Woody Allen's filmography in past decades began to bear a resemblance to Exercises in Style, the book by French author Raymond Queneau (1903-1976). This book presents the same simple and banal story in 99 different ways. In his 2004 film Melinda and Melinda, Allen employs a similar concept by narrating a comparable tale in two distinct manners.
The plot unfolds as two playwrights, Sy (portrayed by Wallace Shawn) and Max (portrayed by Larry Pine), meet in a restaurant and engage in a discussion about whether tragedy or comedy better reflects the artistic approach to life. They opt to utilise a storyline that commences with Melinda (played by Radha Mitchell) crashing a Manhattan party hosted by her former college companion. This storyline diverges, one path leading into a melancholic drama, while the other evolves into a conventional romantic comedy.
Similar to many of Woody Allen's late films, the search for the plot "gimmick" appears to deplete Allen's creative resources. Consequently, the audience is presented with a soulless, tedious, and foreseeable portrayal of the neurotic New York intellectual life, interspersed with sporadic bursts of humour that fail to enhance the overall impression of the work. In Melinda and Melinda, featuring two distinct stories instead of one further complicates matters for viewers, as they often must discern which scenes belong to each plotline. Without Will Ferrell's portrayal of one of the protagonists, distinguishing between the romantic comedy and drama plots becomes challenging. Ferrell only truly showcases his talent towards the conclusion, eliciting some laughter. Regrettably, this alone does not elevate Melinda and Melinda beyond being merely watchable; it stands as another sombre instance of Allen straying from his reputation as a distinguished filmmaker.
RATING: 4/10 (+)
(Note: Original version of the review is available here.)
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