The Unruly Life of Woody Allen
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5.0 • 1 Rating
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Publisher Description
“A psychologically nuanced, tough-minded portrait” of the New York filmmaker and his relationships with Mia Farrow and Soon-Yi Previn (Publishers Weekly).
Writer, director, actor, humorist. Woody Allen stands as one of our era’s most celebrated artists. Starting in the 1950s, Allen began crafting a larger‑than‑life neurotic persona that has since entertained and enlightened millions. In his films, widely thought to be autobiographical explorations of his own comic fears and fixations, Allen carefully controlled the public’s view of him as a lovable scamp. But that all came crashing down the day Mia Farrow found a Polaroid on her mantle. What followed was a flurry of sensational headlines and legal battles. His relationship with Soon‑Yi Previn, thirty-four years his junior and the step‑daughter of his longtime girlfriend, caused shockwaves in the public’s perception of the director, yet few biographers and journalists have explored what happened and why.
In this, the first deep investigation of Allen’s life and the events surrounding his split with Farrow, biographer Marion Meade tracks down dozens of friends, actors, neighbors, and film historians. They open up with insights and details rare in the world of wealth and celebrity. What results is a fascinating portrait of a flawed genius, as adept at constructing his own image as he is at crafting films. Rereleased and updated, this is an unauthorized biography that neither Woody Allen’s fans nor his detractors will be able to put down. The revised and updated edition was reviewed in the Wall Street Journal in 2013 by Carl Rollyson, in a roundup of the five best Hollywood biographies.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In the second Allen bio in as many months, novelist and biographer Meade (Dorothy Parker: What Fresh Hell Is This?) provides a psychologically nuanced, tough-minded portrait of the filmmaker that's a good counterpoint to John Baxter's exhaustive coverage of Allen's oeuvre in Woody Allen: A Biography (Forecasts, Nov. 15). While Meade certainly doesn't slight Allen's work, she has a better feel than the Paris-based Baxter for Allen's milieu, including the role of New York film critics, and uses a broader mix of sources to reconstruct it. (Allen refused to cooperate.) Accenting her agile narrative with pertinent shtick from his films, she presents Rashomon-like observations from friends and enemies about Allen's loyalty and ethics. Once Allen's affair with Soon-Yi Previn was made public, even sympathetic interviewers--like 60 Minutes's Steve Kroft--related to the author that Allen was oblivious to the impropriety of a relationship with his wife's adopted daughter. Meade's lengthy account of the child custody battle between Allen and Farrow will remind readers that the judge considered him a terrible father, perhaps even an abuser. When it comes to Allen's work, Meade admires films like Crimes and Misdemeanors and lets caustic critics of works like Stardust Memories have their say. Though she recognizes that "the ubiquitous Greek chorus" of film critics still debate Allen's legacy, and that the filmmaker has indeed endured his scandals, Meade's pointed citation of Allen's ongoing rancor toward both his first wife and Farrow is what lingers in the reader's mind. Photos not seen by PW.
