In the olden days of cinema, say, about 20 years ago, a new Woody Allen film would appear with the falling leaves each September. With the younger set back in school, the Oscar contender season gets underway soon after Labor Day.

Nowadays, a Woody Allen film can pop up at anytime. Writer-director Allen's latest, "Cafe Society," is released at the height of the summer movie season, perhaps as counterprogramming to the multiplex blockbusters.In "Cafe Society," set during 1930s Hollywood and Los Angeles and the Bronx and New York City, Bobby Dorfman (Jesse Eisenberg) wants to leave the stultifying apartment of his parents, Rose (Jeannie Berlin) and Marty (Ken Stott), escape the orbit of his sister, a schoolteacher Evelyn (Sari Lennick), married to Leonard (Stephen Kunken), and avoid the influence of his mobster brother, Ben (Corey Stoll).Bobby apprentices with uncle Phil Stern (Steve Carell), a Hollywood talent agent. Bobby falls in love with the uncle's secretary Vonnie (Kristen Stewart), who has a boyfriend. Complications ensue. We won't spoil the plot reveal for you.Bobby vamooses back to New York City where he succumbs and manages Ben's swanky restaurant. He also succumbs to the charms of Veronica (Blake Lively). Again, to connect the plot points would diminish from your enjoyment of an already thin plot.Allen does not appear in the film. He does the voice-over throughout it.Chief among the charms of "Cafe Society" are its cinematography (director of photography Vittorio Storaro, "The Last Emperor," 1987), settings (production designer Santo Loquasto, a former Lehigh Valley resident), dialogue ("The unexamined life isn't worth living. But the examined life is no bargain."), name-dropping faux insider references to Golden Age of Hollywood stars (Paul Muni, Joel McCrea, Adolphe Menjou, Ginger Rogers) and the performances.Eisenberg (Oscar nominee, "The Social Network," 2010) is the titular Allen clone. The hesitant voice, fluttery hand gestures and hangdog countenance are similar to Eisenberg's often diffident screen persona.Carell ("The Big Short," 2015; Oscar nominee, "Foxcatcher," 2014) is enjoyable as the peevish agent whose ego knows no bounds.Stewart ("The Twilight Saga," 2008-2012, "Camp X-Ray," 2014) nicely underplays her role.Lively (TV's "Gossip Girl," 2007-12) and Parker Posey have some good moments.There are at least two previous feature movies ("Cafe Society," 1995, and "Cafe Society," 1939) using the same term, which describes those who go to fashionable restaurants, believed coined by the New York Journal-American newspaper (1937-66)."Cafe Society" is a hybrid of several of Allen's films. Since Allen has written and directed a feature film annually for some 40 years since 1966 ("What's Up, Tiger Lily?"), it's understandable that not all are home runs. "Cafe Society" is a solid double. If you're a fan of Allen, it's worth seeing."Cafe Society,"MPAA rated Rated PG-13 (Parents Strongly Cautioned. Some Material May Be Inappropriate For Children Under 13.) for some violence, a drug reference, suggestive material and smoking Genre: Comedy, Drama Romance; Run time: 1 hr., 36 min.; Distributed by Lionsgate and Amazon Studios.Credit Readers Anonymous:"Cafe Society" was filmed on location in Manhattan, Brooklyn and Los Angeles.Box Office,Aug. 5: Despite taking a hit from overwhelmingly negative reviews, "Suicide Squad" is a huge hit, opening at No. 1 with a record August domestic opening of $135.1 million, with the dysfunctional DC Comics' superheroes conspiring to push "Jason Bourne" to No. 2, with $22.7 million, $103.4 million, two weeks;3. "Bad Moms," $14.2 million, $51 million, two weeks; 4. "The Secret Life of Pets," $11.5 million, $319.5 million, five weeks; 5. "Star Trek Beyond," $10.2 million, $127.9 million, three weeks; 6. "Nine Lives, $6.5 million, opening; 7. "Lights Out," $6 million, $54.7 million, three weeks; 8. "Nerve," $4.9 million, $26.9 million, two weeks; 9. "Ghostbusters," $4.8 million, $116.7 million, four weeks; 10. "Ice Age: Collision Course," $4.3 million, $53.5 million, three weeks.Unreel,Aug. 12:"Pete's Dragon,"PG: David Lowery directs Bryce Dallas Howard, Robert Redford, Oona Laurence and Oakes Fegley, a son of the Lehigh Valley's Michael and Mercedes Fegley, in the fantasy adventure film about an orphaned boy named Pete (Oakes Fegley) and his best friend Elliot, a dragon."Florence Foster Jenkins,"PG-13: Stephen Frears directs Rebecca Ferguson, Meryl Streep, Simon Helberg and Hugh Grant in the biography comedy drama about Florence Foster Jenkins, a New York heiress who attempted to become an opera singer, despite being a poor singer."Sausage Party,"R: Greg Tiernan and Conrad Vernon direct Seth Rogen, Kristen Wiig, Jonah Hill and Bill Hader who do the voices for the animation comedy about a sausage on a quest. Hey, the story concept could be, ahem wurst."Anthropoid,"R: Sean Ellis directs Cillian Murphy, Jamie Dornan, Harry Lloyd and Toby Jones in the biography history war film about Operation Anthropoid, a World War II mission to assassinate The Third Reich's Gen. Reinhard Heydrich, third in command behind Hitler and the man who devised the Final Solution."Hell or High Water,"R: David Mackenzie directs Chris Pine, Ben Foster, Katy Mixon and Jeff Bridges in the crime drama about a divorced father and his ex-con brother who try to save the family's Texas farm.Three popcorn boxes out of five popcorn boxes.