L'homme irrationnel

The philosophy professor Abe Lucas (Joaquin Phoenix) arrives at the Braylin University with the reputation of alcoholic wolf. However he is a nihilist man living an existential crisis after the losses of his best friend in Iraq and of his wife that left him with a friend while he was helping people in New Orleans. The promiscuous Professor Rita Richards (Parker Posey) unsuccessfully tries to have sex with Abe. However he feels a platonic attraction by his brilliant student Jill Pollard (Emma Stone) and spends most of his leisure time with her as a friend. One day, they overhear a conversation about a corrupt judge in a diner and Abe secretly plots the plan of a perfect crime. Will he set his plan in motion?

"Irrational Man" is a film by Woody Allen where he blends his style with the idea of Hitchcock´s "Strangers on a Train". The lovely Emma Stone has excellent performance. The plan of Abe Lucas based on the principle that a stranger without motive could commit the perfect crime works very well until the commercial moralist conclusion. Instead of making a thought provoking amoralist conclusion, Woody Allen makes a convential ending for the disappointment of his fans. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "O Homem Irracional" ("The Irrational Man")

Basically, I'll watch any film that Woody Allen makes. That said, it doesn't mean I think all of his films are top rank. His best films blend comedy, psychology, and philosophy with a good storyline. His worse fall short in one of these areas. When I first started watching the film, I thought it had all the potential of some of his better films. A charismatic, somewhat famous, professor comes to a small college. His questionable reputation intrigues and titillates students and colleagues alike. The professor (Joaquin Phoenix )is in the throes of mid-life angst and burdened by the expectations others have of him. In an attempt to recharge his life, he heads down some questionable trails.

The psychological aspects of the plot evaporate into a crime drama. For a moment, the professor becomes a Raskolnikov-like character and I began to think the psychological aspect may once again come to the fore and make this an interesting movie. Instead, this potential plot twist is brushed aside and, sadly, the rest is more or less predictable.

The acting is good enough, though the romantic relationships among the characters are shallow and not well-developed, making them somewhat difficult to believe.

Woody Allen fans may find the film interesting enough, but don't expect another Midnight in Paris or a crime story as good as Manhattan Murder Mystery. If Irrational Man was more in keeping with its title, it would have been less predictable and more interesting.

Joaquin Phoenix is still one of the best an most interesting actors working today, and Emma Stone, who is just getting better and better is one of the most enjoyable actresses to watch just now. In Irrational Man, Phoenix plays a college professor who is new to the campus where Stone's character studies, although his reputation proceeds him, as students and lecturers alike are abuzz with excitement over his arrival. Men can't figure him out and women cling to him despite his paunch and nonchalance, never mind his unconventional teaching methods in philosophy. What ensues is a friendship between Phoenix and Stone that grows over her affection for him, and by way of a conversation heard in a diner that puts a local judge in poor light because he's in a position to strip a seemingly good mother of the rights to see her children. This puts the movie in familiar territory for anyone who has seen Rope, but also Allen's own Match Point, Love and Death and Crimes and Misdemeanors, where the morality and immorality of murder is discussed. Which puts Phoenix in an interesting position as a philosophy professor with some very frank and matter-of-fact ideas about life and living. And he plays this well, without channeling his director in the way other actors have in the past, but creating a character who is smart, troubled and very inviting. There's a world weariness and a nervous energy in Phoenix that's countered by Stone's wide-eyed optimism and inherently decent qualities, which are traits that she encompasses so very well as an actress. She's easy to get on side with just as Phoenix is always able to invite viewers into the mind of the characters he plays. But it's Allen's script that underwhelms, if not his framing and staging of conversational scenes. Questions and ideas are posed without enough attached to them, although the stakes may be high, the narrative is familiar and one could expect Jessica Fletcher or Columbo to be involved in such a story. Whilst the frequent use of the Ramsey Lewis Trio's The In Crowd has meaning, but not enough purpose in how this become a theme for the movie. Which I quite liked, because I like Murder She Wrote, Columbo and Diagnosis Murder, and that's really the territory Allen is in here. But it's far from his best, although his work-ethic is remarkable, along with the fact that he isn't guilty of missing the mark or making poor movies, even when he's coasting.

As said in my review for 'Café Society', and similarly in my other reviews for Woody Allen's films, Woody Allen often is an interesting and insightful director, whose films regardless of how they come off overall look great, have great soundtracks and he often knows how to get strong performances out of actors.

When Allen was at his best his writing was a fine mix of the hilarious, the poignantly dramatic and the thought-provoking. 'Irrational Man' doesn't see Allen at his best and is not among the best of his recent efforts. As also said in my review for 'Café Society', Allen's glory days were in the late 60s through to the early 90s, with the 70s and 80s (which saw masterpieces like 'Annie Hall', 'Crimes and Misdemeanours', 'The Purple Rose of Cairo', 'Love and Death', 'Hannah and Her Sisters' and 'Manhattan' for example) being particularly good decades. From mid-90s onward he became hit and miss (though personally don't consider any of his films awful, the lowest rating given is a 5), with the odd gem like 'Midnight in Paris' and 'Blue Jasmine' but generally his glory days are long gone.

'Irrational Man' is not a great film, but not a poor one either. To me, it is a mixed feelings sort of film. As far as his films from the 2010s decade go, 'Midnight in Paris' and 'Blue Jasmine' are vastly superior but 'Irrational Man' does fare better than 'To Rome With Love' and 'You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger'.

There are obvious great things here. The cinematography is magnificent, then again all of Allen's films look great, while the attention to detail in the rest of the production values is both visually striking and meticulous. The soundtrack is a good fit and stands well on its own, but the repeated jazz song does grate and is overused. 'Irrational Man' does start off very promising, there are some genuinely hilarious moments as well as some thoughtful one.

Performances are extremely good, and Allen is no slouch in the directing department either. Joaquin Phoenix is simply terrific here and demonstrates why he is one of the better actors working today. Not everybody has warmed to her character, but Emma Stone makes for a great leading lady, showing a skill for comedy but also an ability to bring substance and bite as well. Parker Posey is underused but is a scene stealer whenever she appears.

On the other hand, when things take a darker and more of a mystery tone 'Irrational Man' is nowhere near as strong. It is derivative of other Allen films like 'Crimes and Misdemeanours' and 'Match Point', which were both philosophical and dark (while the former had a perfect mix of comedy and drama and succeeded brilliantly at both) and explored the themes much better. 'Irrational Man' when taking on this tone feels bland and not suspenseful enough.

Much of the script didn't either, one of Allen's weaker scripts generally. There are parts that do genuinely sparkle, but many other parts are clunky and lay it on far too thick with the philosophy to the point of being heavy-handed. Some of the writing is annoying and over-explanatory too with little point of being so.

The story feels like too much is crammed in but in a way that doesn't feel developed as much as it should be. Also take issue with the ending which is rushed and inconclusive, plus one character behaves way too out of character for no obvious reason.

In conclusion, starts promisingly and has many great things but feels unsatisfying. There are worse Allen films, but also much better, and the film in general could have been much better executed. 6/10 Bethany Cox

I enjoyed this even more than my rating suggests and I haven't scored it higher because it didn't make me want to see it again straightaway, which is basically my rationale for giving a film tops. Why not? Because, I think, I simply loved everything about this film and sat smiling and tingling not sure what was coming next but loving it all and I don't think all that would happen second time. Daft? Yes, maybe but certainly this is a must see film, perfectly constructed with full on comedic script and intelligent and sparkling dialogue. There is even a bit of action! Woody gives a nod here to Strangers on a Train but i think he he were honest there is even more of 'Dexter'. Its that clever mix of logic, rationality, morality, sin and humour. Lots of little things amused me, I particularly liked the elements of 'chance' and the astute and sharp critiques of various philosophers. i also enjoyed being surprised and never quite knowing where this was going - just loving the ride. This is most defiantly like 'one of those early funny ones, indeed we may have to start referring to 'those later funny ones' if Woody Allen carries on at this rate. Excellent.