September 18, 2003: The film opens in limited release tomorrow! I've updated the reviews section of the page, so be sure to stop by and check out what all the critics are saying...

September 9, 2003: Yeah, sorry, I've been bad. Life has kept me from working on the site now, but with Anything Else set to be released in just over two weeks, I forced myself to find the time for updates. So, plenty has changed on this site, feel free to browse around. I've added pics, quotes, reviews, articles/interviews, and a little bit of information from the Venice Film Festival, where Anything Else had its triumphant premiere!

The movie is set to be released in the U.S. on September 19, 2003. As many of you probably noticed, the trailer has been in a lot of theatres the past couple of months. You probably also noticed one fairly major thing - Woody himself doesn't appear in the trailer...in fact, his name isn't even mentioned until the very end, when "A Woody Allen Film" comes across the screen. This has caused some early previews of the film to state that Allen isn't in the film. However, that couldn't be farther from the truth. He is definitely in the film, and in a fairly major role (think Hannah and Her Sisters in terms of role-type). The film is being hailed as Allen's best work since 1989's Crimes and Misdemeanors, and it looks like it might even have a chance at limited box office success! Here's to hoping...

Stay tuned for TONS of updates as the release date nears...

LINKS

Official Site (Dreamworks)

Imdb.com

Upcoming Movies

Rotten Tomatoes

"Jason Biggs stars as Jerry Falk, an aspiring writer in New York, who falls in love at first sight with a free-spirited young woman named Amanda (Christina Ricci). Jerry has heard the phrase that life is like "anything else," but he soon finds that life with the unpredictable Amanda isn't like anything else at all."

February 2003: Well, there is now a much more viable and sensible plot synopsis floating around. Hopefully this clears up the rumors that Allen and Ricci's characters were having a love affair in the film, a notion that had many people quite vocally concerned. This idea, however, would make much more sense, and is thus the one I'm sticking to until proven wrong:

"A contemporary romantic comedy set in New York city about the relationship between an older guy and his younger protege. The older guy guides the younger through a messy and hilarious love story."

October 3, 2002: A bit more news, some new pictures, and some casting news I should have reported earlier. First off, this is the plot summary circulating on www.imdb.com - and I kind of hope it isn't exactly true...if so, Allen will catch all hell for being with someone as young as Ricci:

"Woody Allen's character is a struggling and insecure artist in New York. He is having an affair with Christina Ricci's character, a dense and self-centered young girl. Jason Biggs is Ricci's boyfriend, and when he finds out about the affair, he confronts Allen. Meanwhile, Allen must avoid Danny Devito who plays Christina Ricci's father, chasing after Allen with a loaded shot gun."

However, it's supposed to be more in the vein of Manhattan, then what is the screwball-esque Devito chasing him with a gun stuff doing in there? So, maybe it's not all true. How this person would know is not exactly clear. Moving on, the casting news: Glenn Close will play Devito's wife (and thus, Ricci's mother), jazz singer Diana Krall has joined the cast in some way (not surprising for the jazz-loving Allen) and Stockard Channing will also appear in the film. Shooting wrapped in late August 2002. And, while no release date has been set, I'd imagine it will come out some time in the area of his previous few films with Dreamworks (between May and August 2003). Finally, here's a nice brief interview with Jimmy Fallon talking about working with Allen on the film.

May 6, 2002: More from Woody on his latest film, which he describes as 'more in the nature of Manhattan, Husbands and Wives or Annie Hall... [it's] based on the characters and the neurotic interactions of the characters.' Sounds like he's moving away from the more direct comedic intentions of his last three films...

May 3, 2002: Looks like Woody is already revealing the name of his next film. The film, officially set to begin shooting on June 3rd, 2002 in New York City, will be called Anything Else. In a recent interview, Woody remarked that this film would mark a return to a slightly more serious (though still funny) kind of film, moving away from the light comedy feel of his past few pictures:

"It's a comedy, but it's not a 'funny idea' movie, like the last three," he said. "It's a much more serious comedy."

May 1, 2002: Precious little is known about the film that Woody Allen is currently hard at work on, except for a brief cast list, a general plot idea, a studio (Dreamworks) and a tentative release date (Summer 2003). However, what little is known is now official as it came from Woody himself during a recent interview with the Chicago Sun-Times:

"Allen, who is the subject of a TCM cable documentary titled "Woody Allen: A Life in Film" that debuts at 7 p.m. Saturday, is about to begin work on his 35th film. He'll direct Jason Biggs, Christina Ricci, Glenn Close and Danny DeVito in the untitled comedy, which is due out next summer. Of Biggs' character, Allen divulges, "He's not a young Woody, but it is about people in their 20s. I probably would have played the part if I was 22 years old."

I'll keep you posted as new information becomes available, but it will most likely be a long time coming...

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last updated October 2003