Manhattan Murder Mystery (1993)

A middle-aged couple suspects foul play when their neighbor's wife suddenly drops dead.

Director:

Woody Allen

Writers:

Woody Allen, Marshall Brickman

Stars:

Woody Allen, Diane Keaton, Jerry Adler

Nominated for 1 Golden Globe. Another 3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Woody Allen	...	Larry Lipton
Diane Keaton	...	Carol Lipton
Jerry Adler	...	Paul House
Lynn Cohen	...	Lillian House
Ron Rifkin	...	Sy
Joy Behar	...	Marilyn
William Addy	...	Jack, the Super
John Doumanian	...	Neighbor
Sylvia Kauders	...	Neighbor
Ira Wheeler	...	EMS Doctor
Alan Alda	...	Ted
Anjelica Huston	...	Marcia Fox
Melanie Norris	...	Helen Moss
Marge Redmond	...	Mrs. Dalton
Zach Braff	...	Nick Lipton

Storyline

Larry and Carol are fairly normal New Yorkers who have sent their son off to college. They meet an elderly couple down the hall and later in the week find that the wife has suddenly died. Carol becomes suspicious of Paul who seems to be too cheerful and too ready to move on. She begins her investigation. Larry insists she is becoming too fixated on their neighbor as all of the irregularities seem to have simple non-homicidal explanations. Ted, a recently divorced friend helps her investigation and Larry begins to become jealous of their relationship and agrees to help her.

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Plot Keywords:

neighbor | coffee | restaurant | investigation | apartment | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Mystery

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for mild language, and for elements of violence in a comic murder mystery

Details

Official Sites:

Sony Movie Channel [United States]

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

18 August 1993 (USA)

Also Known As:

Un misterioso asesinato en Manhattan

Filming Locations:

21 Club - 21 West 52nd Street, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$13,500,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$11,285,588

Company Credits

Production Co:

TriStar Pictures, Jack Rollins & Charles H. Joffe Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

104 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR (Mono)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The house of mirrors sequence was inspired by Orson Welles' The Lady from Shanghai (1947).

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Goofs

In "01:41:47" during the shooting between Paul and Mrs.Dalton you can see the crew filming in the reflection of the shattered glass.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Larry Lipton: C'mon, you promised to sit through the hockey game without being bored,
Carol Lipton: [overlapping] I know, honey, I promised.
Larry Lipton: and I'll sit through the Wagner opera with you next week.
Carol Lipton: I know.
Larry Lipton: I already bought the earplugs.
Carol Lipton: Yeah, well, with your eyesight I'm surprised you can see the puck. Wow, yay, come on.

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Connections

References The Silence of the Lambs (1991)

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Soundtracks

Guy and Dolls: Overture
(1951)
Written by Frank Loesser
Performed by the New Broadway Cast (1992)
Courtesy of RCA Victor
A Division of BMG Classics

User Reviews

Fun House For Neurotics

Leave it to Woody Allen to create interesting characters and funny dialogue. He plays Larry Lipton, a New York City book editor, whose wife Carol (Diane Keaton) becomes convinced that one of their apartment neighbors is a murderer. Half the enjoyment of this film is watching, and listening to, neurotic Larry as he reacts to his wife's excellent sleuthing adventure. She and Larry's friend Ted (Alan Alda) plot strategy on how to catch the presumed murderer, much to the chagrin of Larry.

Some of the dialogue is amusing, like when Carol insists that Larry accompany her to the suspects' apartment for some serious nosing around. Says Larry: "I can't relax; I'm in a strange man's apartment in my T-shirt and pajamas".

My impression is that at least some of the dialogue is semi-improvised. Whatever the dialogue method, the result is back and forth banter that sounds highly natural and convincing. When you combine this naturalistic style of talk with terrific performances by Allen, Keaton, Alda, and several other actors, the time flies by, and you're sorry when the film ends.

The murder "mystery" element isn't really believable. But that's okay, since it's strictly ancillary to the characterizations and the humorous talk. Even so, there is indeed a puzzle that will be solved by the film's end.

Editing and cinematography are fine. Background music features 1930's and 40's pop songs. With all the NYC street scenes, I even learned what New Yorkers mean when they refer to a "crosstown bus".

Normally, I don't care for talky films. But the dialogue here is so clever that the cinematic experience is pleasant despite a talk heavy script. "Manhattan Murder Mystery" provides a lot of enjoyment, at the expense of a neurotic character whose life is turned into a fun house of comically scary and startling events.