Manhattan Murder Mystery | Woody Allen, Diane Keaton

Manhattan Murder Mystery | Woody Allen, Diane Keaton | Woody at his funniest!

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	Manhattan Murder Mystery Woody Allen, Diane Keaton Sony Pictures, 1998 average customer review:based on 70 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

Diane Keaton & Woody Reunite!

With public popularity swaying away from Woody Allen, only Diane Keaton could put the wheels back on Woody's reputation. Manhattan Murder Mystery (1993) is a return to the entertaining, laugh-out-loud, slapstic comedic romps we all loved in Woody Allen's Funny Films like 'Take the Money & Run', 'Bananas', 'Play It Again, Sam', 'Sleeper', 'Love & Death' and 'Annie Hall'. The coup de grace in making this film most memorable was the brilliant casting-against-type of Jerry Adler (Mr. Wicker on 'Mad About You') who would later dazzle us as Herman 'Hesh' Rabkin in 'The Sopranos'. Truly one of his greatest triumphs in Funny rather than Intellectual comedy!

Leonard, Toronto, Canada

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Woody at his funniest!

My wife and I saw this movie in the theatre. We liked it so much we went to see it a second time in the theatre. Then we bought it on VHS. Now I bought it on DVD. This movie is very well written. The character developement is outstanding.

It's a true credit to Woody that I'm not sick of this movie.

Woody in (Almost) Top Form

Reuniting with Marshall Brickman, who co-wrote the two films that are considered Woody Allen's masterpieces (Annie Hall & Manhattan),
Annie Hall brings us a funny whodunit that also marks his reunion with Diane Keaton. "Manhattan Murder Mystery" was reportedly inspired by a murder subplot that was featured in the original version of Annie Hall. If you've seen Annie Hall, than you know that there is no murder subplot. It was cut from the film entirely. Anyway, Allen and Keaton play a married couple Larry and Carol Lipton. They, of course, live in New York and seem to be basically playing older versions of Alvy Singer and Annie Hall; Larry is a neurotic, film lover and etc. Anyway, one night they meet their neighbors Paul and Lillian House (Jerry Adler & Lynn Cohen); Larry doesn't particularly like them (he's sick of having to look at Paul House's stamp collection), but Carol does...Everything takes a strange twist though when, the next day, Lillian House is dead. Oddly enough though, Paul doesn't seem saddened by it at all which rouses Carol's suspicions. When she mentions to Larry that it might've been murder, he writes it off as crazy. But their friend Ted (Alan Alda) sees this as being logical enough and helps Carol to solve the mystery. Although, mystery might be stretching the word a little bit. Every theory I had while the film progressed turned out to be right in some way and, personally, I didn't really care if it was murder or not because the film was entertaining and funny enough to keep me from caring. The film is funny and entertaining (Allen, Alda, Keaton, and co-star Anjelica Huston all deliver big laughs), it's still not perfect. It drags at times, seems to go on a little too long (odd since it's only 108 minutes). If you're a fan of Woody Allen, however, than you should definitely like it because it's an entry in his filmography that surpasses some others.

GRADE: B+

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Enjoyable movie

MANHATTAN MURDER MYSTERY is a pleasant film that can be enjoyed even by people who are luke warm about Allen and his films. The pace is a bit slow and the "mystery" is not all that exciting but Allen's gags and take on relationships are as usual entertaining and Keaton and Allen make a convincing married couple. The other parts are also well acted. Not a must see but an OK way to spend a snowy evening.

Allen-Keaton Reunion Enlivens a Not So Inconsequential Cat-and-Mouse Caper

It's tempting to look at this fairly lightweight 1993 comedy mystery as a bookend for Woody Allen and Diane Keaton after his Mia Farrow years. After all, as a long-married Upper West Side couple, they rekindle their natural chemistry like no time has passed at all since 1977's "Annie Hall" and 1979's "Manhattan". That's the primary but not the only joy to be derived from watching this often hilarious cat-and-mouse tale.

As they see their son (a young Zach Braff) off to college, Carol and Larry Lipton have become mired in a marital routine until Lillian House, an elderly neighbor, suddenly dies. It appears to be a heart attack, but Carol suspects foul play involving Lillian's husband. Most of the plot has Carol sleuthing for clues to fit her Agatha Christie-like murder theory with the help of Ted, a friend too close for Larry's comfort. Of course, Larry thinks Carol is going off the deep end and becomes jealous of Ted's burgeoning involvement in the case. Enter Marcia Fox, a glamorous, crafty writer who devises creative ways to unearth the killer (the pre-recorded phone conversation scene is a hoot), and you have romantic complications mixed up chaotically with the mystery. Naturally the shenanigans enliven the Lipton marriage.

Co-written by Allen and Marshall Brickman, reunited years after those first two classic Allen-Keaton films, this is all fun stuff and a great excuse for the filmmaker to pay tribute to favorite classics like "The Thin Man", "Rear Window" and "The Lady from Shanghai". Allen is Allen as Larry, a good thing here, and Keaton is her breezy energetic self as Carol. Again using his unctuous personality to advantage, Alan Alda plays Ted like the talkative friend you don't quite trust. Ideally cast, Angelica Huston is at her cunning best as Marcia. Carlo DiPalma's cinematography is a bit too shaky for my taste especially when the details of the characters' clandestine actions are divulged. But the other Allen touches are in check here, and the result is an ingratiating entertainment. The DVD came out in 1998 and consequently has none of the extras we have come to expect from more recent releases.

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