Woody Allen has been known to spring surprises, but Match Point, his latest film, is said to be a complete departure from his usual.

Match Point is his ninth film to premiere at the Cannes Film Festival. All his films have been screened out of competition.

Woody walks in for the cocktail reception of his film with Scarlett Johansson, who stars in the movie. Other actors include Jonathan Rhys-Meyers (remember the sexy football coach of Gurinder Chadha's Bend It Like Beckham?), Alexander Armstrong and Emily Mortimer.

Match Point is set in London, a marked departure for Allen, who is known to base his films in New York. "I did the film in England because in the United States I've been making films for decades," he said, at the press conference following the screening. "And it's become more and more prevalent in the United States for the studios and the people that give financing to want to participate in the project."

The film is about a tennis pro (Rhys-Meyers as Chris Wilton), who has an extra-marital affair with an aspiring actress (Scarlett as Nola Rice), and the twists and turns of what happens after that.

Early reports following the screening say it is one of Allen's best films in years.

The film does not have an American distributor yet.

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