Café Society

Lionsgate | Release Date: July 15, 2016

6.6	USER SCORE Generally favorable reviews based on 149 Ratings

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screenplayhouseSep 13, 2016

TOP TEN THINGS WRONG WITH CAFE SOCIETY

10. The title makes zero sense until deep into the movie. Then it feels wrong anyway. 09. Kristen Stewart was awful. Sorry. When Jesse becomes married absolutely no one would understand whyTOP TEN THINGS WRONG WITH CAFE SOCIETY

10. The title makes zero sense until deep into the movie. Then it feels wrong anyway.
09. Kristen Stewart was awful. Sorry. When Jesse becomes married absolutely no one would understand why he was still dreaming about Kristen. Flat soda.
08. Could you have chosen three actors that looked and sounded less like brothers?
07. Steve Carell was also miscast. But I felt he could have done more with the role to cover this up. He seemed to resent every minute of this film he appeared in.
06. I have to presume a scene or two with Carell and his wife were cut -- since 'Laura Palmer' played his wife and you'd never know it. otherwise.
05. Every mobster thug scene had nothing to do with the story. The 'comic violence' was there to make sure you remained awake. Kinda funny the first time (if you ignore this device having been used countless times in other Allen movies), pat the second, desperate the rest. This story did backflips to explain who Jesse inherited a successful nightclub. A simpler solution would have been his Uncle being an investor in it. That he created a club in NYC to get rid of Jesse from Hollywood. Just saying.
04. It's said that Woody likes to write smart roles for women. At this point: nonsense. What he does is give dumb female characters big words to say, which creates the illusion they're smart. But look at their behavior. And --
03. -- have you noticed Woody always writes 'himself' in as a male who criticizes women who refuse to love him? That's pretty warped.
02. My wife and I noticed the sets were the best part of the film.
01. A discussion of God was here. And a discussion of being indirectly responsible for a murder. Both listless memes at this point.… Expand

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

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festavarianAug 3, 2016

Totally disappointed in this predictable Allen "relationship saga". Eisenberg is acting as Allen's present day kyphotic doppelgänger, frenetically spewing out classic "Allenisms" that have grown very old. There is nothing cute or evenTotally disappointed in this predictable Allen "relationship saga". Eisenberg is acting as Allen's present day kyphotic doppelgänger, frenetically spewing out classic "Allenisms" that have grown very old. There is nothing cute or even entertaining about perpetuating this flawed and somewhat childish personality type for another generation. As usual, the movie is heavily steeped in Jewish argot. Only good performances by Stewart and Kat Edmonson save this non- imaginative Allen train wreck.… Expand

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

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SSH83Oct 22, 2016

Jesse Eisenberg was a horrible casting choice. He turned all the charming bits into freakish and sexual-harassment. There is no sympathy for the Bobby character at the end because of this. Just a pathetic weirdo/loser and you wonder why doJesse Eisenberg was a horrible casting choice. He turned all the charming bits into freakish and sexual-harassment. There is no sympathy for the Bobby character at the end because of this. Just a pathetic weirdo/loser and you wonder why do women even love him so. If the lead role was given to an actually charming actor, the movie would've worked much better.… Expand

1 of 2 users found this helpful11

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pdw123Aug 18, 2016

a totally banal picture, and so bad, that I'll probably have to forego all future Woody endeavors. And, I'm really tired of Eisenberg and his whiny angst and voice, who seems typecast in virtually everything except for the Social Network. Aa totally banal picture, and so bad, that I'll probably have to forego all future Woody endeavors. And, I'm really tired of Eisenberg and his whiny angst and voice, who seems typecast in virtually everything except for the Social Network. A total waste of my valuable time traveling 2 hours on the bus to see it too.… Expand

1 of 3 users found this helpful12

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NedRyerson1Feb 25, 2017

Café Society is definitely the proof that the Woody Allen we used to know is gone. With few successes in the past years (Vicky Cristina Barcelona, Match Point and Blue Jasmine) and too many failures (I gave up with Magic in the Moonlight,Café Society is definitely the proof that the Woody Allen we used to know is gone. With few successes in the past years (Vicky Cristina Barcelona, Match Point and Blue Jasmine) and too many failures (I gave up with Magic in the Moonlight, didn’t see the one from last year, but reconsider another opportunity for this one), Café Society is one more from the bunch. Boring story, nonexistent plot, flat and simple-minded characters, terrible cast and awful performances. The script is classic of Woody Allen, but it gave us nothing new, just the irony, paranoia and false superiority of all the previous works; and frankly, that’s not enough anymore. Times have changed, the viewer is more sophisticated and used to clever and demanding plots, but Allen is the same old man, refusing to admit his mistakes.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

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psyberdelicOct 25, 2016

Mediocre... Didn't care about any of the characters... A workmanlike movie with zero snap... Allen has done some good work recently... This isn't one of them... Hoped the period sets and costumes would make up for a blah story...Mediocre... Didn't care about any of the characters... A workmanlike movie with zero snap... Allen has done some good work recently... This isn't one of them... Hoped the period sets and costumes would make up for a blah story... Nope... If you want to see a great 1930's evocation try The Thirteenth Floor... Good sci fi story to go with it...… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

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Rossi163Jan 15, 2017

I was appalled at how bad this movie was. After the first 30 minutes I knew it wasn't going to get any better and it only got worse. Nothing but a pretentious Hollywood writer's puff piece...the kind of film that those involved in theI was appalled at how bad this movie was. After the first 30 minutes I knew it wasn't going to get any better and it only got worse. Nothing but a pretentious Hollywood writer's puff piece...the kind of film that those involved in the creation of it are all too self aware and smug in their "prose". It was beautifully shot, and every scene was a visual work of art, but nothing in this film rang true. The performances were superficial and phony, the storyline was lame and uninspiring, and I didn't care a rat's ass about any of the characters. Not one. Jesse Eisenberg displays talent, but he plays the exact same character in every film in which he appears. The hunch-backed, neurotic, talk-y, jew. I can't stand him anymore. Why does he keep getting cast?

And the really grating aspect of this farce of a "serious" film is that they somehow were able to render Kristen Stewart as bland and visually unappealing. WTF???… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

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2morovianNov 4, 2016

If Bobbie's character was supposed to be a direct impersonation of Woody Allen, then his casting and performance were spot on, right down to an utter absence of sexual charisma and the whiny neuroses we've all come to hate after beingIf Bobbie's character was supposed to be a direct impersonation of Woody Allen, then his casting and performance were spot on, right down to an utter absence of sexual charisma and the whiny neuroses we've all come to hate after being hammered with it, over and over again, in most of Allen's films. If this wasn't enough to destroy any chance of this film being even mildly entertaining, then Allen's narration buried it in concrete as permanently as Ben's victims.
This was a total indulgence piece with yet another reworking of the now patent New York vs. L.A. dilemma. Since Allen is clearly trying to hold on to something he has only actually possessed sporadically in his entire career, and has now taken to churning out one mediocre film after another, he's a great candidate for forced retirement. Give us a break, Woody, and at least allow us to remember your works of genius with appreciation instead of regret.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

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