MANHATTAN A SYNOPSYS PRODUCTION USA 1979 DIRECTOR Woody Allen STARRING Woody Allen (Isaac Davis) Margot Hemingway (Tracy) Diane Keaton (Mary) Michael Murphy (Yale) Meryl Streep (Jill) In Manhattan, Isaac Davis is a divorced writer of TV shows unhappy with his job. His ex-wife left him to live with another woman and now she is writing a book about her relationship with Isaac. He dates a seventeen-year-old high-school student, Tracy, who is in love with him, but he does not love her. When he meets Mary, the lover of his married best friend Yale, he gets an infatuation on her. He finishes with Tracy and has an affair with Mary, affecting the lives of many people including his own. BEFORE VIEWING Answer the following questions. FILM CLIP 1 1. Have you ever been to New York? If so, tell your schoolmates about your experience. If you haven t, explain why you would like to go, or you wouldn t. 2. Do you know how many boroughs New York City has? 3. Have you seen any films directed by Woody Allen or with him as an actor? If so, do you remember the title(s)? Now watch the film clip and fill in the script with the following expressions: adored New York City all out of proportion all the angles beautiful women contemporary culture jungle cat many people television, crime, garbage the great tune too romantic tough and romantic what season was The film opens with a montage of images of Manhattan accompanied by George Gershwin s Rhapsody in Blue1. TV writer Isaac Davis (Woody Allen) is introduced as a man writing a book about his love for New York City. CHAPTER ONE: He adored New York City. He idolised it all out of proportion. Oh, no, make that he romanticised it (1) ................................................. To him no matter (2) ................................................., this was still a town that existed in black and white and pulsated to (3) ................................................. of George Gershwin . Uh, no. Let me start this over CHAPTER ONE: He was (4) ................................................. about Manhattan as he was about everything else. He thrived on the hustle, bustle of the crowds and the traffic. To him, New York meant (5) ................................................. and street-smart guys who seemed to know (6) ................................................. Ah, corny, too corny, for a man of my taste. Let me try and make it more profound. CHAPTER ONE: He adored New York City, to him it was a metaphor for the decay of (7) .................................................. The same lack of individual integrity to cause so (8) ................................................. to take the easy way out, was rapidly turning the town of his dreams. No, it s gonna be too preachy. I mean, face it, I wanna sell some books here. CHAPTER ONE: He (9) ................................................., although to him it was a metaphor for the decay of contemporary culture. How hard it was to live in a society desensitised by drugs, loud music, (10) ................................................. Too angry, I don t wanna be angry. CHAPTER ONE: He was as (11) ................................................. as the city he loved. Behind his black-rimmed glasses was the coiled sexual power of a (12) ................................................. I love this. New York was his town and it always would be. ONLINE RESOURCES 1. George Gershwin (1898-1937): American composer and pianist. He composed both popular and classical music. After viewing activities FINISHING TOUCHES Module 7 243