Kent M. Beeson takes a nostalgic look at the Woody Allen’s past future.
The third American Dystopias entry is here, with a look at Woody Allen’s Sleeper. Not a fan, despite liking a lot of Allen’s work. I don’t really come out and say this directly, but I kinda think Allen is a better dramatist than comedian. Anyway, a taste:
Sleeper, like Allen's previous movies, exists as a container for a series of jokes, some visual, some verbal. This container is, I think, pretty unusual for a comedy at the time, perhaps even a first: a Brave New World-esque dystopia. What's more, it seems clear to me (even if my research didn't confirm this) that Allen was specifically influenced by George Lucas' THX 1138. The emphasis on architecture as signifiers of "the future," the smooth-faced robots in black uniforms, the white work-wear of the citizens, the unusual-looking automobiles... or maybe those are just what artists in the early '70s thought was futuristic. Regardless, it's also a savvy move, because it allows Allen to throw any bizarre, absurd gag into the frame, and since we're dealing with an imaginary society two hundred years in the future, it fits right in with zero dissonance. (Exhibit A: One of Luna's party guests enters wearing a swastika shirt along with a tallit around his neck.) It might also be the realistic of dystopias I'm looking at in this series, in that for a number of people, the fascistic tyranny is a small price to pay for relative comfort. (It's not realistic in that, in our world, it's the robots that will have the pretentious parties while the humans do the work.)
Today’s game material is a new descriptor for the Cypher System: Neurotic. I intended to also have a new focus, Is a Woody Allen Character to pair it with, but couldn’t finish in time. I got quite a few choices of Allen movies to return to, so when I do, I’ll present it then.
Enjoy! Also, if you hadn’t noticed, AT70s hasn’t posted for a month. To make up for that and get back on my schedule, the next four entries will appear a week later as opposed to two weeks. The things I do for you folks!
NEXT TIME, ON AGAINST THE ‘70S:
