Movie: Cafe Society

Café Society:  a Woody Allen comedy.  Allen is the narrator as well as writer and director of this film, which is the best comedy he’s done in years.  There are some brilliant lines that will have you laughing out loud.  The events take place “in the 1930’s”.  We are never given a precise year, and though the story appears to stretch over more than 10 years, the film never leaves the 30’s.  The fact that America was in the midst of The Depression is never referenced.  Rather, the focus is on Bobby Dorfman (Jesse Eisenberg), the younger son of a New York City jeweler.  The film opens with Bobby moving to Hollywood where his uncle Phil (Steve Carell) is a successful talent agent.  We then meet Vonnie (Kristen Stewart), Phil’s secretary, and various stereotype Hollywood personalities.  As the story unfolds, we meet Bobby’s immediate family, which includes his sister Evelyn (Sari Lennick), a school teacher, and older brother Ben (Corey Stroll), a gangster.  The first half of the film takes place in Hollywood with various party scenes.  The second half has us back in New York, primarily in the nightclub owned by Ben and managed by Bobby, who’s returned to the Big Apple.  The players in the film appear to have a 20’s attitude but all the Hollywood references are from the 1930’s.  One could riff on the inconsistency between the life styles shown in the film and what was actually occurring in America at the time, but Allen clearly just wants to amuse his audience.  This 96 minute movie addresses relationships in a style that viewers of Allen’s films have come to expect.  Eisenberg gives an excellent performance.  Also, as expected in an Allen movie, the musical score is superb.  If you have ever enjoyed a Woody Allen movie, you should see this film.  You will leave the theatre with a smile.