Melinda and Melinda (2004)

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Melinda and Melinda, while not the finest work Woody Allen has ever done, is nonetheless one of the better films he's made in the past several years and as such deserves to be sought out by loyal fans. Melinda isn't exactly groundbreaking or earth shaking, but it does offer a return to more familiar ground for Allen, who was quite obviously out of his element in last year's Anything Else. In fact, Allen has rebounded rather solidly here with an intriguing premise and an enjoyable delivery. That Melinda and Melinda is not Crimes and Misdemeanors is perhaps beside the point.

Melinda and Melinda tells the story of - surprise - Melinda (and Melinda). Framed by a dinner conversation between writers exploring the difference between comedy and tragedy, the film takes a single incident (the unexpected appearance of a guest at a dinner party) and hypothesizes its story arc as both high comedy and cruel drama. The only thing connecting the two stories is Melinda (Radha Mitchell).

In the dramatic story, Melinda is an old college friend of Laurel (Chloe Sevigny) and her husband (Johnny Lee Miller), the hosts of the extravgent dinner party. A frequently intoxicated and unreliable mess of a woman who has shown up out of the blue after being unreachable for several months, Melinda sets the dramatic plot in motion by moving in as a guest and trying to piece her life back together. Her friends feel she needs to find a man, and begin trying to set her up with various acquaintences. None of the men are much to Melinda's liking, but in the process of being set up with one, she meets another (Chiwetel Ejiofor) whom she falls for. Soon, however, Laurel begins to fall for him too.

The film's other story, the comedic version of things, begins with Melinda stumbling into a dinner party being hosted by an independent film director attempting to get her project financed (Amanda Peet) and her actor husband Hobie (Will Ferrell). Melinda, who lives downstairs, has taken an excess of sleeping pills and the guests rush about the apartment trying to save her. Eventually, Hobie begins to fall for her.

The central concept of Melinda and Melinda is inherently interesting, but likely to be frustrating to many viewers. The very thing that makes it an exciting exercise in storytelling also keeps it from being an emotionally satisfying story; it goes two ways at once, the stories interspersed with one another, and explores the lenses through which we view a narrative rather than worrying particularly much about the narrative itself. This will no doubt be frustrating to some, insightful to others.

Still, for those non-Allen fans, this won't be the film to convert them. Despite its tinkering with tone and styles, this is still overwhelming a Woody Allen film. All the familiar elements - the jazz-filled soundtrack, the neuroticism, the sprawling cast, the clever one-liners - are on display. Will Ferrell does a surprisingly admirable job in the stock "Woody Allen" role, perhaps the best interpretation of this archtype since John Cusack slipped it on in Bullets Over Broadway nearly ten years before. Ferrell loses himself in the (unfortunately named) Hobie, and while not as funny as he is known to be, still manages to score a few laughs while still pulling off the dramatic acting required in key scenes.

Despite Allen's intriguing concept and Ferrell's winning turn, Melinda and Melinda ultimately belongs to Radha Mitchell. Allen's best work in the film, perhaps, was casting such a versatile and talented little-known actress in such a major role. Had her dual interpretations of Melinda not worked, the film would not have worked. That it does is due in no small part to her performances in each piece. She brings weight and emotion to the dramatic role and a perfect ditzy carelessness to the romantic comedy scenes. Without her, the entire thing collapses.

Last updated on January 27, 2006