Main Cast: Woody Allen, Diane Keaton, Alan Alda, Anjelica Huston, Jerry Adler
Release Year: 1993
Country: US
Run Time: 107 minutes
MPAA Rating: PG
Plot
There's a real murder and a real mystery in Woody Allen's Manhattan Murder Mystery, but these plot pegs are used mainly to allow Allen to explore modern urban relationships. Allen plays a N.Y.C. book editor, Larry Lipton, married to Carol (Diane Keaton, who replaced Mia Farrow at the last minute, for reasons well publicized at the time). Carol is a free spirit, ever willing to try new experiences, but Larry is a wet blanket. When it begins to look like a neighbor has killed his wife, Carol is eager to investigate the mystery, but Larry thinks her suspicions are nonsensical and doesn't want to leave his apartment. Undaunted, Carol finds another "Nick Charles" in the form of family friend Ted (Alan Alda), who joins the investigation, and feels attracted to Carol and isn't afraid to let her know. Meanwhile, a writer under Larry's aegis (Anjelica Huston), who feels romantically drawn to him, also decides to join in the fun. Slightly jealous of Carol in the face of her budding relationship with Ted, Larry reluctantly agrees to go along on her clue-hunting expedition -- and it is he who discovers the corpse, who as it turns out was killed after Carol started poking around the apartment building. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Review
Manhattan Murder Mystery is not a standout in Woody Allen's prolific oeuvre, but it blends well with his perennial goals, exploring the neurotic foibles of aging New Yorkers amidst a plot that's slightly chaotic and ludicrous. Diane Keaton gives the most winning performance as a bored upper middle-class woman who is both shocked and invigorated by her own obsessive curiosity. As she haphazardly embarks on risky detective missions inside her neighbor's home, Allen is left pleading and tagging behind, nearly fainting from nervousness. It's a hilarious setup that gets deliciously exacerbated by the encouragement of Alan Alda and Angelica Huston, both of whom are perfectly suited to Allen's talky dialogue. Never one to fully buy a traditional mystery, Allen incorporates this wariness into the jokes, writing for himself so many wisecracks about what's supposed to happen next that it's all the funnier when they actually do. Even though his dialogue is stylized according to his own distinct patterns, it remains natural enough that Allen pulls off the idea that these are real people embroiled in surreal events. His handheld camera creates a realistic, documentary-style feel, further supporting the effort. It all makes for a darn fun movie, continuing to prove the superiority of even Allen's lesser-known films. ~ Derek Armstrong, All Movie Guide
Joy Behar - Marilyn; Ron Rifkin - Sy; Lynn Cohen - Lillian House; Al Cerullo - Helicopter Pilot; John Doumanian - Neighbor; Gloria Irizarry - Hotel Maid; Sylvia Kauders - Neighbor; Philip Levy - Policeman; Frank Pellegrino - Policeman; Wendell Pierce - Policeman; Steve Randazzo - Policeman; Marge Redmond - Mrs.Dalton; Aida Turturro - Hotel Day Clerk; Ira Wheeler - EMS Doctor; George Mason - "21 Club" Staff; Linda Taylor - 21 Club Staff; Juliet Taylor; Yanni Sfinias - Hotel Night Clerk; Zach Braff - Nick Lipton; John Costello - Policeman
Credit
Speed Hopkins - Art Director, Thomas A. Reilly - Associate Producer, Joseph Hartwick - Co-producer, Helen Robin - Co-producer, Jeffrey Kurland - Costume Designer, Richard Patrick - First Assistant Director, Woody Allen - Director, Susan E. Morse - Editor, Charles H. Joffe - Executive Producer, Jack Rollins - Executive Producer, Fern Buchner - Makeup, Dick Mingalone - Camera Operator, Santo Loquasto - Production Designer, Joseph Hartwick - Production Designer, Daniel Davis - Production Designer, Carlo Di Palma - Cinematographer, Robert Greenhut - Producer, Susan Bode-Tyson - Set Designer, James J. Sabat - Sound/Sound Designer, Woody Allen - Screenwriter, Marshall Brickman - Screenwriter
Lipton and his wife Carol meet their neighbors Paul and Lilian House. After Lilian suddenly dies, Carol becomes curious about her death and the attitude of Paul, after he has her wife's body quickly incinerated. She then drags her reluctant husband into an amateur criminal investigation.
Production
The screenplay for Manhattan Murder Mystery originally started out as Annie Hall but Woody Allen did not feel that it was substantial enough even though he loved mysteries. He decided to go in a different direction.[1] He had put off making the film for years because he felt it was too lightweight, "like an airplane book read".[2] Allen decided to revisit the material in the early 1990s, contacting Marshall Brickman, who co-wrote Annie Hall, and they worked on the story some more.[3] His wife in the film was originally written for Mia Farrow until she and Woody Allen ended their relationship and became embroiled in a custody battle over their three children.[4] Allegations in the media claimed that changes were made to the film in what was "definitely a reaction" to Allen's relationship problems, including the casting of Anjelica Huston in the role of what the script had called, "a much younger first-time novelist" with whom Allen's character became romantically involved.[5]
In the fall of 1992, Allen called Diane Keaton and asked her to fill in for Farrow and she immediately accepted.[2] When asked if he had re-written the script to fit Keaton's talents, Allen said, "No, I couldn't do that. In a regular script I would have done that upon hiring Diane Keaton. But I couldn't [here] because it's a murder mystery, and it's very tightly plotted, so it's very hard to make big changes....I had written [the part] more to what Mia likes to do. Mia likes to do funny things, but she's not as broad a comedian as Diane is. So Diane made this part funnier than I wrote it".[6]
Making the film was a form of escape for Allen because the "past year was so exhausting that I wanted to just indulge myself in something I could relax and enjoy".[1] He also found it very therapeutic working with Keaton again. After getting over her initial panic in her first scene with Alan Alda, Keaton and Allen slipped back into their old rhythm.[2] After she had trouble with that scene, Allen decided to re-shoot it. In the meantime, she worked with her acting coach and did other scenes that went well.[7] According to Allen, Keaton changed the dynamic of the film because he "always look(s) sober and normal compared to Keaton. I turn into the straight man". Huston said that the set was "oddly free of anxiety, introspection and pain", and this was due to Keaton's presence.[2]
The film was shot in the fall of 1992 on the streets of Greenwich Village, the Upper East Side and the Upper West Side. Larry and Carol Lipton's apartment resides at 200 East 78th Street, between 2nd and 3rd Avenue.[4] Allen staged a climactic shoot-out in a roomful of mirrors that, according to Allen, referenced a similar shoot-out in Orson Welles' film, The Lady from Shanghai.[8]
This was Allen's second and final film with TriStar Pictures, and it was speculated in the press that this deal was not extended because of the filmmaker's personal problems, or that his films were not very profitable. Allen, however, denied these allegations in interviews at the time.[1]Zach Braff made his feature film debut in a one-scene role as the son of Allen and Keaton's characters; Braff later said, "When I look at that scene now, all I can see is the terror in my eyes".[9]
Reception
Manhattan Murder Mystery opened on August 18, 1993 in 268 theaters and made USD $2 million in its opening weekend. It went on to gross $11.3 million in North America, below its estimated $13.5 million budget.[10]
The film enjoyed mostly positive reviews and currently has a 90% "fresh" rating on Rotten Tomatoes. In his review for Newsweek, David Ansen wrote, "On screen, Keaton and Allen have always been made for each other: they still strike wonderfully ditsy sparks".[11]USA Today gave the film four out of four stars, and advised fans to forget Allen's tabloid woes because "there's a better reason why Allen fans should give it a shot. It's very, very funny, and there's no mystery about that".[12] Janet Maslin, in her review for the New York Times wrote, "Although, Manhattan Murder Mystery struggles with its own contrivances, it achieves a gentle, nostalgic grace and a hint of un-self-conscious wisdom".[12] However, Desson Howe, in the Washington Post, complained that there was "little 'new' in this film. Allen and Keaton are essentially playing Alvy Singer and Annie Hall gone middle-aged".[13]
