Sudden Manhattan

This movie was a little slow in getting to used to, very funny, but spaced zany humor, but by the time it got to the last scene with The Bearded Man in his apartment, I was falling on the floor. A serial killer of 28 people and a large Great Dane, not a cute little dog, The Bearded Man scenes are worthy of any young or early Reiner-Allen-Brooks (Mel or Albert) effort I've seen. Never to be confused with an academy award level film, it nonetheless is definitely worth a watch, and Adrienne Shelley as the actress/writer/director hits a home run and not just a triple. One of my favorite exchanges in the film is her boyfriend coming across her in disguise, as she is across the street from where she has witness two murders. "What are you doing here?" he asks. "I'm investigating," she replies. "Shouldn't you leave that to the police?" he responds. "This is New York City, Adam; you know we don't have any real police." A very well written effort by a true comedic talent.

This was the first feature film directed by the multi-talented Adrienne Shelly. She also wrote it and played the lead role of Donna, the kind of girl who in New York slang of yesteryear used to be called 'ditsy' (a word presumably forgotten by now). In other words, she is charmingly living in a world of her own, sees things, imagines things, and may or may not be a bit crazy. Adrienne Shelly was a combination of a waif and a spunky comedienne. I cannot think of any other actress with her particular mixture of qualities. So one must classify her as unique. This low-budget independent film was shot in Greenwich Village and it has that distinctive insouciance and subtle humour which used to be peculiar to creative Manhattan residents. These days, people are rapidly forgetting how to laugh, as they are too busy snarling and ranting about political and sociological issues to remember that there is any such thing as humour. How can anybody laugh who spends all his or her time shouting? But these were gentler days, the days of the mid-nineties, when Manhattan still chuckled. And one of the shining talents then was Adrienne Shelly. Who could have imagined then that she only had ten years left to live, as she was only 30 and had everything ahead of her? It is very uncomfortable watching this lovely little film now because of its astonishing premonitory quality, knowing what later happened to Ms. Shelly. As part of the comedy of the film, Donna goes repeatedly to a fortune teller, brilliantly portrayed by Louise Lasser, who specialises in gloomy predictions. She repeatedly tells Donna that there is nothing ahead of her but a violent death. This may have been amusing in 1996, but it was not funny at all in 2006, which was the year that Ms. Shelly was violently murdered in Manhattan, at the age of only 40. It is too much like fiction becoming fact. I don't imagine Ms. Shelly's surviving family can bear to sit through this film, which seems like a gruesome prediction of what actually happened. For those less susceptible to the trauma of subsequent real events, the film is a quiet delight, and very original and imaginative.

Ive always liked Shelly in the Hal Hartly films, esp TRUST, and here she is no different. Though SM has its off moments, it is basically far more entertaining than half the full-budget crap out there. And to think that she made it herself. Her on-screen persona is more serious than she is: I love her quick retort in the bonus intro, in response to 'where she got the money to make the film' Adrienne turns to the camera, flashes an impish smile, and says: "Investment Bankers!"

For anyone who has ever thought they might be losing their mind this movie puts a band-aid on it. Everybody has an off day every now and then and it's good to see your not alone. My favorite conversation starter now is to ask someone "If you were served a plate of noisy eggs, would you eat them?" Bravo!! As a struggling filmmaker myself, I applaud Adrienne Shelly for her wonderfully quirky and stylized film. Unbelievably well written. Wonderfully composed shots with lots of visual interest. The synergy amongst the cast is amazing. I showed a clip of this film to my film school class and I had so many people come up to me afterward wanting to know where they could get a copy as well! Highly recommended to anyone questioning their sanity!

Might have been made from Woody Allen's out-takes; it has the feel of one of his weaker movies. It isn't bad, exactly, but it isn't good, exactly, either. A woman who might or might not be insane might or might not be witnessing murders by a man who might or might not have multiple personality disorder. The men and women who might or might not flit into her life might or might not join her in what might or might not be an investigation. The only characters who seem to be sure of anything are the cop who calmly assures her she hasn't seen anything and the gypsy who is sure of nothing but death, destruction, and collecting for her palm reading. Very funny moments, very freaky moments, and nothing much as a whole.