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.

---

Plot Keywords:

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

---

Taglines:

A nervous romance.

---

Genres:

Comedy | Romance

---

Certificate:

PG

Did You Know?

Trivia

Shelley Hack's film debut.

---

Goofs

Not only is the red station wagon gone when Annie parks her VW, but when the camera changes, it is evident the location is different. As they exit the car, she has parked directly in front of a street sign, which was not there as she pulled into the space. There is also a pole with a small fence surrounding it's base, that would have been in the parking shot if they were at the same location.

---

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 ...

---

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.

---

Connections

Spoofs Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937)

---

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

One of Woody's best!

Okay, Woody Allen could be annoying sometimes and is heavily neurotic even in this film which he wrote and directed. The film is somewhat autobiographical about his relationships with a WASP woman named Annie Hall played by Diane Keaton in her Oscar winning role. Woody plays himself in the film even with a different name. Even though it's a short film, the story moves quickly and you have to be alert for some of the humor about the relationship between men and women. The supporting cast includes Tony Roberts, Paul Simon, Carol Kane and others. Woody's hatred of Los Angeles and all things Californian is well-known and documented. He is out of touch when he is away from New York City where he is equally neurotic. As a couple at first, Woody and Annie get along great but slowly Woody's own negativity creeps into the relationship. Annie starts seeing a therapist and their relationship unravels. When Annie's promising career as a cabaret singer rises, Woody becomes threatened and goes to Los Angeles to bring her back.

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