3. Crimes & Misdemeanors
Woody manages to intricately balance two juxtaposing stories, the first the tragic tale of an ophthalmologist who decides that murdering his mistress in necessary, with its secondary tale about a documentary filmmakers and the battle of wits and intelligence with his brother-in-law, to wonderful effect. A complex tale of twists and ethically significant points are created and explored, utilising its strength through its structure. It plays with the concept of creating suspense through the decisions we make rather than what will happen to the characters involved, asking could we live with the guilt of murder? How far would we go to protect our reputation and success? Again, like with many Allen movies, the cast is superb, with Martin Landau playing his role as Judah Rosenthal superbly. Allen himself acquits himself splendidly with others such as Mia Farrow and Alan Alda providing great turns as their respective characters. Crimes & Misdemeanors came at the beginning of a renaissance for Woody, with Husbands & Wives, Manhattan Murder Mystery and Bullets Over Broadway proving other particular delights. Complex, riveting and stupendously brilliant. Crimes & Misdemeanors is one of his best.