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Woody Allen, Diane Keaton, Harold Gould, Sol Frieder, Olga Georges-Picot ... see more see more... , Henri Czarniak , Despo Diamantidou , Feodor Atkine , Alfred Lutter , Jessica Harper , James Tolkan , Georges Adet , Frank Adu , Edmond Ardisson , Albert Augier , Yves Barsacq , Lloyd Battista , Yves Brainville , Gerard Buhr , Brian Coburn , Patricia Crown , Sandor Elès , Luce Fabiole , Florian , Jacqueline Fogt , Larry Hankin , Tony Jay , Jack Lenoir , Leib Lensky , Jacques Maury , Aubrey Morris , Denise Péron , Beth Porter , Shimen Ruskin , Zvee Scooler , C.A.R. Smith , Alan Tilvern , Howard Vernon , Tutte Lemkow , Fred Smith , Roger Lumont , Glenn Williams , Chris Sanders , Jack Berard , Ed Marcus , Hélène Vallier

Woody Allen's Love and Death is purportedly a satire of all things Russian, from Leo Tolstoy and Fyodor Dostoyevsky novels to Sergei Eisenstein films, but it plays more like a spin on Bob Hope's Monsi... read more read more...eur Beaucaire. Allen plays Boris, a 19th century Russian who falls in love with his distant (and married) cousin Sonja (Diane Keaton). Pressed into service with the Russian army during the war against Napoleon, Boris accidentally becomes a hero, then goes on to win a duel against a cuckolded husband (Harold Gould). He returns to Sonja, hoping to settle down on the Steppes somewhere, but Sonja has become fired up with patriotic fervor, insisting that Boris join a plot to kill Napoleon. Intellectual in-jokes abound in Love and Death, and other gags are basic Allen one-liners; for instance, after being congratulated for his lovemaking skills, Boris replies nonchalantly, "I practice a lot when I'm alone." The pseudo-Russian ambience of Love and Death is comically enhanced by the Sergey Prokofiev compositions on the musical track. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

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88% liked it

17,321 ratings

Critics

100% liked it

16 critics

PG, 1 hr. 25 min.

Directed by: Woody Allen

Release Date: June 10, 1975

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DVD Release Date: July 5, 2000

Stats: 1,026 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (1,026)

  • moonrivers
    April 21, 2012
    moonrivers
    In this early Allen effort his love for the Marx Bros. (particularly Groucho) is worn on his sleeve and the picture is very reminiscent of Mel Brooks' own Twelve Chairs. Throw in a couple of 70's style psuedo-intellectual "conversations" ("I'm overwhelming you with my superioroc... read moreity!") and you have a fun, silly, younger Allen, not so impressed with himself yet, easier to relate to. He never finds anyone as good as he to play himself, we know, and his infatuation w/Keaton allows her Dumont-like status beside him.
  • mjgildea
    December 2, 2009
    mjgildea
    Love and Death is pretty much your standard Woody Allen fare from the 70s. It borrows heavily from Ingmar Bergman and the Marx Brothers and at times is downright hysterical but once its over I'm not going to really give it a second thought. I would've given this a 3 1/2 star rati... read moreng if it wasn't for that last act, but since the only Russian novel I've ever read was Nabokov's Lolita most of the references were lost on me. The warm cockles line had me rolling almost as much as the scene where Sonja's first husband dies and the look on Diane Keaton's face during it. And speaking of which, Keaton was so goddamned cute. Worth it for her if nothing else even if her comic timing's not as good as Allen's...
  • kenstachnik
    April 30, 2009
    kenstachnik
    Possibly my new favorite Allen film. Filled with his signature blend of philoso-comedy, Allen pays tribute to Bergman and Dostoevsky in only the way he can. Full of amazing screwball dialog to boot.
  • mwilliams078
    January 4, 2009
    mwilliams078
    Love and Death, starring Woody Allen and Diane Keaton is hillarious. What a great take on Russian grand films....soo funny.
  • aliceinpunderland
    September 13, 2008
    aliceinpunderland
    Terrible. Just terrible. Pedantic philosophy and overbearing slapstick. I love Woody but he is too self-indulgent in this.
  • jennifxu
    May 26, 2008
    jennifxu
    Some scenes were kind of hilarious but I prefer Woody's versions romcom or dramedy to straight comedy anyday.
  • DragonEyeMorrison
    October 4, 2007
    DragonEyeMorrison
    Early Allen flicks are still his best. This being the most polished of the bunch.
  • fb1619601747
    September 7, 2011
    fb1619601747
    Watch this movie just for Diane Keaton. I noticed a couple of parallels to Annie Hall, which of course came after this and was a big improvement. Pretty funny stuff, but not as philosophically engaging as some of his later films.
  • fb20312798
    November 11, 2011
    fb20312798
    Gloriously absurd. Its also a pretty effective parody of Russian novels and Ingmar Bergman films.
  • thirdway821
    February 19, 2011
    thirdway821
    A light comedy that tries to well...put in as many slapstick laughs as possible. Allen and Keaton have great chemistry together. I guess those two were sort of made for each other on screen. Allen uses a bit of Bergman elements and I also noticed in later scenes when he is questi... read moreoning the meaning of God and death he addresses his view to the audience. Call it a trademark. "Love And Death" feels like theater play, never takes itself seriously and stays within it's grounds.

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Critic Reviews

Emanuel Levy
April 26, 2011
Emanuel Levy, EmanuelLevy.Com

Thus early Woody Allen film is quite a funny, often even poignant satire of Russian literature and Russian mores. Full Review

Fernando F. Croce
February 14, 2010
Fernando F. Croce, CinePassion

Woody Allen meets Dostoyevsky, and the two compare misanthropic views Full Review

Rich Cline
April 18, 2005
Rich Cline, Shadows on the Wall

silly and likable

Dennis Schwartz
March 25, 2005
Dennis Schwartz, Ozus' World Movie Reviews

Sometimes funny spoof of War and Peace. Full Review

Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat
January 18, 2004
Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat, Spirituality and Practice

Stomps all over the games we play to pretend we're important Full Review

Ken Hanke
August 22, 2002
Ken Hanke, Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)

The beginning of Allen's great period and probably his funniest film

March 26, 2009
Variety

Click to read the article Full Review

Roger Ebert
October 23, 2004
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

Click to read the article Full Review

Vincent Canby
May 20, 2003
Vincent Canby, New York Times

Click to read the article Full Review

John A. Nesbit
October 26, 2008
John A. Nesbit, Old School Reviews

No review available.

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

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Facts

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    • Sonia: [Sonia's despised husband--played by Allen-- tenderly yet erotically touches her shoulder when they are in bed at home late at night] Not here.
    • Napoleon: How much of your feelings for me are because I rule half of Europe?
    • Sonia: Oh, I'd say half my feelings. It evens out.
    • Sonia: I guess you could say I'm half saint, half whore.
    • Boris: Nothingness. Non-existence. Black emptiness.
    • Sonia: What did you say?
    • Boris: Oh, I was just planning my future.
    • Sonia: He kissed me.
    • Boris: Any place I should know about?
    • Sonia: He warmed the cockles of my heart.
    • Boris: That's just great. Nothing like hot cockles.
    • Sonia: To love is to suffer. To avoid suffering one must not love. But then one suffers from not loving. Therefore, to love is to suffer; not to love is to suffer; to suffer is to suffer. To be happy is to love. To be happy, then, is to suffer, but suffering makes one unhappy. Therefore, to be unhappy, one must love or love to suffer or suffer from too much happiness. I hope you're getting this down.
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Love and Death Trivia

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  • pirates, love, action. sadness, and death  Answer »
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