Annie Hall

Annie Hall is a 1977 romantic comedy film directed by Woody Allen from a script he co-wrote with Marshall Brickman. Allen's working title for the film was Anhedonia, but this was considered unmarketable. Brickman's suggested alternative, It Had to Be Jew, was considered even less marketable, and ultimately Annie Hall was settled upon as the release title. Because of biographical similarities with Alvy, including Allen's prevous relationship with Keaton (real name Diane Hall), Annie Hall has been widely assumed to be semi-autobiographical, but Allen has denied this.

Film technique

The film makes use of various techniques such as split-screen imagery, double exposure, breaks in character to address the camera directly (breaking the "fourth wall"), and elements of magic realism. For instance, Allen's character, standing in a cinema queue with Annie Hall and listening to someone behind him expound on Marshall McLuhan's work, leaves the line to speak to the camera directly. The man comes to speak to the camera in his defense, and Alvy Singer/Woody Allen resolves the dispute by pulling McLuhan himself from behind a counter to tell the man that his interpretation is wrong.

Related Topics:
Fourth wall - Magic realism - Marshall McLuhan

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