Irrational Man

Name: Irrational Man
Genre: Drama, Mystery
Released: July 17, 2015
Duration: 95 min
Rating: 53
Cast: Emma Stone, Joaquin Phoenix, Parker Posey

2015

METASCORE

Mixed or average reviews based on 43 Critic Reviews

See All

USER SCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 113 Ratings

See All

6.7

VOTE NOW

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

6.7	Your Score
6.7	User Score Generally favorable reviews based on 113 Ratings

Would you like to write a review?

There is a 75 character minimum for reviews. If your review contains spoilers, please check the Spoiler box. Please do not use ALL CAPS. There is no linking or other HTML allowed. Your review may be edited for content. 0/5000

Check box if your review contains spoilers

Play Sound

Please enter your birth date to watch this video:

You are not allowed to view this material at this time.

Irrational Man

Now Playing: Irrational Man

Movie Details & Credits

Sony Pictures Classics | Release Date: July 17, 2015 | R

Starring: Emma Stone, Joaquin Phoenix, Parker Posey

Summary: On a small town college campus, a philosophy professor in existential crisis gives his life new purpose when he enters into a relationship with his student.

Director: Woody Allen

Genre(s): Drama, Mystery

Rating: R

Runtime: 95 min

See All Details and Credits

Watch Now

Stream On

Buy on

Stream On

Expand

Metascore

Positive:

Mixed:

Negative:

Critic Reviews

David Rooney

May 18, 2015

Allen's dialogue is witty, his plotting zings along with forward momentum in all the right places, and his observation of elastic moral principles in flux is both mischievous and unsettling, yielding a tasty final-act Hitchcockian twist. Read full review

Graham Fuller

May 18, 2015

Irrational Man heads to one of the most startling pieces of action he’s ever filmed. It hints where he stands now as a moralist or cynic in a corrupt world. Read full review

IndieWire Eric Kohn

May 15, 2015

If the genre elements sustain the work as a whole, the plot suffers from the meandering quality that frequently plagues late period Allen work. Still, the filmmaking finds its groove in individual moments. Read full review

Chris Nashawaty

Jul 27, 2015

Allen isn’t completely on autopilot here. There are a couple of sharp, sting-in-the-tail twists near the end, and Phoenix is at least interesting. But Irrational Man would be lesser Woody even if we hadn’t seen most of it before. Read full review

Bill Goodykoontz

Jul 23, 2015

Allen builds to a climax that is ridiculous and a comment on … I don’t know. Fate? Folly? There are plenty of both in Irrational Man, but they’re not often a comfortable mix. Read full review

The Telegraph Tim Robey

May 18, 2015

Allen has worked wonders in the past with superficially similar moral tales, but this one’s a sketchy rehash. Read full review

Lou Lumenick

Jul 15, 2015

Irrational Man is so clumsily staged and lethargically paced that it makes such clunkers as “Small Time Crooks” and “Cassandra’s Dream” look like minor classics. Read full review

SEE ALL 43 REVIEWS

Write a Review

User Reviews

Kayl_Braflovski

Jun 21, 2016

ОЧ понравился фильм! Фильм
очень филосовский ! 1010 ! особенно Эмма Стоун Офигительна! Великолепный, качественный фильм!

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

preciouskiki

Aug 9, 2015

• PROS: Excellent performances from Emma Stone, Joaquin Phoenix and Parker Posey. And I was delighted to see journalist/actress/comedienne Nancy Giles in a small role in the beginning. (Fans of CBS Sunday Morning have enjoyed Nancy Giles' broadcast segments for many years). I'd love to see• PROS: Excellent performances from Emma Stone, Joaquin Phoenix and Parker Posey. And I was delighted to see journalist/actress/comedienne Nancy Giles in a small role in the beginning. (Fans of CBS Sunday Morning have enjoyed Nancy Giles' broadcast segments for many years). I'd love to see Nancy Giles in more movies. Loved the music, especially "The In Crowd" by the Ramsey Lewis Trio. And the Newport, Rhode Island seaside setting was gorgeous. And I especially enjoyed the way the movie treats the subject of right-or-wrong situations that pop up in our everyday lives. It gives you something to talk about later. The movie is only 94 minutes long, which seemed just about right, leaving you wanting more, like the old show business adage.

• CONS: There were one or two spots where I thought the plot stretched my suspension of disbelief just a bit too far, but I was willing to overlook those moments because I was enjoying the rest of the film so thoroughly.

• THE UPSHOT: I would recommend this as a highly entertaining drama with touches of Woody Allen's incomparable wit and a few surprises along the way.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

Benkoko11

Feb 23, 2017

Woody Allen's knack for tight, thoughtful writing combined with Phoenix and Stone's wonderful on-screen chemistry makes for a delicious little murder mystery.

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

Spangle

Apr 11, 2017

With each passing critically maligned modern Woody Allen film that I watch, it becomes readily apparent that I am an Allen apologist. Either that or his films are never as bad as many see them. Known as a legend in the world of comedy, Irrational Man finds Allen blending mystery - a genreWith each passing critically maligned modern Woody Allen film that I watch, it becomes readily apparent that I am an Allen apologist. Either that or his films are never as bad as many see them. Known as a legend in the world of comedy, Irrational Man finds Allen blending mystery - a genre who has some great affinity for - and blending it with straight drama. Though he is also certainly celebrated for his dramas, he had never really made a film that was a mystery and a drama with no comedy. Mysteries of his that come to mind include Manhattan Murder Mystery, Small Time Crooks, and Scoop, all of which included a heavy dosage of comedy. In his late period, Irrational Man stands alone as a film with no real comedy (Blue Jasmine is close, but can be categorized by some as black comedy). Yet, it comes with a plenty of that Allen philosophy that we have come to love over the years. Thus, though its genre may be a bit of a unique blend, it is always apparent that Allen is sitting there behind the camera, if the unique style and camera work did not tip you off right away.

Focusing upon a philosophy professor, Abe Lucas (Joaquin Phoenix), Irrational Man tells the story of his time at a small liberal arts school as a member of its philosophy department. Known for his affairs with students and having a rock-and-roll reputation upon arrival, Abe is now quite the classic Allen misanthrope. Detesting the world, having no reason for living anymore, and unable to perform sexually due to how lost he is, Abe Lucas is a man that just floats through the day and complains about the world to students. While teaching, he strikes up relationships with student Jill Pollard (Emma Stone) and chemistry professor Rita Richards (Parker Posey). Yet, neither satisfy him. He still experiences writer's block and drowns his sorrows in a bottle of alcohol constantly. It is only when he overhears a conversation in a diner about a crooked judge that is taking away a woman's children because he is friends with her deadbeat ex-husband's lawyers that he figures out what will make him feel alive again: murder.

Clearly inspired by the works of Alfred Hitchcock, Allen shows Abe Lucas planning out the perfect murder. A constant theme in Hitchcock's work, Abe takes pleasure in the artistry of planning out the murder akin to films such as Shadow of a Doubt or Dial M for Murder where men joyfully plot out what the perfect murder would turn out to be. Similar to Strangers on a Train, Abe reasons that he is the perfect man to commit this murder since he has no ties to the judge. Finally, similar to the murderers in Rope, he revels in conversations about the murder after the fact as people try to guess who did it and how it was done, all while Abe can sit there with a sly grin on his face knowing that he was the one who had taken out the judge.

This murderous pleasure may reinvigorate Abe's reason for living, yet the key to Allen's film is always the philosophy behind the killing. In particular, how it relates to Immanuel Kant's categorical imperative. In an extended classroom scene, Allen quickly briefs the audience on the concept that suggests lying, in any situation, is wrong. If you are asked a question, it is imperative you respond truthfully because one lie opens the door and a slippery slope begins where one must then determine, situation-by-situation, when to tell a lie. However, Abe interjects that it is a fairy tale situation described by Kant, one that has no basis in reality because any moral person would lie if the Nazis came to their home and asked if Anne Frank was hiding in their attic or not. Foreshadowing how Abe would defend his murder - that it was a net positive to the world for an immoral person to be killed by a moral one - the categorical imperative comes back when Jill references how one murder inevitably leads to another as he must then cover it up. This philosophical concept is what kicks off the climax once Abe realizes that he must cover it up as the police close in on a suspect. Anybody who knows must go and everything is on the table as his supposed superior morality and place of judgment are thrown into question once he realizes the full ramifications of his actions.

Though Allen is an atheist, this film is yet another late period work where he seems to contemplate death, religion, and what life means. Repeated references to existentialism adorn this film with Abe repeatedly declaring that life is meaningless, while also playing with death via russian roulette and alcoholism. Yet, the film's ultimate moral tale that we are not to judge others and damn them to death simply because they are immoral feels inherently Christian, what with the whole "he without sin cast the first stone" portion of the Bible. Though perhaps not finding its roots in the Bible, Irrational Man certainly does apply this principle in formulating where Abe misstepped and where Kant's categorical imperative comes from: that we humans are no judg… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

ledaumas

Aug 14, 2015

It's amazing how Woody Allentown gets away with taking other people's stories, and getting undeserved praise as a writer/director. "Blue Jasmine" was an update of Tennessee Williams' "A Streetcar Names Desire." "Midnight in Paris" used quotes from the Lost Generation's words and writings asIt's amazing how Woody Allentown gets away with taking other people's stories, and getting undeserved praise as a writer/director. "Blue Jasmine" was an update of Tennessee Williams' "A Streetcar Names Desire." "Midnight in Paris" used quotes from the Lost Generation's words and writings as the screenplay. "Magic in the Moonlight" combined the lives of famous magicians, Harry Houdini and Chung Ling Soo. And now we have "Irrational Man" which resembles the premise of Michael Douglas' "Star Chamber," except the characters are less likable. I don't understand how women would fall for Joaquin Phoenix's character. Yet, it's amazing what Joaquin does with an unlikable character. He made the character interesting and intriguing, instead of the whiny way his character was written. Some day, Joaquin wil win an Oscar. But not for this movie.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

Timbaros

Sep 15, 2015

Woody Allen's 47th film, 'Irrational Man', sticks to several themes he's already explored in a few of his previous films, and is not one of his best.

An older man being pursued by a younger woman is a plot device that Allen has presented to us many times before (Magic in the Moonlight andWoody Allen's 47th film, 'Irrational Man', sticks to several themes he's already explored in a few of his previous films, and is not one of his best.

An older man being pursued by a younger woman is a plot device that Allen has presented to us many times before (Magic in the Moonlight and You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger). In 'Irrational Man,' Joaquin Phoenix plays pot-bellied depressed middle age philosophy professor Abe Lucas (Joaquin Phoenix). He's the newest teacher at a small town college in Rhode Island. He's single and doesn't seem to have much going for him. However, two women vie for his attention; unhappily married fellow teacher Rita (Parker Posey) who fantasizes them running away together to Spain, and student Jill (Emma Stone). Jill is in Abe's philosophy class, and she is mesmerized by his teachings and his stance on life. They start to spend lots of time together outside of the classroom, much to the dismay of Jill's perfect boyfriend Roy (Jamie Blackley). Abe tries and tries to resist the urge to sleep with Jill, though he has no trouble having sex with Rita. However, Abe's relationship with Jill is becoming stronger and stronger, until he can no longer resist her, and they eventually sleep together. Jill is so smitten with Abe that she breaks the news to her boyfriend Roy that she wants to break up. The plot then takes a turn: one day at a diner Abe and Jill overhear a woman talking about a local judge who has ruled against her in a divorce proceeding and has awarded custody of her kids to her husband. She also tells the people she is with how the judge has destroyed her life. At this point Abe decides he's going to do something about this woman's problem. His decision rejuvenates him, it transforms him from someone who is aimless and depressed to someone who is full of life and energetic. And he actually does go through with his plan. Of course his actions are irrational, but to him they are rational. But does he think he's pulled off the perfect crime?

There's not much more to the film's plot which is probably why it's only 95 minutes. But Allen does get more from his actors than what the script provides. Phoenix is perfectly cast as the loner professor who struggles with his identity but is lucky enough to have two attractive women vying for his attention. Stone overdoes it a bit as Jill, the student who has a good thing going with Roy but sees something attractive in Abe that we don't see. Stone played a similar role in Allen's last film - 'Magic in the Moonlight' - falling for Colin Firth's much older character. Posey is a delight as Rita, fantasizing about a life with Lucas in Europe. But Allen's script doesn't provide much magic, it's humdrum at the very best in a film that can be categorized as not one of his best. It also won't have much box office appeal here in the UK- in the U.S. the film has made a measly $3.7 million - a far cry from 'Magic in the Moonlight's' total gross of $32 million. At age 79, we're sure there's lots more films in Woody Allen's repertoire to redeem himself from this one.

By Tim Baros… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

hotfromcauldron

Jul 20, 2015

It’s a puzzlement how a matter of life or death can become an interminable bore weighing in at 90 minutes. Woody’s masterbatory pontification on being alive is a short essay at best. A disillusioned alcoholic professor beds both his students and married co-workers without any recourse.It’s a puzzlement how a matter of life or death can become an interminable bore weighing in at 90 minutes. Woody’s masterbatory pontification on being alive is a short essay at best. A disillusioned alcoholic professor beds both his students and married co-workers without any recourse. Dueling voice-overs , reiterate a droning dialogue of the obvious- to all but the characters. Irrational Man quickly turns irritating being miscast - Hollywood please let Emma Stone graduate already! - lacking Allen's acerbic wit and super score. Even as a die-hard fan - sitting through this- forced me to confront my own existential horror.… Expand

1 of 5 users found this helpful14

SEE ALL 25 REVIEWS