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The 1990s in America

Woody Allen

by Allene Phy-Olsen

Identification American film director, author, comedian, and actor

In the 1990’s, Allen consolidated his status as an independent and critically acclaimed filmmaker by writing, directing, and frequently performing in motion pictures.

Born Allen Stewart Konigsberg, Woody Allen made his initial reputation as a stand-up comedian and gag writer, whose early films were slapstick comedies. The persona he presented, that of the Jewish schlemiel, would remain, even as his work matured. By the 1990’s, he was well recognized in Europe as a distinctive American intellectual, whose work expressed post-World War II existentialism and owed much to the pensive writings of the French philosopher Albert Camus and the Russian literary masters Fyodor Dostoevski and Anton Chekhov.

Woody Allen at a news conference in September, 1993.

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In America, Allen’s films were more often critical than commercial successes. As a New York-based artist who largely snubbed Hollywood, he had nevertheless received three Academy Awards for Annie Hall (1977) and would continue to receive Academy nominations and other prestigious awards for his writing and directing throughout the 1990’s.

His work of the decade elicited comparisons with the classic films of his acknowledged European hero, Ingmar Bergman, and was often experimental. Alice (1990) was a provocative fantasy, while Shadows and Fog (1992) paid homage to German expressionism and the music of Kurt Weill. Husbands and Wives (1992) continued the examination of a favorite Allen theme, the difficulty of maintaining intimate relationships. Manhattan Murder Mystery (1993) was an entertainment that celebrated the sophisticated Hollywood mystery-comedies Allen had enjoyed in his youth. In Bullets over Broadway (1994), he explored the mysteries of creativity, while Mighty Aphrodite (1995) contained satire of Greek tragedy. In Everyone Says I Love You (1996), Allen tried his hand at musical comedy. Deconstructing Harry (1997) and Celebrity (1998) were further journeys into the psychology of creativity and celebrity.

The 1990’s was also the decade in which a sex scandal erupted that seriously threatened Allen’s career and status as a cinematic moralist. The women in his life, particularly actresses Louise Lasser, his second wife, and Diane Keaton, had always figured prominently in his work. In 1982, Allen had begun a twelve-year personal and professional relationship with Mia Farrow, who would perform in his films during the period and give birth to his son, Satchel. However, when Farrow discovered in early 1992 that Allen had seduced her teenage adopted daughter, Soon-Yi Previn, her outrage landed him in the courts. Their legal battles, with mutual accusations of wrongdoing and poor parenting, were followed for months by an avid public. European admirers accepted events more calmly, and audiences did not desert him. In 1997, he finally married Soon-Yi, who never performed in his films but remained the dominant influence on his private life.

Impact

Allen is still expanding his substantial body of work, expressing a highly personal vision that celebrates his native New York City and, at the same time, reflects contemporary mores, perplexities, and aspirations of thoughtful people everywhere.

Further Reading

1 

Hirsch, Foster. Love, Sex, Death, and the Meaning of Life: The Films of Woody Allen. 3d ed. Cambridge, Mass.: Da Capo Press, 2001.

2 

Schickel, Richard. Woody Allen: A Life in Film. Chicago: Ivan R. Dee, 2003.

Citation Types

Type
Format
MLA 9th
Phy-Olsen, Allene. "Woody Allen." The 1990s in America, edited by Milton Berman, Salem Press, 2009. Salem Online, online.salempress.com/articleDetails.do?articleName=1990_1015.
APA 7th
Phy-Olsen, A. (2009). Woody Allen. In M. Berman (Ed.), The 1990s in America. Salem Press. online.salempress.com.
CMOS 17th
Phy-Olsen, Allene. "Woody Allen." Edited by Milton Berman. The 1990s in America. Hackensack: Salem Press, 2009. Accessed October 22, 2025. online.salempress.com.