Zelig

Release Year: 1983

Director: Woody Allen

Review: No one does mockumentaries like Woody Allen.  'Zelig' works on many levels, combining oddball comedy and history with huge strokes of humanity and sincerity.  Leonard Zelig is presented to us as a nondescript enigma.  A chameleon amongst the people.  He is so afraid of what people will think of him that he literally transforms into whoever he is talking to.  Whether that is a doctor or a chinese immigrant, Zelig not only converses as if he were a peer but his physical appearance also morphs to match his companion.  He quickly becomes a pop-culture icon and is the object of fascination for the media.  Allen amplifies the social neurosis found in many of his films and applies them in fantasy world, only rather than play it as pure fairytale as he does in a film like 'A Midsummer's Night Sex Comedy', he goes the other direction and frames it as a documentary cemented in reality.  By taking this approach it allows us to identify with Zelig, to pity him and examine how we all might have a piece of him in us.  It's also a cautionary tale though.  If we assimilate too completely, bowing to the social pressures we lose our self and become zombies only capable of living through others.

One of the more interesting touches to the film is the way Allen painstakingly places himself into historic films and newsreels.  It creates an impeccable recreation which is strikingly real.  Even in the most famous of footage its nearly impossible to pick up any trace of it being doctored.  This adds immensely to the feel of the film, and elevates it from being just a clever play of the social anxieties of a man.  By creating this authentic feel it blurs the line between reality and fantasy which is essential in grounding the film.  Woody Allen never ceases to amaze me with not only his wit but his examination social and romantic obstacles and his ability to package them in such a well rounded capsule.  He is a master of his medium and manages to impress meaningful social commentary into a lightweight framework which is always enjoyable.
Rating: 4/5