``Annie Hall'' Woody Allen and Diane Keaton, the beginning of their friendship

Eternal friendship with Diane Keaton

This is one of Allen's best films, and I think it was a work that anticipated the lifestyles of men and women living in the city.

When this film won the Academy Award for Best Picture, its rival was the blockbuster Star Wars (1977), but American critic Douglas Bode explained why it won the Academy Award in his research book, “The Films of Woody Allen.” "Some people may wonder why [this short piece] won an Academy Award, but since feminism, the relationship between men and women has changed. The neurotic couple in this film were probably welcomed as a couple that reflected their own issues."

Alvy is a comedian and Annie is a woman who dreams of becoming a singer, and both have their own worlds, pursuing a cultural life in the city. The portrayal of such a man and woman is very lively, and the interaction between the two is realistic, which is why it gained the support of many people. There is no lie in the description).

Allen and Keaton met in the play Bogey! It was during the audition for ` `I'm a Man, Too .'' In his autobiography, Allen recalled: ``To stage this production, we were looking for an actress to play Linda.The director was Joe Hardy, who was so talented that he We knew what we had to do. We sat in the theater and auditioned talented actresses. There were so many good actresses, but so few good roles written for women."

Allen is informed by a drama teacher that there is an excellent actress. "Her name was Diane Keaton. Her real name was Diane Hall, but there was already an actress with the same name and the theater union didn't approve, so she had to use a different name," Allen said. He describes Diane Keaton, who appeared at the audition, as ``She looked like a beautiful version of Huckleberry Finn.''

"Annie Hall" (c)Photofest / Getty Images

"She had a charm and a sense of humor and a very original style that felt real and fresh."

Then, when I happened to go out to eat after work, I realized once again how attractive she was. ``I started to feel stupid for having arranged a date with another woman. Isn't she really shining?''

This is how a relationship begins. "She's good at taking pictures, her acting is great, and when she sings, she has a beautiful voice. She's a good dancer, and she's also a talented writer. From the moment we met, we became friends, and...she was my North Star to guide me. Continue to exist.”

The setting that Keaton is good at taking photographs and can also sing is utilized in ``Annie Hall.''

Regarding their collaboration, he recalls: ``I wrote scripts for her and worked with her, but there seems to be some misunderstandings about the timing...' Love and Death (1975), Annie Hall'' and `` Manhattan '' (1979), people thought we were living together, but by then we had become friends.When I approached him about a project, he was very happy to go on board. So, I should have written that idea in the form of a screenplay.''

Keaton's appearance in Allen's film earned her an Oscar-winning actress, and her ``Annie Hall fashion,'' which expressed New York sophistication in a casual way, became a worldwide trend, and many women admired her ``life-size charm.'' She became a famous actress.

More than 40 years have passed since ``Annie Hall'', but Keaton has become a long-lived actress in the rapidly changing Hollywood film industry, and recently appeared in `` Cheer Up! (2019) (also published collections of essays such as `` Diane Keaton's Autobiography: Once Again '' (published by Hayakawa Shobo)).

Although there are no photographs in the text of Allen's autobiography, ``Apropos of Nothing,'' there is one portrait taken in 2019 on the back cover. A humorous photo of him sitting on a large sofa, with only his striped socks standing out. The photographer was Diane Keaton.

Allen and Keaton, like the characters in the movie, end their relationship, but in reality, something more solid than love remains. ``Annie Hall'' may actually be a story about the beginning of a friendship between a man and a woman, rather than the separation of a man and a woman.

Text: Sawako Omori

Movie journalist. His books include "Lost Cinema" (Kawade Shobo Shinsha) and other books, and his translations include "Woody" (by D. Evanier, Kinema Junposha). Contributes to magazines such as ``Weekly Women'', ``Music Magazine'', and ``Kinema Junpo''. A research book based on the web series, `` Mini Theater Revisited, '' is also scheduled to be published.

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