History Film / HannahAndHerSisters

* FatalFlaw: Lee despite having beauty is deeply insecure and desperately craves intellectuals that can "take care" of her with her sincerely saying that

* BittersweetEnding: All the parties get a happy ending, but the love triangle is still a bit sad. [[spoiler: Despite a shared love, Elliot and Lee don't wind up with each other due to him being unable to leave Hannah and her meeting someone else while he stalled to end his marriage. Meanwhile, Hannah never finding out about the affair helps keep all three happy, but there's still the question of whether it's better that she remain blissfully unaware or would it be better if she knew the truth but was hurt by it.

* TheCameo: Sam Waterson as David and Tony Roberts as Norman.

* ADateWithRosiePalms:
-->'''Hannah:''' Could you have ruined yourself somehow?
-->'''Mickey:''' How could I ruin myself?
-->'''Hannah:''' I don't know. Excessive masturbation?
-->'''Mickey:''' You gonna start knockin' my hobbies?

* TheEeyore: Frederick. All of his comments about the state of society and culture reflect his very dark attitude towards humanity and life in general.

* SocietyMarchesOn: In a flashback scene, Holly drags Mickey to CBGB on a date, where they [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6LatS6Bz2fQ watch 39 Steps perform "Slip Into the Crowd"]]. While Mickey clearly views the band as the epitome of unlistenable punk rock, their sound was hardly as dissonant as Music/SexPistols', and by post-grunge standards is downright melodic.

->''"What if the worst is true? What if there's no God and you only go around once and that's it? Well, you know, don't you wanna be part of the experience? You know, what the hell, it's not ''all'' a drag. And I'm thinking to myself, Jeez, I should stop ruining my life searching for answers I'm never gonna get, and just enjoy it while it lasts. And, you know, after, who knows? I mean, you know, maybe there ''is'' something, nobody really knows. I know "maybe" is a very slim reed to hang your whole life on, but that's the best we have."''

''Hannah and Her Sisters'' is a 1986 film by Creator/WoodyAllen. Until the release of ''Film/MidnightInParis'' in 2011, this was the most financially successful of Allen's films.

The film follows the lives of a troubled family between two [[ThanksgivingDayStory Thanksgivings]]. Hannah (Creator/MiaFarrow) is a successful actress, wife, mother, and sister. As the oldest daughter of actors Evan (Lloyd Nolan) and Norma (Maureen O'Sullivan), she shoulders the difficult task of keeping the family balanced.

Hannah's sister Lee (Barbara Hershey) is an intelligent, recovered alcoholic who lives with a misanthropic artist named Frederick (Creator/MaxVonSydow). Unbeknownst to Hannah, her husband Elliot (Creator/MichaelCaine, Best Supporting Actor winner) has fallen hopelessly in love with Lee. And Lee [[SiblingTriangle just might return his feelings]].

[[quoteright:300:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Hannah_and_her_sisters_6947.jpg]]

->''"What if there is no God and you only go around once and that's it. Well, ya know, don't you wanna be part of the experience? You know, what the hell it's not all a drag. And I'm thinking to myself, Jeez, I should stop ruining my life searching for answers I'm never gonna get, and just enjoy it while it lasts. And after who knows, I mean maybe there is something, nobody really knows. I know maybe is a very slim reed to hang your whole life on, but that's the best we have."''

Hannah's sister Lee (Barbara Hershey) is an intelligent, recovered alcoholic who lives with a misanthropic artist named Frederick (Creator/MaxVonSydow). Unbeknownst to Hannah, her husband Elliot (Creator/MichaelCaine) has fallen hopelessly in love with Lee. And Lee [[SiblingTriangle just might return his feelings]].

Hannah's youngest sister Holly (Creator/DianneWiest) is an out-of-work actress and recently recovered cocaine addict. Rejection after rejection starts to take a toll on Holly's confidence level and threatens to destroy the progress she's made.

''Hannah and Her Sisters'' is a 1986 film by Creator/WoodyAllen. It's one of Allen's most popular films, usually grouped with ''Film/AnnieHall'' and ''Film/{{Manhattan}}'' as top critical and fan favorites. Until the release of ''Film/MidnightInParis'' in 2011, this was also the most financially successful of Allen's films.

The film won three awards in 1987: Woody Allen won for Best Screenplay, and Creator/MichaelCaine and Dianne Wiest won for Best Actor in a Supporting Role and Best Actress in a Supporting Role, respectively. The film was also nominated for Best Picture, Best Directing, Best Art Direction, and Best Editing.

* TheAntiNihilist: Mickey [[spoiler:decides to kill himself, because he feels that existence is meaningless. After he bungles it, he goes to the streets, and eventually wanders into a movie theater, where a Creator/MarxBrothers film, ''Theatre/AnimalCrackers'', is playing. After a while, he starts enjoying the film.]]

* HappyEnding: Especially when compared to other Creator/WoodyAllen films. [[spoiler: Mickey and Holly are HappilyMarried and [[BabiesEverAfter expecting a child]]. Elliot rediscovers how much he loves Hannah and [[YourCheatingHeart she never finds out about his affair with Lee]]. And Lee ends up HappilyMarried herself to a literature professor.]]

* YourCheatingHeart: Elliot is hopelessly in love with his wife's sister.

* {{Homage}}: Allen stated the film was a tribute to Creator/AntonChehkov's ''Theatre/UncleVanya''.

-->I started to feel, how can you even think of killing yourself, I mean isn't it so stupid? Look at all the people up there on the screen, they're real funny, and what if the worst is true. What if there is no God and you only go around once and that's it. Well, ya know, don't you wanna be part of the experience? You know, what the hell it's not all a drag. And I'm thinking to myself, jeez, I should stop ruining my life searching for answers I'm never gonna get, and just enjoy it while it lasts. And after who knows, I mean maybe there is something, nobody really knows. I know maybe is a very slim reed to hang your whole life on, but that's the best we have.

* TheKirk: Lee.
* LadyDrunk: Norma.

* TheMcCoy: Holly

* TheSpock: Hannah

* TheAlcoholic: Lee admits to Elliot that she was an alcoholic in the past and still regularly attends AA meetings because they comfort her.

* EpicTrackingShot: The entire breakup between Lee and Frederick was a single shot. If that weren't enough, the scene went so well the ''camera crew'' were in tears.
** The other Epic Tracking Shot in the film comes during a dinner between all three sisters as the camera does an arc pan ''several times'' during the subtext-filled conversation between the trio.