Radio Days
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Movie Reviews of Radio Days
Movie Review: "I mean, how many people fight over oceans?"
Summary: 4 Stars
Radio Days is a nostalgic look at life during the radio era just before television became widely popular. The story is woven together by music and is in no particular order. Woody Allen narrates the events that occur to the family and famous radio stars based on the music that he associates with the events, perhaps a throwback to Penny Serenade. The stories are sometimes outrageous and funny and sometimes slightly sad and filled with pathos. The mood is very much like that of A Christmas Story. It is a warm look back at a time that no longer exists, and we are made to feel sorry for its passing.
There is no lack of humor, even in the most tense or sad moments. One laughs when a house is burglarized, one laughs when a lovesick woman who cannot find a husband, and one laughs when an innocent girl is threatened with murder. It is all in the delivery, and Allen has a way of making his audiences look at the bright side of life.
Aside from a highly entertaining story, this film features an excellent cast. We have Seth Green as the embodiment of the narrator here as a little boy. Allen's wife Mia Farrow is a waitress turned radio star. Wallace Shawn is the voice of the Masked Avenger. SNL's Don Pardo is the host of a radio show. Marge Simpson's voice Julie Kavner plays the mother. Dianne Wiest plays the lovesick sister. With a cast like that, it is difficult to go wrong.
Movie Review: A standout gem!
Summary: 4 Stars
I've been hurt in the past by a lot of "classic" Woody Allen films. But this one does not disppoint. I think this is one of his best films. A nostalgic look back on his childhood in the good ole radio days. Although for once, Woody was not the highlight of a Woody movie for me. And I never thought I'd utter thses words in my entire life. But...Mia Farrow was the funniest thing about this movie (and it was a really funny movie by itself). I just loved her eating as people are discussing where to dump her body and my favorite line of her's is upon hearing of the bombing of Pearl Harbor at an inconvenient moment, she asks kind of agitated, "Who is Pearl Harbor?" The second stories would switch, and she'd pop up, I'd already be laughing. And I am by no means a Mia Farrow fan. She was just so broadly funny; maybe that's what she should have done more of. Because usually she plays such dry characters...but this was a welcome change. Woody must have loved her role too. He basically recycled her in Bullets Over Broadway with Jennifer Tilly's ditzy character (also funny). This film was just so real and honest and clearly personal to Woody, that his passion showed in the writing and the acting and made this movie one of my favorites of his (and a young Seth Green did Woody justice too).Movie Review: THIS MOVIE HAS DEPTH IN EVERY AREA.
Summary: 4 Stars
"Radio Days" presents many of Woody Allen's strongest points: there is a multitude of excellent actors, Mia Farrow, Dianne Wiest, Danny Aiello, Jeff Daniels, Seth Green, Diane Keaton and Julie Kavner, to name a few. Most of them are regulars in Woody's movies, and we already know that they are great actors, but the surprise in "Radio Days" is a very young Seth Green, he gave an energetic and charismatic performance as an Allen-esque boy.
The script is excellent, it's filled with stories, anecdotes, characters and creative scenes. The music is very good and diverse, each song contains a specific story, and most of them are very funny and interesting, my favorite is the one with the gangster (Danny Aiello) that takes a possible eyewitness (Mia Farrow) with his mother (Gina De Angelis), and they have a delicious diner while they discuss how he is going to get rid of the clueless girl, eventually instead of killing her, they get her a gig in a radio show.
"Radio Days" is one of the best movies that Woody Allen made in the 1980s, it's funny, touching and very creative. If you like Woody's movies, "Radio Days" is a must-see.
Movie Review: A lovely, beautifully produced memory piece
Summary: 4 Stars
A beautifully looking film, both in its production design by the great theater designer Santo Loquasto, and the wonderful photography by Carlo Di Palma, in his first of several fruitful collaborations with Allen. Together with Allen's witty, tender script, and a host of wonderful performances, the film does a terrific job of creating an intentionally larger than life, and slightly surreal memory piece of short stories about growing up in an age when radio was still the king of entertainment.
It's a small, sweet. charming piece. Some of the stories are flat out great, some occasionally feel a bit meandering or pointless, but none are truly weak. The best moments rival Felliini's `Amarcord'. Perhaps not among Allen's greatest films, but still better than 99% of what has gotten produced in America in recent years.
Movie Review: Great film
Summary: 4 Stars
I saw this movie when it was on HBO in the late '80s or early '90s. My father who was about the same age Seth Green was during the war, lived in a suburb of Boston that had many of the same attractions this section of NY had. I can count the number of times I had seen him cry on one hand until he sat down and watched it. He said the movie was so close to what he experienced during the same time in history. He remembers watching for Nazi U-Boats from the beach, and the neighborhood and family interactions.
Most of all he remembers listening to various shows on the radio such as the Green Hornet, Dragnet, Fibber McGee and Molly, and This is your FBI.
This was a very touching movie and gave me some insight into what it was like being a young child at the start of one of the most important times in history.