Back in 2011, I began (re)watching all of Woody Allen’s movies, in order, starting with 1966’s What’s Up, Tiger Lily? For some arcane reason, a number of his 1990s films weren’t available unless I shelled out for a DVD. When I discovered 1997’s DECONSTRUCTING HARRY was available on Netflix, I plugged one gap. While Allen is a hideous human being — friend of Jeffrey Epstein, married to his former partner’s adoptive daughter, allegedly assaulted underage Dylan Farrow (I include “allegedly” not because I doubt it but I sometimes worry about saying something libelous) — I do like his movies. Not so much his 1990s output so I was surprised how much I liked this one.
Harry (Allen) is a brilliant (of course) writer with a penchant for mining his personal life for thinly veiled roman a clef stories, complete with versions of the people involved (including Billy Crystal as a romantic rival and Julia Louise-Dreyfuss and Amy Irving as past relationships). They’re recognizable enough that many of them are pissed about it; others are pissed that he’s been an uncontrollable lecher since his teenage years (“We don’t know if there’s a god, but there are women.”), never faithful and now in a snit that his very young ex Fay (Elizabeth Shue) is marrying someone else.
Why yes, it does seem to be a confession of sorts, though nothing Harry does as bad as the worst Allen’s been accused of. Then again, his comment about using writing to settle scores reminds me of the vindictive streak in some of his 21st century films such as Blue Jasmine and An Irrational Man. “Boy, you must really love onions.”
TURA (2024) is a documentary on Tura Satana, the mixed-race Asian American/Native American burlesque dancer turned actor who found fame with Faster Pussycat, Kill … Kill! This follows her from a gang rape when she was nine into burlesque, acting, martial arts, parenthood, revenge on her rapists (“Over the news few years she tracked them down and beat them to a pulp.”), a list of lovers include Forrest Tucker, Tony Bennett and Elvis Presley and then a late-in-life revival when her movies became big on videotape.
While Ms. Satana is a fascinating figure, the documentary is flawed. As one friend of mine pointed out online, you’d think Faster Pussycat was something in the spirit of Thelma and Louise when Satana’s character is a violent killer, more villain than anti-hero. There are other puzzles too — the film says Satana has no Japanese ancestry (her kids did a DNA checkup) but my friend says her Japanese/Filipino ancestry is well documented. Interesting but not definitive. “In our day men beat the fuck out of women — no woman beat the fuck out of men.”
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