Woody Allen has dwelled on familiar themes for the entirety of his career, and though his films have met with varying degrees of success, he has always managed to make the same themes of love, betrayal and justice seem fresh and relevant. His latest film, 'Match Point,' is no exception to the pattern: The tale of lust, infidelity and unpunished evil seems as meaningful and compelling as the last time he told it.
The problem is that Allen has made this movie before. The plot: Driven by irrepressible lust, up-and-coming London businessman Chris Wilton (Jonathan Rhys-Meyers) cheats on his rich wife but finds himself unable to leave the posh, secure lifestyle he has become used to. When his American mistress, played with manic desperation by Scarlett Johansson, threatens to expose their affair, chaotic tension ensues. As thrilling and deliciously dark as this film may be, the fact that Woody ripped the plot out of his 1989 classic 'Crimes and Misdemeanors' leaves a stale taste in the viewer's mouth.
The fact that 'Match Point' reworks plot from 'Crimes and Misdemeanors' is not the most troubling aspect of this film. More irritating is the fact that the usually absurdly creative Allen approaches this plot in much the same way as he did 16 years ago. Chris' internal conflict between his selfishness and nagging conscience is lifted from the cheating white-collar husband Martin Landau played in 'Crimes,' and the film's philosophical preponderance upon the lack of justice in a modern world does not distance 'Match Point' from 'Crimes' in any way.
But this does not mean the film is not a return to form for Allen, surpassing his recent work that has ranged from mixed successes like 'Melinda and Melinda' and outright drivel like 'Hollywood Ending.' 'Match Point' is truly the first time Allen has directed a straight-faced drama that does not bore you to tears ('Another Woman') or makes you wish he was not so into Ingmar Bergman ('Interiors').
Allen directs 'Match Point' with 'Fatal Attraction'-worthy tension, making familiar set-ups like the mistress calling her adulterous lover at his home so nail-biting that you might forget you have seen this same scene in every movie involving adultery. True to form, Allen spends more time focusing on character motivation than anything else, which is a wise choice given the incredible performances Rhys-Meyers and Johansson turn in. Both transform from callous urbanites looking for a quick thrill to serious lovers who depend upon and hate the other in equal proportions, and the change in their relationship is believable and affecting.
Overall, the soundtrack to this film best illustrates what makes 'Match Point' well-done, but also a slight embarrassment in Allen's otherwise original filmography. This story of bad deeds gone unpunished and true love ignored is complimented by a recurring haunting snippet from a scratchy old recording of Donizetti's 'L'Elisir D'Amore' that plays as a refrain to love and desperation throughout the movie. This bit of operatic flavor perfectly suits the film's struggle between upper class tastefulness and repressed passions, but it is hard not to remember that Woody used a pounding, dramatic bit of Schubert in 'Crimes and Misdemeanors' much to the same effect.
'Match Point' stands as a well-made and compelling part of Allen's output, but can't shake the shadow of the much better film it was partly lifted from.
