Cafe Society

Starring: Steve Carell, Jesse Eisenberg, Kristen Stewart, Sheryl Lee, Corey Stoll, Anna Camp, Parker Posey, Paul Schneider, Blake Lively, Woody Allen (narrator)
Directed by: Woody Allen
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Comedy, Drama, Romance
2016

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: In the 1930s, a man (Jesse Eisenberg) moves to Hollywood to work for a relative (Steve Carell) and falls in love with his secretary (Kristen Stewart).

Review:

Tim: I truly believe Woody Allen is one of the most overrated directors. Yes, he's had a few strong movies, but they are vastly outnumbered by the bad movies he's written and directed. I do not understand how people like him so much. Cafe Society falls somewhere in the middle. It's an okay film, but it's hard to get too excited about it. Allen has made much better movies and he's made much worse movies. This film kind of makes you shrug your shoulders. It's a very good thing that the movie is relatively short, at 1 hour 36 minutes. If it went on any longer, the quality would have started to drop.

The story is okay. It revolves around a love triangle in Hollywood in the 1930s. That's fine, but it just doesn't offer up anything new or particularly exciting. There are a few unexpected twists, which I appreciated, but this doesn't feel close to Allen's best effort. He's spent his career examining characters and relationship dynamics. This movie offers nothing new to what he's already done. It felt a bit like he was just going through the motions. He's done this for so long, it was like Allen sat down and just churned out another film. It's not ambitious, it's not extremely effective, it's just another Allen movie. That hurts the film. Allen's been most successful when he takes a chance and pushes himself- Match Point and Midnight in Paris as more recent examples. When he explores unlikable characters (like the awful, overrated Blue Jasmine), it's just not as effective. The characters here are quasi-likable, which is a plus.

The cast is isn't bad. Jesse Eisenberg can be good or bad, but I thought he did more positive things than poor ones here. He was believable in the role and delivered a fine performance. Same exact thing can be said for Kristen Stewart- sometimes she works well and sometime she grates on you. Here, Allen is able to position her so that she's mostly successful in her role. It helps that she and Eisenberg have worked together multiple times previously. Their comfort with each other helps translate into chemistry on screen. I loved the casting of Steve Carell- his part is a bit unlikable, but he tackles it with vigor and delivered an enjoyable performance. He helped elevate this film. Blake Lively did nothing for me and continues having me ask why anyone would cast her. Corey Stoll was fun in a small role. I do appreciate that Woody Allen didn't cast himself in this film (that always frustrates me), so I was only mildly annoyed that he narrated it. Allen might not have given his cast great, memorable characters to work with, but the cast as a whole worked effectively.

The movie does give us a look at Hollywood in the 1930s, which is always somewhat interesting. We don't get too much into the actors and actresses, but the studios are explored a little. I always find those looks at different periods interesting and somewhat thought provoking. Unfortunately, while interesting, it's never fascinating.

Cafe Society is okay- it's not a bad movie, but it's a far cry from being a good one. I was thankful Allen kept this one fairly short. Unfortunately, the movie is a bit too dull and unmemorable. It wasn't hard to sit through, but I'm not going to remember much about it. Everyone needs an income, so I understand why Allen would make this movie. He does have talent, as much as I criticize him. As he gets into the latter stages of his career, I know he has better movies in him. This was a miss, but I'm sincerely hoping he tap into his talent and give us a movie worthy of him. This one isn't.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 6



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: Match Point, Midnight in Paris, Bullets Over Broadway