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Crisis in Six Scenes

Crisis in Six Scenes is an American comedy television miniseries written and directed by Woody Allen for Amazon Studios.[1][2][3][4] Allen wrote and directed six episodes for the half-hour series, marking the first time he has done so for television.

Crisis in Six Scenes
Promotional poster
GenreComedy
Created byWoody Allen
Written byWoody Allen
Directed byWoody Allen
Starring
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of episodes6
Production
Executive producerErika Aronson
ProducerHelen Robin
CinematographyEigil Bryld
EditorAlisa Lepselter
Production companies
Original release
NetworkAmazon Prime Video
ReleaseSeptember 30, 2016 (2016-09-30)

The series premiered on Amazon Prime Video on September 30, 2016,[1] to generally unfavorable reviews.

Cast and characters

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Main

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Guest

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Episodes

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No.TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air date
1"Episode #1.1"Woody AllenWoody AllenSeptember 30, 2016 (2016-09-30)
A middle-class suburban home- all seems well until a dangerous intruder enters in the dead of night.
2"Episode #1.2"Woody AllenWoody AllenSeptember 30, 2016 (2016-09-30)
An intruder causes terrible panic and tension in a usually placid household.
3"Episode #1.3"Woody AllenWoody AllenSeptember 30, 2016 (2016-09-30)
Because of an armed intruder, after a home invasion, a married couple's life is turned upside-down.
4"Episode #1.4"Woody AllenWoody AllenSeptember 30, 2016 (2016-09-30)
Romantic alliances fray and conflict in the suburban home reaches a boiling point.
5"Episode #1.5"Woody AllenWoody AllenSeptember 30, 2016 (2016-09-30)
A middle-class husband and wife put their lives in jeopardy carrying out a dangerous assignment.
6"Episode #1.6"Woody AllenWoody AllenSeptember 30, 2016 (2016-09-30)
Finally a resolution but not before chaos, surprising disclosures, police and guns come into play.

Production

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Development

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The deal with Allen was seen as giving Amazon a possible advantage in its competition with Netflix and television networks. The series was announced within days of Amazon winning the Golden Globe Award for the comedy-drama Transparent, another original series.[5] Allen had last written new material for television in the 1950s, when he wrote for Sid Caesar.[4]

In a May 2015 interview, Allen said that progress on the series had been "very, very difficult" and that he had "regretted every second since I said OK".[6][7] Allen has said of the series, "I don't know how I got into this. I have no ideas and I'm not sure where to begin. My guess is that Roy Price [the head of Amazon Studios] will regret this."[2][3][8]

Casting

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In January 2016, it was announced that the series would star Allen, Elaine May and Miley Cyrus, and that shooting would begin in March.[9] In February 2016, it was announced that John Magaro and Rachel Brosnahan had joined the cast.[10] In March 2016, Michael Rapaport, Becky Ann Baker, Margaret Ladd, Joy Behar, Rebecca Schull, David Harbour, and Christine Ebersole had joined the cast of the series.[11]

Filming

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For approximately three weeks in early 2016, filming for the six episodes took place at 508 Scarborough Road, in Briarcliff Manor, New York.[12]

Reception

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Critical response

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On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the series holds an approval rating of 18% based on 50 reviews, with an average rating of 4.7/10. The website's critics consensus reads, "Woody Allen's filmmaking skills prove a poor fit for the small screen in Crisis in Six Scenes, a talk-heavy, unfunny, and overall disengaged production buried below numerous superior offerings."[13] On Metacritic, the series has a score 44 out of 100, based on 29 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[14]

Rodrigo Perez from The Playlist gave the series a D+ on an A+ to F scale, and described it as "nearly unwatchable".[15] Robert Bianco of USA Today was more positive, writing "Crisis is not Allen at his peak, nor at his most serious and contemplative as an artist. Crisis is a bauble, a light comedy that starts very slowly and builds to a satisfyingly funny conclusion." He also praised the performances of Allen and May, stating "Not only is it great to see them performing so well together, it’s just a nice change of pace to see a comedy about two married senior citizens where the casting is age appropriate and the story is not built around senility or mortality."[16]

The Los Angeles Times wrote: "This isn’t Allen at his wittiest or wildest--his career is almost by definition a thing of peaks and valleys, and he can be satisfying and frustrating within a single film. But he has a voice, and he has not yet lost it. Anyone susceptible to that sensibility will find many familiar pleasures here," and further stated "as the work that has returned Elaine May to public view, it can only be welcomed, with rose petals and trumpets. And it does well by her."[17] The New York Times stated: "In recent years, Mr. Allen's movies have swung wildly in quality, alternating real highs with definite lows. Crisis sits in between. It's closer to the low end, but for fans of a certain earlier strain of his work, its shambling, amiable vibe may seem comfortingly familiar."[18]

Allen's reaction

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Allen himself had openly expressed severe misgivings about the project,[2][3][8] and denounced the series, stating that it would conclude with one season.[19] At the 2015 Cannes Film Festival, Allen said in reference to the show, "It was a catastrophic mistake. I don't know what I'm doing. I'm floundering. I expect this to be a cosmic embarrassment."[20]

References

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  1. ^ a b Littleton, Cynthia (August 7, 2016). "Amazon Sets September Comedy Push, Reveals Title for Woody Allen Series". Variety. Archived from the original on August 8, 2016. Retrieved August 7, 2016.
  2. ^ a b c Weinstein, Shelli (January 13, 2015). "Woody Allen to Create His First Television Series for Amazon". Variety. Archived from the original on January 13, 2015. Retrieved June 18, 2015.
  3. ^ a b c Steel, Emily (January 13, 2015). "Amazon Signs Woody Allen to Write and Direct TV Series". The New York Times. Archived from the original on January 20, 2015. Retrieved January 13, 2015.
  4. ^ a b Jurgensen, John (January 13, 2015). "Woody Allen to Create TV Series for Amazon Studios". The Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on February 17, 2015. Retrieved January 13, 2015.
  5. ^ Levin, Gary (January 14, 2015). "Amazon momentum builds with Woody Allen series". USA Today. Archived from the original on January 14, 2015. Retrieved January 14, 2015.
  6. ^ Fleming, Mike Jr. (May 14, 2015). "Woody Allen Cannes Interview: 'Irrational Man' Director On His Life & Movies". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on March 7, 2020. Retrieved February 21, 2020.
  7. ^ Goodman, Jessica (May 15, 2015). "Woody Allen Regrets Doing Amazon Series". The Huffington Post. Archived from the original on May 18, 2015. Retrieved May 15, 2015.
  8. ^ a b Massa, Antonia (January 13, 2015). "Amazon Signs Woody Allen to His First TV Show". Bloomberg News. Archived from the original on January 13, 2015. Retrieved January 13, 2015.
  9. ^ Fleming, Mike Jr. (January 25, 2016). "Woody Allen Amazon Series: Woody, Miley Cyrus & Elaine May To Star". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on February 22, 2020. Retrieved February 21, 2020.
  10. ^ Hipes, Patrick (February 24, 2016). "John Magaro & Rachel Brosnahan Join Woody Allen's Amazon Series". Archived from the original on February 25, 2016. Retrieved February 25, 2016.
  11. ^ Petski, Denise (March 16, 2016). "Woody Allen Amazon Series: Michael Rapaport, Becky Ann Baker & More Join Cast". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on August 3, 2016. Retrieved August 5, 2016.
  12. ^ Taliaferro, Lanning (March 8, 2016). "Woody Allen Filming on Scarborough Road". Patch. Archived from the original on October 21, 2016. Retrieved October 19, 2016.
  13. ^ "Crisis in Six Scenes (2016)". Rotten Tomatoes. Archived from the original on March 7, 2021. Retrieved March 27, 2021.
  14. ^ "Crisis in Six Scenes reviews". Metacritic. Archived from the original on September 30, 2016. Retrieved September 30, 2016.
  15. ^ Perez, Rodrigo (October 4, 2016). "Woody Allen's Amazon Show 'Crisis In Six Scenes' Is Nearly Unwatchable [Review]". The Playlist. Archived from the original on September 13, 2017. Retrieved May 11, 2017.
  16. ^ Bianco, Robert (September 26, 2016). "Review: 'Crisis in Six Scenes' is a shiny, familiar Woody Allen bauble". USA Today. Archived from the original on May 16, 2022. Retrieved June 12, 2024.
  17. ^ Lloyd, Robert (September 29, 2016). "Review: As a TV series, Woody Allen's 'Crisis in Six Scenes' offers many pleasures of a Woody Allen movie". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on February 22, 2024. Retrieved June 12, 2024.
  18. ^ Hale, Mike (September 29, 2016). "Review: 'Crisis in Six Scenes,' a Mere Ghost of Woody Allen Past". New York Times. Archived from the original on February 6, 2024. Retrieved June 13, 2024.
  19. ^ Galloway, Stephen (May 4, 2016). "The Woody Allen Interview (Which He Won't Read)". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on May 6, 2018. Retrieved May 4, 2016.
  20. ^ Zeitchik, Steven (May 15, 2015). "Cannes 2015: Woody Allen sings a bleak tune". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on January 11, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2015.
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