Broadway Danny Rose

Although a very funny film, Broadway Danny Rose is more of character study and philosophical morality play. This film explores the life and values of Danny Rose (played by Allen)--a theatrical talent manager. Although he appears to be a hapless loser, Rose is smart enough to know how to get ahead in his business (do it to others before they do it to you) but is prevented from acting thusly by his morality and his compassion for his clients--which he treats like family. He pours all his energy into his clients' careers only to be abandoned by them when they finally hit it big. In the course of an "adventure" with the hard-bitten Farrow, his values imperceptibly rub off on her and begin working on her conscious. Her moral conversion is completed when she seeks Rose's forgiveness at the much talked about Thanksgiving dinner--a scene not about pathetic losers but rather a study of fellowship, compassion, redemption, and forgiveness.

Allen and Farrow both give career performances. Nick Apollo Forte is absolutely wonderful. The casting, locations, directing, and performances could not be better. Every aspiring film maker should study this film as the perfect example of a powerful "little" film. Watch the film several times and you'll like it more each time. It is may favorite Woody Allen film (everything else is a distant second) and one of my favorite films of all time. The film's lack of commercial and critical success speaks volumes about the sensibilities and values of our society.

One of the most commonly leveled criticisms against Woody Allen is that he has no range as an actor or is that he simply plays the same stammering intellectual in all of his films. Nothing could be further from the truth and this film is testament to this fact.

This beautifully shot film is concerned with theatrical agent, Danny Rose, a man who takes on blind xylophone players and one legged tap dancers. Terrible acts and yet Rose believes in every single one of them, no matter how badly they are doing. His big break comes with the public's newfound appetite for nostalgia, which brings egomaniac and alcoholic crooner, Lou Canova back into the public eye.

Canova flourishes and is set to make his comeback complete when he requires Rose to bring his mistress, Tina to the concert. Various complications and highjinks ensure that this is no easy task.

This is the comedy of the situation and the movie relies on this farce for its comic effect. However, what separates this from other sub-standard films is the characterisation that Allen brings to Rose. At first glance Rose is a loser, whose acts leave him as soon as they get anywhere. But the belief he has in his charges and the commitment he is prepared to put into them allows a great deal of empathy for him. Allen plays it brilliantly, allowing just the right amount of pathos and charm.

A splendid movie, full of the typical Allen one liners and with one very very funny shoot out scene with helium.

I have never been able to relate to many of Woody Allen's films, although I would say that nearly all of them are quite well concieved and executed. Broadway Danny Rose is something quite unique, I mean that the script is simply beyond belief. How someone could concieve of all those lines is truly remarkable. It is one of the most quoteable films I have ever seen. The lines which are memorable are tinged with this incredible satiric and ironic sense of humor. The scenes are at once super realistic and very funny. Woody Allens way of making fun of people is at its best here. The opening scene where Lou Canova is at the lounge singing "I Like The Look Of You...", wow, the cast of characters assembled, how could anyone have found these people. I guess alot of credit is due to the person who cast the film. If you look at the credits you see that most of the faces which appear were appearing in their only film. This is the basis of the movie's genius. Then there are lines like: "I'll open with Volare and You Make Me Feel So Young... or "I don't know whether to go with Boulevard of Broken Dreams or Three Coins in a Fountain as an encore... or "Lou's probably drinking out of a promotional sized whiskey bottle by now.. or "If anything happens to that car I'll be furious... or "He made juice for the mob?... or "Allow me to interject one point at this juncture... or "Weinstein's majestic bungalow colony is a classy joint, I need a classy act, how about Sonny Chase, he's fast, he's funny... or "Pee Wee has been eaten by a feline, that comes under the act of God clause... or "If you take my advice, you'll probably be one of the great balloon folding acts of all time. I really wish I could find this for sale. It's a film which can be watched repeatedly without risk of boredom or redundancy. A great film around Thanksgiving time. Joe Franklin, Howard Cosell, Milton Berle. New York City circa 1972. The Waldorf. The 70's garb. New Jersey Italians by the dozen. Angelina the fortune teller and her little dog and assistant. "And yet he cares for you... Don't go to him, take care of old buisness... Time out... "Lou, the directions were good, it was a Gulf station... "A cheap blonde, Lou... I could keep spouting fragments of the script for an hour and I don't mean to be didactic or facetious.

Upon my initial viewing of "Broadway Danny Rose" ("BDR," as I will refer to it henceforth) when it opened in theaters back in 1984, I recall being somewhat disappointed at this seemingly frothy, light-weight film. Sometimes it takes additional viewings to truly appreciate the fine line between "light-weight" and "subtle." Coming off of the brilliant, sorely underappreciated "Zelig" -- and my first disappointing Allen film, "A Midsummer Night's Sex Comedy" -- I approached BDR with high-hopes. I left the theater feeling let-down at it's slapstick approach, esp. after Allen's "new" direction towards "serious" cinema. (I'm a devotee of his "Annie Hall"/post-"Annie Hall" films, as opposed to his "earlier, funny films.") How wrong was I in thinking I had seen something frivolous and trivial!

The absolute beauty of BDR not only comes from (once again) Gordon Willis' inspired chiaroscuro use of black & white photography and framing, Allen's hand-picked jazz score, succinct editing and crafty art direction, but mostly from its marvelous cast of actors -- most esp. Mia Farrow's astounding, beautifully wrought and precise performance. Upon subsequent viewings, her character's soul literally exudes through the epidermis! On top of that, the so-called "slapstick," which initially I viewed askance, turned-out to be far subtler than its initial impact. The right-on performances by BDR's numerous sub-characters also proved to be far more meaningful and poignant then initially viewed.

And, that ending.... What an ending! It has got to be one of the most heartbreaking and romantic finale's in screen history! (I say this with no hyperbole.) I have seen BDR more than two-dozen times, and it has never failed to bring me to tears (as did "Annie Hall," "Manhattan" and, his subsequent, "Hannah and Her Sisters"). The start of the scene (with Farrow's character confronting a heartbroken Allen) is pure beauty and poetry. The finale of Allen running after Farrow through the wet and rough-n-tumble streets of New York, and his (inaudible) "forgiveness" in front of the delicatessen, is nothing less than magical!

In sum, sometimes it takes a different "perspective" in looking at a piece of art to realize that there's much more there than meets the eye. Sort of like Diane Keaton's character in "Manhattan," as she pontificated with much zeal over the "textural" qualities of the "steel cube." Only this time, no pontification is needed: "Broadway Danny Rose" is pure, unadulterated romance through and through! This is a "must-see." Enjoy!

I watched this film last weekend after having the DVD on my shelf for almost a year, not realizing what an amazingly beautiful film I have in my collection. I do not have any further insight to offer towards this movie than what some reviewers here have already put so well. But if you haven't seen this touching and funny little gem from the master Allen then do watch it. The Thanksgiving dinner finale that's mentioned in so many posts here makes you believe in the magic of cinema. One cannot help but be moved to tears just seeing that expression on Woody's face and the hope and dreams of all the "artists" present at the frozen-turkey dinner. The diners at the restaurant sums it up the best as Danny Rose being a true legend on Broadway.

It's movies like these that come along once in a blue moon that make the wait and the heap of junk one is so often subjected to, worth it.