Not So Sunny: A Review of Woody Allen's 'A Rainy Day in New York'

Timothée Chalamet in A Rainy Day in New York

Forget about the term; I only watch a film because of the plot. This time I will talk about a film in which I have no idea where the plot will take me, let alone watching the trailer itself. Since my Twitter timeline contains so many snapshots of the film's scenes, I recall why I watched it in the first place: Vittorio Storaro's nearly dreamlike surreal cinematography. Not to mention the promising quality of these young, talented actors like Timothée Chalamet, Elle Fanning, and Selena Gomez, which makes me want to keep watching this movie.

A Rainy Day in New York (2019) is an American romantic comedy film directed by Woody Allen. The film follows a young couple, Gatsby Welles (Timothée Chalamet) and Ashleigh Enright (Elle Fanning), as they travel to New York for a weekend getaway. While exploring the city, they experience a series of misadventures and encounters with eccentric characters, all while trying to navigate the complexities of their own relationship. They embark on a whirlwind romance that takes unexpected turns as they explore the city and learn more about each other.

I'm not going to meticulously describe how the storyline goes since it's pretty cliche and perhaps seems monotonous to some people. This film's key premise—spending a weekend together, two college sweethearts travel to New York, only to become separated and involved in a sequence of mishaps—may sound uneventful, yet I eventually finish it with relief at the end. 

Timothée Chalamet and Elle Fanning in A Rainy Day in New York

The story begins when Ashleigh Enright snags an interview with reputed filmmaker Roland Pollard (Liev Schreiber) for the school paper. As soon as they arrive, things start to go wrong. Roland is in an existential and creative slump and is considering quitting when Ashleigh goes for her interview. He invites Ashleigh to a private showing of his new movie but is so horrified by it that he leaves to go on a binge, leaving his longtime partner Ted Davidoff (Jude Law) to try to track him down while of course dragging Ashleigh along because she genuinely enjoys the movie. Eventually, all three guys fall in love with her because of her beauty, her untouched innocence, and her inability to control her liquor. This causes her to run into a well-known actor (Diego Luna).

On the other hand, Gatsby Welles while waiting for her girlfriend's ambition agenda, wanders around, visits his brother Hunter (Will Rogers), who is thinking about calling off his upcoming wedding because the sound of his fiancée's laughter bothers him, and eventually finds himself being forced into service by a friend who is directing a student film and needs someone for a scene in which they passionately kiss the lead actress. The actress he kissed turns out to be Chan (Selena Gomez), who also just happens to be the younger sibling of one of Gatsby's past lovers and who may have even had a crush on him. Before he is ultimately coerced into attending his mother's party, the two wind up spending the majority of the afternoon together.

Nonetheless, what stands out, in my opinion, is the way some scenes are just so questionably "why" for some reason, making it hard for audiences nowadays to relate to, especially Gen-Z. At least, that's what I believe as a member of Generation Z. Likewise, Woody Allen’s writing style in Rainy Day in New York is often dry and bleak, focusing on the mundane and uneventful aspects of life. While this can be effective in creating a realistic atmosphere, it can also be tedious and slow-paced, making it difficult to keep the audience’s attention. Not to emphasize that the characters in Rainy Day in New York lack depth and complexity. This prevents the audience from fully comprehending the character's motivations and inner thoughts, making it difficult to connect with them. Additionally, many of the characters are presented as stereotypes, further distancing the reader from the character's experiences.

However, just as I stated in the initial paragraph, the main motive for watching this film is the visual elements and cinematography. The film is shot beautifully and captures the city in all its grandeur. The colours and lighting of the film are perfect and help to bring the atmosphere of the city to life. Additionally, the soundtrack is excellent, featuring classic jazz and upbeat pop songs that capture the energy and romance of New York. The dialogue is also sharp and witty, adding a great sense of humour to the film. Rainy Day in New York is a fine aesthetically pleasing film that captures the essence of the city and is sure to bring a smile to anyone's face. 

Besides, it captures the unique atmosphere of New York City with a humorous and light-hearted take on a day of bad weather. Also, in some parts, Allen still presents his clever and witty scriptwriting style and great performances from the cast have also become one of the highest points of this film. Thus, even though it is not Allen's best work, it overall still offers touching moments of nostalgia and sentimentality.

A Rainy Day in New York 3.9/5