Coney Island Lovers

Looking for a movie to watch on Friday evening, I checked out Prime free movies. One caught my attention because the blurb said it had action, passion, infidelity, and excitement. I had not heard anything about Wonder Wheel with Kate Winslet, Justin Timberlake, Jim Belushi and a Juno Temple.

Those seemed to be good actors so I clicked on it.  The background music was upbeat and my first thought was that it was Woody Allen's style. I couldn't help but think that someone was copying his method of beginning a movie.  I watched the credits before the movie began and guess who had written and directed the movie? Woody Allen! How about that, I thought, I can pick my favorite writer, actor and director before seeing the credits!

Woody Allen has always been a favorite of mine for his sense of humor, how he manages to have characters true to life and how he can move the characters through life in a realistic way. This movie did not disappoint me. Jim Belushi is married to Kate Winslet and he is a rough, gross man that loves his wife but she is unhappy. She runs into Justin Timberlake where he us a life guard on the beach. An affair follows but then Jim Belushi's daughter shows up, running away from gangsters who want to kill her and there is a shift in the relationships. When Justin Timberlake meets the daughter it does not take long for him to fall in love with her. The mixed up group is mismatched; Kate Winslet does not care for the daughter, she sees Timberlake as her escape out of being a waitress, she has a son who starts fires, Jim Belushi is a recovering alcoholic and treats women without respect yet in his own way loves them, and no one appears to be content with their life. Yet, one wonders how their lives will turn out. It is almost predictable but not quite.

I enjoyed the movie, felt bad for some of the characters and enjoyed others. What surprised me is that I had no idea that Woody Allen had a new movie out. I read that he does a movie a year and I usually find out before hand that one of his movies will be coming out. Wonder Wheel was a surprise. I guess you will have to see the movie to know what happens.

Some reviews were not favorable but I liked the movie and it could be that anything Woody Allen does, I will like.