Day 167: September

41QX6GHNP2LSeptember, the 16th movie Woody Allen Directed, opens with a push in shot of the interior of a home.

Then, we hear two people – a man and a woman – speaking French.

The two people are revealed to be Howard (Denholm Elliott) and Stephanie (Dianne Wiest), sitting on a couch. Howard is teaching Stephanie the language.

According to its entry on IMDB, this is what September is about:

At a summer house in Vermont, neighbor Howard falls in love with Lane, who’s in a relationship with Peter, who’s falling for Stephanie, who’s married with children.

Sounds like typical Woody Allen.

It’s a great cast, one that includes some of my favorite actors:

Denholm Elliott (1922–1992) … Howard
Dianne Wiest (1948- ) … Stephanie
Mia Farrow (1945- ) … Lane
Elaine Stritch (1925- ) … Diane
Sam Waterston (1940- ) … Peter
Jack Warden (1920-2006) … Lloyd

I wasn’t familiar with Elaine Stritch prior to September. So I looked her up. Here’s what her bio says about her:

A brash, incorrigible scene-stealer now entering her sixth decade in a career that has had many highs and lows, veteran Elaine Stritch certainly lives up to the Stephen Sondheim song “I’m Still Here”. Having stolen so many moments on stage that she could be convicted of grand larceny, this tough old broad broaching 80 with the still-shapely legs, puffy blonde hairdo and deep, whiskey voice isn’t quitting anytime soon – or so it seems.

Why haven’t I seen her in anything else? Born in 1925 in Detroit, Elaine was also in Woody’s movie Small Time Crooks, which was released in 2000. I’ll be watching that movie soon. So I’ll look for her in it.

In the movie Hannah and Her Sisters, Michael Caine’s character gives Barbara Hershey’s character a book of poems by e.e. cummings, and asks her to read one in particular. It’s a poem of love. Barbara Hershey’s character finds a piece of music to share with Michael Caine’s character.

In September, Sam Waterston’s character shares an Art Tatum album with Dianne Wiest’s character.

In both movies, the person doing the sharing is not in a relationship with the person shared with. But he/she would like to be.

Being with the wrong person is one of the themes of Woody’s movies.

There are fine performances in this film. But the wistfulness is so thick you can cut it with a knife. Everyone is sad for some reason. The older people bemoan their age. The middle-aged people bemoan their attachment to the wrong person.

A lonely piano piece (supposedly played by Dianne Wiest’s character) is the score, and booze is the fuel, for much of the sad dialogue – that occurs during a dark and stormy night after the power gets knocked out.

Will Stephanie give in to Peter’s advances, even though she’s married and Lane is her best friend? After a great deal of waffling and soul searching and no-no-no, she – ?

If you want to know, watch the movie for yourself.

Relationships. Love triangles.

Oh, Woody. Have you ever had a decent, solid relationship?

And if you had, would your movies have been as enjoyable?

September ends the exact same way it begins – with a shot of the interior of the home, empty.

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