Maggie's Plan (2016)

A young director (Greta Gerwig) of art and design at a university meets a part time teacher (Ethan Hawke) also at the school. Although he is married to a professor (Julianne Moore) at Columbia, they fall in love. What follows are complex issues of romance, extended family and manipulation. Directed by Rebecca Miller (Arthur's daughter), one can't overlook the elephant in the room ..... Woody Allen. Whether intentional or not, the film comes across as either a homage to Woody Allen or at the very least, hugely influenced by him. These are intellectual New Yorkers whose greatest problems aren't keeping a roof over their head or getting food on the table like the rest of us mortals. No, their primary problem is relationships and the messiness of love. Certainly, that's a valid subject for film making and not the exclusive domain of Allen but while the terrain and style isn't patented, when you do a movie like this ... you're going to be held to Allen at his best. On its own, it's serviceable with some appealing performances (notably Gerwig). I'm still not sure about Julianne Moore, she's might be brilliant but I haven't decided because that damn generic Eastern European accent gets in the way. With Bill Hader, Maya Rudolph, Wallace Shawn and Travis Fimmel.