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IMDb > Melinda and Melinda (2004)
Melinda and Melinda
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Melinda and Melinda (2004) More at IMDbPro »

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Melinda and Melinda (2004) -- Two alternating stories about Melinda's (Mitchell) attempts to straighten out her life.
Melinda and Melinda (2004) -- Two alternating stories about Melinda's (Mitchell) attempts to straighten out her life.

Overview

User Rating:
6.5/10   13,098 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Up 26% in popularity this week. See rank & trends on IMDbPro.
Director:
Woody Allen
Writer (WGA):
Woody Allen (written by)
Contact:
View company contact information for Melinda and Melinda on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
29 October 2004 (Spain) more
Genre:
Comedy | Drama more
Tagline:
Life can be a comedy or a tragedy, it all depends on how you look at it.
Plot:
Two alternating stories about Melinda's (Mitchell) attempts to straighten out her life. full summary | add synopsis
NewsDesk:
(7 articles)
Chiwetel Ejiofor
 (From The AV Club. 5 May 2008, 9:03 PM, PDT)

Allen Not Interested in September 11
 (From WENN. 29 June 2005)

User Comments:
Severely disappointing... more

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)
Wallace Shawn ... Sy
Neil Pepe ... Al
Stephanie Roth Haberle ... Louise
Larry Pine ... Max

Radha Mitchell ... Melinda

Michael J. Farina ... Man with Dog

Jonny Lee Miller ... Lee

Chloë Sevigny ... Laurel

Matt Servitto ... Jack Oliver
Arija Bareikis ... Sally Oliver

Brooke Smith ... Cassie

Zak Orth ... Peter

Will Ferrell ... Hobie
Andy Borowitz ... Doug

Amanda Peet ... Susan
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Create a character page for: ?

Additional Details

Also Known As:
Melinda & Melinda (USA) (alternative spelling)
Untitled Woody Allen Fall Project (USA) (working title)
more
MPAA:
Rated PG-13 for adult situations involving sexuality, and some substance material.
Runtime:
99 min
Country:
USA
Language:
English
Color:
Color
Aspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Dolby Digital (Mono)

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
Woody Allen wrote the screenplay in a month. more
Goofs:
Crew or equipment visible: In one of the beginning scenes for the "drama" version of Melinda's tale the battery pack for her microphone creates a very noticeable bulge in the lower back of her shirt. Whenever she stands up from leaning on the kitchen table the bulge turns into the shape of a square. more
Quotes:
Susan: Try it, Hobie, it's good manners.
Hobie: Since when do I have good manners?
more
Movie Connections:
References The Broadway Melody (1929) more
Soundtrack:
In a Mellow Tone more

FAQ

This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.
15 out of 24 people found the following comment useful:-
Severely disappointing..., 22 April 2005
4/10
Author: elispaul from Oregon

Woody Allen, when at his best, has one of the sharpest pens around. He can make an acute observation and wrap it around a punch line like nobody else. However, when he's at his worst his movies can stench of pretentiousness. Unfortunately, "Melinda and Melinda" has this stench from opening to closing. The set up is one of his more intriguing ideas in a while. Four friends sit in a restaurant discussing whether the essence of life is comedy or drama. To help settle the argument, one man relates the beginning of a story and asks the two other men arguing (one a comic playwright, the other a dramatic playwright) whether the story is a comedy or a tragedy. The two men then continue the story and the movie plays out the stories that they weave. Now, when I first heard about this film, my understanding was that they tell the exact same story, the genre (comedy or drama) only changes by how you look at it. Now that would have been interesting. However, the stories only share one main element and a few side elements. They are entirely different stories with major plot differences. The drama is so stiffly scripted and pretentious that it can only really work as self-parody. If this was the point, then it failed because these elements prevent the audience from feeling any emotional investment in any of the characters. The comedy is the story that has moments of success, but they are still short and fleeting. Will Farrell is obviously meant to be the stand-in for Woody, but he could have played this character so much more believably without adding Woody's stutters and hand-ticks. Woody is the best at being Woody. When someone else tries, they're not playing a character, they are modeling a recognizable actor. This type of thing only pulls the audience out of the story.

My favorite Woody Allen movies make me leave the theater a little bit lighter in spirit than I walked in. This one made me wish I could get my money back.

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