Absorbing but disturbing doco
Expect plenty more revelations, controversies and counterarguments in Neon’s new fourpart documentary, writes James Croot.
They were the late-1970s New York equivalent of Hollywood royalty. A much-loved filmmaker and cultural icon and the star of memorable movies like Rosemary’s Baby and The Great Gatsby.
They also seemed an unlikely couple, a seemingly confirmed bachelor and a woman who had previously married performers Frank Sinatra and Andre Previn – and had seven children.
But, for more than a decade, Woody Allen and Mia Farrow’s relationship appeared to be going along happily enough.
However, it all fell apart in a blaze of allegations, court proceedings and tabloid headlines, as the new four-part documentary Allen v Farrow (now streaming on Neon and Sky Go, with new episodes on Mondays) recounts.
Featuring almost forensic detail, heartwrenching testimony and bitter recriminations, Amy Ziering and Kirby Dick’s investigation is best described as this year’s Leaving Neverland.
The duo, whose previous works include exposes of
America’s medical device industry (The Bleeding Edge) and the sexual abuse perpetrated by Def Jam Records founder Russell Simmons (On the Record), here give voice to Dylan Farrow – Allen and Farrow’s adopted daughter – who, in 1992, accused her father of abusing her when she was just 7 years old. In return, a defiant Allen alleged that the whole story was made up in revenge for Mia Farrow discovering he had started up a relationship with her 21-year-old adopted daughter Soon-Yi Previn months earlier.
Subsequent investigations turned up ‘‘no credible evidence’’, which then prompted Allen to try to sue for sole custody of Dylan,
fellow adoptee Moses and biological son Satchel (now better known as Ronan).
Despite Allen claiming to have been vindicated the allegations and rumours have persisted over the decades. Dylan has written op-eds and open letters to US newspapers, while Moses and Soon-Yi claim it was Mia who was the child abuser in the family.
As Dylan puts it in the opening moments of Allen v Farrow, ‘‘there has been so much misinformation, lies and obfuscation. I’ve been subject to doubt, scrutiny and humiliation, as well as sleepless nights and panic attacks.’’
Her aim is to set the record straight and, in one of many magnificent soundbites, tells us, ‘‘no matter what you think
you know – it’s just the tip of the iceberg’’.
Yes, with Allen and his supporters choosing not to be involved in the production, Allen v Farrow is definitely not a cold-eyed, dispassionate look at the facts. Emotions are very much on display and viewers will have their own take on mother and daughter Farrow’s heartfelt testimony.
Ziering and Dick are able to present Allen’s voice and side of the story from the audiobook version of his 2020 autobiography Apropos of Nothing.
Episode 1 acts as a wellpitched primer, with a group of female film critics detailing just why Allen and his movies struck a chord, particularly with women (‘‘he made neuroses hilarious’’ and his ‘‘mortifying self-disclosures’’ made him ‘‘very human, very relatable’’). Then, we get twin accounts of how Allen and Mia Farrow met, thanks in a large part to Michael Caine.
There are tales of how they used to signal their love for one another across Central Park and that although he seemingly had no interest in kids, she thought it could still work. Eventually, Allen came around to the idea of procreating and, although they struggled to conceive, they ultimately decided to adopt.
‘‘He completely fell in love with Dylan, he was enchanted by her,’’ Mia Farrow recalls.
The turning point, it appears, was the birth of Satchel (now known as Ronan) when Dylan was 21⁄2 years old. That’s when the affection, Dylan recounts, became more ‘‘intense’’.
What follows, doesn’t make for easy viewing, but it is certainly engrossing and, at times, compelling. Both Farrows are erudite and engaging interviewees, Mia quite open about how she believed in her family’s future right up until she discovered Allen’s stack of Polaroids of Soon-Yi that they ‘‘wouldn’t have put in Playboy’’ and Dylan remembering how much she worshipped her father and how he made her feel so ‘‘special’’.
This slick, solidly put together series is an absorbing, if sometimes disturbing, watch.
Episode 1 of Allen v Farrow is now available to stream on Neon and Sky Go. New episodes debut each Monday.