Manhattan Murder Mystery
August. 18,1993 PGA middle-aged couple suspects foul play when their neighbor's wife suddenly drops dead.
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Expected more
Best movie ever!
A Masterpiece!
At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.
I'm not a huge fan of Woody Allen's movies after Manhattan Murder Mystery, but I loved Manhattan Murder Mystery. Yes, there was the murder mystery of course, but also the relationship and chemistry between the main characters (Woody Allen, Diane Keaton, Alan Alda, Anjelica Houston). Whilst I haven't been to NY, I want to visit the place and see where it was filmed!! The twist in the plot line was intriguing and unexpected. The tape recorder scene at the end is one of the funniest scenes in movie history without a doubt. I laughed out loud big time and kudos to the editor. I'm pleased to have Manhattan Murder Mystery on DVD and I can watch this movie over and over again.
Larry (Woody Allen) and Carol Lipton (Diane Keaton) are a middle age NYC couple. Their next door neighbors are an elderly couple Paul (Jerry Adler) and Lillian House (Lynn Cohen). When Lillian ends up dead, Carol is suspicious of Paul who is a little too perky. Their divorced friend Ted (Alan Alda) helps out causing a bit of jealousy from Larry. Marcia Fox (Anjelica Huston) is a card playing novelist and editor Larry tries to set her up with Ted.The gang is back for a little bit of a murder mystery. It has the fun chemistry of an older Woody and Diane pairing. Woody is his neurotic alter-ego. Diane's driven investigation is charming. They are still hilarious together. The pacing is a steady stream of nervous talking and I do wish that Woody breaks it up with something more intense. It does turn into more of a caper in the end. It's a fine movie for Woody fans.
I must admit that I'm very surprised this little movie enjoyed such favorable reviews. Admittedly, a movie budgeted at $13.5 million puts it into a top bracket, but the money seems to have been spent mainly on the cast and on greasing hands for all the NYC location shots. And of course, although reviewers loved this movie, it was far from a success with picturegoers. Even accounting for TV and video sales, it would have been lucky to break even. Shot in a freewheeling style on actual Manhattan locations, it re-teams Woody with Diane Keaton. Also along for the ride are Alan Alda and Anjelica Huston, plus an overweight Jerry Adler as the mysterious Mr. House. I'll readily admit that if you're not expecting too much from the movie, it's quite enjoyable, but it's a long way from Allen at his early best or even the Allen of Shadows and Fog, made only two years earlier! True, the on-screen Allen character is still intact, but he seems to lack the on-screen charisma of even a Broadway Danny Rose. Now he's just an irritatingly over-argumentative little guy who has to be talked into everything until he eventually gives in! Available on an excellent Columbia/Tristar DVD.
Manhattan Murder Mystery marks Woody Allen's return to comedy after several steady years of cranking out dramas with underlying comedic themes. One could look at this film as him giving into the ones who demanded comedy for so many years, as he again creates a character hellbent on perfection and consumed by his petulant neuroses. Looking at this from a more comedic angle than his previous works, this is one of the funniest Woody Allen movies I have yet to see, surpassing even the heavily comedic undertones of works such as Midnight in Paris and Whatever Works.Allen rounds up Diane Keaton again in the leading female role, perfectly replicating the kind of atmosphere he created in Annie Hall, one of his first films to be recognized by even the Academy as a significant achievement in dramatic filmmaking. The two are a couple, named Larry and Carol Lipton, respectively, who are invited to coffee by Paul House (Jerry Adler) and Lilian (Lynn Cohen), who live next door to them in a highrise building. They have a few cups of coffee, as Carol enthusiastically talks with Lilian about her new treadmill, as they are both trying to remain in shape as they approach their elderly years. They leave the apartment not long after and return home to their quiet little sanctuary (mainly so Larry can catch the Bob Hope movie on Television).The next day, after returning home, they see a crowd outside of the House's apartment and find officers and a coroner on scene reporting that Lilian died of a heart attack. This comes as a grand shock to both Larry and Carol seeing as Lilian appeared healthier and more active than folks half her age, but it comes as a greater shock to Carol that the next day upon seeing Paul that he doesn't seem burdened or even upset by the sudden death of his wife. This sends Carol into a Nancy Drew-like frenzy, sneaking into the House's apartment, invading their privacy, and completely going overboard in her amateur investigation. Larry becomes frustrated at Carol's childish, intrusive behavior, but becomes more concerned when he notices that their friend Ted (Alan Alda) becomes entangled with the "mystery" at hand here and is getting awfully close to his wife. He realizes that in order to try and even continue a relationship with this woman that he'll need to play along and overall regain her attention.This is when Manhattan Murder Mystery becomes more about love and passion (or lack thereof) than it does the inherent murder and/or mystery. We see that Carol is doing this Nancy Drew investigation not to irritate or intimidate her husband, but almost as a way to cope with a dying, less successful marriage. This is her only outlet of excitement in an increasingly bitter world.Woody Allen marinated in the field of drama so long that American audiences thought he lacked the skills and the ability to make a compelling, silly, ribald comedy. Consider those audiences served by the filmmaking desperado himself. Allen delivers not only a funny, but a terrifically engrossing drama about the dying spark in a once prosperous marital relationship and the ridiculous methods one will use as a catalyst in desperate times.Allen and Keaton, once more, put on a fabulous show, giving us believable characters to enjoy watching, and side characters such as Jerry Adler and Alan Alda are fun to watch and provide grand entertainment. This is one of the strongest comedies Allen has ever made, way more competent that one of his odes to slapstick.Starring: Woody Allen, Diane Keaton, Alan Alda, Jerry Adler, and Lynn Cohen. Directed by: Woody Allen.