"the brain is the most overrated organ, i think."

it's over already?!

ok, so Christmas is imbued with all of this culturally-derived significance, filled to the brim with expectation and hope for whatever the imagination can conjure up. we're supposed to wait for it all year long, start planning (and shopping) early, and feverishly decorate our homes and trees for that one actual day, which is always over quite quickly. i try not to get too excited, since it's usually somewhat anticlimactic. plus, i have to continually remind myself to mentally strip away the layers of constructed meaning that the holiday has acquired. i must simply think of it as the day that we choose to celebrate Christ's birth- an intuitive yet fearsome notion that i can certainly get behind. i can't bear the pressure of treating the day very much differently than any other, except for some extra prayers of thanks and a bit more compassion toward my family, both immediate and extended. this year, it was a low-key but enjoyable time, which started with an out-of-town visit with relatives and ended with the perfect activity upon arriving home.

so exactly how did i spend the evening of Christmas day 2007? (glad you ask.)

i forced my mother to watch MANHATTAN (1979) with me (which she had somehow managed to avoid seeing until this night). for some reason, i can never get enough of this film. i can hardly explain why, as i notoriously have a problem voicing what, to me, is fundamentally just not articulable.

i lovelovelove this movie. it has to be my favorite of woody allen's, though there are a few close seconds.
perhaps firstly, it's beautiful (thanks again, gordon willis!),
it's perfectly complemented by gershwin's score,
its pace is comfortable and natural,
and
allen & brickman's script is electric, as usual.

so, part of it is certainly technical. allen has a way with the camera that just heightens the level of spectator-ship to a thrilling degree. in this film, he shoots through a curtained window when others would have used a less interesting close shot. he places the camera several yards away from an important isaac/tracy conversation. (and i won't even mention that awesome silhouetted lighting in the planetarium...oops.) one after the other, he employs each frame in the most provocative way. we are voyeurs, and we keep our distance (which makes it all the more exciting when woody throws a wink and a nudge our way).

i have to mention that for me, watching any woody allen comedy is like taking a leisurely walk through central (or prospect) park on a spring day, with a few detours into bagel shops and some exciting distractions along the way. it couldn't be more pleasurable. i feel coddled by the inviting style and tone of his films (even in the more farcical ones) but provoked by the playful dialog. it's silly for a gal like me, but i feel totally welcome and at home in his movies. MANHATTAN is just the perfect example.