Alice (1990)

User Rating:

6.5/10   

Director:

Woody Allen

Writer (WGA):

Woody Allen (written by)

Release Date:

10 January 1991 (Argentina)

Genre:

Comedy | Fantasy | Romance

Plot:

A spoiled Manhattan housewife re-evaluates her life after visiting a Chinatown healer.

Plot Keywords:

Muse | Guilt | Catholic | Gossip | Homemaker

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 1 win & 4 nominations

Cast

Mia Farrow	...	Alice Tate
Alec Baldwin	...	Ed
Blythe Danner	...	Dorothy
Judy Davis	...	Vicki
William Hurt	...	Doug Tate
Keye Luke	...	Dr. Yang
Joe Mantegna	...	Joe
Bernadette Peters	...	Muse
Cybill Shepherd	...	Nancy Brill
Gwen Verdon	...	Alice's Mother
Patrick O'Neal	...	Alice's Father
Holland Taylor	...	Helen
Julie Kavner	...	Decorator
June Squibb	...	Hilda
Marceline Hugot	...	Monica

Runtime:

102 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby (Mono)

Certification:

Australia:PG | South Korea:15 | Netherlands:AL | Argentina:13 | Chile:14 | Finland:S | France:U | Germany:12 (w) | Iceland:L | Peru:14 | Singapore:PG | Sweden:Btl | UK:12 (original rating) | UK:15 (video rating) (1991) | USA:PG-13

Filming Locations:

Barbetta Restaurant - 321 W. 46th Street, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Orion Pictures Corporation

Trivia:

His role as Dr. Yang was the final film role for Keye Luke. He died only weeks after this film was released.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: When Thelonious Monk's version of "Darn That Dream" appears on the soundtrack, the LP sleeve of "Monk's Dream" is shown, implying that Alice and Joe are listening to it. However the tune is not featured on that album.

Quotes:

[explaining to Alice why he wants to have an affair with her]
Joe: There's nothing sexier than a lapsed Catholic.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Live from New York: The First 5 Years of Saturday Night Live (2005) (TV)

Soundtrack:

La Cumparsita

Woody's film for non-fans

This movie is Mia Farrow's most magical moment. She glows in this film and as Woody Allen doesn't appear in it, and the film is not a heavy drama like Interiors or Another Woman, it will appeal to most audiences. The plot dabbles in mysticism and magic, similar to A Midsummer Night's Sex Comedy and his segment in New York Stories, and is basically the story of a pampered woman in search of her identity. As Farrow's Alice is onscreen nearly every moment, the film couldn't have a better title. Alice begins to question her religious faith amidst an upper-class Manhattan setting and intellectual friends--in other words, she plays a female, Catholic version of the character Woody Allen has played in many other movies. There are not a lot of laughs in the movie but it still remains a classy winner, and a good start to Allen's '90s career. The big name cast (with the exception of William Hurt and Joe Mantegna) contribute cameo appearances, more or less; a casting move he would continue later in the decade. Not a movie that lends itself to countless viewings, like Manhattan or The Purple Rose of Cairo, but a definite charmer.