Woody Allen
Another Woman

There is a significant and fascinating constant in many of Allen's works: the female figure. Woody loves women, he adores their perpetual balance between logic and irrationality, heart and reason; in his films, they are sometimes fragile, intellectual, likable, or detestable, but their universe is beautiful and the director, with his almost never detached and genuinely objective eye, often paints unforgettable portraits of the opposite sex.

In '88, Woody creates the third chapter of what for many critics is the Bergmanesque trilogy ("Interiors" '78 and "September" '87 are the other works). "Another Woman" is the complex portrait of a woman who has turned fifty and finds herself reckoning with what she has built and left behind in her life up to that point. Allen's judgment is initially harsh. The protagonist, a dean of the philosophy faculty, has never fulfilled herself in emotional relationships; she is convinced that all the people she cares about judge her positively, her brother, her friend, her husband (Ian Holm). In reality, she has an egocentric view of relationships, failing over the years to build real emotional foundations on which to rely in moments of true need. She finds herself bewildered and alone; by eavesdropping on the psychoanalytic sessions of a pregnant woman (Mia Farrow), she manages to understand that her real need is only for a rebirth that can guarantee her a return to serenity.

Gena Rowlands is directed by Allen in a practically perfect way. Woody constantly holds the reins of his Marion; the actress cannot stray from the path the director has set for her, and all performance must be clean and free of any histrionics. "Another Woman" is a positive film, with an unmissable detail being the name of Farrow's character: Hope. Allen completes the hypothetical Bergmanesque trilogy with a flawless, clean, and intense film. In fact, he signs yet another masterpiece of his career, demonstrating once again his remarkable ability to tell the universe surrounding him, absorb its stories, and bring them to the grand audience of a cinema hall.