Mighty Aphrodite (1995)

Director:

Woody Allen

Writer (WGA):

Woody Allen (written by)

Release Date:

11 January 1996 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy

Tagline:

The new comedy from Woody Allen

Plot:

When he discovers his adopted son is a genius, a New York sportswriter seeks out the boy's birth mother: a prostitute.

Plot Keywords:

Directed By Star | Greek Mythology | Prostitution | Sex | Adoption

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 10 wins & 5 nominations

Cast

Woody Allen	...	Lenny
F. Murray Abraham	...	Leader
Helena Bonham Carter	...	Amanda
Donald Symington	...	Amanda's Father
Claire Bloom	...	Amanda's Mother
Olympia Dukakis	...	Jocasta
Michael Rapaport	...	Kevin
Mira Sorvino	...	Linda Ash
David Ogden Stiers	...	Laius
Jack Warden	...	Tiresias
Peter Weller	...	Jerry Bender
Rosemary Murphy	...	Adoption Coordinator
Steven Randazzo	...	Bud
J. Smith-Cameron	...	Bud's Wife
Jeffrey Kurland	...	Oedipus

MPAA:

Rated R for language and sex-related material.

Runtime:

95 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR (Mono)

Certification:

Iceland:L | Netherlands:AL | Singapore:NC-16 | Australia:M | Philippines:R-18 | Argentina:13 | Chile:14 | Denmark:A | Finland:S | Hong Kong:IIB | Hungary:16 | Portugal:M/12 | Spain:T | Sweden:7 | UK:15 | USA:R | South Korea:18

Filming Locations:

5th Avenue, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Magnolia Pictures

Trivia:

After its limited release in October 1995, Mira Sorvino received her Academy Award nomination. When it was released nationally in January of 1996 the television ads for the film was re-edited to make it seem that Sorvino's character was on the telephone thanking the Academy for the nomination.

Goofs:

Boom mic visible: In the scene after Cassandra tells Lenny that his knee caps will be broken, the shadow of a boom mike is visible "following" him as he paces while talking on the phone to Amanda.

Quotes:

Cassandra: I see disaster. I see catastrophe. Worse, I see lawyers!

Movie Connections:

References Pulp Fiction (1994)

Soundtrack:

Walking My Baby Back Home

Woody in a good mood

Mighty Aphrodite is a great example of Woody Allen showing no interest in convincing his audience into swallowing down some serious morals like one of Groucho's horse pills. It's light, fluffy, shamelessly sentimental and suffers not a bit because of it, showing that Woody is willing to give his creative genius a bit of a spring clean. All round, there are good ideas, devices, performances and humour that lift the film out of any murky depths that Woody films can sometimes threaten to dive into.

The plot is generally an uplifting tale of changing ones life for the better, and intertwined with this is some of Woody Allen's best humour and a too often criticised Greek chorus device, which I personally loved. There are many entertaining characters - especially Mira Sorvino's prostitute, Linda Ash, and Michael Rapaport's dim-witted boxer-turned-onion-farmer, Kevin.

All of these characters are brought to life in a suitably bright and breezy manner by the talented cast, their performances fitting right in with Mighty Aphrodite's style. Mira Sorvino is enthralling - her helium voice, dippy nature and confidence masking a timid vulnerability, all of which earned her an Oscar, and rightly so. Other supporting actors (F. Murray Abraham, Michael Rapaport, Helena Bonham Carter and Danielle Ferland amongst them) each play their respective parts with just enthusiasm.

The Greek chorus has been criticised of demonstrating how Woody Allen is striving to make sure we know how serious Mighty Aphrodite's story is deep down. I don't reckon so, I like to think that he just thought it was funny to have a massed chorus saying silly things, pestering Woody Allen's character, Lenny, and occasionally breaking into a song-and-dance routine. And if he did think it would be funny - he was right! And Cassandra is an inspired piece of icing – the kneecap-breaking prophecy being one of the film's best moments.

Overall, Mighty Aphrodite might not be as perfectly loopy as Bananas, as delicious as Sleeper, as stimulating as Crimes and Misdemeanors or as seminal as Annie Hall or Manhattan, but it certainly sparkles with one important value that Woody Allen seemingly never forgets to inject into his films - entertainment.

7/10