Summer is finally here, that magical time of year when a talented, well-liked actress is cast in a new Woody Allen film, and we balance our excitement at seeing her get a plum role with the growing uneasy sense that someday, we’ll have to actually examine how we feel about Woody Allen.
Variety reports that Kate Winslet is the latest actress to play muse to the venerable director, starring in his 47th feature, an as-yet-untitled followup to next month’s Cafe Society. Per Allen’s usual methods, he will be writing as well as directing, and details of the new film’s plot are closely guarded secrets. And as usual, we as moviegoers will have to weigh the artistic value of classic films like Annie Hall, Hannah And Her Sisters, and Crimes And Misdemeanors against the numerous allegations leveled against Allen by various family members.
Try not to let those questions spoil your enjoyment of Winslet’s performance, though.The actress is on a hot streak, coming off an Oscar nomination for Steve Jobs, a prominent place in an ensemble that included Chiwetel Ejiofor, Gal Gadot, Woody Harrelson, Aaron Paul, and Michael K. Williams in Triple 9, and an upcoming role opposite Idris Elba in The Mountain Between Us.
Variety also speculates that Amazon may end up distributing Allen’s next film, as the auteur and the streaming content giant have an ongoing relationship.