Kirpianuscus far to be a fan of Woody Allen filmography, I admire the science of cultural embroidery of this unique director. Play It Again, Sam is a good example. because it is more a lesson of cinema than a story. because the cultural references are more present than the neurotic intellectual, helpless in front of reality. old fashion gags, slices of Charlot, dialogues preserving the mix of humor and ambiguity, the imaginary friend, the solution to the search of true love, the end who impress for the details who reminds each part of the final part of Casablanca, not only as image but , in same measure, in its spirit.a homage to the film art. this is the axis of this movie. its great virtue - the beautiful chemistry between Allen and Diane Keaten. a film who preserves the flavor of entire work of Allen . the themes, the fears, the reactions, the solutions. and who does the reality more acceptable. that is all.

suite92 The Three Acts:The initial tableaux: At the very front of the film is an extended clip from the tail end of Casablanca (1942). If you are aiming to see Play It Again, Sam I would suggest seeing Casablanca first, if you have not already. That parting scene is close to the heart of neurotic movie critic Allan, who lives in San Francisco.The film soon jumps to the reality of Allan's wife leaving him. Allan's involvement with Casablanca spills over into his life as the waking hallucination of Bogart giving him advice for his many problems. No one else sees Bogart, of course.Delineation of conflicts: Allan's arguments with his ex wife are largely over, but she comes back to bite him now and then. Allan tries to re-enter the dating scene with the help of close friend Dick Christie and wife Linda Christie. These attempts run counter to Allan's lack of confidence, urge to impress by fakery, and need to make clever comments over making progress. Bogart's suggestions make sense for Bogart, but not so much for Allan.As the dating failures mount, Allan and Linda have a growing sense of attraction. Linda is married to Dick, and Dick is Allan's best friend, so how can this work?Resolution: The film comes full circle.

leonblackwood Review: This movie was quite funny in parts, even though Allen is doing some of his silly one liners again, but it not that bad. It's another one of those Woody films that are based around a troubled relationship and you can tell that Allen wrote it because of its warped wit. Diane Keaton tries hard to find Allen a girlfriend after his wife leaves him, but they end up falling for each other even though she is his best friends wife. All the way through the film, Allen is clumsy and not that great in the dating department, but with help from his imaginary friend, who happens to be Humphrey Bogart, he manages to pluck up the courage to chat to women. Personally, the storyline wasn't that great and Allen is babbling through most of the film, but if you don't take it seriously, it's just light hearted fun, in a Woody Allen type of way. Watchable!Round-Up: Once again, Woody Allen teams up with Diane Keaton and Tony Roberts for this slapstick comedy. There performances don't really change from one Woody Allen movie to another so they weren't that surprising. This is yet another movie which proves that Allen's earlier work were much better that his latter projects, although some of the scenes weren't that amusing. This is definitely the more Charlie Chaplin side to Allen which you'll either love or just think it's silly. I recommend this movie to people who are into there Woody Allen movies about a keen cinema who falls for his best friends wife. 4/10

ElMaruecan82 This is Nancy, Allan's ex-wife speaking, and such a fascinatingly intriguing line that it totally distracted me from the break-up, the belittling comments on Allan's sexual merits, and all the pathos plunging Allan in the seminal state that forged the legend of Allen's characters, hence the merely disguised similitude between the two names. Anyway, I kept repeating in my mind "one of life's great watchers".These words powerfully echo the opening scene when Allan is watching the legendary ending of "Casablanca". His mouth agape makes you wonder whether he's mesmerized by the film or envious of the manly confidence Bogie exudes, towering a weepy Bergman. When the lights of the theater are turned on and Allan gets back to the bitter reality, his apartment gives the answer. It's a film-geek's paradise, full of Bogart's movie posters; all about Bogart, the screen star and macho icon, everything Allan/Allen is not.And this is the core of Allan's existential torments, he loves movies because they vehicle the very emotions, and feelings he wants to awaken in women. The constant hallucination of a Bogie with his legendary trench coat walking along Allan (great impression by Jerry Lacy) shows how predominant the Bogart-figure is in his life. The expression in Allan's face in the theater is of a young frail little boy who fantasizes about being the blonde stud getting the girl. The process works in reverse when he imagines Nancy (Susan Anspach) going in a motorcycle with a blonde and muscular biker, the 'Nazi-type' as he says.The core of Allan's insecurity is his total disillusion, he knows, a Bogie, he's not ... or maybe he can try by watching films, to grab some little bits of Bogie's aura, play it like Bogart (could have worked as another title) and see if it works. Naturally, the film is mostly funny when it doesn't.If not women, Allan has two friends, Dick (Tony Roberts), a fitting name for the workaholic real estate agent whose only running (sometimes irritating) gag consists on giving the phone number on each place he's in, and Linda (Diane Keaton), a gentle and sensitive soul, driven by a sort of maternal care toward Allan. Both try to connect Allan with their female acquaintances but the dates turn out to be totally disastrous. From an excessive use of Canoe perfume, a nervous grunt meaning 'Hello', his lamentable attempts to impress by showing a sports medal he bought 20$, or the unforgettable record thrown in the furniture, the date is probably one of the funniest scenes from any Allen's films.Indeed, Allen is never as hilarious as when he tries to impersonate what he's not, and the more he tries to 'play it like Bogie', the funnier it gets. The film is pure Woody Allen in his most delightful self-loathing humor. And there's more than that, if "Play it Again, Sam" provides some good moments to laugh at Woody Allen, it also vehicles the idea that he's never as 'attractive' as when he's natural, granted he tries to find the right girl. And the story leaves some sweet hints of a genuine chemistry between Allan and Linda, believable for the simple reason that with Linda, he's being himself, never tries to seduce her, and therefore reaches the level of quiet and tacit appeal to make jealous any wannabe Bogie.As a romance and a comedy, "Play it Again, Sam" is a real gem. All the bits are unequally hilarious and we kind of see the ending (and some other plot devices) coming but they're continuously punctuated with hilarious one-liners. "I reject before being rejected. It's a way to save time and money" is one of these quotes that would make you laugh harder if they didn't touch a real sensitive chord. It's all about the quest of our own equilibrium, on seduction without compromising ourselves, on hiding our weaknesses while remaining true to our souls. When Allan finally gets to play the role of his all-time idol Bogie, replaying the climax of "Casablanca", he precisely achieved his dream because he wasn't trying to be Bogie, the arc was closed."Play it Again, Sam" is adapted on a Woody Allen's play, and appropriately features all the Allenian trademarks: self-derision, ethnic references, a cute and tender romance that foreshadows the best coming between Allen and Keaton (in a way, "Play it Again, Sam" is like the ancestor of "Annie Hall"). And the more I watch Allen and Keaton's pairing, the more I realize that the couple has nothing to envy from Bogart and Bergman, Keaton has this incredible intellectual appeal that makes believable such a beautiful woman would be insecure. She doesn't overexpose her beauty, and instead exudes the feeling of a fragile flower waiting to bloom on a man's heart, the stuff that inspires Allan's own sensitivity.Herbert Ross, who directed the film, diluted his style into Allen's spirit, using the town of San Francisco as the only un-Allenian element of the film, providing its rich and unique atmosphere. And as usual, beyond the gags, there's the eternal dedication of Allen to Cinema. I mentioned in "Take the Money and Run" that Cinema was the ultimate geek escapism. By playing it like Bogie, Allan finally reconciles with his own self-esteem, the point is that he learned that Bogart isn't a character, it's a state of mind, a readiness for having the guts to follow heart and instinct and sometimes even appease them for the right reasons.When he impersonated Bogie, Allan was pathetic, when he embraced his state of mind, he was no more a loser. Maybe that's the greatest gift of Cinema, providing some models, not to impersonate, but to inspire ourselves. I also believe that Cinema is the stuff dreams are made off and as one of 'life's great watchers' I sometimes wish I could have the same hallucinatory relationship with Michael Corleone.