MAGIC IN THE MOONLIGHT makes the bold declaration that rational thinking and logic cannot co-exist where passion and love are the ruling forces. At first Allen satirises romance through the character of spiritualist Sophie (Emma Stone) and her prospective fiancé Brice (Hamish Linklater). As Brice serenading her with his  ukulele, he only succeeds in being utterly laughable. However, once the plot develops, a new romance between Sophie and magician Stanley (Colin Firth) romance doesn’t seem out of the question.

Allen’s narrative is cleverly laced with irony. It is ironic that Stanley only begins to realise what love actually is when he is in a scientific environment. As he and Sophie gaze up at the moon in the observatory only then does he actually notice the moon and not just see it. He is awe of its magic that he so profusely dismisses. Stanley’s cynicism is at once stifling but as the audience become accustom to his nature, his idiotic characteristics become apparent.

‘Love is what one is willing to give up for it’.

Woody Allen’s MAGIC IN THE MOONLIGHT is a brilliant exposé of the chic lifestyle of the 1920s. Allen captures the aesthetic and aura of the era wonderfully. The film has a WIZARD OF OZ feel, with over-exposed lighting creating extreme, bright colours – the red of the roses and the greens of the garden. Slightly reminiscent of David Lean’s BLITHE SPIRIT, MAGIC IN THE MOONLIGHT follows a bunch of aristocrats attempting to unmask a fraud, only to find their estimations completely thrown off balance.

This film is not without its glamour. Sophie’s dress at the party, which is filled with extravagant trinkets and lights, is a stunning demonstration of the extremely gifted and progressive costume designers of the period. In a display of Allen’s flawless comic timing, Sophie renders the quick-witted Stanley speechless when she shows off her engagement ring, whose magnitude is insulting to the point of embarrassment. But detracting from the overarching cynicism of Stanley and the glaring grimace of Sophie the charlatan, love is found in a most unexpected place. Allen’s comment on love, that it does not need glamour to blossom or propriety to be sustained, is a timeless one: ‘Love is what one is willing to give up for it’. This is another of Woody Allen’s classic films.

httpvh://youtu.be/LAwbwKURvm0