MovieChat Forums > Stardust Memories (1980) Discussion > Weird Woody Foreshadow!!

Weird Woody Foreshadow!!

posted 20 years ago by shrimpy50
20 replies | jump to latest

I had to do a double take when I took notice of an odd scene in Stardust Memories. In his apt. he is having an arguement with Char. Rampling I believe...over being attracted to young girls.....at the same time in the background you can see an enlarged newspaper article on the wall dealing with INCEST. I just thought it is an eerie foreshadow of his future problems dealing with Mia Farrow and their children...and the question of... if anything inappropriate had taken place....and then his relationship/marriage(married in 97) with their (or Mia's and Andre Previn?) adopted korean daughter(Soon-Yi Previn..age 21 then...and the nude pix of her discovered by Mia Farrow!). NOTE: Star. Mem. has always been one of many of my fave "WOODY" films....I also have NO problem ...with and fully understand and support his love for Soon-Yi ! Check it out for yourself....in a great docu. "WILD MAN BLUES" 1997....where you will not only see Woody and his wife close up....but also Woody and his parents!

[–] lakerfiend 20 years ago

I guess. tedg would probably have a field day with the self-reference.

But real life aside, I saw this as Allen's ham-handed amplification of the reason for Dorrie's mental state. She is all screwed up because her father, the handsome man with greying temples, had molested her. You have to read between the lines to know he molested her, but Allen doesn't want there to be any question. It is no coincidence that we see this on the wall when Dorrie is going off on Bates for having paid attention to a teenage girl (I forget, her cousin?) during a dinner.

[–] LittleMiso 20 years ago

Not like Woody Allen hasn't been prophetic in his films before- remember the thing in "Sleeper" about Nixon?

"Wanna go to the dump and shoot some rats?"

[–] huronphish 19 years ago

The Nixon thing in Sleeper, the joking "Impeach Ronald Reagan" line in Annie Hall (1977) and Stardust Memories had two eerie foreshadowings. The one being discussed here, and how about John Lennon? He was assasinated by an unassuming nutjob admirer of his less than three months after this came out. With that simple little "Sandy, you're my hero" before the shot, I immediately thought of the reported words of Chapman: "Hello, Mr. Lennon," said very calmly, before he fired.

You almost have to wonder if Chapman saw this and was influenced.

[–] johnozed 16 years ago

yeah, I'm surprised not many people made the Lennon connection.

you say you'll change the Constitution well, you know, we all want to change your Head

[–] superstarved 20 years ago

That's really not much of a foreshadow. For one, it's Mia Farrows adopted daughter, not his. He didn't adopt her. She had her before he got involved with her. And two, I think something like Manhattan would be more of a foreshadow, with him having a relationship with a younger woman.

[–] Black_Gestapo 16 years ago

He has a (rather improbable) relationship with a younger woman in the majority of his films.

[–] triskela 19 years ago

The whole Woody and Soon-Yi thing is so tedious. It was in very bad taste and a show of very poor social skills on the part of Woody to fall for his then girlfriend's adopted daughter, but that's where it ends. It is no worse than that. It only makes the public cringe because people normally try to be more respectful of certain social boundries than that - but sometimes lovers cannot help themselves. The sad fact is that most people fall in love with people from within their social circle, whomever those people end of being or however they became part of a person's social circle in the first place.

Woody cannot be the only guy to date a woman and then fall for her daughter instead. I expect people trade up too, date the daughter and then fall for the mother. *beep* happens.

Get over it.

[–] urchinau 19 years ago

I agree. I don't understand people not involved in his life judging something as complex as a relationship. We all know how deep, any relationship goes. Theyve been together so long, hopefully we'll be able to get over it soon..

[–] 19 years ago

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[–] thepooles-1 9 years ago

I just saw parts of Stardust Memories on TVand the film didn't work for me. I then went to IMDB and even though your comment was back in 2005 your point was well taken. I don't know much about Allen's current marriage. Staying together is not praise without knowing more. They might still be married but living completely separate lives. Now, I have to find out! Damn, thanks a lot! Ha. John Poole

[–] cdeuskar 19 years ago

It's funny you should say that, because in one of his books (Either Without Feathers or Side Effects, I forget which), Allen has a story in which exactly that happens. He dates a girl, meets her mother and falls for her instead. It's pretty funny.

[–] mark-cooney 18 years ago

it's always seemed to me that Woody always puts alot of himself up on the screen. As far as forshadowing and young girls...hell, in Manhatten, that was the main plot!

[–] blipper-1 18 years ago

It was a little more than "dating". Mia, "his then girlfriend", and Woody had three children together.

[–] stephan-128 16 years ago

i thought of john lennon too.

i did think the soon yi foreshadowing here was pretty strong. it seems some other posters here are being a bit lenient on the woodman (whom i think is a genius as an artist). Lets face it: this and manhattan show clearly that he was predisposed toward that sort of relationship. he expressed it in his fiction and then years later lived out these leanings in real life. its nice i suppose that he and soon yi have stayed together, but it appears he's had a long standing predilection toward this.

[–] bing148 16 years ago

Ya, he married his kids' half sister. That's just weird, especially since from all accounts he was very much a father figure to her as well...

http://www.awardsseasoncentral.cjb.net/

[–] Mark_Graisons_Moustache 14 years ago

I love Woody, LOVE him, and I've seen nearly all his films. I don't have a problem with his relationship with Soon-Yi.

However, I don't think he did himself any favors in some of these earlier films with the teenager stuff. MANHATTAN is the biggest example. He writes and directs a movie where a 42 year old man dates a 17 year old high school and this man's friends are all fine with it, saying only 'He doesn't realize how wonderful she is!' This is not the real world, this is the world Woody wants to be real.

This doesn't affect my enjoyment of his films (hell, I think MANHATTAN could be his best movie ever) but people will forever be doing double takes when they watch them now.

"I've flown this route before."
"When was that?"
"IT WAS ON THE WINGS OF A DEMON!"

[–] 14 years ago

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[–] jellyree 13 years ago

Anyone interested in this subject might like this bit.

Ms. Rampling's character is "Dorrie".

Before Mia Farrow was married to Andre Previn, he was married to Dory Previn.

Dory wrote and recorded "Beware Young Girls". It was her take on the young Mia stealing Andre away.

[–] noveltylibrary 9 years ago

interesting!

[–] 9 years ago

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