Deconstructing Harry

(New Line)

Playing Harry Block, a successful Upper West Side novelist who cannibalizes his own life for his art, Woody Allen delivers this bold, scathing, but only occasionally effective fuck-you of a film. The Pirandellian games are a red herring: Allen's real message here is that it's possible to be both a great artist and a morally reprehensible human being. The huge cast includes Judy Davis, Kirstie Alley, and Elisabeth Shue, plus bit players Robin Williams, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Stanley Tucci, Julie Kavner, Tobey Maguire, Richard Benjamin, and Demi Moore.