This movie is a masterpiece - Shadows and Fog (1992) Discussion

It's definitely (in my view, at least) the most underrated Woody Allen movie that there is. I love it to bits.

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...the most underrated Woody Allen movie that there is

Very, very true. On IMDB it has the same rating as Woody's 2003 movie Anything Else. Although Anything Else isn't a bad movie this is miles above it. It's a shame Shadows and Fog is so disliked.

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[–] tdl797 15 years ago

I haven't read any Kafka, though I am aware of him via Welles' The Trial.
This has a very similiar feel.

The question is - what are the deeper meanings of the film?

I didn't see any posts talking about what Woody was trying to say with the film.

The strangler just disappearing - what is this a metaphor for?

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[–] dwarol 15 years ago

I think it was that there was no justice in the world, or that any attempt to make sense of this world is doomed to failure. Or that the meek do NOT inherit the earth. It's a common theme in Allen films, I remember Allen's final lines in "Sleeper" said basically the same thing.

It's not the first time a murderer was not captured in a Woody Allen film. Wasn't it at the end of "Crimes and Misdemeanors" (a much better film) that the murderer also got away with it?

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[–] timmy_501 15 years ago

I took it to mean that civilization is an illusion that can't hold up at night. It's really nothing more than a bunch of people with plans that don't make sense trying to reach a goal they aren't sure about. Those marginalized by society are really the best people; this is evidenced by the whores and the circus folk being the only relatable characters other than Kleinman. Those most firmly ensconced in society are actually the worst people; this is evidenced by the priests, Kleinman's boss, and the chief of police.

Recently Viewed
Shadows and Fog 9/10

This story is already over

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[–] rtcnz 15 years ago

This is one of my favourite Woody Allen movies. I think it has some of the funniest lines ("I slept with one man for money, does that make me a whore?" "Only by the dictionary definition") but what I love even more is how Woody's great one liners fall flat in the eyes of all the other characters. Nobody else is witty in this film, everyone is just distraught / angry / scared.

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[–] WarpedRecord 15 years ago

I agree that Woody's line's were comic gold – and some were philosophical gems as well. Everyone else was too caught up in their own angst to appreciate the humor of Woody's. But I think the audience knows the value of his insightful dialogue – well, at least I did.

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[–] kverachtert 14 years ago

I to thought of Kafka, while I watched this ... and Fellini (the circus, the music).

Part of the film is also to be found in Allen's book "Without Feathers".

Liked it very much; don't love it.

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[–] KingofWayne66 14 years ago

Definitely lots of Kafka...particularly the relationship between Kleinman and his boss (word for word almost, the way that Gregor and his boss interacted in METAMORPHOSIS, who was also a clerk.)

While it's not his best work, I didn't have high hopes for the movie even though I'm a fan of German expressionism, I was very much pleasantly surprised. There's lots of shades of "M" here too...1931 German film starring Peter Lorre by Fritz Lang, albeit in a much more serious vein than this movie.

The Careful Movers.

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[–] leetherobot 14 years ago

Has anybody read the play version of this film in his book "Without Feathers"? Considering it was only like a 2hrs read max I don't think I've ever laughed so much in my life.

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[–] killdawabbittn 13 years ago

I've yet to get into the Kafka stuff and all that other esoteric movie mush. But I liked this movie. But, how did Madonna get in there?

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[–] e_m_twissell 12 years ago

I totally agree. I've never seen an adaptation of either The Trial or The Castle, but I think that this film captures the tone of those novels just about as perfectly as an actual adaptation possibly could.

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[–] 12 years ago

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[–] franzkabuki 12 years ago

No it´s not - it´s not even a good film, just a pedestrian, shallow, uninspired approximation of various genres and filmmaking styles that brings squarely nothing of its own to the party besides Mr Stiffy´s typical neurotic jokesterism with only a few punchlines finding the target this time around. At the end all of this criss-cross stumbling in the fog feels surprisingly unatmospheric and more than just a little inconsequential and pointless. Weak story, underdeveloped characters, unremarkable acting (with Stiffy babbling and waving around his arms the harder and more annoyingly the more he comes to realize how weak the material really is). A flat, half-thought-through amateur hour at a steam sauna. 5/10.

"facts are stupid things" - Ronald Reagan

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[–] lebowskithedude 9 years ago

It's probably my favorite Woody Allen film. That doesn't mean it's the most watchable, but I think it's the best.

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