Why Woody Allen’s 1971 political satire Bananas contains absolutely no bananas

Entertainment · Published 3 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: Woody Allen’s surreal comedy Bananas follows a neurotic New Yorker who accidentally becomes a revolutionary leader in a fictional Latin American republic. Despite its title, the film features no fruit, instead using the name as a pun for insanity and a nod to the political term for unstable nations.

Released in 1971, Bananas was Woody Allen’s first project under a three-picture deal with United Artists. The film, which cost $1.7 million to produce, began as a script titled El Weirdo. After an initial rejection, the project was completed and rebranded. Allen directed the film and starred alongside Louise Lasser, to whom he was married until 1970. The production featured a mix of location shooting in New York City and Puerto Rico, including a riot scene at Queens Community College involving 2,000 students.

The plot centers on Fielding Mellish, a man who travels to the fictional nation of San Marcos to impress an activist. He eventually finds himself leading a revolution after the original leader, Esposito, descends into madness. The film is noted for its episodic, absurdist humor, which includes a parody of a television advertisement for cigarettes that features a priest performing the Eucharist. This specific scene led the National Catholic Office for Motion Pictures to assign the film a condemned rating.

Critics offered mixed but generally positive reviews. Vincent Canby of The New York Times lauded the film’s chaotic energy, while others, such as John Simon, criticized the plot as disjointed and lacking in taste. Allen intentionally avoided showing blood, even during execution scenes, to maintain a lighthearted tone. The film’s original ending, which featured Mellish in blackface during a speech at Columbia University, was ultimately cut on the advice of co-editor Ralph Rosenblum.

The title serves as a double entendre, referencing both the political instability of a banana republic and the slang term for madness. Allen famously quipped that the film was named Bananas simply because the fruit never appears on screen. This choice may have been influenced by the Marx Brothers, specifically their film The Cocoanuts, which similarly lacked its titular item. Despite its unconventional structure, the film performed well, reaching the number one spot at the U.S. box office in May 1971.

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