Woody Allen's 'Irrational Man' review, starring Joaquin Phoenix, Emma Stone and Parker Posey

Oddly enough, Woody Allen’s latest, Irrational Man, is a tale about inspiration lacking much imagination. He’s supported — once again — by a stellar cast. Some beautifully rural Rhode Island backdrops accompany his vision this time. But Allen’s annual production not only retreads his better work, but also finds the veteran storyteller indecisive. Its merits, as both a dark comedy and ponderous character, get muddled as the writer/director never decides what kind of film he’s wants to make, sloshing between both genres without any energy connecting them meaningfully or interestingly. Not only is it lacking a sense of rational, it’s without ambition.

A renowned philosopher with little desire to live, our protagonist Abe Lucas (Joaquin Phoenix) is not unlike other existential crisis-ridden Allen leads. Even with his prominent beer gut and thirst for alcohol never quenched, Abe’s the kind of continuously sighing, people objectifying, quip-ready voice the writer likes to play with at any given opportunity. With a deep desire to relent to suicide just as he’s employed as a professor by Braylin College, his funk is quietly dissolved once he grows founder of the off-key friendship he forms with his standout student Jill Pollard (Emma Stone). Though she’s interested in taking their relationship to the next level — despite having a boyfriend of her own near her age, Roy (Jamie Blackley) — the student-and-teacher partnership is strictly platonic.

After all, he already formed a romantic relationship not long after meeting his young alley with fellow professor Rita (Parker Posey) — though one expectedly dictated by constant glumness on the male’s part and also impotence. His inability to perform in bed, as a writer or well in his new profession constantly weighs his depression down, but soon the will of live sparks inside him again in an unexpected manner. Overhearing the poor rulings committed by a nearby government official during lunch with Jill at a nearby diner, Abe is strung into unexpected action, seeing the joy in existence again once he decides to take the life of a man he doesn’t know — not for personal gain, but rather to better the community around him. Naturally, though, things grow more complicated than his recently-cleared head intended and, once the plan goes further into effect, his actions leads into the types of tribulations which often come with such follies.

They also fall in line with the territory Allen already developed definitively with Crimes and Misdemeanors and Match Point, just to name a couple. Though there’s nothing wrong with him repeating familiar territory, without anything particularly interesting or say and minus an innovative approach, Irrational Man flounders in its existence — or waddles around as much as one can while still being ever nonchalant. It’s not just second-rate work; it’s passionless second-rate work. Allen quickly appears bored with the material even before kickstarting his movie into action, and though the filmmaker tries to keep the mood casual and serendipitous by design — with the Ramsey Lewis Trio’s “The In Crowd” constantly swaying scene-by-scene into rhythm — atypically poor editing from Alisa Lepselter and an entirely unconcerned attention to pacing keeps any momentum adrift.

But being the masterful performer he always is, Phoenix tries to anchor this boat as steadily as possible at every turn. He’s not alone in his efforts either. Stone not only coasts by on her charm, but also provides a genuine stamina at every turn and remains as delightful as always. The same can be said for Parker, a performer always giving terrific performance but rarely ever appreciated for her fantastic work — not here specifically, but throughout her whole career. Even Blackley proves he’s a performer whose talents are not recognized to their fullest potential, something certainly absent during his work in If I Stay last year. Noble as their work may be, it’s all for nothing if they can’t get the director to be enthused with the same energy.

Phoenix works as hard as he can to fill Abe with depth, but despite all his heavy monologues and intricate line of thinking, there’s not really enough to him to make him a truly compelling character. So strapped down by generic nature of his sad sack personality, he can’t really delve into his personality even when the character grows more augmented. Likewise, the rest of the ensemble don’t have much to drive upon, though Parker does a better job than anyone else at keep her character palpable and accessible. Again, can someone please recognize this actress more accordingly?

Wallowing and never satisfied, Irrational Man is flawed like many Allen movies are today, but where some like To Rome With Love still created something snappy and/or momentarily fulfilling, this is just like his last, Magic in the Moonlight, in that it looks pretty and reels in a wonderful cast, but squanders any potential by constantly searching for a reason to existence. Despite a satisfying ending benefited by a fine set-up, Allen’s most recent cinematic contribution is another disappointingly sagging, bland morality piece. An Allen film without magnetism is downright painful, but seeing one of my favorite filmmakers and one of my favorite actors making something so indifferent together is downright serial.