Directed by:
Woody AllenScreenplay:
Woody AllenCinematography:
Gordon WillisCast:
Woody Allen, Mia Farrow, Nick Apollo Forte, Sandy Baron, Corbett Monica, Jackie Gayle, Morty Gunty, Will Jordan, Howard Storm, Jack Rollins, Milton Berle (more)VOD (3)
Plots(1)
Saddled with piano-playing parrots, one-legged tap dancers and stuttering ventriloquists, Danny Rose (Allen) is the all-time loser of show-biz agents -- until a sudden nostalgia craze lands his top act, scheming crooner Lou Canova, a coveted gig at the Waldorf. But when Lou refuses to go on unless Danny escorts Lou's Mafia-moll mistress Tina (Farrow) to the concert, the stage is soon set for disaster. Taken with Tina, taken in by Lou, and even taken hostage by gangsters, Danny embarks on a hilarious and bittersweet adventure in his desperate bid to ensure that the show does go on...before it's curtains for more than his career! (Sandpiper Pictures)
(more)Reviews (2)
A clear example of Woody's nostalgic and happily romantic period. The story told by a group sitting in a restaurant is strongest as expected, especially in moments when Allen sparkles as a neurotic manager and it beautifully shows how much the master creator loves cabaret performances from the old school. The strength of this film does not come to the viewer during brilliant word gags or during the romantically escalating ending, but only after the end credits, when they have nothing left but to leave this magical atmosphere.
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At first viewing perhaps unremarkable, but at the second, third, fourth or God knows how many viewings, it is another very pleasant, if not excellent, contribution to Woody Allen's filmography. Somewhat surprisingly (at least for me), this time it was not Allen himself who was in front of the camera, but rather the amazing Mia Farrow in a position I am not used to seeing her in. But that doesn't mean that Allen fleeing from Italian murderers equipped with a pistol and an axe isn't magical. Too bad we didn't see the "Clark's penguin on roller skates dressed as a rabbi". Or at least a one-legged tap dancer.
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