Sunday’s Washington Post carried an interview with filmmaker Woody Allen by movie critic Ann Hornaday. She noted Allen’s latest movie “evokes at least two of life’s most rewarding subjects to contemplate: the South of France and God.” Allen shot back: “At least the South of France exists!”
Hornaday oozed, “The zinger is vintage Allen, from its steadfast, playfully expressed atheism to its flawless timing.” She reported “he still evinces zero respect for organized religion, which the last time he met this reporter [in 2012] he called ‘a mindless grasp of life.’”
Woody Allen
By Tim Graham | July 27, 2014 | 7:48 AM EDT
By Noel Sheppard | March 26, 2013 | 3:56 PM EDT
It must be getting tough for the folks at the CBS Late Show to find material.
On Monday, host David Letterman during his opening monologue actually stole a joke from Woody Allen that’s almost 50 years old (video follows with transcript and commentary):
By Nathan Burchfiel | September 15, 2010 | 2:29 PM EDT
Legendary filmmaker Woody Allen recognizes that religion makes people happier, but still views religious faith as a "delusion" worthy of the same respect afforded a fortune cookie.
In an interview published Sept. 15 to promote his upcoming movie, "You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger," Allen told The New York Times, "This sounds so bleak when I say it, but we need some delusions to keep us going. And the people who successfully delude themselves seem happier than the people who can't."
"To me, there's no real difference between a fortune teller or a fortune cookie and any of the organized religions," Allen told reporter David Itzkoff. "They're all equally valid or invalid, really. And equally helpful."
When asked whether he thought reincarnation was more plausible than the existence of God, Allen said, "Neither seems plausible to me. I have a grim, scientific assessment of it. I just feel, what you see is what you get."