Outsiderism, displacement and escapism in the European films of Woody Allen

Abstract

This thesis examines Allen’s European cycle, which starts with Match Point (2005) and concludes with Magic in the Moonlight (2014). It argues that although this body of films exhibits characteristics of the European art film which dominate over American entertainment film elements, Allen continues to be an outsider in Europe. Therefore despite Allen’s geographical relocation to a different continent and his long-term declared admiration for the European art film and the work of European auteurs, his films continue to represent European cities through an outsider’s gaze. Hence this thesis intends to examine the notion of the European city perceived through John Urry’s gaze theory and Dean MacCannell’s theory of the second gaze. This work will demonstrate that the Euro-American film category, as described by Peter Lev in his book The Euro–American Cinema (1993) provides a valuable frame for approaching Allen’s European phase. Furthermore this thesis seeks to offer a revision to Lev’s definition of the Euro-American film, adding characteristics originating from Allen’s eight Europe-based films, aiming to add to the film scholarship as this term can be applied to numerous contemporary directors. I will demonstrate that Allen’s European oeuvre plays with the notion of authenticity in its portrayals of different European cities, providing varying visions of Europe: artificial, idealized and demonized. This work argues that Allen’s European phase displays different types of escapism: geographic, romantic and magical.