Woody Allen Warning: You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you log in or create an account, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.Anti-spam check. Do not fill this in! === 1990β2004: Continued work === Allen's 1991 film ''[[Shadows and Fog]]'' is a black-and-white homage to the [[German Expressionism|German expressionists]] and features the music of [[Kurt Weill]].<ref>{{cite web |last1=Dowd |first1=A.A. |title=Woody does German Expressionism in Shadows and Fog |url=https://www.avclub.com/article/woody-does-german-expressionism-in-ishadows-and-fo-100754 |website=[[The A.V. Club]] |access-date=April 3, 2016|date=July 26, 2013}}</ref> Allen then made his critically acclaimed comedy-drama ''[[Husbands and Wives]]'' (1992), which received two Oscar nominations: Best Supporting Actress for [[Judy Davis]] and Best Original Screenplay for Allen. ''[[Manhattan Murder Mystery]]'' (1993) combined suspense with dark comedy and marked the return of [[Diane Keaton]], [[Alan Alda]] and [[Anjelica Huston]]. He returned to lighter fare such as the showbiz comedy involving mobsters ''[[Bullets Over Broadway]]'' (1994), which earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Director, followed by a musical, ''[[Everyone Says I Love You]]'' (1996). The singing and dancing scenes in ''Everyone Says I Love You'' are similar to musicals starring [[Fred Astaire]] and [[Ginger Rogers]]. The comedy ''[[Mighty Aphrodite]]'' (1995), in which Greek drama plays a large role, won an [[Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress]] for [[Mira Sorvino]]. Allen's 1999 jazz-based comedy-drama ''[[Sweet and Lowdown]]'' was nominated for two Academy Awards, for [[Sean Penn]] (Best Actor) and [[Samantha Morton]] (Best Supporting Actress). In contrast to these lighter movies, Allen veered into darker satire toward the end of the decade with ''[[Deconstructing Harry]]'' (1997) and ''[[Celebrity (1998 film)|Celebrity]]'' (1998). {{anchor|Central Park West}} On March 8, 1995, Allen's one-act play ''Central Park West''<ref name="concordtheatricals/12825">{{cite web |last1=Allen |first1=Woody |title=Central Park West |url=https://www.concordtheatricals.com/p/12825/central-park-west |website=Concord Theatricals |access-date=26 October 2023 |language=en |quote=A well to do psychiatrist has just discovered that her best friend is having an affair with her husband}}</ref> opened<ref name="nytimes/1995/urban-neuroses">{{cite news |last1=Canby |first1=Vincent |author1-link=Vincent Canby |title=THEATER REVIEW: DEATH DEFYING ACTS; Really a Jungle Out There, a Jungle of Urban Neuroses |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1995/03/07/theater/theater-review-death-defying-acts-really-jungle-there-jungle-urban-neuroses.html |access-date=26 October 2023 |work=T[[he New York Times]] |date=7 March 1995}}</ref> off-Broadway as a part of a larger piece titled ''Death Defying Acts'',<ref name="concordtheatricals/2909">{{cite web |title=Death Defying Acts |url=https://www.concordtheatricals.com/p/2909/death-defying-acts |website=Concord Theatricals |access-date=26 October 2023 |language=en}}</ref> with two other one-act plays, one by [[David Mamet]] and one by [[Elaine May]]. Critics described Allen's contribution as "the longest and most substantial of the evening".<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.csmonitor.com/1995/0310/10121.html |title = 'Death Defying Acts' Falls Short of Exhilarating|newspaper = The Christian Science Monitor|date = March 10, 1995}}</ref> During this decade Allen also starred in the television film ''[[The Sunshine Boys (1996 film)|The Sunshine Boys]]'' (1995), based on the [[Neil Simon]] [[The Sunshine Boys|play of the same name]],<ref>{{cite web |last1=Evans |first1=Greg |title=Review: 'The Sunshine Boys' |url=https://variety.com/1997/tv/reviews/the-sunshine-boys-4-1200452126/|website=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]] |access-date=April 3, 2016 |date=December 21, 1997}}</ref> and made a [[sitcom]] "appearance" via telephone in a 1997 episode, "My Dinner with Woody", of ''[[Just Shoot Me!]]'' that paid tribute to several of his films. He provided the voice of Z in [[DreamWorks Pictures|DreamWorks]]' first animated film, ''[[Antz]]'' (1998), which featured many actors he had worked with; Allen's character was similar to his earlier roles.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Clinton |first1=Paul |title=Review: Woody Allen still Woody in 'Antz'|url=http://edition.cnn.com/SHOWBIZ/Movies/9810/02/review.antz/|work=CNN|access-date=April 3, 2016|date=October 2, 1998}}</ref> ''[[Small Time Crooks]]'' (2000) was Allen's first film with the [[DreamWorks Pictures|DreamWorks]] studio and represented a change in direction: he began giving more interviews and made an attempt to return to his slapstick roots. The film is similar to the 1942 film ''Larceny, Inc.'' (from a play by S. J. Perelman).<ref name=TCM>[[Robert Osborne]] of [[Turner Classic Movies]] on June 15, 2006</ref> Allen never commented on whether this was deliberate or if his film was in any way inspired by it. ''Small Time Crooks'' was a relative financial success, grossing over $17 million domestically, but Allen's next four films foundered at the box office, including Allen's most costly film, ''[[The Curse of the Jade Scorpion]]'' (with a budget of $26 million). ''[[Hollywood Ending]]'', ''[[Anything Else]]'', and ''[[Melinda and Melinda]]'' have "rotten" ratings on film-review website [[Rotten Tomatoes]] and each earned less than $4 million domestically.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/p/woody_allen |title=Woody Allen β Rotten Tomatoes Celebrity Profile |website=[[Rotten Tomatoes]] |access-date=January 17, 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070625200602/http://www.rottentomatoes.com/p/woody_allen/ |archive-date=June 25, 2007 }}</ref> Some critics claimed that Allen's early 2000s films were subpar and expressed concern that his best years were behind him.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.qwipster.net/melindamelinda.htm |title=Melinda and Melinda review (2004) Woody Allen β Qwipster's Movie Reviews |access-date=January 17, 2008}}</ref> Others were less harsh; reviewing the little-liked ''Melinda and Melinda'', [[Roger Ebert]] wrote, "I cannot escape the suspicion that if Woody had never made a previous film, if each new one was Woody's Sundance debut, it would get a better reception. His reputation is not a dead shark but an albatross, which with admirable economy Allen has arranged for the critics to carry around their own necks."{{sfn|Ebert|2006|p={{page needed|date=January 2022}}}} Summary: Please note that all contributions to Christianpedia may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. If you do not want your writing to be edited mercilessly, then do not submit it here. You are also promising us that you wrote this yourself, or copied it from a public domain or similar free resource (see Christianpedia:Copyrights for details). Do not submit copyrighted work without permission! Cancel Editing help (opens in new window) Discuss this page