Review: Woody Allen's TV series is a plodding 'Crisis'
Viewers may feel their own pangs of regret after sampling his "Crisis," whose six half-hour episodes debut Friday on Amazon Prime.
Sure, the series will engage hardcore Woodyphiles who not only celebrate his many great films but are also willing to defend his dismal misfires ("A Rational Man"! "Whatever Works"! "September"!).
[...] the series might serve as a useful crash course (or refresher) in the clashing points of view that rocked the turbulent '60s.
Allen plays Sid Munsinger, a kvetching, semi-successful novelist who, in his autumn years, wants to finally make a big score by creating a hit sitcom.
The series is at its most valuable (however limited that may be) as a dialectic between those who argue (as Lennie shrilly does) that "you have to break some eggs to make an omelet" and other characters, mainly Sid, who counter that the best way to peace and social justice is by working within the system (though they don't often get around to it).
A half-century later, that same debate still rages — what IS the best way to effect social change? — but, as Lennie would be the first to point out, talk is cheap.
[...] even the potentially madcap moments (notably — and spoiler here though it's unlikely you'll make it this far — a deluge of Kay's clients and her fellow book-club members all descending on the house in the chaotic finale) fall prey to sluggish pacing.
EDITOR'S NOTE — Frazier Moore is a national television columnist for The Associated Press.