Woody Allen is back at the Venice Film Festival this weekend for the world premiere of “A stroke of luck”, a romantic thriller that marks his 50th, and which suggests, quite possibly, his last feature film. The French-language film, presented at one of Europe’s most important festivals, represents the continued mutual embrace between the director and the continent, after controversies limited its funding in the United States. This explains his reflection on his retirement: Allen says producing a new film means struggling to get support, and at 87, he’s not sure he still wants to do that kind of work.
“I have so many movie ideas that I would be tempted to do, if it were easy to finance,” he tells me when we sit down at the Excelsior Hotel for a one-on-one interview. “But beyond that, I don’t know that I have the same enthusiasm to go out and spend a lot of time raising money.”
And while financing independent film has always been a struggle, Allen has fell completely off the market in the US following press coverage of allegations of sexual abuse by his daughter Dylan Farrow. When I bring up this topic, Allen’s tone and demeanor change noticeably. He’s jovial and chatty when he talks about his film and his love for French film classics, he seems giddy. His mood suddenly turned somber, however, when I asked him to comment on Farrow, as well as the impact his claims have had on his reputation in the US. At the end of our interview, Allen became pensive, staring off into space.
It was a surprising shift from a director who had been an open book about his influences and his work. Our conversation has been edited for length and clarity.
Why did you choose to make this film in France?
Growing up, all the movies that excited us in New York were from Italy, France or Sweden. And I have always wished to have been born in France or to be a French filmmaker. I was a fan of Truffaut and Godard, of course. And I had the opportunity to meet these people and even work with Godard. He made a movie that he asked me to be in. And I didn’t want to be there, but I would never say no to him because he had a great influence on cinema. And all these French (directors), you know, Chabrol and Renais and Renoir, all these people I was crazy about. So I always wanted to be a French filmmaker. And of course he couldn’t be, because he was a filmmaker from New York. And since this is my 50th film, I thought I’d treat myself and enjoy it.
You originally wrote the script to focus on Americans living in Paris. It’s right?
Yes, I thought they would be Americans living in Paris. And then I thought to myself, you know, a lot of the cast is going to be French. Why don’t I make the film in French? I had the opportunity to live in Paris for months and the cast turned out to be wonderful. You can tell a good interpretation from a bad interpretation. If you watch a Japanese movie, for example, you can tell who is good and who is not, and the same in another language. So it wasn’t that complicated.
It’s a great view of Paris, isn’t it?
As always, I have this. I did it in “Midnight in Paris.” I also have this New York thing. I have this thing about cities. I’m in love with cities like directors would fall in love with female protagonists. I love cities and have romanticized New York for years. If you watch Spike Lee’s New York or Martin Scorsese’s, mine is very different from theirs. And the same in Paris, I see Paris through rose colored glasses. And it helps because when you’re doing a murder story, the reason you enjoy Hitchcock’s films so much is because there’s a lightness, a romantic feeling. They’re not nasty and ugly where you see people getting murdered. In a film like “Shadow of a Doubt,” you see nothing, and yet the whole picture is captivating from start to finish. So showing Paris and the characters of Paris in a charming way and making it a murder story is what I was interested in.
There are also some stereotypes about French people cheating on each other.
This is universal!
You’ve said you’re a supporter of the #MeToo movement. Are you up for it?
I think any movement where there are real benefits, where it does something positive, let’s say for women, is a good thing. When it gets silly, it’s silly. I have read cases where it is very beneficial, where the situation has been very beneficial for women, and that is good. When I read some instances of a newspaper story where it’s nonsense, then it’s nonsense.
what is silly
It’s silly, you know, when it’s not really a feminist issue or an injustice to women issue. When is it too extreme to try to make it an issue when in fact most people wouldn’t consider it to be any kind of offensive situation.
You have said that you have never had any complaints about any film you have done.
I’ve never done it. I said years ago that I should have been a poster artist [for the #MeToo movement] and they all got excited about it. But the truth is that it is true. I have done 50 films. I’ve always had really good parts for women, I’ve always had women on the crew, I’ve always paid them exactly the same amount as we paid the men, I’ve worked with hundreds of actresses and I’ve never, ever had a complaint from any of them. they point. No one ever said, “Working with him, he was mean or harassing.” That just hasn’t been a problem. My editors have been women. I have no problem with that. It never crossed my mind either way. I hire whoever I think is good for the role. Like I said, I’ve worked with hundreds of actresses, unknown actresses, stars, mid-level actresses. No one has ever complained and there is nothing to complain about.
What was your reaction when your daughter Dylan Farrow participated in a 2021 docuseries, “Allen v. Farrow,” detailing her allegations that you sexually abused her? What is your response to their accusations?
My reaction has always been the same. The situation has been investigated by two people, two large bodies, not people, but two large bodies of investigation. And both of them, after long and detailed investigations, came to the conclusion that these charges had no merit, which, you know, is exactly what I wrote in my book, Next To Nothing. There was nothing. The fact that it persists always makes me think that maybe people like the idea that it persists. You know, maybe there’s something that appeals to people. But why? Because? I don’t know what you can do besides research it, which they did so meticulously. One was less than a year and the other many months. And they talked to everyone involved and, you know, they both came to the same conclusion.
Have you seen Dylan or his brother Ronan Farrow again?
No. Always willing to do it, but no, no…
Think you’ve been “cancelled”?
I think if you’re going to get written off, that’s the culture to get written off. I just find it all very silly. I don’t think about it. I don’t know what it means to be cancelled. I know that over the years everything has been the same for me. I make my movies. What has changed is the presentation of the films. You know, I work and it’s the same routine for me. I write the script, I raise the money, I make the film, I shoot it, I edit it, it comes out. The difference is that culture is not to be cancelled. The difference is the way the films are presented. It’s that this is the big change.
Are you thinking of making another film in France?
I was thinking that this is my 50th film and I have to decide if I want to do more films. There are two things I have thought of. One is that it’s always a pain in the neck to raise money for a film. And do I want to go there? Making the film is one thing, but raising money, you know, is tedious and unglamorous. And now if someone comes out of the shadows and says, “I’ll give you money to make your movie,” that would be an influential factor in making another movie. And the other thing is where the movies have gone. I don’t like the idea – and I don’t know any director who does – of making a film and two weeks later it’s on TV or streaming.
This is not a cultural high point. There were a lot of wonderful movies made in the past, and you don’t see many wonderful movies now. When I wanted to go to the movies, there were usually three or four movies that I wanted to see. Every week there was a film by Truffaut and Fellini and Ingmar Bergman and Kurosawa. Now, very few European films are being screened in the US to begin with. I think we’re not in a wonderful place culturally, certainly not in film.
Catherine Deneuve has said she would still love to work with you. Have you considered doing it in “Coup de Chance”?
I don’t know her well. I knew her, I would say probably almost 60 years ago. She was being photographed by a famous photographer. And then I ran into her once, I think for a few seconds in a restaurant. But, you know, she’s one of the greatest French actresses of all time. She wasn’t right for anything in this movie, but if she had been, I would have been honored to offer her.
Do you think you’ll make another film in New York?
I guess if I were to make another film, I think the basic idea that I have is in New York and I would make it there.
But has it become more difficult for you in terms of casting and financing in the US?
But it’s not hard enough to be a factor. It’s not challenging enough because over the years, you know, I keep making movies. I mean what was really challenging was Covid. It was a great challenge.
Do you think you could make another movie with a big Hollywood star like Cate Blanchett?
I would love to do another movie with Cate Blanchett. I think she had a great time working on ‘Blue Jasmine’ and she’s obviously one of our great actresses. And yes, I would be thrilled if I had an idea that would be good for him. I would definitely go straight to her and invite her to do it. And the same with ‘Blue Jasmine’, if she liked the film and the role, I think she would be happy to do it.
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