That Time Woody Allen Testified Before Congress

Woody Allen has never been a political filmmaker -- he has said that politics doesn't interest him so much as exploring how life is tragic, meaningless, and absurd. His best films look at life and love and, instead of reveling in the glories of them, concludes that love leads to sadness and life leads to nothingness.

Woody's greatest film, Crimes & Misdemeanors, basically says that God doesn't exist and there is no justice in the world. (So there.) He posits that only by trying to find some joy in one's daily existence can life be made bearable -- and this philosophy of life is expoused in the film by a character who commits suicide.  (So there, again.)

But on May 12, 1987, Woody did something highly unexpected and, in a way, political -- he testified before Congress with his fellow Oscar-winning colleagues Milos Forman and Sydney Pollack in support of legislation that would prevent film companies (mainly run by Ted Turner) from colorizing movies. Colorization of old black and white movies was a fad back then, and purists like Woody and others were vocally against it. They won -- colorization withered away along with Betamax.

So here is America's least political filmmaker speaking strongly in favor of the rights of artists. It's fascinating to watch. 

Interestingly enough, a few years later, Woody and Sydney Pollack would work together on the movie Husbands and Wives.