Near the end of Manhattan, the embittered, neurotic writer Isaac (who could have guessed he'd be played by Allen) records an idea for a short story where he stutteringly tells us, "... about people in Manhattan who are constantly creating these real unnecessary neurotic problems for themselves because it keeps them from dealing with more unsolvable, terrifying problems about the universe". With this somewhat postmodern flourish, Allen sums up pretty succinctly the tale of human folly that comes to pass in Manhattan (and I guess quite a few Woody Allen films).
The film centres on Isaac, a Marcello in La Dolce Vita or more recently Jep in La Grande Belleza style character, who experiences a mid-life crisis of sorts, coming to the realisation that the creative intellectuals with which he has surrounded himself are just as clueless and lost as we all are. With a healthy serving of two of Allen's favourite themes, existential angst and self loathing, we see him hop between relationships with two women who are in many ways, polar opposites of each other. There is the 17 year old Tracy, played with remarkable honesty by Mariel Hemingway, who despite her age shows the most emotional maturity of any of the characters and Diane Keaton's Mary, a charismatic wrecking ball of nervous energy and intellectualism ("it had a marvellous kind of negative capability").
Manhattan is one of those stupidly quotable films - up there with the likes of Spinal Tap and Life of Brian - just brimming with moments of comic brilliance. I'm not going to list off a pile of my favourite quotes because I would be here for a while but it is worth noting the wonderful Diane Keaton, Woody Allen chemistry that is at the absolute top of its game. Perhaps epitomised by the scene that ends with the iconic shot of them under Queensboro bridge, the two combine so charmingly, each as sharp and involving as the other. They are surely one of the most convincingly compatible on screen duos of all time.
It seems to be the case in most of Woody Allen's really great films that the comedy is underpinned by some unforeseen emotional heft. Manhattan certainly follows this rule; featuring some heartbreaking moments that sneak up on you - the break up with the milkshake, the "Tracy's face" sequence - and a bittersweet ending a lot more than bitter than it is sweet. Most importantly, Manhattan is a film that sticks with you more than you might expect, showing a little of the caustic cynicism that is on full display in the likes of Crimes and misdemeanours, he paints a somewhat bleak picture of human nature.
As well as this, Manhattan has to also go down as some of Allen's most delightfully cinematic work; with Gordon Willis' moody monochrome cinematography and a George Gershwin soundtrack that I have to remind myself wasn't written for this film, the city is elevated to seem larger than life, a thing of unique beauty. This certainly plays as Allen's love letter to the city as much a part of his cinema as anything else. Indeed, the words of Isaac's opening monologue seem autobiographical, "he adored New York City, he idolised it all out of proportion".
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