Product Description

THE MARVELOUS CHEMISTRY BETWEEN ALLEN AND KEATON, AS A NEW YORK COUPLE WHOSE NEIGHBOR MAY HAVE BEEN MURDERED, FILLS THIS FARCE WITH LAUGHTER AND MAGIC.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #7598 in DVD
• Brand: SONY PICTURES HOME ENT
• Released on: 1998-12-15
• Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
• Formats: Anamorphic, Closed-captioned, Color, DVD, Full Screen, Widescreen, NTSC
• Original language: English, French, Spanish
• Subtitled in: English, French
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 104 minutes

Amazon.com essential video
Woody Allen was going through his off-screen scandal with Mia Farrow when Manhattan Murder Mystery was produced, so Diane Keaton was brought in to fill the role intended for Farrow. The reunion of Keaton and Allen only improves this already enjoyable Allen comedy, since they're so comfortable with each other's neuroses that they're delightfully convincing as a married couple who suspect their neighbor of murdering his wife. Actually, it's Keaton who obsesses about the possible foul play; Woody just wants them to mind their own business. But pretty soon they've recruited their friends (Alan Alda, Anjelica Huston) as amateur sleuths, and the movie turns into a Nancy Drew mystery for sophisticated Manhattanites. With a typical abundance of Woody Allen witticism and some memorable comic suspense, this engaging throwback to vintage Hollywood mysteries is guaranteed to please even the most noncommittal Woody Allen fans, and the Allen-Keaton chemistry is, as always, a genuine pleasure. --Jeff Shannon

From The New Yorker
Woody Allen's new picture is his lightest and most unabashedly frivolous feature since "Broadway Danny Rose," in 1984. All that the movie aspires to be is a speedy, bubbly screwball-comedy whodunit-something like a Bob Hope vehicle from the forties. It's pleasant enough, but Allen hasn't practiced the simple act of popular entertainment in quite a while, and he's rusty. The humor thins out as the movie goes along, because Allen tends to labor, and even to repeat, his gags. The main characters, Larry and Carol Lipton (Allen and Diane Keaton), suspect that their across-the-hall neighbor has killed his wife, and try to play detective. The modest message of the screenplay (by Allen and Marshall Brickman) is that Larry and Carol's cozy, boring middle-aged marriage is somehow enriched, perhaps even saved, by the danger and excitement of their amateur investigation. You could call the movie a comic version of "Rear Window" if it weren't for the inconvenient fact that "Rear Window" is a much funnier picture. Also with Alan Alda, Anjelica Huston, Jerry Adler, and Lynn Cohen. -Terrence Rafferty
Copyright © 2006 The New Yorker

Customer Reviews

Wonderful mix of Murder, Mistery and Comedy
Diane Keaton and Woody Allen make quick friends with an older couple. After the woman dies of a heart attack, Diane Keaton starts investigating on her own thinking that it was not a heart attack afterall. Woody on the other end does not believe in this murder idea and thinks his wife is getting too excited for no reason.

The movie mixes great suspense and comedy. The skepticism of woody allen and the wild (but maybe not so wild) imagination of diane keaton make for highly entertaining dialogues. The new york atmosphere of the movie is quite lovely too. The story moves fast and as Diane Keaton discovers more and more clues you find yourself seating on the edge of your seat wondering what next is going to happen.

This movie is wonderfull all the way to the end that parodies the ending of an old movie classic.

So long, Mia. Hello, Keaton.
After the abrasive brilliance of "Husbands and Wives", Woody wisely lightened up and reteamed with two of his old partners-in-crime, Diane Keaton and writing partner Marshall Brickman. What's amazing is that though the movie seems rather lightweight on the surface, it really juggles a lot of different ideas at once. It is a comedy crime caper, but it toys with the idea that Keaton is imagining the whole thing in an effort to spice up a humdrum marriage. Does Alan Alda's character find the possibility of a murder tantalizing, or does he simply see it as a great way to get closer to Keaton? Does Anjelica Huston's character find the possibility of a murder tantalizing, or does she simply see it as a great way to get closer to Woody? Or both? The only sure thing is Woody, who reminds us that, aside from everything else, he's an absolutely peerless comic actor. He goes from being skeptical and annoyed at Keaton's obsession, to gradually escalating levels of fear, fear of both the murder and of losing his wife. It's great to see these two working together again so effortlessly, as though "Annie Hall" had just wrapped the week before.

One of Allen's Best. A Perfect Little Film.
Woody Allen's love of New York City really shines through in this comic caper about a pair of aging but sophisticated Manhattanites who suspect their neighbor of murdering his wife. Actually, it is Keaton's character who suspects; Allen plays the doubting and timid husband who gets dragged into her amateur investigation, if only to save his marriage. Keaton is looking to add excitement to her life; Allen, as usual, is perfectly comfortable with how things are. Their interaction is very, very funny, as is the sweet performance by Alan Alda as a family friend and writer who dreams of opening a restaurant with Keaton (who he has always had a crush on. Can we blame him!), and Angelica Huston as a cool and sexually provocative writer whose book Allen is editing. By the end, all four have joined in a wacky plot to catch the killer. We also hear some great music and see a side of New York City as only Allen's eye for charm can capture it.