I must admit, I found this Woody Allen comedy a surprisingly depressing film. Whereas in things like "Match Point" and "Blue Jasmine" his observations on human frailty were tempered by empathy for his characters, here he is less forgiving.Set in London, the story begins as Alfie (Anthony Hopkins) and Helena (Gemma Jones), split up. He attempts to recapture his lost youth with exercise, new clothes and a woman less than half his age while Helena is left adrift to seek counsel with a fortune-teller. The breakup affects their daughter, Sally (Naomi Watts), whose marriage to struggling writer Roy (Josh Brolin) is also going through a rough patch. Their lives seem in a fluid state and before the end, all the relationships fall apart and new ones form, although nearly all are thwarted in some way or other.There is angst all the way through this story. Woody Allen has a great ear for angst, but it's usually balanced with tremendous wit. However, I don't think the muse settled all that well on "I See a Tall Dark Stranger", and the stress he applies to his characters reveals merely self-obsession all round.Naomi Watts is someone who can breath life into any script, but I think Allen leaves her a bit stranded on this one. Usually we can sense when he is leading up to a punch line, we are used to the rhythm of his best works, but opportunities are lost here – the humour has a harder edge and the real zingers are missing.Part of the reason could be the narration. It has worked well in some of Woody Allen's films, however, in this one it actually takes the place of what probably should have been sharper exchanges between the characters.The tale is told in a wry manner, or maybe that should be a cynical one. The choice of music is light, which emphasises the irony that comes thick and fast especially at the end. If there are insights in the script, it is that people can be spiteful, and turn nasty when they don't get their own way.Over the decades, Woody Allen's films have run the gamut from brilliant to blah and not everyone will agree on which ones are which. For me, although it holds your attention, "I See a Tall Dark Stranger" is just too negative to be called a really enjoyable experience.

This movie seamlessly portrays a lot of what is Woody Allen: His takes on relationships; his, seeming, fascination with how people can be taken in by the occult; his, usually sinister, plot twists – how his relationships usually devolve into negative territory; and the lack of real malice in – the innocence of – his characters.And, in this movie, the acting – and, presumably, the directing which precipitated it – is flawlessly executed. (Though, I must say that I was a little disappointed in Philip Glenister's performance. I don't think he could convincingly shed his usual visceral nature, to effect the required innocence of an Allen character.) Even though I wanted to, and expected to, not believe some of the characters – Josh Brolin, as Sally's husband, Roy, comes to mind – I wasn't able to do it. Woody's actually expanded his usual milieu by including two ingénues – Naomi Watts, as Sally, and Freida Pinto, as Dia – instead of the usual one. And, one could argue that there were two minor ones, as well: Lucy Punch, as Charmaine, and Anna Friel, as Iris. All were convincing, though Watts was particularly good – and, quite stunning. Gemma Jones, as the pathetic mother, Helena, stood out for a particularly brilliant performance.The juxtaposition of the different stages of relationships was also genius. There was the incipient, represented by the engagement of Dia and Alan (Neil Jackson); the mid-stream, represented by the marriage of Sally and Roy; and the past, represented by the broken marriage of Alfie (Anthony Hopkins) and Helena. And, Allen's casting was superb in the respect that they all looked exactly right for the parts – Hopkins, as the aging, nay, old, man with the mid- life crisis, is the apotheosis.The age disparity in the relationship between Alfie and Charmaine, and the inherent problems with that – e.g. Alfie needing to take Viagra to keep up with Charmaine – brought to mind Woody's actual situation in life with his much younger wife.My one qualm was the ending: I felt like more should have been resolved. However, Allen, like the Shakespeare he paraphrases at the beginning – "Life was full of sound and fury, and in the end signified nothing." – and mirrors at the end – "It's time to close the book on our little tale of sound and fury signifying nothing." – says that life just goes on.

This is a movie about failed relationships. Not that you're hearing his take for the first time, but I think this movie is not his best. You feel like - "And well he must have said those lines before and you know you've heard it". It starts out with troubled marriages to begin with Naomi Watts and Josh Brolin ,the writer (don't know why he makes all his characters to be artists!). After a troubled writing career which never took off and them being supported by her mother; the movie depicts how they engage and dis-engage with each other. Naomi's mother (Gemma Jones), (being crushed by her divorce ) seeks answers in spirituality and which everyone believes sounds really obnoxious, but then Naomi allows her to stick with it since it seemingly fetches her happiness.Gemma Jones was stressed by her husband (Anthony Hopkins) who somehow believes that he has to revitalize his life. He leaves her and goes in a wandering (having an affair with the escort) trying to rediscover his youth. What happens is a comedy of errors and it works up as a confusing movie which you wonder is moving but you rather not watch it as a Woody Allen movie. Maybe he is trying to cut his own narrative or something new. Clearly this has not worked in 'You will meet a tall dark stranger'! Maybe Allen is coming off age - which cannot really happen since he already has surprised you before; alas not this time.

You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger relies on quite the usual characteristics of a Woody Allen's dramedy: intertwined destinies, twists of fate, etc., always with that sweet-and-sour tone specific to the director. But this time, the different story lines, though relatively pleasant to follow, aren't that productive as the ones of Alfie or Helena. But the strangest thing is that it seems Allen only developed half of the plot and the movie isn't finished at all, an impression evidenced by the abrupt ending that leaves a number of issues pending, such as the stolen book. And that's frustrating because, one can't help but think that these elements, used/arranged differently, could have lead to a whole different movie, much more pertinent, especially as the cast is good, though obviously underexploited.