Mighty Aphrodite (Dir. Woody Allen/1995)
There is a point in the Woody Allen filmography whereby his
front-and-centre roles seem at odds with the story. 1995’s Mighty Aphrodite may be the moment he crosses the line. Interspersed
with a Greek chorus, Mighty Aphrodite begins
as sportswriter Lenny (Allen) becomes obsessed with finding the Mother of his
genius, adopted child. Co-starring Helena Bonham-Carter as Lenny’s
career-driven wife and Mira Sorvino (winning an Oscar for her role) as prostitute
Linda, the aforementioned Mother, this should be amongst Woody’s best but it
becomes a quiet horn compared to his orchestra of films. The symmetrical
outcome of relationships does somehow ring a classical tune creating an
inversed Greek tragedy of sorts. But Woody does seem out of place; jarring
against the backdrop of younger actors that dominate the screen. His
relationship with considerably-younger Linda combined with an adopted-child
story seems strangely, unsettlingly poignant – but isn’t that why we love
Woody?
Rating: 6/10
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