VENICE, Italy (AP) - Oscar-winning director Woody Allen does not believe he has influenced other filmmakers.

Asked Sunday if his decades of work had left a mark, the 71-year-old New Yorker insisted that as far as he could tell, it has not.

''Oddly enough, over the years I've never felt that I have influenced anyone,'' he said.

''I don't mean that to sound like false modesty, but I could always feel the influence of my contemporaries - Martin Scorsese, Francis Ford Coppola, Robert Altman, Steven Spielberg - but I have never seen my influence on anyone.''

Comedians Groucho Marx and Bob Hope also had some influence on him, Allen said at the Venice Film Festival, where his latest movie, ''Cassandra's Dream,'' was premiering Sunday out of competition.

Starring Ewan McGregor and Colin Farrell, the film tells the story of two brothers - one a chronic gambler and the other in love with a beautiful actress - who try to improve their lives but get entangled in a nasty situation.

The 71-year-old Allen likened life to ''quite a tragic experience,'' saying he has a ''bleak, pessimistic view on life and man's faith, the human condition.''

''But I do feel there are some extremely amusing oases in that mirage,'' he hastened to add.

''Cassandra's Dream'' is Allen's third film set in London, with the dark ''Match Point'' and the zany ''Scoop,'' both with Scarlett Johansson, the other two. He called London an ''extremely seductive'' place to work in.

Wow. I can't believe that Woody is already 71. Where has the time gone? Sometimes I feel I'm still in the '70s and '80s thinking of his films like "Stardust Memories" and "Radio Days".

I think I would have to agree with what Woody says though about his films style. He does seem to me to be an original in film. His films seem almost slapstick comedy to me sometimes, but I can't really think of any directors I could compare him to.

personal life aside (seriously, what were you thinking dating and then marrying your adopted daughter?), he's a fantastic director and he is a true original and one-of-a-kind. Gotta love how the older Woody gets, the younger his female love interests are. I'm waiting for Lindsay Lohan or someone to play his next girlfriend in a movie, lol.