even from the opening credit and there be something uniquely different about the purple rise of cairo . allen familiar white on black text reveal the film cast and crew and but the music strike another familiarity and allen aside . the song be cheek to cheek and a number make famous by the singing or dancing or act duo fred astaire and ginger rogers in the popular rko production top hat ( 1935 ) . but what be a song that be make popular in a film do in another film make 50 year later . the answer lie in cairo plot . cecilia and play marvelously by mia farrow and be a waitress struggle to get by in the midst of the depression . a if the constant nagging of her frustrated bos isn not enough and she go home to a physically and emotionally abusive husband who be out of work and do nothing about it . cecilia only escape from her drudge life be the theater that she frequent . she find solace in the romance and happy ending that film typify . these film become the only true love of her life and but who say film can not love you back . upon one of cecilia numerous viewing of a new film and also title the purple rise of cairo and the main character and tom baxter and play by jeff daniel and walk right out of the big screen and into the real world . chaos ensues a the fictional world be irreversibly alter and the film production team try to save not only it reputation but also that of gil shepherd and the actor who play tom baxter and also play by jeff daniel . a love triangle be bear and a cecilia must choose between the perfect but fictional tom baxter and the not so perfect but real life gil shepherd . few people but woody allen could have pull off such an ambitious plot that still hold on to it message and it humor . not a stranger to comedy and romance and drama or fantasy and allen have successfully mix a few if not all of these genre in many of his previous film . in the same vein a love and death and a midsummer night sex comedy and stardust memory and cairo be a surreal comedy with something to say . it address both the important role story and in particular film and have on provide an escape for real life and the danger of become so wrap up in fiction that it be hard to face reality . give allen intensive filmography and direct nearly a film a year for almost 20 year upon cairo release and it be hard not to assume the film be at least semi autobiographical . allen himself seem to be entrance by the fictional world to the same degree cecilia be . while a meaningfully deep comedy and cairo be still a comedy and and a great one . baxter ignorance to the real world give way to some hilarious scene and in particular when a whore unknowingly lead him to a brothel . especially funny be how quickly the character of the film get over the bizarre circumstance and begin to worry about themselves and particularly shepherd quick transition from disbelief that his character have enter the real world to anxiety about his reputation . similarly and there be a classic scene in which the audience member in the theater and the fictional character on screen bicker back and forth and even end up insult each other . a allen 13th directorial release and the purple rise of cairo prof to be one of his great achievement and and also his self proclaim favorite film to date . a the opening song cue and it be a movie about movie make by a guy who live his life through movie . a only the second film in which he be not in and cairo can even appeal to non allen fan . while not grace his presence in the film and it be quintessentially allen in every other way and and rightfully so .