Load of rubbish!!

Best movie of this year hands down!

The joyful confection is coated in a sparkly gloss, bright enough to gleam from the darkest, most cynical corners.

The first must-see film of the year.

I watched this movie at the time of its release when I was in my twenties and found it unremarkable. After many years and a serious relationship, this finally hit home.In documentary-style, Allen shows us what most middle aged couples fear to face: the dissolution of their marriages, due to habit, boredom and frustration. The kind of situation that arises simply by living with someone for many years, without any major dramatic event occurring.Allen and Farrow plays Gabe and Judy. Since the movie was the last before their acrimonious split, most of their dialogue sounds uncomfortably realistic. Pollack and Davis are their friends Jack and Sally, who set the story in motion with their "trial" separation.Soon all four friends are entangled in new relationship or fantasize about one. Sally and then Judy are attracted to romantic Michael (Neeson), while Gabe is infatuated with Rain (Juliette Lewis) a student, who reciprocates.However, Rain is "just" a serial older-men lover with the most annoying nasal voice and this indiscretion ends nowhere. On a side note, I never liked Lewis, who once again plays a lascivious nymphet with little energy.I am not a big fan of Farrow, either. With her oversize, thick sweaters, long skirts and super-short hair Farrow is at her most unattractive in this movie. Her character is also whiny and pushy, making her my least favorite of the quartet.The movie ends with a twist that I found hard to believe, and a lot of ambiguity about the future of the characters that I found a lot more believable. Not for the romantics, but definitely worthy.

I am not going to recount the plot. All I will say is that this is his best movie out of all the films I have seen of his. Before I watched the movie, I saw that the movie was rated R. Surprisingly, the film was not as shrill as I thought it would be. There is, of course, sexual content and foul language in the movie. There are no sex scenes, but the language in the film is what ultimately gave the film an R rating.The film works because it has a realistic tone. It may be a drama, but it is not depressing. It is also not as cerebral as many of his other flicks (i.e. Manhattan and Crimes and Misdemeanors). So it obviously is a film that has a less pretentious mood. Combining these three qualities while also balancing the rational and non-rational elements of the relationships in the movie, the film ultimately has a very natural flow to it.The actors are all good in this movie. Woody Allen and Mia Farrow are good. Not surprisingly this is Mia Farrow's last flick; I counted her being in twelve Woody Allen flicks overall. Juliette Lewis is also good and has a role that strikingly seems to match the other types of characters that she portrays in her other films; perhaps she is typecast. Liam Neeson is decent; it is interesting to see him in a Woody Allen movie. After all, it does not seem to be the type of movie he would ordinarily star in. Sydney Pollack and Judy Davis are the actors who steal the show in the final analysis, however. Some/many will disagree, but I hold firm to my humble opinion.For all I know, my deeming of this to be his best movie may become different. My opinion may change if I see another flick of his such as Blue Jasmine or Broadway Danny Rose. It is interesting to note that the highest rated movie of his that I rated is not a comedy. It is rather unpredictable as to whether or not I will give a thumbs-up to one of his dramas or his comedies after watching one of Woody Allen's movies.Concluding note - It generally seems to be the case that Woody Allen's movies are getting better as the years go by. Of course, he may have some lulling periods, but that's to be expected of anyone's work. I highly recommend this movie; it teaches the viewer to be careful about who you marry. Entering into a relationship is obviously not to be taken lightly. Secondly, it also causes one to ask the question, "Will this relationship work?" And that, as one who would watch the movie may agree, is not a question that is easy to answer. Problems latent and seemingly easy to solve may blow up in the couple's face; conversely, problems that seem impossible to solve actually turn out to be more fixable than one would think.8/10

I am a big fan of Woody Allen works, no surprise here. I even find some of his weakest efforts to be above average films. Husband and Wives is far from being one of his weakest efforts though, pretty like the opposite actually. It depiction of the people relationships is spot on here. Worth Noting that he clearly had a tendency to write about 'old man relationship with young girl' and relationships breaking up. Sounds like interesting subjects, being said I'm not a old man nor a young girl, but the dialogs and the characters make it feel so interesting, and above all, real, that's hard to not be interested at all. The separation thing is so true, and so surreal at same time…that is probably why it's so interesting. The metaphor is what is worthy, after all, so thumbs up.But anyway, Woody shows here a history about two couples: one of them going through a difficult time of separation, and the other pretending that are well, but very instable and weak, even weaker than the marriage of their friendly couple. And of course, there is always a lot of discussions (typical of Allen's films), comic reliefs, and there is also an apparently 'psychologist' talking to each character, inter called with their actions. What I like the most in Allen's films is the character development. Is so beautifully made, and so simple at the same time. He in fact has a unique way to do it. In my opinion, he is better than his biggest idol on cinema, Ingmar Bergman, which also was excellent. The editing also makes it looks like a found footage film, and the cinematography may be comparable to an actual sitcom, like The Office, for example(being said Husband and Wives was released ten years before the aforementioned TV-show), full of zoom-ins and shaky camera, looking like an amateurish thing. Interesting choice. And no, it not abuses at all of that so 'controversial' techniques.There are a few recognizable faces in the film, Woody Allen himself, Mia Farrow, Juliette Lewis, Liam Neeson…they all gave average to good performances, what is usual in Allen films(for some reason). If you are a Allen fan, you cannot skip that film. 8.5/10

My partner and I, while also watching other films, are working our way through the Woody Allen library. We're making our way from A to Z and just last night watched Husbands and Wives.What I liked: What isn't there to like? Woody Allen turned in perhaps his greatest performance to date. He was witty and intelligent without being goofy, and didn't rely too much on physical humor. As usual Mia Farrow was excellent along side Mr Allen and even stole the show at certain points. Liam Neison, Sydney Pollack, Judy Davis, Juliette Lewis, and so many others performed fabulously. The dialogue, focus on relationships, single camera shots, and the soundtrack were all on par with other Allen movies I've seen. Unlike most movies, I didn't really notice much of an arch. There were a few dramatic parts – marriages ending and coming back together, flirtation with adultery – but for the most part the film started at a dinner engagement with strong dialogue and ended much the same.What I didn't like: I'm hard pressed to find something I didn't like, but I also don't consider it the best movie I've ever seen, so there must be something. I suppose I would have enjoyed Allen and Lewis actually having an affair. Other than that, there's nothing negative I can think of to say. A life lived without seeing this film is a live lived incompletely.