FRANCE 24 The Interview - Full interview with Woody Allen

[macfeetie]

Man - I agree with him

[Thegarethcrossman]

Watching this for about the 40th time. From bed. In fact, haven't been able to get out of it for weeks.

[TheRuthzitron]

Woody is a treasure!!

[renues]

What's Wrong With His Eye? His Wikipedia page shows the same thing...

[karmalevel]

So sad that he does not believe in God!!

[truvelocity]

@karmalevel Just because someone doesn't follow the road you are on doesn't mean they are lost. They are just as balanced and satisfied following theirs.

[karmalevel]

he is now pathetic! he has no faith do to pride and selfcenteredness!!!

[truvelocity]

@karmalevel You mean to tell me that if someone has no faith, the personality, accomplishments, and talent mean absolutely nothing to you? You just throw the baby out with the bath water? You just decide that people are pathetic who are your educators, your doctors, your movers and shakers in this world who don't believe in God are now pathetic? What is wrong with you?

[LillyyandLulu]

thumb up if you just think, yes.

[skapunkteddybear]

he makes me feel as if i'm going to die tomorrow. paranoia, check.

[truvelocity]

@skapunkteddybear You are. You were just born, yesterday.

[ChiroQuacker]

woody basically looks the same...

thats the good thing about looking like a little cheese eater...

he hasnt changed much

whereas leading men like beatty, redford aged bad and look weirdly old...

[Handiman544]

Woody Allen is not a genius. We tend to use that word too often. When people make sense, are practical, and tell the truth we think they are deep thinkers and so profound, when actually they're just using their brains to figure things out instead of worrying about what they look like, or what our hair looks like, etc. They are rather average. The problem is most of us are not even close to being average.

[F2Y]

@Handiman544 If most of us are below average, then wouldn't that make us the average and Woody Allen above average? Oh, you.

[Frantepic18]

@Handiman544 well, if it is "most of us" then it would technically be the average- being as average is a standard set by the masses. You are right to an extent but in some respects I would call Woody Allen a genius

[myrtlebox]

I'd like to talk to him someday. We have the identical view of life. Unfortunately, when you obsess over the pointlessness of life on a daily basis, it becomes difficult to be productive.  I like his 300 year re-cycling paradigm. It has always amazed me how few people think like this. It is the reality of life. All of the 'important' issues of today will be long forgotton several hundred years hence.

Unfortunately, religion will be alive and well...but maybe thats what people NEED.

[Planetoxo]

Ha ha. And I thought I was alone in thinking like you do Woody!

[ravish2165]

dirty sick woody will be drawling the net for asian underage brides, god save the children from these type of  freaks.

[mejiadav]

genius, there is no other word for him.

[Katmido302]

He is channeling Becker's Denial of Death, a book he recommends Annie Hall reads in 1974. A great book!

[dickielive]

love you woody. love you. wood make good friends, you and i. haha. this is an interview of SUBSTANCE. a rarity. marvelous honesty. hope you liked, too.

[rudolfik90]

he is soooo right. although he's actually one of the lucky people that won't be flushed with this big button as his movies are gonna stay alive and gonna be loved by next generations.

[choff56]

we are alll going to die , go over it , he has been saying the same shit over and over again for 50 years.

[5244vlad]

@choff56 hey,go and watch some more justin bieber..... you fool

[KingKook]

Humor is what's left after you realize that everything else is bullshit. If you're not laughing it's because you just don't get what's going on. This Woody fellow has a good sense of this but he still grasps at old, historic, nostalgic notions of "meaning." Why? Because he's a Jew, and Jews are so burdened with their heritage, it's ridiculous. A Jewish idea of a good time is not being recognized as a Jew. Unless it's by another Jew. Crazy, huh? Yeah, I know. I'm half Jewish and half crazy...

[planelover3640]

Im so pumped I get to play this guy for my english presentation let alone write a research paper on him, he's such a boss.

[salwood]

It's like he's telling everyone my own thoughts. Love it.

[gabriel82030]

Yes, why worry and live and let live is the motto. Life goes in cycles and dont despair and keep on working. Peace is what we should strive for no matter how. The meaning of life is within ourselves and we should try to find it.

[rhykko77]

I think our mission on earth is to figure out a way to make each of our lives better, and if we have anything left over, we might want to help others along the way.

[rjpra2]

@rhykko77 i disagree

[11Creativedotcom]

wow.

[AbsoluteDemon]

Woody, baby, don't you see that this is what you need to start making films about? You know you aren't some urbane thirty-something anymore -- why keep making films about them? Instead of churning out product every 1.5 years to keep yourself distracted, take a good hard look at what you're avoiding and address it on reels.

You don't have much time left. Give yourself the sendoff you deserve.

[rebelmilk]

@AbsoluteDemon

I think he addresses it in his films. I mean, he keeps writing neurotic or otherwise disturbed characters who are mostly plagued by these very ideas. Whatever Works is about an older genius neurotic who can't function because of the horror of thinking of that shit, and then, you know, he is saved by other people. Think about a movie that's about these issues with no comedy, nothing to balance it out. It's a lecture. Or it's an interview. This was nice, but it's not for movies.

[ProbablyOkay]

There is an abiding, supernatural love I have found only amongst Christians. It's not flawless, and every Christian I know has let me down or selfishly hurt me in some way, but always there is forgiveness and the love returns and remains. It's a love that I can only describe as supernatural, emanating from the grace of Christ and his saving work and it's the only hope I've found in this dark world. Every time Allen writes off Christ I so wish he could experience the joy and peace I feel.

[kaiagavin]

With all due respect, would someone please tell Woody about Salvia Divinorum so he can know through direct personal experience that magic does indeed exist and it will be a "good thing" for him to ingest this "legal" plant to see with eyes closed the Spirit (genie) of the (magic) lamp (light) and truly realize that his wish is its command. His intention is the key to finding this out for himself. LOVE is the magic.

[willopi]

Always thought dude was depressing

[vassilischr]

Death was always a stumbling block for him.

[SatiricalGnome]

he's not depressed, he's tired. he's got a cup of coffee in his hand.

[SatiricalGnome]

he's not depressed, he's tired. he's gott a cup of coffee in his hand, it's probably early in the morning

[tofubandito]

Gone off the deep end? Magic? Genius.

[metyuewb]

Well that's a high fucking plateau, I wish the biggest of my worries was the sun burning out.

[lapopofighting]

The only thing that will put an end your anxiety and worry is the thing you're so afraid of - death.

[aquares]

Wise words

[flandersfails]

Jeez, Woody, you're being so negative all the time!

[helloryca]

After just having watched Annie Hall for the 17th time, I'm struck by how closely he still resembles himself from 1977. The anxiety, the hypochondria, that life is divided into the horrible and the miserable. I mean, it's funny but I'm surprised he didn't find a way to chill that out over the years... it's as though he *wants* to drive himself crazy.

[Gallifrey1991]

I know he's 74 but he seems to have deteriorated a bit which is sad :(

[NSSAJB]

So wise. 

[NSSAJB]

So wise.

[Crusherv1]

I hope to God I get to meet him before the tragic day he departs from us. WOO-DY! WOO-DY!

[J03hb]

Allen should become a teacher.

[WeAreTheNight1]

@J03hb he is!

[anitasseo]

superlative, as always. i notice he´s each time a little more negative, in a way?--- don´t blame him for that, though (in fact he´s very brave).. but i still, in a way -even though i don´t do drugs anymore-, find magic in many things... animals, nature, old people, kids... music... just little moments. what i mean is, i do believe there´s "something else", even though i agree 99% with him in terms of the "big picture"......

[bottleracket]

Another uplifting tale by Woody Allen.

[LayItPlayItDown]

I love him even more right now! I've seen all his films & look forward to the next as the cinematic peak of this year. . . Perfect timing for me to hear this interview too as it's election-day today in Sweden and everybody has a frenzy about it. & by the way, this thought is reminiscent of the scene in "Hannah and her Sisters" where Allen's character ends up in the cinema. Soon we'll be flushed away & right now i find peace in that, so i'll go to bed ;) Love him for awaking me!

[khrismarang]

I just wanna give Woody a hug.

[ScaredPiglet]

He's always been quite an ugly, miserable old fart.

[anitasseo]

@ScaredPiglet you wish you did HALF one of his movies before you´re DEAD.

[JulieGringer]

Allways in my prayers Love-(greetins from Jesus:-) )

[LoizalDea70]

Love how he goes on about there being no meaning in the universe...conveying this core doubt...meaningfully. :-)

[walkmanjoe]

i want to see him star in one more movie.

i love him. the glasses,mannerisms, the way he dresses, the way he talks.

[RealTime88]

@walkmanjoe Me too. I just saw You Will Meet A Tall Dark Stranger and I thought it was so beautiful, funny, and sad.

[proceedapathy]

@walkmanjoe me too

[motioneccentrica]

@walkmanjoe

Your lame, you like his character his superficialities.

I like whats in his head.

[viniciusb]

@walkmanjoe Calm down, both his parents lived to be close to 100. He probably still have another 20+ years and may outlive many of us.

[AugustaJane]

@walkmanjoe He is! He's gonna be in his next movie! (it takes place in Rome!)

[MrCrazyproduction]

@walkmanjoe theres one coming out in 2012 i think in which Woody Allen has a role with Jesse Eisenberg. I think they've already started shooting

[cosmosyy]

Sounds convincing but, Woody, you don't have enough information at this point of time to make such a strong statements. We know next to nothing about physics and the universe.

[LoizalDea70]

@cosmosyy

exactly. Lot's of folks forget this. Lack of info and empirical data is a 2-way street. :-)

[internet1965]

@cosmosyy weird that you say that. he said nothing that has not been said by many physicists. Yes they are theories but they are not his theories. and you should look for a library because there is a lot we know about the universe.

[Tapiola2007]

Same Woody! Same neuroses! Same genius!

[anitasseo]

@Tapiola2007 he´s not a neurotic; maybe -respectfully-, you bought the carachters he played so very well... Saying he´s a neurotic and saying he´s a great actor are not the same things. Ask him if he considers himself a neurotic or not..

[Anoraqnophobia]

@fadsyt who is... :)

[septip123]

his philosophy is actually quite liberating. Or, as my dad used to say, "In a 100 years do you think anyone will give a shit?"

[MrGreen428]

@septip123 I agree. I think a lot of these people misinterpret how uplifting his statement really is.

[thefishpeddler]

Woody Rules!

[brock786]

he kinda looks like glen "big baby" davis here

[AkvileAlex]

New York lover.Not the first. :)

[ingentingnagonting]

He looks really old, but you can Not not love Woody!

[lonelygnome1]

well, SOMEbody forgot to take their prozac....

[KadooLovesYou]

Woody is Jewish they are the chosen race the linage of Jesus so he is bless and dosn't even realize it . Phenomenal !

[Hermy1138]

man!! he has aged!!!!

[diegocal]

hE IS MY FRIEND 

[uberwench7]

The whole reason I love Woody is because he is much further up the spiritual ladder than the majority, but there is further to climb and at the top you no longer believe that God is an 'under-achiever' but that in fact this really is the best of all possible worlds. I always thought that Woody was sub-consciously more enlightened that he expresses verbally though, based on the fact that he notoriously extracts so much humour from the absurd.

[ritter89]

@uberwench7 I disagree. Woody is an atheist and his films reflect his apathy and nihilism about the human condition, as well as his own life. What he's talking about here is not new in terms of philosophy, literature and science. Some of the best writers/thinkers have come to the same conclusions as Woody. In fact, his sound and fury quote is a Shakespeare reference. Shakespeare wrote "Life is a tale told by an idiot full of sound and fury signifying nothing".

[uberwench7]

@ritter89 I did not deny that Woody was an atheist so I fail to see why you point that out. I am also aware that he is not the first to be a pessimist. I think you are arguing that because a lot of great thinkers are pessimists, that pessimism is 'true' or 'the right way to think'. As I said before, I think that pessimism is just a rung on a ladder and that there is further to climb. If you want some corroboration of that from a 'great thinker', check out Nietzsche's Twilight of the Idols.

[DavidColumbia]

disappointing to hear woody talk about this rather simplified belief system

[alexalex3131]

98% athiest,2% agnostic. The 2% surprised me

[MAGICDRAGONPETE]

Wow! this interview is extremely thought provoking, asking the greatest question of all.

[zejjari1]

@MAGICDRAGONPETE

Thanks a lot, even if it's not written as usual... I’m Hakim Zejjari the freelance journalist who made the interview . It was quiet surreal to stay in front of the "myth", a kind of " Purple rose of the Cairo" experience.. and the interview turned magically into this conversation about life and death. Great moment!

[ejlorge]

I love Woody, but he's wrong... in a BIG way. The opposite of magical thinking is material thinking which says; I want a *logical* explanation NOW, on MY terms, which makes sense in a materialist world. Nihilism is nearly as childish as blind Magical(ism).

The genius of WA, though, is that in his work he plays both sides so you don't know what he really thinks... until now.

[ejlorge]

I do agree with him on the Artists struggle for meaning, though. It seems as though being an Artist is the only occupation that is preoccupied with the Absurd.

(Paint pretty pictures? Write a funny book? In the end, what is all worth, REALLY?)

[ritter89]

@ejlorge No, he's been extremely open about his atheism and subsequent nihilism for decades now, gong so far as to place certain books and symbols in his film (Ernest Becker's 'Denial of Death', his cancer diagnosis/suicide scene in Hanna and Her Sisters, the literally and figuratively blind religious optometrist in Crimes and Misdemeanors, etc). He's also talked about this topic in interviews and published writings since the early 70s.

[usergently]

"I'm not afraid of death, I just don't want to be there when it happens"

-Woody Allen