Annie Hall (1977)

Neurotic New York comedian Alvy Singer falls in love with the ditzy Annie Hall.

Director:

Woody Allen

Writers:

Woody Allen, Marshall Brickman

Stars:

Woody Allen, Diane Keaton, Tony Roberts

Won 4 Oscars. Another 26 wins & 8 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Woody Allen	...	Alvy Singer
Diane Keaton	...	Annie Hall
Tony Roberts	...	Rob
Carol Kane	...	Allison
Paul Simon	...	Tony Lacey
Shelley Duvall	...	Pam
Janet Margolin	...	Robin
Colleen Dewhurst	...	Mom Hall
Christopher Walken	...	Duane Hall (as Christopher Wlaken)
Donald Symington	...	Dad Hall
Helen Ludlam	...	Grammy Hall
Mordecai Lawner	...	Alvy's Dad
Joan Neuman	...	Alvy's Mom (as Joan Newman)
Jonathan Munk	...	Alvy - Age 9
Ruth Volner	...	Alvy's Aunt

Storyline

Alvy Singer, a forty year old twice divorced, neurotic, intellectual Jewish New York stand-up comic, reflects on the demise of his latest relationship, to Annie Hall, an insecure, flighty, Midwestern WASP aspiring nightclub singer. Unlike his previous relationships, Alvy believed he may have worked out all the issues in his life through fifteen years of therapy to make this relationship with Annie last, among those issues being not wanting to date any woman that would want to date him, and thus subconsciously pushing those women away. Alvy not only reviews the many ups and many downs of their relationship, but also reviews the many facets of his makeup that led to him starting to date Annie. Those facets include growing up next to Coney Island in Brooklyn, being attracted to the opposite sex for as long as he can remember, and enduring years of Jewish guilt with his constantly arguing parents.

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Plot Keywords:

breaking the fourth wall | long take | dialogue driven | talking to the camera | written and directed by cast member | 

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Taglines:

A nervous romance.

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Genres:

Comedy | Romance

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Certificate:

PG

Did You Know?

Trivia

Included among the "1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die", edited by Steven Schneider.

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Goofs

When Annie is driving on the freeway with Alvy, a police cruiser can be seen in the background holding back traffic.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Alvy Singer: [addressing the camera] There's an old joke - um... two elderly women are at a Catskill mountain resort, and one of 'em says, "Boy, the food at this place is really terrible." The other one says, "Yeah, I know; and such small portions." Well, that's essentially how I feel about life - full of loneliness, and misery, and suffering, and unhappiness, and it's all over much too quickly. The... the other important joke, for me, is one that's usually attributed to Groucho Marx; but, I ...

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Alternate Versions

In the beginning of the film, Alvy Singer paraphrases what is ostensibly a quote from comedian Groucho Marx. When the movie was dubbed in socialist Hungary, the quote was instead attributed to Buster Keaton at the strict insistence of the dubbing studio, for fear that audiences might confuse Groucho Marx with philosopher and socialist figure Karl Marx.

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Connections

Featured in AFI's 10 Top 10: America's 10 Greatest Films in 10 Classic Genres (2008)

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Soundtracks

Christmas Medley
(Traditional songs: "We Wish You a Merry Christmas" (uncredited), "O, Christmas Tree" (uncredited), and "God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen" (uncredited))
Traditional / traditional tune, lyrics by Ernst Anschütz (uncredited) / traditional
Performed by Do-Re-Mi Children's Chorus (as the Do-Re-Mi Children's Chorus) on Vocalion Records

User Reviews

I Forgot My Mantra....

Woody Allen's seminal 1977 romantic comedy "Annie Hall" is not only laugh-out-loud funny (with some of the most quotable dialogue ever written for the screen...this is the "Casablanca" of comedies, folks) but also sweet and charming (due in large part because of Diane Keaton's smashing performance as the title character, the flighty singer from Wisconsin with a quirky fashion sense and "neat" outlook on life) without ever turning trite or sappy like so many romantic comedies tend to do. Allen wisely deconstructed the genre with his non-linear story-line (something that was later done to even greater effect with a more recent and profound look at relationships, "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind") and charming little theatrical tricks like talking to the audience or pulling extras into the scene for their opinions on what's been going on. It keeps the viewer off guard and allows for a free flow of comedic and philosophical ideas that might otherwise not have found their way into a more traditional film.

In his latter years, Allen's best work has been when he is not part of the cast (my personal favorites being "Bulletts over Broadway," "Sweet and Lowdown," and the recent "Match Point"). "Annie Hall" was made in his heyday when he could still pull off playing a neurotic New York Jewish comedienne with charm and panache. There's something innocent and benign about his obsessions here, as this was long before the Woody/Soon-Yi fiasco and the days of grossly miscasting himself against younger female co-stars. Yes, Mr. Allen has been artsier (witness "Manhattan") and more satirical (witness "Zelig") but here, with Diane Keaton as his muse, he was never more charming or funnier.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English German

Release Date:

20 April 1977 (USA)

Also Known As:

Anhedonia

Filming Locations:

W. Century Blvd. & Airport Blvd, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$4,000,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$38,251,425

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$38,287,178

Company Credits

Production Co:

Jack Rollins & Charles H. Joffe Productions, Rollins-Joffe Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

93 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1