The world of Woody Allen movies is an odd one. Some of his films are undeniable masterpieces, while others are complete duds. They range from complete slapstick farce to old-fashioned romance, the audience never knowing which to expect from each new project. He has a way of attracting some of Hollywood’s biggest stars at any given time, and I doubt anyone would ever turn him down if offered a role. I was first introduced to Allen’s work in his early days. Films like “Take the Money and Run”, “Bananas” and “Sleeper”, which were all extremely broad farces. I still laugh my butt off any time I get the opportunity to re-visit these great movies. It wasn’t until much later that I began to learn of his early days as a comedy writer for the likes of Sid Caesar and Garry Moore. Interestingly enough, his ‘directorial’ debut was a hysterical film called “What’s Up Tiger Lily”, which I have yet to get the DVD of.

The premise of this little film was unusual in that Allen bought the rights to a Japanese spy film, and then completely re-dubbed the soundtrack with American actors. Okay, this has been done a million times, but Allen opted to re-write the script in order to make it an all-out comedy. It is one of the funniest movies I think I have ever seen.

Allen’s newest project was yet again, an unusual one. “Melinda and Melinda” explores the world of relationships, which in itself has been a major force behind most of his more recent films, but as opposed to making it an all-out comedy or dark drama, he opted to do both. The movie tells two complete and distinct stories about two separate romances. The first deals with an Independent filmmaker (Amanda Peet) and her actor husband (Will Ferrell), and their relationship is played out as an over the top comedy. The second is between a rich girl (Chloe Sevigny) and her actor boyfriend, and in this case we are presented with a tragic drama. But instead of splitting the film in half to tell each story, Allen blends the two and is actually able to maintain the pace and timing each needs to succeed.

What is even more amazing is that role that actress Radha Mitchell has to perform, which is that of Melinda. She finds herself entwined within both stories, which requires her to play to both styles within the same film. I’ve long been impressed with Mitchell’s work, but her work here I feel proves she is an actress of merit, and one that deserves even bigger and better roles.

Fox recently released the DVD for “Melinda and Melinda”, which is how I finally had the chance to see it. And while I didn’t consider it to be Allen’s best work ever, it ranks pretty high amongst his better films. My only disappointment with the DVD was that there were no special features at all. I realize Allen is somewhat of a minimalist, which may have something to do with this, but I really would have enjoyed some interviews with the cast, especially that of Mitchell.

Directed by: Woody Allen
Starring: Will Ferrell, Radha Mitchell, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Jonny Lee Miller, Amanda Peet, Chloe Sevigny, Wallace Shawn
Extras: None
Specifications: Widescreen and Full Screen, Dolby Digital Mono
Studio: Fox
Release Date: 10/25/2005
Region 1
MPAA Rating: PG-13 (For Adult Situations Involving Sexuality, and some Substance Material)
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We'll give Melinda & Melinda a B-.