Most celebrities know when to keep their mouths shut.Woody Allen does not. This weekend, amid the swirling horrors of the unfolding Harvey Weinstein scandal, the bespectacled director unwisely opened his maw.“The whole Harvey Weinstein thing is very sad for everybody involved,” Allen told the BBC. “Tragic for the poor women that were involved, sad for Harvey that (his) life is so messed up. There’s no winners in that, it’s just very, very sad and tragic for those poor women that had to go through that.”His sympathy for the victims is clear. But the bundled hint of sympathy for Weinstein was a real head-scratcher. It triggered instant blowback. Rose McGowan, who alleges Weinstein raped her — there are now more than 30 women who say the movie producer sexually assaulted or harassed them — called Allen a “vile little worm.”That was one of the kinder testimonials tossed his way.Under siege from all sides, Allen then clarified his comments.“When I said I felt sad for Harvey Weinstein I thought it was clear the meaning was because he is a sad, sick man,” Allen said, in a statement to Variety that only underscored just how unclear he was on the first attempt. “I was surprised it was treated differently. Lest there be any ambiguity, this statement clarifies my intention and feelings.”Does it? I’m not so sure.In that original BBC interview, Allen also lamented the possibility, post-Weinstein, of a “witch-hunt atmosphere,” one that might mean “every guy in an office who winks at a woman is suddenly having to call a lawyer to defend himself.”As he concludes: “That’s not right either.”And with that, Allen is dead wrong.I’m generally against witch hunts, but only when a witch hunt entails wrongful persecution. When my wife wrongly accuses me of leaving dirty laundry outside the hamper, this is most definitely a witch hunt.But on the matter ...
|