Woody Allen Ranked

2.

Juan

The Purple Rose of Cairo (1985)

This is probably the only Woody film that ever swept me off my feet on my first viewing. It’s so inventive, and the blur between fantasy and reality is done so well, that you can’t help but enjoy yourself.

It’s also what I feel shows the best example of what Woody can do when he’s behind the scenes and not the star of the picture. The script is one of his best, as he takes excellent characters and puts them into believable situations, even if it involves a man who just jumped out of a movie. Farrow and Daniels both truly seemed to take the roles to heart and did a marvelous job, helping to craft this perfect film.

The Purple Rose of Cairo is romantic, hilarious, and the perfect example of the relationship that a viewer can form with a film they love.

Marya

Stardust Memories (1980)

I think maybe this is a love it or hate it type film. I absolutely loved it. This was the film that got me into Allen again and made me want to watch all his films. Allen has said time and again that this film is not autobiographical; it’s fiction. Maybe the main character is a bit pessimistic at first, but after introspection he comes to a great place in his life. If only we could all reach that kind of comfort in real life.

Juan Barquin

Just yer average twenty-something college student with no time on his hands who ends up watching (and writing) too many movies and shows for his own good.

15 Responses

  1. amy says:

    I just gotta come here and say that… I’m not really familiar with Woody Allen’s filmography as a whole. LOL – Some people I’ve talked with have told me that I just don’t get Jewish humor (??) – I got that with A Serious Man too. Can anyone explain? LOL

    Having said that, I do like Vicky Christina Barcelona… and next to Penelope Cruz (was never really sold on her until that), Rebecca Hall was right next to her. I also liked Match Point, but in a different sense…

    I did think Whatever Works and Tall Dark Stranger were pretty bad though.

    Oh… and I’m admitting this here:
    Annie Hall… I didn’t feel it. LOL

  2. Castor says:

    Wow very impressive that you ranked all 42 of his movies. I really haven’t seen too many of his work and I need to fix that! A bit surprised that Annie Hall is outside of the top 2 :) Highly looking forward to Midnight in Paris this weekend!

  3. Rodrigo says:

    I will shamefully admit that I only watched two films involving Woody Aleen and one of them wasn’t with him as the director.

    Still, very impresssive to see you guys ranking all of his movies.

  4. Callahan says:

    I wish you guys made two separate lists or agreed on an order, as much as I loved what you both had to say I found it difficult to keep track of both lists at the same time considering the amount of films Woody has made.

  5. Nora says:

    This post is fantastic! I’m a huge Woody Allen fan and both of you guys had really insightful things to say about each movie. Congrats on finishing his entire filmography, wow! And Manhattan is my favorite Allen film as well :D

  6. ersby says:

    Great list – it’s nice to see Zelig getting some plaudits. It was years ahead of its time. I think my favourite is Manhattan Murder Mystery, just because it’s so funny and perfectly acheives what it sets out to do.

  7. Juan Barquin says:

    It’s a little bit hard for me to admit this, but after two viewings of Midnight in Paris, I think I’m going to go ahead and say that it’s stolen fourth place on my list.

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