Allen's `Aphrodite' revives his trademark bawdy humor
The plot revolves around Lenny Weinrib (Allen), a neurotic Jewish sportswriter who, whipped into submission by his art-dealer wife Amanda (Helena Bonham Carter), agrees to adopt a child. As Amanda becomes more and more wrapped up in her work, the marriage begins to disintegrate, and Lenny becomes obsessed with finding the mother of their adopted child.
Despite the warnings of the chorus, Lenny continues his search and eventually finds the adopted son's mother, who turns out to be a hooker/porn actress named Linda Ash (Mira Sorvino). Linda's childish simplicity attracts Lenny, and he develops a paternal/romantic interest in the hooker.
As portrayed by Sorvino, Linda Ash is a cheap, classless bimbo with a vapid smile and a voice reminiscent of Miss Piggy's. Because she is so naive and, well, stupid, Linda is able to be completely at ease with herself. While other screen hookers (Julia Roberts' Pretty Woman , for example) are ashamed of their profession, Linda announces proudly that she has starred in such films as Enchanted Pussy and decorates her apartment with phallic symbols. Sorvino resists the temptation to play the character as a caricature and gives the woefully dumb Linda real sensitivity and, to the extent that it is possible, depth.
The rest of the cast is fine, but often underused. As Amanda, Carter is given little to do besides struggle with an American accent and cheat on Lenny with a slimy art-dealer played by Peter Weller. Faring better is Michael Rappaport as Kevin, an idiotic boxer/aspiring onion farmer whom Lenny sets up with Linda. Watching Linda and the equally stupid Kevin relate to one another is one of the movie's highlights.
The humor in Mighty Aphrodite is bawdier than the humor in Allen's recent films. The stuffiness that characterized films such as Crimes and Misdemeanors is not present. It is as if Allen's very public romantic problems and the public response to them has given him a devil-may-care attitude and liberated him to do what he does best -- make people laugh. But in concentrating on making people laugh, Allen pulls almost all his dramatic punches. He sets up dramatic situations -- Amanda cheats on Lenny, Kevin hits Linda -- and then resolves them without conflict.
Given Allen's recent romantic troubles, the relationship between Lenny and the much younger Linda is vaguely disturbing. But the problem with the film is not that it is too disturbing, but that it is not disturbing enough. Allen glosses over potential conflicts in favor of a neatly-wrapped-up plot. The result is an entertaining, sometimes hilarious film that leaves you wishing that Allen had been a little more challenging and well, tragic.
This item appeared in the Arts & Entertainment section of the November 3, 1995 issue.
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