9:30am Thursday 8th June 2000
COLOURFUL characters fill the latest offering from Hollywood's most prolific screenwriter and director Woody Allen in his latest production Sweet and Lowdown.
The film takes an endearing look at the life of fictional jazz hero Emmet Ray, played by Sean Penn, in a humorous and loving documentary profile.
The film uses the documentary medium to give the film a grounding in history, establishing Emmet's character firmly within the jazz tradition of the 1930's.
Emmet Ray is a man on his way up, touring the clubs of East and West coast America but he is a man who can never settle down.
Throughout the film jazz aficionados, including critic Nat Hentoff, join Allen in telling the tale of Emmett Ray, recalling anecdotes from his life, reviews and recordings made by this apparently great but temperamental guitarist.
The feel of the documentary is tongue-in-cheek but the element of validity given by the interviewees speaking directly to camera establishes a realistic context and a deeper understanding of the man and the musician.
A composite character, Emmet combines many of the eccentric traits of real-life jazz musicians. In a colourful age, he is depicted as one of its most vibrant and quirky characters.
With a passion for sharp suits, slick hairstyles, drink and locomotives, Emmet is a simple man made complex by his musical talent.
He is an alcoholic who often appears on stage drunk, or doesn't appear at all, supplementing his income by pimping when his generosity leaves him penniless.
Sean Penn's portrayal of Emmet Ray is superb. His thin moustache and coiffured hair bring a flamboyance to the character he plays as a sensitive simple rogue, unable to settle down and unable to love.
Penn, who apparently had never played guitar before the film, mastered the dextrous fingering for some 30 virtuoso jazz songs for the film and does so brilliantly. The music, meanwhile, is ghosted by Howard Alden.
Allen has created Emmet as a fickle peacock of a man, Sean Penn's performance expertly conveying the emotion and comedy of the character.
A tragi-comic figure, Emmet is intensely egotistical and creatively brilliant. Despite shouting his own genius from the rooftops, he remains in awe of real-life jazz legend and fellow guitarist Django Reinhart, epitomising his own insecurities.
As we watch Emmet's career progress we also witness his love affair with the mute Hattie, played by Samantha Morton, best known in Britain for her television appearances as Harriet in Emma and in the BBC's The History of Tom Jones.
Having fallen for Emmet, Hattie's innocence and charm, which bring out Emmet's own insecurities, produce the film's most poignant scenes.
The love affair is played out in silence by Morton, whose performance is magnificent. Her character Hattie is also a tragic figure, representing purity, trust and honesty in a harsh world.
Hattie's face tells her story and its openness is delightful, comic and touching in equal measure.
In sharp contrast to Hattie is the character of Blanche as played by Uma Thurman, best known for her part in Pulp Fiction opposite John Travolta and opposite John Malkovitch and Glen Close in Dangerous Liaisons as Cecile de Volanges.
A high society girl, with all the right clothes and all the right moves, Blanche's relationship with Emmet provides an entirely new comic twist to the film.
A would-be author, her constant attempts to analyse Emmet serve clearly to show their incompatibility but create the basis for an interesting comic twist to the plot.
Allen puts the ambiguity of history and the couple's relationship to good use by exploring the subject of truth and whether a third party can tell an accurate tale of another man's life. What is true? What is embellishment?
In this sense. the film is reminiscent of one of Allen's earlier works Broadway Danny Rose (1984), once again a story told through the collaboration of friends and colleagues based on hearsay and anecdote.
The humour of Sweet and Lowdown is less direct and bullish than many of Allen's films, which may make it more accessible to a wider audience.
Whether you love Woody Allen or hate him, this film is one not to be missed, if for no other reason than the superb performances of Sean Penn and Samantha Morton.
A knowledge of jazz is certainly not a prerequisite for viewers of this film either, but for lovers of jazz there is even more to recommend it. u u u u u
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