Autobiographical -- or perhaps semi-autobiographical -- in nature, "
Radio Days" evokes the time when people returned "to those thrilling days of yesteryear," and for whom, quite probably, it was equally thrilling to contemplate the magic of a box in their living room that could cause them to "watch" the stories unfold in their minds. "Remotes," or on-the-spot broadcasts transported them to the scene of unfolding tragedies or triumphs in a way that newspapers never could (and which TV, for all its advantages, rarely matches).
And yet the film, for all its authenticity in recreating studio practices (watch, for example, how the actors drop completed script pages onto the floorrather than turning them and risking a tell-tale rustle of paper), isn't really so much about radio itself as it is about the people who listened, as personified by one raucous, cantankerous and loving
Brooklyn family. Beautifully evoked, particularly by
Julie Kavner (
Mother),
Michael Tucker (
Father), and the incomparable
Dianne Wiest (as the perenially lovelorn Aunt Bea), it is their reactions to what they hear on the radio -- whether listening breathlessly to the war news (at a time when the end result was anything but certain) or Bea's abandonment in the middle of nowhere by a panicked suitor as
Orson Welles' "
War of the Worlds" broadcast takes hold -- that bring to life the era and the power of that medium.
Standouts? The whole cast is perfect, but for me, in addition to those previously mentioned, I have to cit
Mia Farrow's portrayal of the dim-bulbed
Sally White, who transforms herself with the aid of speech lessons into a radio personality. (For that matter, catch
Danny Aiello as a less-than-brilliant hitman, particularly his scenes with
Dina DeAngeles as his mom.)
Criticisms? One:
At the end of a poignant scene in which young Joe has finally discovered what his dad does for a living,
Allen insists on falling into some standby "schtick" in his voiceover. (I guess he couldn't resist; thankfully, it doesn't ruin the moment.)
Ultimately, of course, it is the era itself that this film celebrates.
Faithfully, and lovingly, it is recreated with a skill that points up its absurdities at the same time it makes one hopefully nostalgic. And, if you're not very careful, you wind up falling hopelessly in love with this funny, obscure Brooklyn family.
And to the end of my days,
I'll always wonder whether poor Aunt Bea ever did find her "
Mr. Right"
. . .
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- published: 21 Jan 2016
- views: 125