Match Point

Directed by Woody Allen

DreamWorks

4 1/2 stars





By the looks of the trailer, “Match Point” seems like an intense romance/thriller hybrid, in the vein of “Fatal Attraction” or “Basic Instinct.” While the preview overplays the suspense, the taut and enthralling film is certainly a thrilling return to form for Woody Allen.

After his 10 years of mediocrity and outright disappointment (with 1997’s “Deconstructing Harry” his only saving grace), in the phenomenal “Match Point,” in radically departing from his typical style Allen accentuates the best elements of his work.

The beautiful drama notably lacks Allen’s neuroticisms, self-deprecating humor, and, thankfully, the characteristic on-screen appearance by the aging director himself. Nor does the protagonist, Chris Wilton (Jonathan-Rhys Meyer) seem like a caricature of the auteur. For once, a Woody Allen film seems less about the man, and more about the nature of passion and obsession.

Not only has Allen abstracted himself from the plot, but the native New Yorker has also moved his setting from his usual Manhattan streets to a romanticized London, which both affords him a brilliant group of young British actors and opens up cinematographic potential to explore the cavernous Tate Modern and the idyllic British countryside.

“Match Point” tells the story of Chris, an ambitious Irish tennis pro, who first befriends the wealthy and handsome Tom Hewett, (Matthew Goode) then marries his pleasant sister, Chloe (played adorably by Emily Mortimer), securing him life-long financial success. His perfect existence is disturbed by a near-obsessive attraction to Tom’s exquisitely beautiful fiancée, a failing American actress, Nola Rice (Scarlett Johansson). As Chris grows both more successful in London society and more involved with Nola, he seems to be propelled by unnaturally good luck, until he is forced to make a critical choice between his two lives.

Rhys-Meyers (the heroin-chic soccer coach from “Bend it like Beckham”) adroitly portrays one of the most fascinating characters in recent cinema. Chris is at once despicable and admirable, gripped by paranoia as he faces the temptations of wealth and beauty. Rhys-Meyers skillfully contorts his gorgeous face to convey his character’s genuine admiration for his wife, uncontrollable sexual attraction for his mistress, and maniacal desperation to not lose the fortune he has gained.

“Match Point” epitomizes Woody Allen’s distinctive ability to simultaneously revere and fear women. Johansson joins the esteemed ranks of Mia Farrow, Diane Keaton and Meryl Streep; women who Allen portrays as both the model of feminine perfection and as the downfall of man. Nola doesn’t have the quirkiness of Annie Hall, the innocence of “Manhattan” jailbait Tracey, or the frantic delusions of Anjelica Houston’s doomed mistress in “Crimes and Misdemeanors” (the Allen film to which “Match Point” bears the most similarity); instead, she seems painfully real. Johansson appears entirely vulnerable while exuding sexual confidence, giving a heartrendingly dynamic performance as a woman with nothing to live for but her love affair.

While Johansson’s performance nearly eclipses the film’s other merits, much of “Match Point”’s strength can be attributed to Allen’s spectacular writing and directing. He masterfully deludes the audience with intentionally exaggerated love scenes, expressionistic camerawork and a powerful opera score, leading them to think that there might be a happy ending in store for the young protagonists. But in this twisted love story there is no clear explanation for the perverse lives his characters lead, making the film a remarkably engaging meditation.

Allen may never again portray New York, or the insane relationships of New Yorkers, with his former success, but if he continues to film in London with such talented young stars, he might just draw another ace.

—Staff writer Kristina M. Moore can be reached at moore2@fas.harvard.edu.