critic Reviews
77
90% Positive
9 Reviews
9 Reviews
0% Mixed
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
10% Negative
1 Review
1 Review
Metascore
Generally Favorable
Based on 10 Critic Reviews
77
90% Positive
9 Reviews
9 Reviews
0% Mixed
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
10% Negative
1 Review
1 Review
In the world of this film, conventional piety is overturned and we see into the soul of a human monster.
Mr. Allen's most securely serious and funny film to date.
User Score
Universal Acclaim
Based on 59 User Ratings
8.2
88% Positive
52 Ratings
52 Ratings
8% Mixed
5 Ratings
5 Ratings
3% Negative
2 Ratings
2 Ratings
User Score
Universal Acclaim
Based on 59 User Ratings
8.2
88% Positive
52 Ratings
52 Ratings
8% Mixed
5 Ratings
5 Ratings
3% Negative
2 Ratings
2 Ratings
Woody Allen's probing Crimes and Misdemeanors tells two stories that turn on a single question: What do you see when you look in the mirror? One tale is a drama centered on Judah (Martin Landau), a successful ophthalmologist who ends an affair by having his mistress (Anjelica Huston) killed. The other tale is a farce centered on Cliff (Allen), a struggling documentary filmmaker, his brother-in-law Lester (Alan Alda), and Lester's colleague Halley (Mia Farrow). Lester's an acclaimed TV producer. To please his sister (Joanna Gleason), he allows her husband Cliff to film a documentary about him. The stage is set for Judah and Lester to confront unflattering, even damning, portraits of themselves. Judah's self-confrontation is direct. When told the murder plot's a done deal, Judah enters his bathroom, looks at himself, washes his face, and looks at himself again. Can he come to terms with what he's done? Lester's self-confrontation comes via Cliff's documentary, a mocking portrayal wholly at odds with how Lester sees himself. Is this cause for Lester to reflect on the man he is? Guiding us through the two men's journeys are a rabbi (Sam Waterston) and patient of Judah's quickly losing his sight, and a philosopher who's a pet documentary subject of Cliff's. The former appeals to redemption via faith, and the latter to redemption via humanistic reason. Both are hopeful men who see inherent good in human nature. Yet the film's events pointedly ask whether their optimism's well-founded, and ultimately whether the answer even matters. Crimes and Misdemeanors is plainly a morality play - one that might have fallen flat in lesser hands. In Allen's hands, the overlaying morality play is told with a blend of gripping drama and trademark Allen humor, resting on a screenplay so taut and sophisticated that the rest of the film falls into place effortlessly. The result is a brilliant, engrossing film - one of Allen's very best.
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Flagrantly flawed but never less than fascinating film that does indeed blend the funny Woody and the serious Woody.
It is his best and most courageous work to date. [13 Nov 1989, p. 22]
Whiny, quirky and urbane.
Fine ensemble acting (Alda and Huston are outstanding), evocative composition and design, intelligent writing, and spritely musical score.
None of the characters or ideas is allowed to develop beyond its cardboard profile.
Definitely top-tier Woody Allen. The writing, acting and directing are first-rate, as he finishes off another of his artistic purple patches. I'm not an Alan Alda fan in the slightest simply because he's so good at this slimy, know-it-all persona that he once again carries off so effortlessly here. An essential watch for all cinephiles, and worth a purchase and rewatches for Woody Allen enthusiasts.
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Not only has Allen finally learned that he can make a drama with his own style, and not imitating one of his idols, he can also ask philosophical questions without seeming pretentious. Crimes and Misdemeanors holds his grip on drama, while never losing itself, due to the split narrative between Landau's drama, and Allen's dark comedy.
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Allen's intuition has barely gone off track, he is to-the-point, sharp and poetic in his steps.
Crimes And Misdemeanors
Allen's crime drama too is a love story. He just can't help it. And you cannot hate that about him. It is simply inspirational and adorable. The writer and director Woody Allen is one romantic fellow. He can and does romanticize the idea of murdering someone. That foreplay of God that he imparts on us as wisdom and practicality that zaps you like a lightning bolt, is his version of making sense out of a narration. And no one writes like him. So what if there is a character similar to him, always, running around the screen. No one has produced these many avant-garde ideas so exceptionally and convincingly that his filmography starts calling itself out for a specific taste.
A sense of humor is a second thing, the sense of romance should be your priority when you jump in on his train of thought. There is an incoherent rush through the film. Either accelerated by subtle humor or self-mockery or intense drama or plot moving forward with an incredible pace. Either way, the film keeps you at the edge of your toe, instead of being calm and present. It is present for it thinks a lot.
Each character is told to decide repetitively on the screen. Which makes you, the viewer, understand, empathize and even nod to the decisions they would go for or lead towards. By then, it wouldn't matter what they choose to do or be. The journey, the pain, the pressure that they make "punish" themselves with redeems their credit points in front of our eyes. It is a story that is far from gangster genre no matter how familiar their action grows. Crimes And Misdemeanors also gets the "close calls" right and like no one. What they do, what he has done, is that he didn't keep any.
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[SPOILER ALERT: This review contains spoilers.]
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I could never really get into this one. There are a lot of philosophical questions being discussed, largely of the ethical nature, but it just felt really pointless to me. Maybe that was the point, I'm not sure, but regardless, it never really grabbed me. At the end of the day, I just saw two pointless stories being told for some unknown reason and totally lacking in interest. One story was somewhat interesting, the one concerning Martin Landau's character. There was plenty of depth there and it really does save this movie as we see him grappling with the decisions he had made. On the other hand, the story concerning Woody Allen's character is annoying and a waste of time. It felt like they did not feel they had enough with the other story and tacked this on for no reason. Really, all we see is a man who is wrapped up in his hatred of this other guy and let's it get to annoying heights. Luckily, there are occasional moments of comedy that help bolster this one up a bit as well or else the rating would be far lower. I really do not understand the praise for this one.
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Awards
Academy Awards, USA
• 3 Nominations
Golden Globes, USA
• 1 Nomination
20/20 Awards
• 3 Wins & 6 Nominations
