Salt in Wound

4 stars out of 5

Every time Woody Allen makes a movie, I go see that movie, and I tend to enjoy them. If that makes me an irrational man in your eyes, so be it. This time around, I was really impressed that, despite the comforting presence of many Allen touchstones, he was still able to come up with something new and entertaining.

I’d label Irrational Man a “light drama.” It deals with some heavy topics, sure, but I was smiling all the way through. A bouncy jazz-piano score nudged me in that direction as well.

Once again, Woody has allowed me to take a little air-conditioned summer vacation. This year, he sends us to Newport, Rhode Island. Joaquin Phoenix, as a disheveled, joyless philosophy professor, has shown up to teach the summer semester at a fictional well-regarded college. Woody seems to like asking the Big Questions these days, so why not bring in a philosophy professor to do the heavy lifting, right? (The movie starts with a quote from Immanuel Kant, fer crissakes.)

Is there a younger woman? Sure there is. But it’s college, so, not too random. For the second consecutive Woody summer release, we get Emma Stone, who I believe I’ve mentioned once or twice or 58 times that I’m a fan of.

And the topic here is, can philosophy really pan out in the real world? Can Phoenix commit an immoral act in the name of morality? In the process, can he regain his joie de vivre? And what about that beer gut?

This all plays out on a background on garden-variety immorality: an inappropriate student/teacher relationship (Phoenix is broken and Stone feels she can fix him), an age-appropriate relationship with fellow professor Parker Posey who is of course cheating on her husband, and an overheard conversation of a custody battle and a judge playing favorites.

There are laughs, but generally pretty subtle. Stone delivers a “shingles” punchline that I could hear Woody delivering, but she undersells the line, and it still works.

One thing I noted: I think Woody might have the middle class confused with the upper middle class. Stone is presented as down-to-earth, but there are piano recitals and a horse stable and her friend’s folks are art collectors. I’m guessing Woody doesn’t go slumming too often.

Still, the guy can still construct a solid script, well plotted out with some laughing and some thinking, and he knows how to direct top-flight talent, and he’s not trying to accomplish too much. Yup, I liked this one too.