oOoBarracuda Availability issues resulted in Mighty Aphrodite being the last viewing experience in my Woody Allen project. Arriving three days late also meant that I didn't make my goal of watching all 41 of Woody Allen films I had yet to see in a months time. I'm told I shouldn't be disappointed in seeing 41 films in 34 days, but I am a real stickler for rules, especially when they're self-imposed. Anyway, Mighty Aphrodite did not disappoint in its place as the finale of my Woody Allen project. The 1995 film, written and directed by Woody Allen, of course, stars Mira Sorvino, in an Academy Award winning performance, Woody Allen, and Helena Bonham Carter. A couple adopts a baby, and as he develops into an extraordinarily bright child, his father becomes obsessed with finding out who his birth parents are, believing them to be brilliant, as well. Lenny (Woody Allen) and Amanda (Helena Bonham Carter) are a married couple living in New York who, after much discussion, decide to adopt a baby. They adopt the baby, Max, when he is one day old and adapt to their new roles as parents seamlessly. Five years later, they seem to be living different lives and only connected by their shared living quarters and child. Amanda is focused on opening her own art gallery and pours most of her time in that endeavor. There is constantly a dinner or a gala Amanda and Lenny must attend leaving Lenny with the feeling that he is a mere witness in Amanda's life. Lenny works as a sports writer and feels that he has nothing in common with the people Amanda works and networks with. In Lenny's mind, the couple seems to be drifting apart and he is left wondering if their marriage will survive Amanda's ambitions. Meanwhile, their son Max shows incredible aptitude towards learning and is proving himself to be an advanced student. Taken by the notion that Max's biological parents must be geniuses themselves, Max decides to search for his Max's birth parents despite the records concerning his adoption being sealed. Deciding to forge on this project alone, without telling Amanda, Lenny gets a look at Max's birth records and begins to track down his biological parents. Lenny succeeds in tracking down Max's mother, but he is blown away to discover that she is a prostitute and adult film worker. Posing as someone utilizing her services, Lenny pays for an hour with the woman, Linda Ash (Mira Sorvino) to talk with and get to know the woman that birthed his son. The longer Lenny spends with Linda, the more he realizes Max's genius ability didn't come from his mother as directly as he had assumed. Lenny then decides to mold Linda into the woman he thought Max's birth mother would be. Lenny sets Linda up on a date, buys her new clothes, and tries to get her a job he sees as more respectable. All the while, his relationship with Amanda is becoming more distant as they both begin to entertain the notion of dating other people. Constantly fearing that his life is on the brink of becoming a Greek tragedy, Lenny is often treated to a Greek chorus giving him advice at various points throughout his proceedings with Linda and Amanda. Mighty Aphrodite is the ultimate quirky comedy yet human and touching story that could only come from Woody Allen. His style is branded all over this film and it is a shame I haven't heard more of a reference to it among the greats of his career. The way Woody Allen writes such whole human characters in his films is something I will forever be grateful for. Even the characters that come off the most one-dimensional, Linda Ash, in this case, are fleshed out and proved to be complete people. Woody's writing is a gift and one that keeps on giving. Even in his films that are not well-received, there are usually solid characters given whole lives. Flaws and dreams are examined in each person Woody writes even extending to himself. The story he tells of Lenny and Amanda relationship is instantly relatable to anyone that's had a child. There certainly exists an adjustment period for both parties to get used to their new role as parents, as well as become used to how those new roles affect their relationship with each other. Add to the adjustment period of becoming parents career ambitions that require much time and effort away from their partner and you've created a recipe for loneliness to be experienced even by two people that live in the same home. The basic human day-to-day elements of Woody's story are aspects I most enjoy in his films. I'm pretty sure I could compile a list of favorite scenes in Woody Allen films, and a decent number of them would be scenes in which characters are enjoying a meal together. Woody shoots personal revelatory dinner scenes like no one else, I'm certain of that. Another fun aspect of Mighty Aphrodite that is unique to Woody Allen was his spirit guides. Like he would later visit in To Rome with Love, among others, the Greek chorus providing insight into the life of Woody Allen's character, Lenny was a fun nod to history as well as an illustration into the master writer/director. Woody Allen seems to be largely informed by the past as he explores many historical elements in his films and shooting in a way that there is a live Greek chorus present in his characters life is a skill unique to Woody Allen. This project has been sheer joy, and I am so thankful to have ended on a high note with Mighty Aphrodite.

gsygsy This movie is an excellent example of Woody Allen's sheer skill as a writer. Essentially a tale of a failing marriage, Allen frames it as a textbook Greek tragedy, complete with masked chorus and deus-ex-machina. To prevent this from being one long joke that outstays its welcome, he structures the movie brilliantly so that it becomes funnier as it goes along. It is a superb piece of writing, shot through with hilarious one-liners and sight-gags.Allen always gets the very best as far as acting talent is concerned. Blink and you'll miss Paul Giamatti, Olympia Dukakis, Claire Bloom... Among those with more screen time are F Murray Abraham, Michael Rapaport, Jack Warden, Danielle Ferland. But the acting burden falls on Allen himself, Helena Bonham Carter and Mira Sorvino. Allen is, as ever, endearing and irritating in equal measure. I think he knows that about his screen persona and mines it effectively here. Bonham Carter is an excellent foil for him. I'm not a fan of hers but she really is very good here, both vulnerable and pushy. But it's Sorvino, in an Oscar-winning turn, who steals the movie as a warm-hearted prostitute with whom Allen gets involved. The trope of the man who has mixed motives for trying to reform a sex worker is familiar from RAIN (Joan Crawford in 1932) aka MISS SADIE THOMPSON (Rita Hayworth in 1953) and also from NEVER ON Sunday (1960). Allen's take on it is pretty compassionate, creating a wonderful role in Linda Ash, she of many aliases. Sorvino does him proud.Having said that, sexual politics are not Allen's strong point. In his movies the women are more often the problem than the solution. This is true as long ago as Meryl Streep in MANHATTAN through to Rachel McAdams in MIDNIGHT IN Paris. Exceptions that prove the rule are Mia Farrow in ZELIG and Samantha Morton in SWEET AND LOWDOWN.Here, though, Allen gives his character a harder time than usual. This contributes to making MIGHTY APHRODITE more than just one of his comedy fantasies (like LOVE AND DEATH, for example). Visually it's one of Allen's flatter movies - straightforward, unflashy, even a little dull. But the screenplay and the performances more than make up for that.

LeaBlacks_Balls Sportswriter Lenny Weinrib (Allen) and his wife (Bonham-Carter) adopt a baby from an anonymous mother. After a few years pass, Lenny starts to wonder about the woman. Curiosity quickly gets the better of him, so he steals files from the adoption agency and sets out to find her. Lenny is dismayed, maybe even terrified, to find that Linda (Sorvino,) the mother, is a beautiful $200-an-hour prostitute. So that he can fashion the proper mother-son reunion and save himself from what fate seems to have in store, he determines to 'reform' Linda. Interwoven throughout the story is a Greek chorus (including F. Murray Abraham and Olympia Dukakis,) who add their own unique take on the proceedings.I've always preferred Woody Allen's comedies over his dramas. This one is probably one of my favorites. This film is a great example of Woody Allen showing no interest in convincing his audience into swallowing down some serious morals. It's light, fluffy, shamelessly sentimental and does not suffer a bit because of it. The plot is generally an uplifting tale of changing ones life for the better, and intertwined with this is some of Woody Allen's best humor. There are many entertaining characters, especially Mira Sorvino's prostitute and Michael Rapaport's dim-witted boxer, Kevin.The stand-out here is Mira Sorvino. She is absolutely enthralling, with her ditsy nature and confidence masking a timid vulnerability, all of which earned her a well deserved Oscar. Linda could have been an over the top, cartoonish character, Pygmalion on crack. But under the careful direction of Allen, Sorvino gives the best performance of her career so far, and one of the funniest performances ever.

Sirus_the_Virus Woody Allen stars as an adoptive parent in Mighty Aphrodite. Mighty Aphrodite is a hilarious film, with many strange things in it. Kind of like Allen's 2006 film, Scoop. There are just many odd things about it. Including musical numbers. And things including Greek stuff.Allen's movies are usually very funny. and the man is a genius. The plot alone to this film sounds funny. The film has many good performances. But the one that was looked at the most was Mira Sorvino. I can only think of two films that she has starred in. I loved them both. She is terrific in this movie. So is Woody Allen of course. But Sorvino is something else. I mean she won the Oscar.Woody Allen and Helena Bonham Carter star as a couple looking to adopt children. They adopt a boy and name him Max. Years go on and they find out Max is a genius. So Allen's character goes off and tries to find the parents. He soon meets the mother(played excellently by Mira Sorvino) and finds out that she's a hooker and a porn star. He soon starts to get to know her, and his life kind of falls apart too.I don't know what it is with Woody Allen's films. But I can rarely ever find a flaw with them. I mean even his ones that didn't do well, such as Scoop and Whatever works. I just love them all. I have a hard time finding flaws with his films. The only flaw with this one is that there are some strange moments. There is. The same thing with Scoop though. I love Woody Allen's films. The guy may be a pervert, but his films are genius.Mighty Aphrodite: A-