Yon Taylor

This is a poorly written, tedious film. Its cultural references are outdated, laughable and quite honestly only go to show how disconnected Allen’s most recent work has become. While watching you have to wonder how actors like Chamalet and Fanning get themselves into the difficult position of having to work with such dreadful dialogue, do they not read the script before going in? Unfortunately, the cinematography is equally as dire, most scenes are filled with a distracting and overtly forced golden hue which further illuminates the hollowness of its characters. I am a big fan of Allen’s work, and it’s for this reason that I’m prepared to sit through any of his movies (even the weakest) to the end, only this time, when the titles rolled I found myself asking, “surely Woody, you don’t need to make every single script?”. I've read that he doesn't spend much time with a movie once it's completed, but perhaps it would be a good thing to employ a little self criticism in these cases. There is little to be gained from this movie, though if I was to highlight one small moment of worth, it would be the scene where Gatsby’s Mum (played by Cherry Jones) has an honest conversation with her son. To my mind, it's the only redeeming couple of minutes in the whole film. Watch it if you are an Allen completist and gain tiny flashes of joy from the most minuscule glimpses of old-school Allen insight. If this is one of your first Allen films, I implore you to reconsider your choice and spend time on one of his great films, or good films, or even ok films. Happy viewing!