Banco pour un crime

Marilyn (Cybill Shepherd) and her husband, Neil (James Belushi) are on the train to Monte Carlo to enjoy a well-earned vacation. While they are aboard, they run into businessman Augie Morosco (John Candy) as well as Phoebe (Sean Young) and Julian (Richard Lewis). Phoebe and Julian are soon ordered to leave the train, as they have a dog with them. Surprisingly, it turns out not to be their dog, but rather a canine they found and are returning to the female owner for the reward money. When they arrive at the owner's mansion, Phoebe and Julian soon discover that the owner has been murdered. Naturally, they are afraid that they will be blamed and flee the area. Meanwhile, Marilyn and Neil are experiencing different results at the gaming tables. Through various happenstances, all of the above characters will be suspects in the murder of the little dog's owner. Will police inspector Bonnard (Giancarlo Giannini) be able to nail the correct killer?

This comedic whodunit has an adorable cast (especially the quite stunning Sean Young) and a silly-but-fun plot that keeps the viewer pondering. John Candy's scenes are too few in number for him to steal the show, yet he generates chuckles, as usual. Instead, George Hamilton, in a small role, is the one who makes ample use of his screen time to charm and delight the audience. The scenery and costumes, also, are first rate. Viewers may have to search hard to find this film at the video store or library. Those who do will be rewarded with an evening of smiles and second-guessing as the film merits are unrolled.

I'd never heard of this and just saw it on television. It's charming.

I thought George Hamilton was particularly good as an Italian gigolo -he had mastered a terrifically funny accent (among other things, he creates new syllables - as in "jump - ED" or "laugh-ED").

I had not seen Giancarlo Giannini in anything since the 1970s - and he's wonderful in the only serious part - the Monegasque (correct spelling for one from Monaco?) detective.

Sean Young throws herself into this comedic role and Richard Lewis, John Candy, Cybill Shepherd, and Jim Belushi are fine.

I do recommend this movie highly - it's light and frothy, but with many funny lines. As others have said, it has a beautiful setting - in the Hotel de Paris and Monaco in general. For whatever reason, this movie seems to be unpopular in Ohio (the two negative comments are both from Ohioans) - if you're in the other 49 states or overseas, you're sure to enjoy it.

With a well thought out cast, this movie was a great comedic relief. The plot is well-written and the cast was knockout. Every bit as good as the reviews suggested (a rarity) and was highly entertaining. Being a huge John Candy fan myself, this movie was no disappointment.

Two vacationing Americans returning a lost dog and two compulsive gamblers and their wives become suspects in an elaborate murder plot in this crime comedy shot on location in Rome and Monte Carlo. The film is notable as 'American Pie' actor Eugene Levy's only ever big screen directing effort and the talented cast includes Jim Belushi, Cybill Shepherd, John Candy, George Hamilton, Joss Ackland and Giancarlo Giannini as the ill-tempered detective leading the investigation. The film derives most of its energy though from the myriad of plot twists and turns throughout with the characters feeling compelled to lie to the police since the truth sounds absolutely unbelievable. This presents a curious dynamic with the characters, especially Candy, getting deeper and deeper into wilder and wilder lies that ultimately end up making him sound guiltier than the truth would have, but it is not a dynamic that is used nearly often enough with the film always aiming for laughs first and foremost. There are indeed several humorous moments that work, thanks largely to the often witty dialogue from the same screen writing team responsible for 'Private Benjamin'. The film tends to favour tiresome running gags though, such as Giannini's assistant constantly failing to light his cigarettes and Richard Lewis believing that he is a dead ringer for Al Pacino (he isn't). The pacing is quite brisk though and the lost dog at the centre of the film well-trained (and adorable), so this is a difficult film to dislike even if it constantly feels like it had the potential for more.

THE GOOD: Sean Young (unusually lively and appealing), Giancarlo Giannini (who gives class to the film by his mere presence), some moments of James Belushi.

THE BAD: John Candy (grating, with barely even one funny line) and George Hamilton (his aging gigolo is an even more aging stereotype).

The others fall somewhere in between.

All in all, this film is pleasant entertainment for 90 minutes, although for a film billed as a "mystery-comedy", the mystery part is largely secondary. (**1/2)