Hollywood Ending (2002)

Director:

Woody Allen

Writer (WGA):

Woody Allen (written by)

Release Date:

3 May 2002 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Romance

Tagline:

It's Going to be a Shot in the Dark!

Plot:

A has-been filmmaker is hired to direct his ex-wife, who's now dating the studio boss. But when he arrives on the set, he develops a case of psychosomatic blindness.

Plot Keywords:

Directed By Star | Blind | Hollywood | Metaphor | Self Mocking

Cast

Téa Leoni	...	Ellie
Bob Dorian	...	Galaxie Executive
Ivan Martin	...	Galaxie Executive
Gregg Edelman	...	Galaxie Executive
George Hamilton	...	Ed
Treat Williams	...	Hal
Woody Allen	...	Val
Debra Messing	...	Lori
Neal Huff	...	Commercial A.D.
Mark Rydell	...	Al
Douglas McGrath	...	Barbeque Guest
Stephanie Roth Haberle	...	Barbeque Guest
Bill Gerber	...	Barbeque Guest
Roxanne Perry	...	Barbeque Guest
Barbara Carroll	...	Carlyle Pianist

Also Known As:

Dirigindo no Escuro (Brazil) [pt]
Final made in Hollywood, Un (Spain: Catalan title) [ca]
Final made in Hollywood, Un (Spain) [es]
Hollywood - elokuvan päätepysäkki (Finland) (DVD title) [fi]
Hollywood Ending (Italy) [it]
Hollywood Ending (France) [fr]
Hollywood Ending (Denmark) [da]
Koniec z Hollywood (Poland) [pl]
Mirada de los otros, La (Argentina) [es]
Näkemiin, Hollywood (Finland) (TV title) [fi]
Paizontas sta tyfla (Greece) [el]

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for some drug references and sexual material.

Runtime:

112 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Mandarin

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS (Mono) | Dolby Digital (Mono) | SDDS (Mono)

Certification:

Canada:G (Quebec) | Iceland:L | USA:PG-13 (certificate #38661) | South Korea:15 | Finland:K-3 | Australia:PG | Canada:PG (Alberta/British Columbia/Manitoba/Nova Scotia/Ontario) | Argentina:Atp | Brazil:Livre | France:U | Hong Kong:IIA | Netherlands:AL | Spain:13 | Sweden:Btl | Switzerland:12 (canton of the Grisons) | Switzerland:7 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:7 (canton of Vaud) | Peru:PT | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

Central Park, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA

Company:

DreamWorks SKG

Trivia:

Director Trademark: [Woody Allen] [credits]opening credits are simple white typeface on black set to early period music.

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: As Al and Chau enter the revolving doors, the reflection of a crew member holding a white reflecting board can be seen in the windows.

Quotes:

Val: At the Plaza Hotel. For God's sake, I got the bill. You had the escargot that afternoon. It's so disgusting. Sex and snails with that roast beef from Beverly Hills.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "The Knights of Prosperity: Operation: Ralph (#1.5)" (2007)

Soundtrack:

Grindhouse (A Go-Go)

I thought it was funny

Before the film came out, I read some reviews saying that they felt Woody was back in top form, but now I'm reading reviews that say otherwise. I guess many people feel that in the case of a greatly talented filmmaker like Woody, after wooing audiences with his earlier works like "Annie Hall" and "Manhattan," there's nowhere left to go but down. So whenever people bash his films, they don't bash them in the same way they would the next SNL-inspired dud. They bash them even more brutally simply because he's Woody and they can't help but expect more from him.

"Hollywood Ending" is no gem, with moments that obviously drag, but I felt it worked. It's an excellent premise for a farcical comedy, and it played out fluently. My only criticism about the "blind" element of the film dealt with Woody's performance. Each scene where he talks to someone, he purposely turns away from that person. He was obviously trying way too hard to stress the fact that his character's blind (I guess in case the audience somehow forgot halfway through). People who are blind actually have a strong sense of hearing. Like the comic book character of Daredevil, their other four senses are heightened. When they're first faced with the blindness, it's hard to cope, but after a short while they get used to it.

Like most of Woody's films, the cast is an ensemble of multi-talented actors who each contribute more than their own five cents into the work. There was even an funny unbilled cameo by Isaac Mizrahi. A lot of people project snobbery upon Woody's recent work, but I happened to enjoy this movie very much, and the same goes with "Small-Time Crooks" and "Curse of the Jade Scorpion." As long as you don't proceed with gigantic expectations, you should have a lot of fun.

My score: 7 (out of 10)