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Play It Again, Sam
Released: 1972
Country: USA
Budget: Unknown
Colour: Technicolor
Sound: Mono
Duration: 85 mins
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Trivia
The movie had an alternate title of Aspirins For Three
Dustin Hoffman was the original choice to play the lead
role but was replaced when writer Woody Allen achieved
recognition with Bananas and convinced movie executives
he was a big enough name
As with most Woody Allen movies this was scheduled for
filming in Manhattan but moved to San Francisco when New York
film workers went on strike
Woody Allen, Diane Keaton, Tony Roberts and
Jerry Lacy reprised their roles from the stage version
for the movie adaptation
Director Herbert Ross has a small cameo role behind Woody
Allen and Diane Keaton as the cable car makes it's
way up the hill
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Humphrey
Bogart
Alongside the obvious references
to Casablanca, the movie references each of the following
Bogart movies and indeed Humphrey Bogart himself with
the superb performance from Jerry Lacy:
Across The Pacific
The Big Sleep
Dead Reckoning
The Maltese Falcon
The Petrified Forest
To Have And Have Not
The Treasure Of The Sierra Madre
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"If
you want me I'll be home on the floor having an anxiety attack."
Neurotic movie critic Allan Felix has just got divorced from his wife
Nancy, and is struggling to get his life back together. His close friend
Dick and his wife Linda, decide to help Allan find a new girl and assist
him by setting up a string of dates. As time goes by (pun intended)
it becomes clear that the ideal woman for Allan is his best friend's
wife Linda. Dick's lack of attention to Linda confuses her feelings
and we're left with a three-way showdown inspired by the love triangle
in Casablanca and with Allan receiving relationship advice from none
other than Humphrey Bogart.
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Cast
Woody Allen --- Allan Felix
Diane Keaton --- Linda Christie
Tony Roberts --- Dick Christie
Susan Anspach --- Nancy Felix
Jennifer Salt --- Sharon Lake
Jerry Lacy --- Humphrey Bogart
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"I
wonder if she actually had an orgasm in the two years we were married
or did she fake it that night?"
skyjude review
There appears to be a love/hate relationship with Woody Allen films
and it's probably worth mentioning I tend to sit on the love side of
the argument. However, I think this is the one movie that all fans of
comedy could enjoy and recommend it to those who are still not sure
if they go for Woody Allen's particular branch of comedy. It seems to
have an unusual but perfect blend of slapstick and wit with exceptional
performances from Allen and Keaton. Tony Roberts too, has a superb supporting
role stealing some of the best moments with his telephone calls back
to the office. Often overlooked when fans review Allen's back catalogue
I suggest this is placed at the very top of the lists for fans in the
future.
Top
5 Reasons for Watching Play It Again, Sam
[5]
Bogart's
advice
Throughout the movie we see Allan Felix
turning to Humphrey Bogart for advice. But with an influence that has
Allan telling one girl "I'm sorry I had to slap you around sweetheart
but you got hysterical when I said no more." it's perhaps advice
he could do without.
[4] Slapstick
Knocking back a bourbon and soda, drying his hair, tossing a salad,
Dick attacking Allan with a baguette and most of Allan's dates - the
movie is full of slapstick moments and each is perfectly placed among
all the great one-liners throughout the film.
[3]
Dick's calls to the office
Making telephone calls from landlines wherever you are such as "This
is Mister Christie. I'm at the Hong Fat Noodle Company. That's er, 824-7996."
are probably lost on the mobile phone generation. Infact, there were
barely any people like this in the early seventies but this running
gag is a classic addition to this great movie anyway.
[2] The
script
"One of the earlier, funnier ones" is how many
of Woody Allen's early films get referred too and this is among the
best of them. A genius script with all of the usual Allen neurotic and
romantic touches that Woody fans have come to love.
[1] Allan's date with Sharon
Unsure which record to play and which to leave on show, choosing to
twirl his 100-yard-dash medal around in his lap was perhaps the biggest
mistake. Woody Allen excels throughout the whole of his date with Sharon
in one of my all-time favourite comedy scenes.
Play
It Again, Sam quotes
Nancy Felix: My lawyer will call
your lawyer.
Allan Felix: I don't have a lawyer.
Have him call my doctor.
Linda Christie: My God! Can't you
cook anything but TV dinners?
Allan Felix: Who bothers to cook
them? I suck 'em frozen.
Dick Christie: Allan, look at the
bright side. You're free. You'll go out. They'll be girls. You'll go
to parties. Have affairs with married women. Sexual relations with girls
of every race, creed and colour.
Allan Felix: Oh, you'll get tired
of that.
Linda Christie: Didn't you think
it was strange that he was married and still couldn't get a date on
New Year's Eve?
Dick Christie: Allan, you have invested
your emotions in a losing stock, it was wiped out, it dropped off the
board. Now what do you do Allan? You reinvest. Maybe in a more stable
stock. Something with long term growth possibilities.
Allan Felix: Who are you going to
fix me up with, General Motors?
Dick Christie: You might get her
into bed.
Allan Felix: With my luck I won't
get her into a chair.
Allan Felix: I'm going home. I think
today I'm going to brush all my teeth.
Sharon Lake: This film I did got
very good reviews. As a matter of fact I got singled out. 'Course, I
was the only girl in it with nine men.
Allan Felix: Really? What's it called?
Maybe I saw it.
Sharon Lake: Gang bang.
Allan Felix: If I'm not down in
an hour, sub-let my apartment.
Allan Felix: That's quite a lovely
Jackson Pollack, isn't it?
Girl in museum: Yes, it is.
Allan Felix: What does it say to
you?
Girl in museum: It restates the
negativeness of the universe. The hideous lonely emptiness of existence.
Nothingness. The predicament of man forced to live in a barren, godless
eternity like a tiny flame flickering in an immense void with nothing
but waste, horror and degradation, forming a useless bleak straitjacket
in a black absurd cosmos.
Allan Felix: What are you doing
Saturday night?
Girl in museum: Committing suicide.
Allan Felix: What about Friday night?
Linda Christie: Right, go ahead.
Say something to her.
Allan Felix: One, two. One, two.
Linda Christie: Allan, try something
more meaningful.
Allan Felix: Three, four. Three,
four.
Allan Felix: Some guys were getting
tough with Julie. I had to teach them a lesson.
Dick Christie: Are you alright?
Allan Felix: Yeah, I'm fine. I snapped
my chin down onto some guy's fist and hit another one in the knee with
my nose.
Linda Christie: Did you
read in the papers another Oakland woman was raped?
Allan Felix: I was nowhere near
Oakland!
Allan
Felix: This
is crazy! We're all gonna wind up on the front page of The National
Enquirer.
Humphrey
Bogart:
Move closer to her.
Allan Felix: How close?
Humphrey Bogart: The length of your
lips.
Linda Christie: What were you thinking
about while we were doing it?
Allan Felix: Willie Mays.
Linda Christie: Do you always think
of baseball players when you make love?
Allan Felix: It keeps me going.
Linda Christie: Yeah, I couldn't
figure out why you kept yelling "slide".
Allan Felix: Inside of us we both
know you belong to Dick. You're part of his work. The thing that keeps
him going. But if that plane leaves the ground and you're not on it
with him you'll regret it. Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow. But
soon and for the rest of your life.
Linda Christie: That's beautiful.
Allan Felix: It's from Casablanca.
I waited my whole life to say it.
Production company: Paramount
Pictures
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Awards
Strangely, this was not the winner of any major awards but
can consider itself a winner here at skyjude - movie legends.
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On
Broadway
Woody Allen originally
wrote Play It Again, Sam for the stage and it opened
on Broadway in February 1969.
Woody Allen and Diane Keaton played the lead
roles on stage as in the film.
It was during the making of this play that Allen and Keaton
actually first met and became lovers during it's stage run.
They were to split up before the movie was made but stay friends
and star in several films together afterwards.
After over 450 performances on Broadway the play closed
in March 1970.
During the London run of the play, Dudley Moore played
the lead role of Allan Felix.
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Herbert
Ross
In a rare instance of Woody Allen not directing a film he wrote
and starred in, legendary director Herbert Ross was at
the helm.
Prior to Play It Again, Sam, Ross had directed a few
movies including the Barbra Streisand starring The
Owl And The Pussycat.
He would go on to direct Streisand in Funny Lady, the
sequel to the mega-hit Funny Girl.
It was nowhere near the success of the original but Ross followed
it up with a superb run of hit films mainly for Neil Simon
scripts.
These included The Sunshine Boys, The Goodbye Girl
and California Suite.
He would achieve later success with films such as Footloose,
The Secret Of My Succe$s and Steel Magnolias.
I also have to mention that prior to his sad death in 2001,
Herbert Ross would helm one of my guilty pleasures with
the Dennis Quaid and Kathleen Turner comedy, Undercover
Blues.
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"Play It Again, Sam"
The title is a reference to the often mis-quoted line from Casablanca.
In Casablanca itself the actual quotes along these lines
are all references to the song As Time Goes By.
Ilsa Lund actually says "Play it, Sam. Play 'As Time
Goes By'" while Rick Blaine later says "You
played it for her, you can play it for me. Play it!"
The Marx Brothers 1946 classic, A Night In Casablanca,
is often listed as using the phrase "Play it again,
Sam" although this is not actually true (I have seen
this and all Marx Brothers movies countless times and
can assure you it's not said!).
The only likely reason "Play it again, Sam"
has found it's way into movie folklore is because everyone mis-quoted
it then and continues to now!
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