2016’s annual Woody Allen movie is Café Society, which kicked off this year’s Cannes Film Festival and drew more attention for a joke aimed at Allen than its middling reviews. This kind of reaction to his films isn’t uncommon. The last year he didn’t release a movie was 1981, and it’s more like clockwork than an event when another one comes out. His consistent production and products have earned him both loyal fans and weary viewers, as there’s so many similar plot points in his films that they can slur together. Café Society looks like it’s aimed right down the middle of Allen’s usual tropes, hence the middling reviews, and hence why his core audience will likely enjoy the film.
More than five of the actors in Café Society have worked with the elder statesman of neuroses before, including lead Jesse Eisenberg, who previously starred in 2012’s To Rome with Love. The film also reunites Eisenberg with Kristen Stewart for the third time as a romantic pair, and given how both of their careers seem steady for the indeterminable future, they might just go on to rival the most prolific duos in film history.
Café Society does mark one significant change: it’s Allen’s first film to be shot on digital. The man responsible for this move is renowned cinematographer Vittorio Storaro (Apocalypse Now, Reds), who convinced Allen to make the switch after he was recruited for the film. I suppose you always trust someone like Storaro, even if you are making your 47th film.
Café Society is directed by Woody Allen and stars Jesse Eisenberg, Steve Carell, and Jeannie Berlin. It will be released in the U.S. on July 15th, 2016 and in the U.K. on September 2nd, 2016. For international release dates, click here.
Are you excited for another Woody Allen film? Let us know in the comments!
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