Play It Again, Sam (1972 film)
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| Play It Again, Sam | |
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 original movie poster |
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| Directed by | Herbert Ross |
| Produced by | Arthur P. Jacobs |
| Written by | Woody Allen |
| Starring | Woody Allen Diane Keaton Tony Roberts |
| Distributed by | Paramount Pictures |
| Release date(s) | May 4, 1972 U.S. release |
| Running time | 85 min |
| Language | English |
| IMDb profile | |
This article is about the 1972 Woody Allen film. For other uses of the phrase, see Play it again, Sam.
Play It Again, Sam is a play and 1972 film written by and starring Woody Allen, originally entitled Aspirins for Three. The film was directed by Herbert Ross.
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[edit] Summary
The original play and the movie follow the same lines: Allan Felix (played by Allen) has just been through a messy divorce. His two friends, Linda (Diane Keaton) and Dick (Tony Roberts), attempt to convince him to go out with women again. He agrees, and throughout the film, he is seen receiving dating advice from the ghost of Humphrey Bogart, who is visible and audible only to Allan.
As the film goes on we see that, when it comes to women, Allan puts on a false mask, a facade. He attempts to become sexy and sophisticated, only to end up ruining his chances by being too nervous. Eventually he develops feelings for Linda, around whom he feels relatively at ease and does not so much feel the need to don the mask.
However, as she is married to Dick, their relationship is ultimately doomed, just as it was for Rick (Bogart) and Ilsa (Ingrid Bergman) in the 1942 film, Casablanca. The ending is a parody of Casablanca's famous ending. The fog, the trenchcoats worn and the dialogue are all reminiscent of the film, as Allan nobly explains to Linda why she has to go with her husband, rather than staying behind with Allan.
[edit] Trivia
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- Woody Allen and Diane Keaton first met playing their roles on Broadway. By the time the play opened, they were lovers. When it closed, in 1970, they stopped living together.
- Allen was fully aware that Bogart never actually said "Play It Again, Sam" in Casablanca. The title was chosen due to its clichéd familiarity. This is in keeping with the Bogart characterization, which itself is a cliché.
- The Bogart character's comment, "You're as nervous as Lizabeth Scott was just before I blew her brains out!" is a reversal of the way it actually happened in Dead Reckoning.
- His character is said to be 29. In real life he was 35.
- A character by the name of Woody Allen appears in an episode of Quantum Leap named "Play It Again, Seymour." In the episode, Sam leaps into a detective investigating the murder of his partner, and eventually ends in a scene parodying the final scene of Casablanca.
[edit] References in popular culture
- The Family Guy episode "Play it Again, Brian" is partly modeled after this movie.
- This movie was spoofed on a third-season episode of SCTV, in a sketch entitled "Play it Again, Bob"; in it, Woody Allen (Rick Moranis) is getting advice from the ghost of Bing Crosby (Joe Flaherty) to clinch a business deal with Bob Hope (Dave Thomas).
- The Bertie Higgins song "Key Largo" is about the movie of the same name and about Bogart movies in general; one line puts emphasis on the phrase "play it again."
[edit] Quotes
- Dick: You're Insecure? What about the day I've had, Today I bought 100 acres in Florida and then found out that 98 of it was quicksand. My syndicate wanted to build a golf course. Now all we can do is build a 3 hole course with the biggest sand trap in the world.
Allan Felix is trying to make conversation with a morose-looking woman at an art museum:
- Allan: That's quite a lovely Jackson Pollock, isn't it?
- Woman: Yes, it is.
- Allan: What does it say to you?
- Woman (speaking in monotone): It restates the negativeness of the universe. The hideous lonely emptiness of existence. Nothingness. The predicament of man forced to live in a barren, godless eternity like a tiny flame flickering in an immense void with nothing but waste, horror, and degradation, forming a useless, bleak straitjacket in a black, absurd cosmos.
- Allan: What are you doing Saturday night?
- Woman: Committing suicide.
- Allan: What about Friday night?
- (She gives him a look and walks away)
