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「喜劇是發生在別人身上的悲劇」
~ Angela Carter, 英國女權作家
「我們總是身在悲劇，卻為喜劇的旁觀者。」
~ 文學家赫胥黎
「喜劇是過時的悲劇」
~ 爵士鋼琴家Steve Allen
《美蓮達與美蓮達》
MELINDA AND MELINDA
一人兩個世界，世界其實只差一線
4月28日 人生兩面睇
《安妮荷爾》金像鬼才導演活地亞倫Woody Allen編劇及執導
《小飛俠前傳之魔幻童心》莉達美雪Radha Mitchell
《真的戀愛了》芝華度艾席霍Chiwetel Ejiofor
《搶閘男主播》韋法連路Will Ferrell
《連鎖導火線》阿曼達比蒂Amanda Peet
《沒哭聲的抉擇》高露兒絲維妮Chloe Sevigny
《死亡特訓》尊尼李米拿Jonny Lee Miller
《歲月流聲》華萊斯蘇安Wallace Shawn
領銜主演
發行：二十世紀霍士影片公司
片長：100分鐘
級別：IIA
戲院：UA金鐘，百老匯電影中心
大玩浪漫喜劇與劇情化悲劇對比的《美蓮達與美蓮達》（Melinda and Melinda），為金像「鬼才導演」活地亞倫（Woody Allen）的最新搞鬼作品。故事於活地影片慣常取景的紐約市曼克頓區展開，連串的危機引發笑料百出，再次帶領觀眾進入活地最擅長探索之地：脆弱的愛情、婚後不忠、醉人的浪漫及溝通失靈等人生課題。
《美蓮達與美蓮達》與活地亞倫
拍戲超過三十年，享譽國際影壇的編劇兼導演能手活地亞倫，腦袋裝著的劇本太多，用來拍戲的時間卻太少，《美蓮達與美蓮達》的構思早在幾年前已出現，可謂活地的精采作品之一。
《美蓮達與美蓮達》甫一開場，便介紹四位中產紐約人，在下雨晚上相約在一家法國餐廳用膳，一件軼事引發編劇Max（拉利派爾，Larry Pine）及Sy（華萊斯蘇安，Wallace Shawn）的討論，他們大談發生在人們身上的經歷有如舞台上的喜劇與悲劇。兩人最後聯想出一個以喜劇開頭，以悲劇作結的故事，女主角就是身份像謎一般的美蓮達（莉達美雪，Radha Mitchell）。
「這樣開始的故事經常在我的電影裡出現，它們可以被寫成喜劇或者變得更有戲味性的悲劇，而我通常會將它變得喜劇化。」活地亞倫解釋。「但對我來說，我喜歡把故事天馬行空地發揮，將它同時包含喜劇及劇情元素也未嘗不可。」在《美蓮達與美蓮達》，活地重施得意故技，以群體戲來演繹一班充滿藝術家性格的神經質，生活在複雜的紐約市男女。可是活地今次玩得更盡：「在我看來，劇本只是機緣，它是其中一個從腦內抽出來的構思。我有太多故事的橋段，它們不斷的向我湧過來。」
《美蓮達與美蓮達》最過癮的賣點，是「不理劇情是悲是喜，究竟『美蓮達』是否真有其人？」，根據活地的解說：「她們是編劇Max與Sy在餐廳談話裏虛構故事的人物，他們各自將創作的劇情變得詼諧化或劇情化，有時劇情更會互相重疊。」
完整劇本極秘密
活地亞倫用一個月時間將《美蓮達與美蓮達》的劇本寫好，但只有極少數人獲准看過完整的劇本。劇本經雕琢後，活地將它交給數名信任無間的幕後拍檔，如選角、助理監製、製片及監製。就連大部分的演員只收到印有他們對白的頁數，絕不會是整份劇本。
有演員認為活地的做法古怪，但他們也樂在其中，因為可以令演員更集中在自己的角色及故事。有幸看過全個劇本的監製，給予活地的構思一個正面的評價：「從不同角度看別人的故事是一件有趣的事，活地對人類的思想與行為分析極為敏感，凡夫俗子或可看得出劇情的悲喜分歧，但只有活地擁有高人一等，處理得宜的感知能力。」看過整個劇本的男主角韋法連路（Will Ferrell）坦言：「我喜歡本片的整體結構，兩個平行發展的故事將喜劇與悲劇劃清界線，它的想像力豐富且獨特，但同時又『好有活地亞倫Feel』。」
為活地亞倫選角
完成劇本及籌集開戲資金，曾與活地多次合作的選角監督便開始著手為電影挑選演員，他的心得是：「你可以搵諧星演好劇情片，但找演慣劇情片的演員搞笑只會失敗收場。」
應該最先解決的問題是：「誰來演繹重要的女主角美蓮達？」，該角擁有活地亞倫電影中女主角的特質：對性有慾望、心靈容易受傷及背景神秘。活地擅長撰寫女性角色，美蓮達是他最新的得意之作，他說：「不知是意外還是甚麼，我向來寫女人角色較佳。多年來，影片一部接一部，最精采一定是裏面的女性人物，因此熟能生巧。寫男人角色，我通常將自己的特質寫進去。」
美蓮達一角由澳洲女星莉達美雪擔演，她最為影迷熟悉是與歌連法路（Colin Farrell）合演驚慄片《來電險事》（Phone Booth），除此之外，她還與荷里活新一代動作巨星雲迪素（Vin Diesel）合演《黑煞天魔》（Pitch Black）。莉達的近作為《小飛俠前傳之魔幻童心》（Finding Neverland），飾演尊尼特普（Johnny Depp）的妻子。她憑該片獲提名美國演員公會的「整體演出獎」。莉達的作品還有由丹素華盛頓（Denzel Washington）主演的《鑣火》（Man on Fire）。
活地親自致電給莉達，誠意邀請她演出本片。莉達回憶：「我當然覺得非常興奮，活地給我送上劇本，我便立即答應演出。我對活地的拍戲方法感到興趣，他的電影堅持創新及令觀眾意想不到，但同時又很寫實，當然還有活地電影的特色─字字珠璣的對白。」
阿曼達比蒂 （Amanda Peet）與韋法連路被選演Susan與Hobie，他們是喜劇線的主角，兩人演繹一對演員與導演的愛侶，無意之間被美蓮達撮合而成。阿韋最出名是美國電視節目《Saturday Night Live》的台柱，演過的電影包括《瘋狂三支公》（Old School）、《ELF》及《搶閘男主播》（Anchorman），他被選中演心地善良的演員Hobie。活地說：「我拍過的電影比阿韋演過的笑片正經很多，但他仍然交足功課。阿韋是一個多元化的演員，演正經的角色也難不倒他。」
韋法連路憶述參演《美蓮達與美蓮達》的經過：「我的經理人公司告訴我：活地亞倫想搵我拍戲，令我感到好意外同覺得好威水。對任何一位演員，特別是喜劇演員來說，能夠在活地亞倫的電影演出是一件大事。」對於角色的細心性格，阿韋有以下體會：「那個明顯是一個喜劇角色，但它更是我演過的角色之中，最富真實感的一個。它的特別之處是不需要借助搞笑戲服來演戲，一切也全靠精警的對白交代劇情。」
對於演過《玩轉男人心》（Something's Gotta Give）、《致命身份》（Identity）及《這個殺手不眨眼》（The Whole Nine Yards）的阿曼達比蒂，飾演韋法連路的獨立電影導演太太Susan的機會令她受寵若驚：「我可能在本片只有兩句對白，但只要活地亞倫再邀請我拍戲，我會赴湯蹈火，在所不辭。」 阿曼達是活地亞倫的忠實影迷，自小已看過他的經典名作如《安妮荷爾》（Annie Hall）、《北非幻影》（Play It Again, Sam）、《曼克頓》（Manhattan）、《歡情太暫》（Crimes and Misdemeanors）及《姊妹情深》（Hannah and Her Sisters）等的她，可以唸出其中不少對白，她說：「我在曼克頓區成長；我在哥倫比亞州讀書；我的母親是心理學家；我的英雄是活地亞倫。」
尊尼李米拿（Jonny Lee Miller）與2000年奧斯卡最佳女配角提名高露兒絲維妮（ Chloe Sevigny）在戲中飾演劇情版本的夫婦Lee和Laurel，他們的老友亦是美蓮達。活地說：「我一直是高露兒的影迷，很想與她合作。」經常主演獨立電影的高露兒，著名作品有《玻璃真相》（Shattered Glass）、《妖精派對》（Party Monster）及《人間狗鎮》（Dogville）。她說：「我與活地為之前兩次合作機會見過面，或者我今次試鏡時的衣著很似我演的鋼琴家角色，所以我得到這個角色。身為紐約人，與活地合作是我一生的夢想，演甚麼角色也願意。活地對我說他很喜歡我在《The Last Days of Disco》的演出，相信我能演好Laurel一角。」高露兒對於從祖家英國飛往美國試鏡的拍檔尊尼李米拿原來是舊相識：「幸好我與尊尼多年前在康城影展見過面，否則兩名陌生人首天開工便演夫婦會很不自在。」
活地看過芝華度艾席霍（Chiwetel Ejiofor，飾演Ellis）在《天使夜驚情》（Dirty Pretty Things）的率性演出，對他留下深刻印象。生於倫敦的芝華度，演過《斷鎖怒潮》（Amistad）、《真的戀愛了》（Love Actually），與導演試鏡不到五分鐘便成功得到角色。芝華度的角色Ellis，戲中對Melinda和Laurel展開追求，他說：「Ellis是戲中很有趣的角色，播放古典音樂那一幕，充滿紐約的獨有味道。」
紐約實地拍攝
《美蓮達與美蓮達》於2003年9月在紐約市開鏡，花了七個星期拍攝，地點包括活地亞倫最愛的蘇豪區、格林威治村、東岸北區、中央公園與及Belmont馬場及著名渡假區翰普頓（Hamptons）。
本片的幕後人員，不少是活地的舊拍檔，大家對他的要求瞭如指掌，工作起來事半功倍，像製片Santo Loquasto，他為活地的作品《Anything Else》尋覓了不少合適的外景場地。今次亦不例外，開場的餐廳Keith McNally's Pastis，是一家位於紐約市肉類包裝市場地區的人氣法國食店，至於另一家餐廳Il Buco，則是在格林威治村內著名的意大利加地中海風味的食店，它的地下房間通往大酒桶，是Hobie向美蓮達示愛的地方。Ellis的頂樓住所，即是美蓮達嘗試自殺的地點，是製片插畫家與時裝設計家老友的住所。
為了呈現曼克頓的獨有風情，片內亦有使用到非常靠不住的古老升降機，話說當大隊視察外景場地時，有意外恐懼症的活地，特別走上十三層樓的貨倉而放棄用升降機，製片與其他人在升降機內說笑，若然發生大停電被困便會是個大災難。就當他們回到製作公司辦公室，整個美國東岸發生超級大停電，邪門得令他們難以置信。
新舊班底有特色
《美蓮達與美蓮達》的另一特色，是聘用攝影監督Vilmos Zsigmond助陣，他是營造影像氣氛的專家，憑《獵鹿者》（The Deer Hunter）提名奧斯卡「最佳攝影」，終於在1978年以《第三類接觸》（Close Encounters of the Third Kind）奪得該項殊榮。
與此同時，首次演出活地電影的阿曼達比蒂，向曾與活地合作的前輩請教心得。阿曼達向《玩轉男人心》的拍檔戴安姬頓（Diane Keaton）討教，因為戴安演過五齣活地的電影，當中有為她帶來奧斯卡最佳女主角獎的《安妮荷爾》。戴安向阿曼達說：「不要太挑剔，不要在拍戲前為演繹的角色想像一個背景。」
不用準備的演戲方法令莉達美雪相當困窘，她說：「我像有點兒被威脅的感覺，其實戲中大部分的演員也有同感，但我們在討論時也認為那是一個很有趣的拍戲方法。」監製為活地平反：「活地令片場的氣氛很輕鬆，經常提議演員們以最自然的方法演戲，不要受劇本太大限制。」
另外，活地拍攝《美蓮達與美蓮達》時，一如以往是不會在拍攝前進行正式綵排，因為恐怕會令演員失去臨場即興感。活地笑言不綵排，是因為他沒有耐性。阿曼達比蒂補充：「沒有綵排是最好，我最鍾意活地拍戲的速度，快手快腳！」韋法連路是支持不綵排的其中一位演員，他指出：「可能做慣即興的搞笑騷，所以我對不綵排非常同意，這令我更鼓舞。」
從本片可以找到另一個活地亞倫電影的特質，就是他特意用長鏡來拍攝大部分場面，只有劇情必須的面部特寫才會用近鏡，而他亦會將重拍的次數減至最少。在處理劇情性的場面，攝影師會多以低角度拍攝，物件亦會有較多陰影；拍喜劇場面則會用眼睛水平的角度拍攝及增加鏡頭的活動量，給觀眾更輕鬆的感覺。用色方面，影片運用大量像橙黃色的秋天色調點綴，看來更有紐約風味。講到配樂，活地同樣以音樂控制氣氛，他分別選用史特拉汶斯基的古典樂章和Duke Ellington的爵士樂調節沉重和輕鬆場面。
一部戲演兩種性格
《美蓮達與美蓮達》的演員陣容之中，最考演技的一定是莉達美雪，因為她同一個角色要演繹喜劇與悲劇兩個故事。擅於觀察的高露兒絲維妮說：「這好像同時拍攝兩部不同的電影。」而韋法連路則樂在其中：「我們會問問另一面的演員，八卦對方究竟正在拍攝甚麼。」
演員陣容
芝華度艾席霍（Chiwetel Ejiofor）
在英國倫敦出生的尼日利亞籍演員，芝華度艾席霍在十三歲時參與校內話劇而開始演藝事業，他獲得獎學金在倫敦音樂及戲劇學院修讀，於1997年參演史提芬史匹堡（Steven Spielberg）執導的劇情片《斷鎖怒潮》（Amistad）。其他作品包括《天使夜驚情》（Dirty Pretty Things）及《真的戀愛了》（Love Actually），未來新作有2005年秋天全美公映的科幻片《Serenity》、與希拉莉絲韻（Hilary Swank）合演的《Red Dust》等。
芝華度艾席霍得到的主要舞台劇獎項有：倫敦《標準晚報》的「突出新演員獎」（2000年的劇作《Blue/Orange》），他飾演一名自稱是流亡非洲將軍兒子的精神病患者。同年他憑該劇獲得倫敦劇場評論協會的「突出新演員獎（劇情組）」。於2001年，芝華度勇奪Laurence Olivier劇場大獎的「最佳男配角獎」。電影獎項方面，他憑《天使夜驚》於2003年獲提名美國華盛頓區影評協會的「最佳男主角獎」。
韋法連路（Will Ferrell）
演出美國娛樂節目《Saturday Night Live》長達七年（1995-2002），期間韋法連路主演不少笑片如：《舞場雙雄》（A Night at the Roxbury，1998年）、《戀上大情聖》（The Ladies Man，2001年）、《非常索凸務》（Zoolander，2001年）、《瘋狂三支公》（Old School，2003年）、《ELF》（2003年）及《搶閘男主播》（Anchorman，2004年）。他的新作有《Kicking and Screaming》與《Bewitched》，兩片的主角分別是羅拔杜華（Robert Duvall）及妮歌潔曼（Nicole Kidman）。
韋法連路以搞笑組合「The Groundlings」出身，訓練他一身即興好武功，，加入《Saturday Night Live》節目後，他以模仿藝人如遊戲節目主持人Alex Trebek、職業摔角手Governor Jesse Ventura、影星查爾登希士頓（Charlton Heston）、籃球巨星Mark McGwire，甚至總統喬治布殊（George W. Bush）等見稱。
莉達美雪（Radha Mitchell）
在近作《小飛俠前傳之魔幻童心》（Finding Neverland）飾演尊尼特普（Johnny Depp）妻子的莉達美曹，與同片演員琦溫絲莉（Kate Winslet）及德斯汀荷夫曼（Dustin Hoffman）一同獲提名美國演員工會（Screen Actors Guild）的「整體演出獎」。莉達演過的作品包括：《鑣火》（Man on Fire）、《來電險事》（Phone Booth）、《黑煞天魔》（Pitch Black）及獨立喜劇《愛情爬蟲類》（Love and Other Catastrophes）。
莉達的喜劇新作《Mozart and the Whale》將於佐斯哈利（Josh Hartnett）合演，講述一對患上自閉症的戀人。
阿曼達比蒂（Amanda Peet）
阿曼達比蒂在《玩轉男人心》（Something's Gotta Give）飾演牙醫及女殺手，贏盡觀眾及影評口碑，她於2002年影片《人間失格》（Igby Goes Down）的演出亦獲得絕佳好評，該片演員還有謝夫高拔林（Jeff Goldblum）及蘇珊莎朗頓（Susan Sarandon）。阿曼達的未上映政治懸疑片《Syriana》與麥迪文（Matt Damon）合演，並由史提芬蘇德堡（Steven Soderbergh）及佐治古尼（George Clooney）監製。阿曼達其他作電影作品有：《致命身份》（Identity）及2002年與摩根費曼（Morgan Freeman）及艾絲莉茱迪（Ashley Judd）合演懸疑片《最高罪狀》（High Crimes）、以及賓艾佛力（Ben Affleck）及森姆積遜（Samuel L. Jackson）的《連鎖導火線》（Changing Lanes）。
高露兒絲維妮Chloe Sevigny
憑處女作《半熟少年》（Kids）開始備受注目的高露兒絲維妮，在獨立電影界舉足輕重，之後主演的作品如《Trees Lounge》、《金毛正傳 》（Gummo）及《The Last Days of Disco》等。高露兒在1999年演出《沒哭聲的抉擇》（Boys Don't Cry），並獲奧斯卡、金球獎及美國演員公會提名，最後贏得獨立精神大獎、洛杉磯、波士頓及芝加哥等地的影評學會大獎。
高露兒其他作品有《A Map Of The World》、《美色殺人狂》（American Psycho）、《人間狗鎮》（Dogville）及《妖精派對》（Party Monster）等。
華萊斯蘇安Wallace Shawn
被譽為是美國最具創意的劇作家之一，華萊斯蘇安的作品在歐洲也很受歡迎，他演出的電影有《The Princess Bride》、《My Dinner With Andre》及聲演《反斗奇兵》（Toy Story）系列及《超人特工隊》（The Incredible）等。他曾過的活地亞倫的電影有《曼克頓》（Manhattan）、《歲月流聲》（Radio Days）、《Shadows and Fog》及《玉蠍子的詛咒》（The Curse of the Jade Scorpion）
活地亞倫（Woody Allen）
奧斯卡提名紀錄
提名最佳導演6次：得獎作品《安妮荷爾》
提名最佳原著劇本13次：得獎作品《安妮荷爾》及《姊妹情深》
提名最佳男主角1次
提名最佳電影2次：得獎作品《安妮荷爾》
重要作品
《荷里活大結局》Hollywood Ending (2002) 《玉蠍子的詛咒》The Curse of the Jade Scorpion (2001)《貧賤夫婦百事吉》Small Time Crooks (2000) 《Sweet and Lowdown》 (1999)《名人百態》Celebrity (1998) 《解構愛情狂》Deconstructing Harry (1997) 《為你唱情歌》Everyone Says I Love You (1996) 《無敵愛美神》Mighty Aphrodite (1995) 《子彈橫飛百老匯》Bullets Over Broadway (1994) 《曼克頓神秘謀殺案》Manhattan Murder Mystery (1993) 《丈夫、太太與情人》Husbands and Wives (1992) 《拾夢情真》Alice (1990) 《歡情太暫》Crimes and Misdemeanors (1989) 《紐約故事》New York Stories (1989) (〈Oedipus Wrecks〉一段) 《緣盡半生》Another Woman (1988) 《歲月流聲》Radio Days (1987) 《姊妹情深》Hannah and Her Sisters (1986) 《戲假情真》The Purple Rose of Cairo (1985) 《意馬心猿》Broadway Danny Rose (1984) 《變色龍》Zelig (1983) 《仲夏夜綺夢》A Midsummer Night's Sex Comedy (1982) 《星塵往事》Stardust Memories (1980) 《曼克頓》Manhattan (1979) 《Interiors》(1978) 《安妮荷爾》Annie Hall (1977) 《愛與死》Love and Death (1975) 《傻瓜大鬧科學城》Sleeper (1973) 《情慾奇談》Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex (1972) 《香蕉》Bananas (1971) 《Take the Money and Run》(1969) 《What's Up, Tiger Lily?》(1966)
FOX SEARCHLIGHT PICTURES Presents
A Gravier Production
Starring
Chiwetel Ejiofor
Will Ferrell
Jonny Lee Miller
Radha Mitchell
Amanda Peet
Chloe Sevigny
Wallace Shawn
Co-Starring
David Aaron Baker
Arija Bareikis
Josh Brolin
Steve Carell
Stephanie Roth Haberle
Shalom Harlow
Geoffrey Nauffts
Zak Orth
Larry Pine
Vinessa Shaw
Brooke Smith
Daniel Sunjata
Casting JULIET TAYLOR
Costume Designer JUDY RUSKIN HOWELL
Editor ALISA LEPSELTER
Production Designer SANTO LOQUASTO
Director of Photography VILMOS ZSIGMOND, A.S.C.
Co-Executive Producers JACK ROLLINS
CHARLES H. JOFFE
Executive Producer STEPHEN TENENBAUM
Co-Producer HELEN ROBIN
Produced by LETTY ARONSON
Written and Directed by WOODY ALLEN
99 Minutes, Rated PG-13
www.searchlight.com/press
"Comedy is tragedy that happens to other people."
~ Angela Carter, British feminist writer
"We participate in tragedy. At comedy we only look."
~ Aldous Huxley
"Comedy is tragedy plus time."
~ Steve Allen
MELINDA AND MELINDA
Production Information
MELINDA AND MELINDA combines romantic comedy and drama in a way that Woody Allen, unique among filmmakers, likes to contrast. It takes place in Manhattan and chronicles a pair of crises that give great reign to the funny and serious talents of Chiwetel Ejiofor, Will Ferrell, Jonny Lee Miller, Radha Mitchell, Amanda Peet, Chloe Sevigny and Wallace Shawn. All the usual Allen areas are explained-the fragility of love, marital infidelity, sophisticated romance, the inability to communicate. As a character in the movie puts it, "He's despondent, he's desperate, he's suicidal. All the comic elements are in place."
The Fox Searchlight Pictures Presentation MELINDA AND MELINDA is written and directed by Woody Allen and produced by Letty Aronson. Executive Producer is Stephen Tenenbaum. Co-executive producers are Jack Rollins and Charles H. Joffe. Co-producer is Helen Robin. The creative team includes Director of Photography Vilmos Zsigmond, A.S.C., Production Designer Santo Loquasto, Editor Alisa Lepselter and Costume Designer Judy Ruskin Howell. The film stars Chiwetel Ejiofor, Will Ferrell, Jonny Lee Miller, Radha Mitchell, Amanda Peet, Chloe Sevigny, and Wallace Shawn.
MELINDA AND MELINDA… and Woody
By his own admission, writer/director Woody Allen has far more ideas for movies than he will ever have time to put on film. The concept for MELINDA AND MELINDA was one of many he spawned over the past several years, but it was one of the most intriguing.
In this film, Allen, one of the most respected filmmakers on the international film landscape for over three decades, explores some of his most beloved terrain: personal struggles with morality, identity, intimacy, jealousy and the vagaries of romantic love. The twist in MELINDA AND MELINDA is introduced in the film's opening scene, in which four sophisticated New Yorkers enjoy a dinner out on a rainy night. An anecdote provokes a discussion between writers Max (Larry Pine) and Sy (Wallace Shawn) about the dual nature of human drama, symbolized by the comedy/tragedy mask of theater. Ultimately a comic tale unfolds, pitted against a more dramatic version of itself-both centered around a somewhat enigmatic woman named Melinda (Radha Mitchell).
"It's something that occurs to me many times in my movies. They can often be treated comically or dramatically, and I usually opt to treat them comically," says Woody Allen. "But it occurred to me that you could get a story and you could fool around with it both ways."
In MELINDA AND MELINDA, Allen has chosen to return to his signature work-an ensemble piece populated by accomplished, artistic, occasionally neurotic men and women living in modern day New York whose lives become increasingly complicated. But Allen didn't plan it that way. "For me, it's just chance. This was just the idea that came out of the box," he says. "I have a lot of ideas for stories. They come to me all the time."
Perhaps the most intriguing aspect of the film is that neither 'Melinda' story-comic or tragic-is real, according to Allen. "They're both fabrications that Sy and Max glean from the story in the restaurant. One person distorts it comically, the other dramatically. Sometimes they overlap, sometimes they don't."
"I always thought the circumstances were similar for each Melinda," offers Radha Mitchell, who plays the title character. "One saw circumstances dramatically, and one lived with hope."
The Script
It took Allen about a month to put MELINDA AND MELINDA on paper.
Very few people read an entire Woody Allen script. After polishes and rewrites, Allen shows the piece only to his most trusted collaborators, including longtime casting director Juliet Taylor, co-producer Helen Robin, production designer Santo Loquasto and producer Aronson. Even most of the actors only get their particular part, not the entire script.
"I thought it was strange to work that way," admits Chiwetel Ejiofor, who plays velvet-voiced piano player Ellis, "but I enjoyed it. You're wholly focused on your character and your storyline."
For those who were fortunate enough to read the screenplay from beginning to end, the reaction was overwhelmingly positive. "I thought it was a brilliant idea conceptually," says Aronson, recalling her reaction to an early draft of the screenplay. "From one person's perspective a story can be funny; from another person's perspective it can be sad. Woody is brilliant at recognizing those aspects of the way people think and operate. You and I may see it, but we don't isolate it like he does. He's very perceptive, and he brings that to bear on a situation."
"I loved the structure of the whole movie-these two parallel stories which were illustrating the point of the fine line between comedy and tragedy," says Will Ferrell, one of the few cast members to read the entire script. "It was so imaginative and unique but at the same time very signature Woody Allen."
Allen works on the script during production, polishing, editing and rewriting. After watching dailies, "If he feels something didn't work, he'll rewrite it and reshoot it during production," says Letty Aronson.
A Cast Worthy of Woody
Once the script and the financing were set, casting director Juliet Taylor, who has worked with Allen on several films, began brainstorming names of actors who would best bring the roles to life. When considering the pool of talent, Allen took into account whether an actor had done comedy or drama in the past. "You can cast a comic actor in a serious role and they do a good job," he observes. "The other way around doesn't work very well."
Allen is always keeping his eye out for actors he would like to work with, and in MELINDA AND MELINDA he was fortunate to cast some of his favorites.
The character of Melinda was the first casting challenge presented to the filmmakers. A classic Allen creation, a woman who wields a potent combination of sexiness, vulnerability, and mystery, Melinda demonstrates Allen's facility for writing female characters that ring true. "Quite accidentally, I got better at writing women," admits Allen. "Over the years, in picture after picture, the best parts were going to women, so I worked at it. Now it does come easier to write for women. When I write for men, I usually write for myself or some version of me."
For the central role of Melinda, the filmmakers cast Australian-born actress Radha Mitchell, best known at the time for her performances in PHONE BOOTH opposite Colin Farrell, PITCH BLACK with Vin Diesel, and HIGH ART. She was most recently seen opposite Johnny Depp in FINDING NEVERLAND, for which she received a SAG ensemble nomination, and in MAN ON FIRE opposite Denzel Washington.
"She was a discovery," says Allen. "Radha is so interesting. She turned out to be lovely and wonderful."
"We were so lucky to get her," adds Letty Aronson. "First of all she is incredibly beautiful, a very good actress, and just perfect for the role. She had the intensity where it was important, but also a little bit more."
Mitchell got a phone call from Woody Allen himself offering her a part in the film. "Of course I was really excited," she remembers. "He sent me a copy of the script and I said, 'sure.'
"I was interested in his way of working," she continues. "His films always manage to be innovative, flexible, surreal and real at the same time. And Woody Allen dialogue is its own realm. It's a specific way of speaking that only occurs in films made by him."
Amanda Peet and Will Ferrell were cast as Susan and Hobie, the comedic version of the actor/director couple that Melinda is somewhat awkwardly introduced to. Ferrell, known for his characterizations as a "Saturday Night Live" regular and his performances in comedies like OLD SCHOOL, ELF and ANCHORMAN, was an unusual choice for the role of smitten, sweet-natured actor Hobie. "My movies tend to be more sophisticated than the films Will is known for," says Allen. "But he did a great job."
"When we got Will Ferrell, he really hadn't been in anything, just 'Saturday Night Live,'" says Aronson. "He proved himself to be a very versatile actor. He has the ability to be a real, sophisticated, romantic comedy lead. That was very interesting."
"My agent got in touch with me and the script was flown out to me," recounts Ferrell. "First I had to get over the headline of 'Being in a Woody Allen Movie,' which, for every actor in general and comedic actor in particular, is high on the list of big moments in his career."
The more nuanced character of Hobie was a welcome change of pace for Ferrell, who is known for broader comedic portrayals. "It's obviously a comedic character, but it was the most realistic type of character that I've gotten to play. He's a real person as opposed to an arch," says Ferrell. "It was nice because you could rely on basic dialogue between people, not funny costumes, and there wasn't so much pressure to be funny. The humor is already there in the context of the story."
Amanda Peet, whose career has taken off in the last few years with turns in such films as SOMETHING'S GOTTA GIVE, IDENTITY and THE WHOLE NINE YARDS, plays Hobie's wife, driven independent film director Susan.
"I would have done two lines in this movie," says Peet, describing her reaction to being approached to do the film. "I was so awed by the fact that Woody would even ask me. I would give my right arm to work with him again."
Peet grew up watching and memorizing lines from Allen favorites like ANNIE HALL, PLAY IT AGAIN, SAM, MANHATTAN, CRIMES AND MISDEMEANORS, and HANNAH AND HER SISTERS. "I grew up in Manhattan; I went to Columbia; and my mom is a psychologist," she continues. "Woody Allen is my hero."
Jonny Lee Miller and 2000 Best Supporting Actress OscarR nominee Chloe Sevigny were cast as Lee and Laurel, the dramatic version of the married couple that befriends Melinda. "I've always been a fan of Chloe's and wanted to work with her," says Allen of the actress, who continues to establish a reputation as one of the most talented and intriguing actresses in independent films with recent performances in SHATTERED GLASS, PARTY MONSTER and Lars Von Triers' DOGVILLE.
According to Aronson, Connecticut-born Sevigny had the "perfect demeanor" for Laurel, Lee's Upper East Side-bred pianist wife.
"I had met with Woody about two previous pictures," recalls Sevigny. "When I went to meet him for this one, I must have been wearing something very 'Laurel' because the doorman said I looked perfect for the role.
"Being a New York actor, it's a dream to work with Woody Allen," she continues. "He makes such smart comedies. To work with him I would play any part."
Though known as a bit of an iconoclast in Hollywood, Sevigny wasn't surprised that Allen had tapped her as the poised, pearl-wearing Laurel. "I remember hearing how he loved THE LAST DAYS OF DISCO," says Sevigny. "I think he saw my performance in that movie and saw that I could play that kind of girl. Laurel comes from this nice family, and she can't believe that something would fail in her life."
Jonny Lee Miller, who will next be seen in Renny Harlin's MINDHUNTERS alongside Val Kilmer, flew over from his native Britain to read for the part of Laurel's philandering husband, aspiring actor Lee.
"I had met Jonny at the Cannes Film Festival when TRAINSPOTTING came out," remembers Sevigny. "It was better having met Jonny than going to the set on the first day and doing a scene with your 'husband,' who's a total stranger."
Chiwetel Ejiofor was cast as Ellis. "I saw Chiwetel in that movie everyone saw him in, DIRTY PRETTY THINGS," says Allen. "I was impressed."
London-born Ejiofor, who has appeared in such films as AMISTAD, LOVE ACTUALLY and the forthcoming SERENITY, directed by Joss Whedon, gained widespread attention for his role as Okwe, a kind-hearted Nigerian doctor who discovers a seedy side of London life in DIRTY PRETTY THINGS. The film won scores of accolades last year including an OscarR nomination. "He's a brilliant actor," says Aronson.
"I got a call from Juliet Taylor," recalls Ejiofor. "I was in Toronto and I was told to fly to New York for a day. I met with Woody for about five minutes and got the part."
"Ellis is a very interesting part of this movie," continues Ejiofor about his character, who woos both Melinda and Laurel. "The classical music scene is always interesting in New York, and Ellis has this kind of forthright charm."
Rounding out the cast as Sy, one of the two combatants in the comedy vs. tragedy war over dinner, is Wallace Shawn, renowned playwright and comic actor whose most recent turns were in the comedy films THE HAUNTED MANSION and DUPLEX. The supporting players include Josh Brolin as dentist Greg, Melinda's blind date; Vinessa Shaw as Stacey, who spends a wild night with Hobie; Brooke Smith as Melinda and Laurel's college pal, Cassie; Zak Orth as her husband; and Larry Pine as Max.
Production Begins in New York City
MELINDA AND MELINDA began principal photography in September 2003 and shot for seven weeks in and around New York City. Locations included Allen favorites like SoHo, Greenwich Village, the Upper East Side and Central Park, as well as Belmont Racetrack and the Hamptons.
Allen assembled a solid creative team-some members were working with him for the first time, others had collaborated with him frequently. "It's like any other job," he says. "If you know the people and you speak the same language, things go smoothly."
Production designer Santo Loquasto, who had worked with Allen recently on his New York-based film ANYTHING ELSE, played a key role in choosing locations. The restaurant featured in the opening scene of the movie, in which four New Yorkers gather for good food and conversation on a rainy night is Keith McNally's Pastis, a trendy French bistro located in the city's meatpacking district. Il Buco, an Italian-Mediterranean restaurant in Greenwich Village with a rustic private room downstairs lined with wine casks, served as the location for Hobie's confession of love to Melinda and a dinner between Melinda, Ellis and Laurel. The skylit loft where Ellis resides-and from which Melinda attempts to jump in a botched attempt at suicide-belonged to an illustrator and fashion designer who were friends of Loquasto. "Their loft was on the cover of a book about New York," says Loquasto. "It was an amazing treasure at the corner of 29th and Broadway."
Like many older buildings in Manhattan, this one had a somewhat unstable old elevator. While scouting the location in August, a claustrophobic Allen walked the 13 flights of stairs up to the loft. Loquasto and colleagues decided to risk it in the aging lift. "On the way down in the elevator, we were all talking about how awful it would be to get stuck in here," recalls Loquasto. "We got back to the production office, and the huge East Coast blackout occurred. We couldn't believe it."
The location for Hobie and Susan's residence was an Upper East Side townhouse, while scenes in Lee and Laurel's home were filmed in a loft on Prince Street in SoHo. "Lee and Laurel's loft is the first place we see Melinda," says Loquasto. "It was important that the front look right because Melinda has that drawn out arrival scene there; we wanted her to have distance to travel to the doorbell. And we wanted it to look a little grittier."
The Hamptons house owned by Melinda's blind date, Greg, played by Josh Brolin, "was quite amazing," recalls Loquasto, "but we added the trampoline and the animal heads."
Loquasto tries not to disturb any more than he has to at a film location. "If you've chosen right, often the location offers real cultural information about the characters," says the designer. "Something can come through that you weren't even looking for."
One of the newcomers to the Allen team was Hungarian-born director of photography Vilmos Zsigmond, a master at evoking the visual mood and ambiance of a story.
"A lot of people like to work with Woody. He's like a European-style director in America," says Zsigmond, who earned Academy AwardR nominations for THE RIVER and THE DEER HUNTER and won the OscarR in 1978 for CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND. "He has a style that resembles all of the films I used to see in Europe."
Like Zsigmond, costume designer Judy Ruskin Howell worked with Allen for the first time on MELINDA AND MELINDA.
Rejoining the Allen team were editor Alisa Lepselter and co-producer Helen Robin, who also worked with the director on his most recent films, CURSE OF THE JADE SCORPION, HOLLYWOOD ENDING and ANYTHING ELSE.
Meanwhile, the actors geared up for work on their first Woody Allen film. Amanda Peet, who does a dead-on Allen impersonation, prepared for production by conferring with a recent coworker. Peet had recently co-starred with Diane Keaton in SOMETHING'S GOTTA GIVE. She asked the actress, who starred in five of Allen's films and won a 1978 Academy Award for her performance in Allen's ANNIE HALL, for advice. "I felt lucky that I had that opportunity," says Peet. "She told me, 'Don't be fussy. Don't come in with a backstory and notes about your character.'"
"I was quite intimidated," says Radha Mitchell, who cites THE PURPLE ROSE OF CAIRO, ANNIE HALL and BULLETS OVER BROADWAY as her Allen favorites, of starting work on a Woody Allen film. "We all were. But we all discussed how this is an amazing experience to be a part of."
The actresses needn't have worried. "He's very casual and informal on the set," comments Letty Aronson of Allen. "It's not unusual to hear Woody say, 'I wrote it, but feel free to say it in your way.' He wants the actors to move normally, not start at one mark and go to another."
"That's one of the things he made clear from the beginning, to please say whatever you want to say," echoes Will Ferrell. "He would tell us, 'This is the scene, this is the way it's written, but if you feel like the wording isn't right, make it your own in a way.'"
Indeed, Allen's comportment on the set is as distinctive as his films; there is no formal rehearsal period prior to shooting. "Maybe very quickly before a scene… but Woody believes when you rehearse you lose the spontaneity," says Aronson.
Allen, who has over 40 films to his credit, only half jokes that he doesn't have the patience for a protracted rehearsal period. "It was great not working with a rehearsal period," says Peet, who will next be seen in SYRIANA opposite George Clooney and Matt Damon. "I loved how fast Woody was."
"In rehearsals you try to figure out the passions of the director. But like other people who have grown up with his movies, I had a familiarity with Woody as a writer and director long before working with him," says Ejiofor, who cites CRIMES AND MISDEMEANORS, ANNIE HALL, CELEBRITY and SWEET AND LOWDOWN as his favorite Allen films. "So with this film, you already had a huge body of work to go on, you already knew what his language was. It's very different from any other process that I've been involved in."
"I loved working this way probably because of working on 'Saturday Night Live,' where we had no rehearsal. They fostered my lazy instinct of not wanting to rehearse!" says Will Ferrell. "A lot of people are threatened by that, but I think it's great. I was never really too worried about it. It's scary, but it's invigorating."
Like Ferrell, Sevigny was used to the schedule. "With most films I've done there wasn't much of a rehearsal period because they've been independents," she observes. "It keeps it fresh and unexpected."
Adds Radha Mitchell, "Generally you want to collaborate and discuss things, but most of the actors didn't read the entire script. They didn't have context for certain scenes, so it created a nice kind of energy." Because of that situation, "Woody allowed us to come to set with ideas and play them out."
And while Allen's somewhat casual style left a lot of room for improvisation, says Sevigny, "he knows exactly what he wants."
"He has a very strong vision," agrees Mitchell. "You are isolated from what he's thinking completely, which keeps the actors on their toes. But you completely trust him. He seems very relaxed."
Another Allen idiosyncrasy: Allen shoots mostly long master shots, and does close-ups only when the scene absolutely calls for it. On MELINDA AND MELINDA, Allen worked quickly on as few takes as possible.
"Woody likes to work fast, and I liked that," adds Zsigmond. "He doesn't want his crew or his actors to get tired."
Allen and his creative team engaged in lengthy discussions about the degree to which the comic/tragic stories should contrast visually. "Woody was against a real visual difference between the comedic and the tragic stories," says Vilmos Zsigmond.
Production designer Santo Loquasto, a veteran of 24 films with Allen, used some design elements to contrast the two unfolding stories, but "it's subtle," says Loquasto. "That was a choice that Woody was more comfortable with."
Zsigmond made some adjustments while filming the two storylines, but again the techniques were understated. "I didn't move the camera as much in the dramatic scenes, and the angles were lower," he explains. "There were also more shadows. During the comedy segments the camera was at eye level and it moved more. It was a little freer and lighter."
Loquasto kept the palette to warm autumnal colors and earth tones. "Woody's movies are like love songs to New York," says Loquasto. "He really goes for having this glow to things. He clearly has a style with the way he paints a picture."
"Woody likes a warm palette," echoes Vilmos Zsigmond. "He likes an orangey cast, like late afternoon lighting. I tend to do that in my movies, too."
The distinctive finishing touch to any Woody Allen film is the music. In MELINDA AND MELINDA, says Allen, "music was something that was used at the outset to set the mood and contrast the stories. I used Stravinsky for heavier moments and Duke Ellington for lighter scenes. But I also switched anytime I wanted to."
If the music was switched, the actors weren't. The only player that crossed the comic/tragic border in the film was Radha Mitchell. This created a unique situation on the set.
"It was almost like shooting two different movies," observes Chloe Sevigny.
Says Will Ferrell, "We would whisper to the actors in the other storyline and say, 'Hey, what are you guys doing?'"
"If people don't like the film, they walk out of the theater and look for a place to eat," jokes Allen. "But I hope that people leaving the theater after this movie might talk a few minutes about seeing life through a comic vein or a tragic one."
Perhaps Radha Mitchell explains the film best: "It's a classic Woody Allen movie. It's got a sense of humor. It's an intelligent adult film that deals with issues about how we choose to live. The conversation it provokes is, 'do we create the drama in our lives or does it happen to us?'" she explains. "This movie is like life-short, and then it's over like that. So you may as well enjoy it."
About the Cast
Born in the Forest Gate section of London to Nigerian parents, Chiwetel Ejiofor (Ellis) started acting in school plays at the age of 13. He earned a scholarship to the London Academy of Music & Dramatic Arts, then made his feature film debut in 1997 in Steven Spielberg's AMISTAD. Ejiofor would follow this performance with turns in Stephen Frears' critically acclaimed DIRTY PRETTY THINGS, where he was many critics' pick for Best Actor, LOVE ACTUALLY, and Spike Lee's SHE HATE ME.
His upcoming films include the Universal Pictures sci-fi film SERENITY from Joss Whedon (BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER) due out Fall 2005, RED DUST with Hilary Swank, SLOW BURN with Ray Liotta and FOUR BROTHERS. He is currently filming the independent film KINKY BOOTS in London with director Julian Jarrold.
Ejiofor was voted Outstanding Newcomer at the London Evening Standard Awards in 2000 for his performance in "Blue/Orange", a play about a mental patient who claims to be the son of an exiled African dictator. He was also awarded the Jack Tinker Award for Most Promising Newcomer at the 2000 London Critics Circle Theatre Awards (Drama) for the performance. In 2001, he was nominated for a Laurence Olivier Theatre Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in "Blue/Orange" at the Royal National Theatre. In 2003, he was nominated for Best Actor by The Washington Area Film Critics Association and won a British Independent Film Award for Best Performance by an Actor for DIRTY PRETTY THINGS.
Will Ferrell (Hobie) is a comedian and former cast member of "Saturday Night Live" (1995-2002). He has also acted in a number of movies including A NIGHT AT THE ROXBURY (1998), THE LADIES MAN (2001), ZOOLANDER (2001), OLD SCHOOL (2003), ELF (2003) and ANCHORMAN: THE LEGEND OF RON BURGUNDY (2004). He will next be starring opposite Robert Duvall in KICKING AND SCREAMING as well as BEWITCHED with Nicole Kidman.
Ferrell developed his improvisation skills as a member of the comedy group "The Groundlings." During his time on "SNL," Ferrell made a name for himself with impressions of game show host Alex Trebek, professional wrestler and Governor Jesse Ventura, actor Charlton Heston, baseball player Mark McGwire, singer Robert Goulet, "Inside the Actor's Studio" host James Lipton, U.S. Attorney General Janet Reno, and President George W. Bush.
His final performance as a regular on "Saturday Night Live" was May 18, 2002, when he decided to follow in the footsteps of fellow "SNL" alumni into a career of full-time movie acting.
British-born actor Jonny Lee Miller (Lee) made his feature film acting debut in Iain Softley's 1995 drama HACKERS. He followed up this successful performance with roles in Danny Boyle's TRAINSPOTTING, Alan Rudolph's AFTERGLOW and MANSFIELD PARK. His other film credits include REGENERATION, PLUNKETT & MACLEANE, LOVE, HONOUR, & OBEY, COMPLICITY and THE ESCAPIST. He will next be seen starring opposite Charlize Theron in AEON FLUX for Paramount Pictures.
Miller has starred in several BBC productions, including "Canterbury Tales: The Pardoner's Tale." An accomplished theater actor, Miller recently starred in "The Play What I Wrote" on London's West End.
Radha Mitchell (Melinda) currently stars in FINDING NEVERLAND, for which she and her co-stars Johnny Depp, Kate Winslet and Dustin Hoffman are nominated for a Screen Actors Guild ensemble award. The film was directed by Marc Forster (MONSTER'S BALL) with whom she worked in 2000 when she starred and produced the Independent Spirit Award-nominated film EVERYTHING PUT TOGETHER. Mitchell plays one of the most demanding roles in the film - the part of Mary, Barrie's lonely wife in FINDING NEVERLAND. The film received numerous award nominations including a Golden Globe nomination for Best Motion Picture Drama.
Mitchell recently completed production on Petter Naess' Millennium film MOZART AND THE WHALE, written by Ron Bass (RAIN MAN), starring opposite Josh Hartnett. A dramatic, romantic comedy, MOZART AND THE WHALE is inspired by the lives of two people with Asperger's Syndrome, a form of autism, whose emotional dysfunctions threaten to sabotage their budding romance.
Mitchell recently starred in the successful Regency Enterprises/Fox 2000 production MAN ON FIRE opposite Denzel Washington where she played the mother of a missing child who had been kidnapped. She starred opposite Colin Farrell in Joel Shumacher's PHONE BOOTH and in the box-office hit PITCH BLACK opposite Vin Diesel. The actress gave a memorable performance as Syd, the young editorial assistant who falls in love with Ally Sheedy's heroin-addicted photographer character in Lisa Cholodenko's critically acclaimed drama HIGH ART. Her role in Emma-Kate Croghan's romantic comedy LOVE AND OTHER CATASTROPHES was highly praised at both the Cannes and Sundance film festivals.
Other recent film credits include WHEN STRANGERS APPEAR with Josh Lucas, the independent feature DEAD HEAT opposite Keifer Sutherland and Anthony LaPaglia, NOBODY'S BABY with Gary Oldman and Skeet Ulrich, and Rodrigo Garcia's TEN TINY LOVE STORIES. On television, she starred with Hank Azaria and Donald Sutherland in NBC's critically acclaimed mini-series "Uprising" for director Jon Avnet.
Amanda Peet (Susan) charmed audiences and critics alike with her portrayal of a dental hygienist/aspiring hit woman in the Warner Bros.' box office hit THE WHOLE NINE YARDS. She received strong reviews for her performance in MGM's IGBY GOES DOWN, opposite Jeff Goldblum, Susan Sarandon and Kieran Culkin. With films like IDENTITY and the heartfelt SOMETHING'S GOTTA GIVE, she continues to explore her range as an actress.
Peet's upcoming projects include SYRIANA, a geopolitical thriller in which she'll star opposite Matt Damon. Steven Soderbergh, George Clooney, and Michael Nozik are producing, and Jennifer Fox, Ben Cosgrove and Georgia Kacandes are executive producing. She will soon be seen in A LOT LIKE LOVE with Ashton Kutcher for Beacon Pictures/Walt Disney Company. Directed by Nigel Cole, the story revolves around a guy and a girl who manage to resist their mutual attraction over the years only to see fate throwing them back together.
Peet was last seen in director Nancy Meyers' SOMETHING'S GOTTA GIVE alongside Jack Nicholson, Diane Keaton, Frances McDormand and Keanu Reeves. Also in 2003, Peet starred alongside John Cusack and Ray Liotta in the Sony Pictures thriller, IDENTITY, for director James Mangold. In 2002, Peet starred with Morgan Freeman and Ashley Judd in 20th Century Fox and New Regency's thriller HIGH CRIMES for director Carl Franklin and in Paramount Pictures' CHANGING LANES opposite Samuel L. Jackson, Ben Affleck and Sydney Pollack.
Television audiences warmed to her when she starred as Jack on the WB drama, "Jack and Jill."
A native of New York, Peet graduated from Columbia University with a degree in American History. While there, she also studied acting under Uta Hagen, which ultimately led her to pursue acting as a career.
Chloe Sevigny (Laurel) made her film debut in the highly acclaimed and controversial hit KIDS. Directed by photographer Larry Clark, with a script by Harmony Korine, the film features a group of kids actually pulled from the streets of New York, as opposed to professional actors. Sevigny stars in the role of Jennie, which was the only part originally given to a professional actor. But with only a few days before shooting began, Korine and Clark felt that the part would be better served by Sevigny in the starring role. With a surprise midnight screening at Sundance and a spot in the main competition at the Cannes Film Festival, Chloe's film career was well underway.
She followed up with Steve Buscemi's TREES LOUNGE, Harmony Korine's GUMMO, for which Sevigny also was costume designer, and Whit Stillman's THE LAST DAYS OF DISCO, and again for Korine in JULIEN DONKEY BOY.
Sevigny also starred in two Off-Broadway plays for director Scott Elliot: "Hazelwood Jr. High," written by Rob Urbinati and "What The Butler Saw," written by Joe Orton.
In 1999, Sevigny emerged as one of Hollywood's most critically acclaimed young actresses, starring in Fox Searchlight Pictures' BOYS DON'T CRY. She received nominations for an Academy Award, a Golden Globe, and a Screen Actors' Guild Award, as well as winning an Independent Spirit Award, the Los Angeles Film Critics Award, the Boston Film Critics Award, Chicago Film Critics Award and the National Society of Film Critics Award.
Other film credits followed including A MAP OF THE WORLD, starring Sigourney Weaver and Julianne Moore; AMERICAN PSYCHO; Lars von Trier's DOGVILLE, with Nicole Kidman and Paul Bettany; SHATTERED GLASS, with Hayden Christiansen and Peter Sarsgaard; PARTY MONSTER, with Macauley Culkin, and DEMONLOVER, directed by Olivier Assayas.
Premiering in September 2005 is "Big Love," a new series for HBO, from Tom Hanks and Gary Goetzman's Playtone Productions. "Big Love" centers on a polygamist's (Bill Paxton) relationship with his three wives. Chloe plays his wife, along with Ginnifer Goodwin and Jeanne Tripplehorn. Harry Dean Stanton will play her father and patriarch of the familial commune.
Sevigny's upcoming film projects include: THREE NEEDLES, filmed on South Africa's Wild Coast, written and directed by Thom Fitzgerald (THE HANGING GARDEN). Sevigny plays a nun in an African village that is overtaken by AIDS; MRS. HARRIS, the story if Dr. Herman Tarnower, the inventor of the Scarsdale diet, who was murdered by his lover, a headmistress of a prestigious girls' academy, in 1980. Sevigny plays the doctor's nurse and lover. Annette Bening and Ben Kingsley also star; and MANDERLAY from director Lars Von Trier. Set on a plantation in 1930s America and focusing on slavery, the film is the second in von Trier's trilogy U, S and A following DOGVILLE. Sevigny plays the daughter of a plantation owner. Also starring are Bryce Dallas Howard, Danny Glover and John C. Reilly.
Known as one of America's most original playwrights, whose plays have been performed in the most distinguished theatres in Europe, New York City native Wallace Shawn (Sy) may be best known for his acting work in numerous films, including THE PRINCESS BRIDE, MY DINNER WITH ANDRÉ, VANYA ON 42ND STREET, CLUELESS, TOY STORY 1 & 2 and, more recently, THE INCREDIBLES. He has starred in such Woody Allen pictures as MANHATTAN, RADIO DAYS, SHADOWS AND FOG and THE CURSE OF THE JADE SCORPION.
Educated at Harvard, Shawn then spent a year teaching in India before going to study at Oxford, where he wrote his first play, "Four Meals in May," for a local dramatic competition. He has written four major plays since 1980, including "Marie and Bruce," "Aunt Dan and Lemon," "The Designated Mourner" and "The Fever." He currently stars opposite Ethan Hawke, Bobby Canavale and Josh Hamilton off-Broadway in David Rabe's "Hurlyburly."
About the Filmmakers
Woody Allen (Director/Writer)
Filmography:
MELINDA AND MELINDA 2004: director, screenwriter
Academy Award summary:
Letty Aronson (Producer) previously produced Woody Allen's ANYTHING ELSE, HOLLYWOOD ENDING and THE CURSE OF THE JADE SCORPION. She also served as the co-executive producer on Allen's SMALL TIME CROOKS. Her extensive film, television and stage experience includes numerous other collaborations with Allen. She co-executive produced such films as "Don't Drink the Water," which marked Allen's first foray into television moviemaking; BULLETS OVER BROADWAY, which garnered seven Academy Award nominations, winning for Best Supporting Actress (Dianne Wiest); MIGHTY APHRODITE, for which Mira Sorvino was awarded the Best Supporting Actress Oscar; and SWEET AND LOWDOWN, for which Sean Penn and Samantha Morton both earned Oscar nominations. Her other credits as a co-executive producer include Allen's highly acclaimed musical comedy EVERYONE SAYS I LOVE YOU, CELEBRITY, and DECONSTRUCTING HARRY.
In addition, Aronson co-executive produced THE SPANISH PRISONER, written for the screen and directed by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright and critically acclaimed filmmaker David Mamet. Critics universally praised the film when it was released in 1998. She also co-executive produced INTO MY HEART, which was written and directed by two newcomers, Sean Smith and Anthony Stark; and Coky Giedroyc's WOMEN TALKING DIRTY, starring Helena Bonham Carter, which marked Aronson's first European co-production with Elton John's Rocket Pictures.
Her credits also include "Dinah Was," the off-Broadway musical about blues legend Dinah Washington; THE STORY OF A BAD BOY, written and directed by acclaimed playwright Tom Donaghy; JUST LOOKING, a heartwarming coming-of-age film directed by Jason Alexander; and the comedy SUNBURN, directed by Nelson Hume, which screened at the Galway Film Festival and the 1999 Toronto International Film Festival.
The New York City native's television work includes "Saturday Night Live" and "The Robert Klein Comedy Hour," both for NBC. In the world of theatre, Aronson served as associate producer of "Death Defying Acts," an off-Broadway comedy consisting of three one-act plays written by Elaine May, Woody Allen and David Mamet. She had previously served as Vice President of the Museum of Television and Radio for 10 years.
Helen Robin (Co-Producer) began her film career as a production assistant on Woody Allen's STARDUST MEMORIES. Over the course of his next 19 films, she worked her way up from an office production assistant, production coordinator, and production manager, to, eventually, line producer and co-producer.
She co-produced ALICE, SHADOWS AND FOG, HUSBANDS AND WIVES, MANHATTAN MURDER MYSTERY, BULLETS OVER BROADWAY, MIGHTY APHRODITE and EVERYONE SAYS I LOVE YOU. Following the last film, she left Allen's production company to take some time off and do freelance film work. During that period, she worked as an associate producer on the highly rated television miniseries "The Temptations" for Hallmark Entertainment and NBC.
After a three-year hiatus, she returned to work with Woody Allen on his comedy SMALL TIME CROOKS, which she co-produced. More recently, she served as the co-producer on Allen's THE CURSE OF THE JADE SCORPION, HOLLYWOOD ENDING and ANYTHING ELSE.
Stephen Tenenbaum (Executive Producer) previously executive produced Woody Allen's THE CURSE OF THE JADE SCORPION, which marked his first onscreen producing credit. He more recently served as an executive producer on Allen's HOLLYWOOD ENDING and ANYTHING ELSE.
Tenenbaum graduated with a B.S. from New York University, where he majored in Accounting. He began his show business career in the financial arena, handling such noteworthy clients as the Beatles, Jimi Hendrix, Barbra Streisand, Bruce Springsteen, Percy Faith, the Platters, Nat King Cole, Mario Lanza, Gilda Radner, Robin Williams, and many others.
Tenenbaum later decided to venture into the field of motion picture and television production, as well as personal management. He is currently a partner in Morra, Brezner, Steinberg & Tenenbaum Entertainment, Inc. (MBST), where his client roster includes Woody Allen, Billy Crystal, Robin Williams and Alain Boubil (the creator of "Les Miserables" and "Miss Saigon"). MBST has also been involved in the production of films, including GOOD MORNING, VIETNAM, ARTHUR and THROW MOMMA FROM THE TRAIN, to name only a few.
Vilmos Zsigmond, A.S.C. (Director of Photography) is a native of Szeged, Hungary. Zsigmond developed an interest in photography while in high school. After his graduation from the State University of Motion Picture and Theater Arts in Budapest, the Hungarian Revolution hit. His escape from the country and pilgrimage to the United States was underway. Eventually making connections with U.S. filmmakers, Zsigmond had the chance to develop his new style of lighting-a combination of the "old" classical style and the "new" flexible soft lighting. lt was soon apparent however, that he could do much more than shoot a picture.
His rich, emotional texture in Robert Altman's MCCABE AND MRS. MILLER, IMAGES, and THE LONG GOODBYE drew public and critical acclaim. Quickly becoming one of today's most visible cinematographers, Zsigmond's evocative look and "altering eye" found outlets in such masterpieces as John Boorman's DELIVERANCE, Mark Rydell's THE ROSE, Richard Donner's MAVERICK, Sean Penn's THE CROSSING GUARD, and Steven Hopkins' THE GHOST AND THE DARKNESS.
His long overdue Academy AwardR came in 1978 with his powerful achievements on Steven Spielberg's CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND. The following year found Zsigmond's dark and disturbing work on Michael Cimino's THE DEER HUNTER, receiving an OscarR nomination. Another OscarR nomination appeared for the daring and powerful look he brought to Mark Rydell's THE RIVER.
Because he approaches his art with a perfect balance of authority, excellence and a strong sense of integrity, Vilmos Zsigmond's images are some of the most indelible.
Santo Loquasto (Production Designer) has earned Academy Award nominations in two different categories for his work on Woody Allen films. He received an OscarR nod for his costume designs for Woody Allen's ZELIG, and nominations for his work as a production designer on Allen's RADIO DAYS and BULLETS OVER BROADWAY. In all, he has worked with Allen on more than 20 films, most recently including SMALL TIME CROOKS, THE CURSE OF THE JADE SCORPION, HOLLYWOOD ENDING and ANYTHING ELSE.
Loquasto has also designed extensively for the stage. His work in the New York theatre won him both Tony and Drama Desk Awards for his set design for "Café Crown" and for his costume designs for "The Cherry Orchard" and "Grand Hotel." He also received Tony nominations for his set designs on "That Championship Season," "What The Wine Sellers Buy," "The Cherry Orchard," "American Buffalo" and "The Suicide," and for his costume designs on "Ragtime" and "Fosse," the last of which was also filmed for television.
In addition, Loquasto has worked with most of the major international dance companies, collaborating with Mark Morris, Jerome Robbins, Glen Tetley, Helgi Tomasson, Agnes de Mille, James Kudelka, Mikhail Baryshnikov, Dana Reitz, Paul Taylor and Twyla Tharp. The Wilkes-Barre, PA native earned an MFA from Yale Drama School.
Alisa Lepselter (Editor) marks her sixth collaboration with filmmaker Woody Allen, having previously edited his comedies ANYTHING ELSE, HOLLYWOOD ENDING, THE CURSE OF THE JADE SCORPION and SMALL TIME CROOKS, and his critically acclaimed feature SWEET AND LOWDOWN.
She began her editing career as an intern on Jonathan Demme's film SOMETHING WILD. As an apprentice and assistant editor, she worked with such leading filmmakers as Martin Scorsese, Francis Ford Coppola, Volker Schlondorff, Herbert Ross, Peter Yates and Nora Ephron.
She cut her first feature when she edited WALKING AND TALKING for director Nicole Holofcener.
Judy Ruskin Howell's (Costume Designer) diverse credits include BRUCE ALMIGHTY, DRAGONFLY, REMEMBER THE TITANS, PATCH ADAMS, THE HORSE WHISPERER, LIAR LIAR, MOTHER, WAITING TO EXHALE, A WALK IN THE CLOUDS, FORGET PARIS, SLEEPLESS IN SEATTLE, CITY SLICKERS and CITY SLICKERS II, MY LIFE and MAN TROUBLE. The Philadelphia native is currently working on a modern take on 1967's GUESS WHO'S COMING TO DINNER starring Bernie Mac and Ashton Kutcher.
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