Irrational Man
Woody brings more Love And Death…
Woody Allen’s latest sees him head to campus for a university-set tale that brings him squarely back into the terrain of Match Point and Crimes And Misdemeanours. Revisiting notions of killing and the perfect crime, Allen seasons these age-old Hitchcockian concerns with a philosophical slant, meditating on the morality of murder.
The setup sees the arrival of philosophy professor Abe Lucas ( Joaquin Phoenix) to a leafy Rhode Island college. Boozy, pot-bellied and depressive, he’s got issues, but attracting the ladies is not one of them and he’s soon engaged in a lusty affair with a married chemistry professor (Parker Posey) while developing a friendship with pretty student Jill (Emma Stone). Then he and Jill overhear a random diner conversation, concerning a corrupt judge’s rulings. On a whim, Abe secretly decides to kill the judge, and is revitalised from taking direct action after a life spent theorising. Inevitably, though, suspicions arise – not least in the inquisitive Jill.
A vast improvement on Allen’s last, the whimsical Magic In The Moonlight, Irrational Man still doesn’t come close to Woody at his best. Neither especially comedic nor dramatic, it’s a shaggy-dog story that, while building to a slippery finale, lacks real depth.
Scored by a repeated use of ‘The In Crowd’ by the Ramsey Lewis Trio, Irrational Man does conjure some memorable images of scenic Rhode Island with the help of acclaimed DoP Darius Khondji. But dogged by rather laboured execution, it’s not enough to really lift Allen’s 46th feature above the ordinary.
THE VERDICT Falling somewhere between recent highs like Blue Jasmine and stinkers like To Rome With Love, Allen’s latest is solid rather than spectacular. In academic terms, it’s a C+. › Certificate TBC Director Woody Allen Starring Joaquin Phoenix, Emma Stone, Parker Posey, Jamie Blackley, Ethan Phillips Screenplay Woody Allen Distributor Warner Bros Running time 94 mins