Everyone Says I Love You (1996) User Reviews

Does What Every Musical Should Do

[jzappa · 7/10 · 2 September 2007]

Woody Allen, one of my absolute favorite film directors, goes against the grain of his normal outings with a very creative cinematic device which involves making a bright, happy musical that takes the course of a normal film starring actors who've never sung before singing with their normal voices in musical numbers with no truly professional dancers. With this vastly fun element of the movie, Allen shows us life if any old person broke out into song. And that is what makes it an even more pleasant and encouraging escape that many other normal musicals.

One has never before looked at a cast the same way. I wonder what reviews were like. I can say that Alan Alda, who's always fun, has one of the very best voices in the film and even plays the piano. The same goes for Goldie Hawn, who apparently was scared to death of singing in the film. She's also still extremely hot. Julia Roberts plays a very very serious role and never sings, but it was definitely interesting to observe what she and Woody are like on screen together. He carries the scenes, and she loyally follows. Natascha Lyonne is the definite highlight of the cast, playing a hyperconfident girl in that midpoint between girl and woman whose flights of fancy make her extremely fickle with men. Edward Norton, one of the best contemporary actors we have, is actually not at his best in this film. It feels like he just doesn't know how to get comfortable in his role. His voice is OK. Billy Crudup, in a small role, is actually quite unexpectedly funny in a little number in a cab with a Middle Eastern driver. Tim Roth, an unexpected addition to the bit players like Crudup, has a great non- singing role that recalls the genre he's been working in for most of his career.

Where a lot of musicals repel most people because of their agonizingly featherweight stories, this one does what a great musical is supposed to do, which is lift your spirits and make you feel the very deepest potential of life's beauty that can possibly be pulled out of it, and because of Allen's unorthodox method, it nails it. It's one of my favorite musicals, of which there are few. It's a very interesting ensemble epic that involves all different strands pertaining to the love life and newfound wisdom of each member of a wealthy and happy family.

The experiment works

[stills-6 · 8/10 · 16 September 2000]

High camp and high neuroses in the same picture.

If you get everything you ever wanted, you still aren't satisfied because your own fantasies can never be truly fulfilled in the real world. It's kind of what Woody Allen is saying by making this movie into a goofy musical. It's his own fantasy of what movies used to be like, but can't ever be anymore. The small touches of realism, like the grocery store heist or the homeless man breaking out into song provide both humor and a commentary on how unsubstantial and irrelevant musicals are. But aren't they fun?

The most obvious example of the theme is the Julia Roberts storyline. She gets everything she ever wanted, but instead of making her happy in her new life, it helps her therapy for her old life. Joe was married to Steffi, all the woman he ever wanted, but he was so afraid it would fall apart that it did fall apart. Skylar wants a man to take control and sweep her off her feet, but when Charles Ferry comes along and does just that, she can't live with the consequences. There are other examples.

The execution of the movie is awkward and sometimes off-putting. But this movie is an experiment in form x function - what kind of story lends itself to the musical form? Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't. For example, it used to be that musicals helped you into the mood by introducing songs, something that couldn't be done here because of the very nature of the story. It can be stagey and forced if you're not already in the mood. On the whole, however, everyone seems to be having a good time, and it shows up in mostly loose, endearing performances - even the ever-annoying Goldie Hawn, who I'd normally want to toss in the river in any other movie.

Musical Modern

[weforallseasons · 8/10 · 8 July 2021]

Woody Allen takes us back to the true form Broadway musical and adds splashes of droll, post-modern sensibility and humor. A charming film. The balance of characters and their foibles, showtunes and milieu. Existentialist song and dance with a touch of dark romance.

Sweet, light weight musical - enjoy it (it's later than you think!)

[bob the moo · 11 February 2002]

In an old fashioned musical, the loves and losses of an extended upper-class family in Manhattan are followed in song from NY to Paris and Venice.

The company logo comes onscreen followed closely by the white title on a black background. Seconds later we are into the first song as two young lovers walk in the park - and it's not until 100 minutes later that it lets you go again. The plot is nothing more than lots of strands of love and loss tied together by family connections. None of the stories really have any great significance but are backed up by wit and some charming song and dance numbers. This is whimsy at it's very best.

It feels like Woody Allen has really relaxed and is making films that hark back to an older age - indeed his usual style is tuned down a little to make it more accessible and more enjoyable. He has several black characters, his humour is witty but less cruel than usual and his narrative is driven by a teenage girl rather than himself. It feels so free of his usual cynicism that it adds to the weightless charm it already has. He handles the song and dance scene with such vigour and such imagination that you find yourself wondering why he hasn't done a musical before.

The superb cast all catch the charm and light feel perfectly. Not all of them are great singers but they all do well and give their best (except Barrymore who refused and was dubbed). The usual stars are complimented by plenty of well known faces - Alda, Goldie Hawn, Lucas Haas, Portman, Tim Roth, Roberts and of course the wonderful Edward Norton.

This is 100 minutes of lightweight wonder. It has no rough edges, no difficult issues, no cruel jokes and very little swearing. Only the coldest heart could fail to warm to this little charmer.

good job with the singing

[SnoopyStyle · 7/10 · 28 August 2015]

Psychologist Steffi Dandridge (Goldie Hawn) and lawyer Bob Dandridge (Alan Alda) head a liberal upper class Manhattan family. The extended family includes Steffi's ex Joe Berlin (Woody Allen), their daughter Djuna Berlin (Natasha Lyonne), Skylar (Drew Barrymore), Lane (Gaby Hoffmann), Laura (Natalie Portman), grandpa with dementia and the black sheep Republican son Scott (Lukas Haas). Holden Spence (Edward Norton) is in love with Skylar. Von (Julia Roberts) is one of Steffi's patients. Charles Ferry (Tim Roth) is an ex-con.

This is a Woody Allen musical. The music is easy listening and everybody does a good job singing. Some are surprisingly good but the songs aren't terribly challenging. The overwhelming family can be hard to take. I would have preferred some trimming of the family tree. It would have been better to concentrate on one relationship. The effect is a bit scatter shot.

Diverting, fun, wonderfully shallow

[DennisLittrell · 7/10 · 27 June 2002]

(Note: Over 500 of my movie reviews are now available in my book "Cut to the Chaise Lounge or I Can't Believe I Swallowed the Remote!" Get it at Amazon.)

Woody Allen courts Julia Roberts. (I wonder if Woody writes his own dialogue these days or just chalks it in and improvises. Maybe he gives a signal to the other actor(s) that it's their turn.) Yes, I am eating my heart out, but believe it or not–and I swear this is true and Julia Roberts herself will vouch for this–she was once courted by an orangutang. True story. You could look it up. It was a PBS special. I'm serious. You think I could make up something like this? She even held a baby orangutang in her arms and he...well, let's just say he wasn't wearing a diaper. I kid you not.

Anyway, this is a kind of satirical take off on Broadway musicals, but half on the square. It features a lot of show tunes and dance numbers, some beautifully choreographed. Goldie sings, Alan Alda sings, Julia sings and of course Woody sings. (Drew is dubbed, I understand). Ed Norton also sings, but the difference is, he's actually good. Goldie Hawn is the mom, Woody is her ex and Alan Alda is her current. They are all rich and privileged and spend their time in places like New York and Paris and Venice. Goldie is a flaming, bleeding heart liberal who thinks that prisons ought to have a cuisine at least, and Alda is an establishment lawyer and doctrinaire liberal. His son consequently devours the National Review and is a member of the National Rifle Association, and thinks that welfare mothers ought to get a job, etc. Woody Allen is Woody Allen of course. I haven't seen one of his films in decades, but watching him put the moves on Julia brings back memories. You almost believe it. In fact, you DO believe it. And lament.

Tim Roth plays an ex-con, just released from prison, invited to a family dinner by Goldie. (Extended family dinners involving kids and grandparents and eccentric relatives stirred by light-hearted family politics are a staple of the Woody Allen canon, as I recall.) Roth's "animal" magnetism, and his "interesting" kiss entice Drew away from her intended (at least temporarily). The story is narrated by Woody and Goldie's daughter (Natalie Portman, I presume), who finds herself falling in and out of puppy love with the regularity of the rising sun. Everything is played as a light satire of the intended audience, a technique perfected by Oscar Wilde in his play, The Importance of Being Earnest over a century ago. In a sense Woody Allen's effort amounts to a gentle massage of psyche of the New York liberal establishment.

Some highlights: The Marx Brothers song and dance number done en francaise near the Seine in Paris allowing Woody to do a fine Groucho impersonation; Drew's peach satin dress; Julia jogging in Venice; the intensive care unit choreography; mannequins coming to life in song and dance..

All in all, there's some cute fun had with Broadway show traditions, people breaking into song at odd moments, mostly standards from the pre-rock and roll era, e.g., "My Baby Just Cares for Me," "Making Whoopie," (yes, that is where Whoopie Goldberg got her moniker), and the beautiful "I'm Through with Love," (sung not badly by Goldie Hawn), a few good gags, a cute cast--enough of interest to divert one after an afternoon of hard-core shopping at Neiman-Marcus and Sak's Fifth Avenue.

Extremely funny and entertaining

[chicschiss · 10/10 · 1 October 2003]

This is a wonderfully funny story, affectionately parodying old-time musicals, and evoking a nostalgic regret that they are not being made any more. Some of the vocalizations are amateurish (Alan Alda is an exception) but Dick Hyman's musical arrangements and the performances of the musicians are fine. Alda's rendition of the old Cole Porter song "Thinking of You", accompanied by the marvelous Dick Hyman on the piano, is first rate.

Woody Allen provides many hilarious moments. He uses the great violinist Itzhak Perlman as the punch line to a carefully constructed gag. He uses the invasion of privacy of a session of psychoanalysis as an offbeat plot device. He satirizes the romantic young and the do-gooding impulses of the old. He takes us from Manhattan to Venice and Paris. He involves us in old tunes and comically elaborate dance routines. He gives us a good time.

Everyone Says I Love You is one of the very few movies I have ever gone back to the theater to see another time. I even bought the tape.

For hardcore Woodyphiles only

[Gideon24 · 6/10 · 12 March 2015]

Every now and then acclaimed directors of comedies and dramas venture into the movie musical genre and varying rates of success were achieved...Sidney Lumet really tripped up with The Wiz as did John Huston with Annie and Richard Attenborough with A Chorus Line Sir Carol Reed did yeomen service to Oliver!, Milos Foreman triumphed with Hair and Norman Jewison did a decent job with Jesus Christ Superstar.

One director I never imagined making a musical was Woody Allen but even Woody ventured into this forbidden territory with 1996's Everyone Says I Love You, A sophisticated romp with the same kind of loopy characters Woody usually provides us with, except here, they do occasionally burst into song and dance, despite the fact that several of the cast members can't sing. I have to admit that I do like the fact that the Woodmiester chose to cast actors who fit the characters and not just actors who can sing and dance.

The film stars Goldie Hawn and Alan Alda as the head of an affluent upper west side family eagerly anticipating the wedding of her daughter and his stepdaughter (Drew Barrymore) to the heir apparent of another wealthy family (Edward Norton) who are thrown for a loop when Barrymore falls for an ex-con (Tim Roth) who Hawn has invited to their home for dinner as a gesture of bleeding heart liberalism. As always Woody blends multiple stories to great effect, the other primary one being Woody's role as Hawn's ex, whose daughter (Natasha Lyonne) has accidentally overheard a lot of information about a woman (Julia Roberts) who Woody meets in Paris and feeds him information about her in order to romance her.

I think Woody made a wise choice in not employing an original score and using classic old songs for the characters to sing and the actors do their own singing (except for Barrymore), which I think adds a touch of realism to the unexpected musical interludes. There is some imaginative choreography by Graciela Daniele with Norton and Lyonne's production number in a jewelry store being a stand out. There is also a dance number at the film's denouement with Woody and Goldie that can only be described as magical.

Musical numbers aside, Woody's screenplay is rich with the sophisticated wit we have come to expect from Woody, there's just a little less of it because of the musical numbers. Woody has always had exquisite taste in music, a key element in all of his films so I guess his journey into this genre shouldn't be completely unexpected, but, I think the results are pretty much a mixed bag and the film is suggested for hardcore Woody-philes only.

Everybody should say 'I love you' to this film!

[Moonlyn · 10/10 · 13 February 2005]

I must say that musicals don't really appeal to me, maybe it's because I'm young and am accustomed to more action and special effects from today's typical style... but this movie totally surprised me! The star cast including Drew Barrymore and Julia Roberts is what initially allured me to give this movie a chance and I'm glad I did. Now I know why Woody Allen is considered a genius. I mean I've seen parts of some of his earlier films and they didn't really draw me in either, but this one is truly a winner. Woody Allen chose his cast well, he obviously has a good sense of judgement in that area. The music and singing was actually a welcoming change for a film. I never thought I would like a musical so much. Each character's life was perfectly intertwined with all the others and the plot moved along in an up-tempo beat. It was also nice to be brought to France & Italy via cinematography. It seemed musicals were somewhat of a trend the year this film came out (1996), because that's also when "Romeo & Juliet" starring Leonardo DiCaprio surfaced too. It was a good turn of events to educate younger generations (like myself) into appreciating a more old-fashioned genre of film that was almost extinct until this film came along and rebirthed it.

Of dreams coming true and Groucho Marx tributes

[TBJCSKCNRRQTreviews · 7/10 · 16 May 2014]

DJ(Lyonne, a typical teen girl - and our narrator), the daughter of heartbroken divorced Joe(Allen, his typical neurotic self, needing pushing by loved ones) sets him up with the unhappily married Von(Roberts, sweet, and... well, she doesn't have a lot of personality). Without her knowing. ...well, the latter's in therapy, and the former listens in. That old story. And along the way there are subplots, and this is, at its core, about falling in love, its effect on what one thinks about the future, and how sudden it can be - even when already infatuated with someone else.

I don't often watch musicals, but this one is irresistible. Charming, hilarious with fast-paced dialog, background reactions, quick throwaway lines, and a memorable cast of characters, all of whom are portrayed by talented and well-known actors. The big numbers(and just *try* to stop humming them) are dominated by long takes and few cuts, with everyone in the vicinity singing and/or dancing, such as the early scene in the ER where doctors, nurses and patients giving it their all. There are sit-com-like misunderstandings and some pretty evenly divided political jokes, with the Republican son(hey, he has his reasons... maybe you'll learn them in this) and the liberal rest of the family. It takes place over a year, taking us around New York, Venice and Paris. The running time is 94 minutes sans credits.

There is a little strong language in this. I recommend this to anyone who is at all into this type of film. 7/10

Disappointing

[fmainwood · 3/10 · 27 September 2005]

This movie just didn't work for me. There is no continuity, and the characters burst into song spasmodically without any lead in. Song and dance scenes often seem contrived, and irrelevant to the situation. With such a strong cast, I settled back to enjoy an experience that never materialised. The storyline is okay, and would have made a good straight comedy, especially considering the great actors in the cast. Perhaps I have missed the point - maybe the haphazard choreography and terrible singing was supposed to be comical in itself. I would suggest renting before buying, just to make sure that it meets your expectations. Unfortunately, it didn't meet mine.

Allen does music

[The_Void · 8/10 · 2 May 2005]

So, Everyone Says I Love You is pretty much the typical Woody Allen comedy, complete with all the staples that define his oeuvre; lots of neurotic characters, a performance from the man himself, New York City...only this time, there's one big difference - it's also a musical. It's well known that Woody Allen is a big fan of cinema, and therefore it is not unreasonable to assume that this film is Allen's tribute to the classic musicals of yesteryear. Everyone Says I Love You is typically Woody Allen in spite of the obvious difference in genre to the rest of his movies. I'm not a fan of musicals, and if I were to be overly critical of this film; I would say that it would have been better as a straight comedy-drama, without the musical element. However, it's the musical side of the piece that gives it it's unique edge, and dropping that from the film would have ensured that it isn't the movie that Allen wanted it to be. Not to mention the fact that the musical side of the movie makes it striking in the way that only Woody Allen can be.

For this film, Woody Allen has put together a terrific cast. Of course, a number of stars is part of Allen's trademark, but I think he outdid himself with the cast of this movie, which includes the likes of Edward Norton, Natalie Portman, Drew Barrymore, Julia Roberts, Goldie Hawn, Tim Roth, Natasha Lyonne and Alan Alda. Not to mention Woody himself. I'm not a fan of all of those film stars, but seeing a number of familiar faces in a movie together is always a treat for a movie buff. The song and dance sequences in the film aren't all that well put together, as the songs are largely unimaginative and the film fails on the whole to capture the grandeur of the classic musical. However, the drama side of the movie is very strong; and as usual, Woody's script is funny, touching and obscure in equal measure. He's given himself the best part, and has most of the other characters commenting on how great he is, but Woody Allen without a huge ego just isn't Woody Allen. I don't rate this as a movie at the very peak of Allen's filmography, but it's a strong one and it's recommended to his fans.

If only for one scene, see it...

[kivers · 7/10 · 16 October 2005]

"Everyone Says I Love You" is the last of a series of smaller, wonderful films that spanned a decade after Woody Allen's box office and Oscar triumph, "Hannah and Her Sisters". It is by far his most gushingly sentimental film, and the musical he FINALLY got around to making. It's ironic that this films draws a sort of inspiration from perhaps the most reviled film musical in history, Peter Bogdanovich's "At Long Last Love" (1976), in that the actors (most of whom can't sing a note) often suddenly break into song to express their innocent moments of passion, love, pain, sorrow, fear and joy. And many of the musical moments are sung live as filmed (and it shows), yet there is a lovely nakedness to this, much like when you spy a loved one singing in front of the mirror, thinking no one is around.

Beyond the hardcore Woody fans who will find much to love and study in this showpiece, if you have any amount of silly love in your heart, see it through to the scene near the end with Allen and Goldie Hawn which begins at the Groucho Marx party and climaxes beside the Seine.

It makes the whole film worthwhile. It gave me goosebumps the first time I saw it, much like when I saw my best friend walk up the aisle with her now-husband years ago.

Allen reminds us again that this little shiver is as important as anything else in life.

Everybody says they love this movie -

[kaaber-2 · 2/10 · 24 November 2011]

• but I'm here to complain. I find the film embarrassing. Its slipshod dramaturgy (not foreign to Allen) makes "Meet Me in St. Louis" look like Shakespeare. The voice-over babbles on and on so as to make you think that Woody Allen ought to have written a novel instead.

The film as such seems like a sorry excuse for the musical numbers which are few and far between. And then, as often with Allen, I feel like having to listen to a guy who goes on and on about his affairs with beautiful women and what a great lover he is. This time he's taking Julia Roberts and Goldie Hawn hostages. I wish I could believe that it's all tongue-in-cheek, but I can't.

I give it two stars for the music only.

Off Type Allen Film ... But Fun

[postmanwhoalwaysringstwice · 3 March 2003]

Not just any filmmaker should be entrusted with the delicate and precarious genre of the musical. Woody Allen would probably be the last person I'd expect to see work up a musical. He's gotten a lot more experimental in some of his more recent works, so it's of no surprise. I think what makes this film work is in its charm and the love of 30's musicals that is behind it. This really is an ode to the old black and white musicals and to the classic love stories of the same period. Now, on the level of Woody Allen's catalog, this one does not rank very high, but in comparison to television shows that have the occasional musical episode, this one hits its mark. The reason I mention the last comment is because there are some actors in here that never would they be expected to sing in a film. Maybe they shouldn't have, but there is just a lot of love behind this production that you've just gotta smile.

Extremely average

[Mort-31 · 6/10 · 31 December 2000]

It would be unfair to say that if you know one Woody-Allen-film, you know them all. He made some very unique films like „Love and Death`, „Mighty Aphrodite` and „Sweet and Lowdown`. These are movies that don't have a lot in common.

But „Everyone Says I Love You` is really a typical, typical Allen-movie with no topic to describe in two sentences. There are just lots of people falling in love with other people. It's a pleasure to see it and the musical parody scenes are very funny, but there is nothing about it you would remember later. I think, Allen felt under pressure to produce a new film every year, that's why he collected some ideas from all his earlier movies, wrote some simple songs and mixed it all together to a new screenplay. Then he cast many stars and future stars (Ed Norton!) and ready was the film. Well, why not? We're all getting old, aren't we?

6 stars out of 10 because the ending is really disappointing.

Lighthearted comedy

[dierregi · 7/10 · 30 October 2023]

The main plot is about a rich, enlarged NY family, mum Steffi (Goldie Hawn), step-dad Bob (Alda) and several children from various previous marriages, inclusive of DJ who narrates the story and Skylar whose impending wedding with Holden gets the action in motion.

Allen plays Joe, Goldie's divorce husband and DJ father, currently living in Paris and taking his daughter to a lavish holiday in Venice. During the course of the action from spring in NY to Christmas in Paris, most of the characters fall in and out and love and sing their joys and miseries when their affairs don't work out.

The most unlikely affair is the one between Joe and Von (Julia Roberts), slightly believable only because Joe knows everything about Von thanks to DJ spying Von's sessions with her shrink.

Possibly one of the most lighthearted Allen's movies, this is an unusual musical because the musical numbers are mostly quirky, the quirkiest of them all taking place at the funeral home with blithe spirits singing and dancing. Allen makes excellent use of the change of season in the different locations, with NY in full bloom, Venice in summer and winter in Paris.

My brief review of the film

[sol- · 8/10 · 21 November 2005]

A fresh and original musical comedy, the film takes classic songs and fits them into a new vision with some different dance routines. The choreography is lively and the actors and actresses do not look like professional dancers, which helps to make the music and dance side more natural. It is still as witty and funny as one would expect from a Woody Allen comedy, and the ensemble cast brings forth some great performances, even from actresses such as Goldie Hawn and Drew Barrymore who are not usually amazing. Other than light commentary on love and romance in New York and international society, the film is lacking in depth, some of the sequences are overdone and the narration tires as it progresses, but generally the film is well made. It also possesses a charm that helps it to swing along, and it becomes easy to accept different sequences, given that it is a musical that one is watching. The film will however best be enjoyed by those who are familiar with its redone songs.

"Bring down a copy of my will, and an eraser"

[ackstasis · 6/10 · 5 June 2010]

Why do characters in musicals suddenly and inexplicably break into song? Musical numbers are an emotional outlet for a film's characters, a means to express joys, sorrows, and yearnings that would otherwise be unarticulated. This is an outlet that, regrettably, is rarely available to ordinary people in the ordinary world. What Woody Allen does here is to bring the cinematic principles of the musical within the grasp of everyday characters – that is, people like you and me. Allen chose his actors precisely for their lack of singing and dancing ability, and on one occasion reportedly asked Goldie Hawn to "sing worse." If the musical numbers are clumsy and awkward, then I suppose that's part of their charm; Allen shoots most of his scenes in one or two takes, deliberately minimising the extent to which he is able to manipulate the quality of the performances. Nowadays, the one-take musical number is an oddity, and here it draws attention to the performers' weaknesses, but recall that this is how Astaire and Rogers were always filmed, lovingly and always with full attention on the dancers themselves.

'Everyone Says I Love You (1996)' is a lighthearted romantic romp, a weaving of love stories connected by a single New York household. Edward Norton and Drew Barrymore are a lovestruck couple whose engagement is thrown into turmoil by the arrival of a sleazy ex-con (Tim Roth). Natasha Lyonne is a precocious teenager, attracted to a succession of random men, who tries to help her father (Allen) score a girlfriend by relaying a woman's (Julia Roberts) confidential psychiatric confessions. Not surprisingly, Allen's subplot is the strongest, bittersweet and heartfelt, and his final, melancholy dance with ex-wife Steffi (Goldie Hawn) carries all the sorrow and lamenting of Fred and Ginger's "Never Gonna Dance" number in 'Swing Time (1936)' {and does so even with Hawn's slightly bizarre gravity-defying antics}. On a lighter note, I also loved the Dandridge son (played by Lukas Haas), whose fiercely-Republican political convictions are explained away by a medical condition that was limiting the supply of oxygen to his brain.

Delightful movie with lovely tunes

[Petey-10 · 9/10 · 12 January 2006]

Woody Allen made a musical comedy with some romance in 1996.The movie's called Everyone Says I Love You and it tells about the Dandridge family living in New York.Alan Alda is the father Bob, Goldie Hawn is the mother Steffi, Lukas Haas is the son Scott, the daughters are Laura (Natalie Portman), Lane (Gaby Hoffman), Skylar (Drew Barrymore), stepdaughter D.J (Natasha Lyonne)and Patrick Cranshaw is the grandpa.Allen plays the neurotic ex-husband Joe Berlin, who has no luck in love.He becomes, at least for a while, a man of the dreams for Von(Julia Roberts).Edward Norton plays Holden Spence, who wants to marry Skylar.The happiness breaks for short amount of time, when Skylar is introduced to ex-jailbird Charles Ferry (Tim Roth).The movie goes from N.Y to Venice and Paris.All great places, too bad I've never been to any one of them.All of the actors do terrific job in the movie.The music is wonderful.Not only by the great violin player Itzhak Perlman, who's also seen in the movie, but the actors show us some great skills in singing.This movie has been made like the old musicals were made, where actors would start singing all of the sudden.That's just great, gives the old times' kind of feeling.That's not something you can see in movies these days, but ten years ago Woody brought back that world, that magical world with lovely tunes.I guess you can expect anything from Woody.

Un buon musical nel solco della tradizione

[frcata · 6/10 · 27 March 2022]

Allen qui si misura con la tradizione del musical e lo fa bene senza sbavature riuscendo a comporre un film piacevole e scorrevole. Nulla di più: non è ovviamente un capolavoro, ma un film da prendere in leggerezza.

Molto suggestive le scene girate a Venezia e Parigi. Inoltre, il tutto è avvalorato dalla presenza di un cast d'eccezione.

One of the worst movies ever!

[JulietV · 2/10 · 14 July 2001]

I knew I should have resigned myself to the fact that Woody Allen movies (with the exception of 'Mighty Aphrodite') are horridly dull. What an awful movie. I couldn't wait for it to end. I was eager to watch it because of the great cast (Edward Norton, Drew Barrymore) but it was just as terrible as all his other ones, in fact, worse. Dancing and singing ghosts in a funeral home? I'll stick with the Haunted Mansion at Disneyland, thanks.

And why does Woody Allen always put himself in every movie sleeping with the most beautiful star he can (in this case Julia Roberts?) Not very believable.

leaves you with a smile for almost the entire film- 'Woody Whimsy'

[Quinoa1984 · 9/10 · 21 January 2007]

Aside from a couple of liabilities, which I'll mention a little further down this review, this is top-notch Woody Allen, a work that gives as many delights as his earlier work, but is also marvelous in that it's an experiment for him. How can a filmmaker combine his usual- by 96 usual anyway- with relationships that go up and down, end and start, and neuroses floating around like it's nothing, AND with the escapism of the musicals of the 30s and 40s that Allen obviously adores deeply? Somehow it all works pretty much to classic Allen effect, where there's a level of sharp wit, but there's also that added element of life being wonderful enough even when things seem at their lowest. The story goes into several directions, with a narrator (Natasha Lyonne) filling in the gaps of a family and their turbulent relationships. She D.J. Berlin, biological daughter of Joe (Allen), and technical step-daughter of Bob (Alda) who's married to Steffi (Goldie Hawn), her real mother. He lives in Paris, and on vacation Joe suddenly becomes involved with Von Sidell (Julia Roberts) after getting advice from DJ (she listens to all of her confessions to a psychiatrist through a wall) so he has all of the moves to make it the perfect relationship. Meanwhile, her sister Skylar (Barrymore) is engaged to Holden (Edward Norton), but things become complicated via parolee Charles Fery (Tim Roth). And meanwhile, DJ goes from man to man, almost getting engaged, and then falling for a guy in a Taxi Cab...

And so on. All the while Allen injects the perfect whimsical tone and sweetness of all of those great, 'un-real' musicals of the Golden Age of Hollywood. Occasionally an actor might sing and not sound too right (aside from Barrymore, whom one can definitely tell a difference, they all sing their songs)- Roberts being one of them- but it's really amazing to see such talented actors have naturally apt ways into singing. And why not, after all, as many of us would love to just go right into a song we like on a dime. Some highlights for me were the Norton songs, "Just You, Just Me" and "My Baby Cares Just For Me", the Tim Roth number "If I Had You", and very surprisingly by a group of the 'un-dead' via D.J.'s grandfather played by Patrick Cranshaw (likely the only time Allen's had this much visual effects going on). And, of course, even Allen breaks into a soft tune of wanting affection too. But it would be just one thing if the songs were very joyful and made the audience happy- there's always, even in the bits that still ring with the realistic dialog of Allen's relationship tragic-comedies- it's also got very funny moments. The moment Roth pops up is one, or when Joe tries to use his 'knowledge' on Roberts's character, and the Marx brothers number is almost *too* good.

Aside from the oddly voiced narration from Natasha Lyonne (not a bad performance at all, but for some reason the narration sounds just off for me), and a couple of exceptions, Everyone Says I Love You provides for a truly serene time in Woody Allen's ouevere, a collection of old-time numbers (and maybe some new ones) that combine the beauty in the cities we see (New York, Paris, Venice) with a subject that has wonderfully dogged the director for the bulk of his career- what does it mean to fall in love, or to lose love, or to find it again even in the smallest measures- and not without some mixing of politics and neuroses.

A bit cheesy...

[Dena-2 · 7/10 · 1 May 1999]

If you liked "Hello, Dolly!", then you'll probably love this flick. There were good things about it, but I pretty much spent the majority of the movie cringing in embarrassment from it. I consider myself to be an aficionado of movie musicals in general, but this one took things a bit too far, in my opinion.

Woody's Worst

[RashomonLaStrada · 2/10 · 7 August 2005]

I love Woody Allen and I love musicals. I can't believe how awful I found this movie!

Allen's dialog has always been so fresh and sharp. I've never heard such weak dialog in a Woody Allen movie. Lukas Haas is a conservative republican vs Alan Alda as the liberal democrat father; the dialog between them was the most obvious. I didn't believe any of the lines from any of the characters.

Then this idea that the actors should do their own singing. Why? I've heard these songs many times by talented people. Do I really need to hear these songs butchered by the likes of Drew Barrymore (I also am fond of Drew B, but hope never to hear her sing again). Edward Norton is doing a Woody Allen imitation. Oy. None of the musical numbers move the plot forward.

Why did he decide to make a musical?