MOVIE REVIEW - Blue Jasmine

Woody Allen has written and directed another late summer comedy/drama, this one is called Blue Jasmine starring the wonderful Cate Blanchett.

As with most Allen pieces, it has that "Allen" feel to it.  Strange and quirky, but wonderfully written with snappy dialogue and a story you have not seen before.  Allen almost always gets great originality points. His movies over he past 5 years or so, have been some of the best movies of his long career.  Vicky Cristina Barcelona, To Rome With Love, and the incredible Midnight In Paris have simply been gems.  Although this may not be quite in that category, this is still pretty good.

Blue Jasmine is the story of "Jasmine" (Blanchett) and her sort of sister Ginger.  Jasmine was a rich and narcissistic socialite wife of a long time crook and con man business man in New York City.  After he is arrested and jailed and the entire fortune is lost, Jasmine moves to San Francisco to live with her sister Ginger  (Sally Hawkins).   Ginger is a blue collar worker, the furthest thing from a socialite and she opens her modest apartment to Jasmine.  And the two worlds collide.

Jasmine is in horrible shape mentally. She is on a steady diet of pills, and booze, and has little tolerance for anything that isn't about her.  She is trying to start over again, but she is her own worst enemy, making enemies of Gingers boyfriend and generally anyone she comes in contact with. This is told in flashback form and we keep going back to her life in New York to see how she got to this point.  Is she too far gone?

This is a very strong story about the phony lives that many East Coast elite can live and real life is simply too real, and to honest for many to deal with.  Nothing about Jasmine is real, and that's the wonderful conflict she has with Ginger.  Although Ginger has little, she does have a sense of who she is, and where she fits into the world.  This is told with a nice dash of drama, and of course some real funny lines and smart humor that make this typical Woody Allen.  To be fair, this is not the feel good movie of the summer, but it is strangely entertaining and easy to watch, even though some of the subject matter is tough.

Blanchett is terrific as the insanely unlikable Jasmine, as this is a large and challenging role. She delivers.  But, the real star is Hawkins.  She is fantastic as the humble Ginger.  I thought her casting was crucial for this movie. Blanchett of course is going to be great, but Ginger is a huge role, and Hawkins is great, and compliments Blanchett wonderfully.  The casting of Ginger was the key to this move and they got it right.

Blue Jasmine.  It's not Midnight In Paris, but still worth a watch.