January 26, 2016 -- A philosopher who goes with his gut is going to get himself into trouble, and that is what happens to philosophy professor Abe Lucas (Joaquin Phoenix of “Her”) after he lands at Braylin College in New England, drunk, purposeless, and with an edgy reputation. “That should put some Viagra into the Philosophy Department,” is one comment about Abe overheard on campus before his arrival.

Abe, drunk, bloated, despondent and finding no purpose in life, is a chick magnet for some reason. Women are drawn to his despair. This reminds me of the famous line from “Broadcast News” (1987), when Albert Books says, “Wouldn't this be a great world if insecurity and desperation made us more attractive? If 'needy' were a turn-on?” Well, that's the world in this movie. Abe's neediness is a turn on for women. That ought to make him happy, but it doesn't. He is so despondent, he contemplates suicide and even puts a gun to his head at a party and plays Russian roulette for real. Nobody at the party reports this to college authorities. He continues to be allowed to teach.

Two attractive women literally throw themselves at Abe, an unhappy faculty wife, Rita (Parker Posey of “Superman Returns”) and one of Abe's students, Jill (Emma Stone of “Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)”) a very bright (well, not so bright when it comes to her not noticing that Abe is nuts) and talented young woman who finds herself drawn to Abe's angst, and away from her nice, sane boyfriend, Roy, a fellow student (played by Jamie Blackley of “If I Stay”).

Abe goes to bed with Rita first, but is impotent and unable to perform, a victim of his own angst. Although Jill wants to have an affair with Abe, he keeps her at a distance at first, but the two become friends. At a diner, the two overhear a conversation in the next booth, a woman is in despair over losing custody of her children in part due to the unjust behavior of a judge, Thomas Spangler (Tom Kemp).

This is where the film takes a sudden turn to the dark side as the despondent Abe, suddenly finds purpose in his life. He finds a goal for himself -- to kill the evil judge. As he becomes obsessed with this idea, he suddenly finds himself enjoying life again because he plans to take action. He has no problem using existentialism to rationalize murder. He starts telling Jill, and everyone else to just go with their gut, like he did, and forget about logic.

While he is smart and takes pains to hide his plans, there are some witnesses, including some he knows about, but disregards. He also talks too much about his existential justification for murder. He also lets says some self-incriminating things in casual conversation. Abe is not nearly as smart as he thinks he is. Soon, he is in big trouble, with no easy way out of it. The story gets darker still before the end.

This is not the first time writer-director Woody Allen has toyed with the idea of cold-blooded premeditated murder in his films, and he is certainly been accused of misogyny before. This film combines both misogyny and murder, plus a contempt for philosophy. “Philosophy is verbal masturbation,” says Abe, and that is the way he teaches it in class. The women who love Abe, Rita and Jill, are interchangeable and disposable as far as Abe is concerned. They are supposed to be smart characters, but Rita and Jill but they are dumb when it comes to evaluating the character of Abe.

Woody Allen has proven capable of writing award-winning roles for women over the years, but the main women characters in this film are certainly a cut below his best screen writing efforts. While the screenplay is a bit sloppy (Abe doesn't seen to be a bit concerned with which countries do and don't have extradition treaties with the U.S., for instance) it is a good psychological drama, and Joaquin Phoenix does give a good performance.

The film is well made and there are good performances, and I did like the ending. However, I did feel a bit slimed by this film. The misogyny and the disregard for morality are troubling. I would have liked it better if the absurd elements in the story had been handled in a more comedic fashion. This film rates a B.

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