The Lady in Question

A delightful if somewhat predictable TV movie, though I admit a little bias -- as far as I'm concered, the more Gene Wilder in this world the better. I'd love to see numerous additional movies detailing the adventures of Larry "Cash" Carter!

This is just one more example of the absolute genius of Gene Wilder. He wrote and starred in this terrific mystery. No one could have done it better. The suspense was palpable throughout. I wish Mr. Wilder would grace us with another of these. I have enjoyed everything I have ever seen Mr. Wilder in but I had no idea how truly talented he was until I saw "Murder in a Small Town," and this follow-on. He truly has a firm grasp on what audiences want and how to deliver it in his writing and, of course, in his brilliant acting. His subtle wit comes through in spades. I would recommend this movie to anyone who likes mysteries and/or Gene Wilder's film work. His star just gets brighter and brighter.

Pleasant, diverting and charming. The best part is the swing numbers, especially the rendition of My Buddy, partial though it may have been. The acting was a bit over the top in areas but the mood set by Wilder is so pleasant it is hard not to enjoy this film.

Good sequel to Murder in a Small Town. In this one Cash and his police Lt. buddy unravel a sticky plot involving a Nazi criminal, a philanthropic witch, and a family of screw-ups and their wierdo helpers. As in the original, the viewer is treated to a nice little mystery with distinctive sights and sounds of pre-war America. Go see it.

I love murder mysteries, particularly those of Agatha Christie(not that it is Christie, but it does have some elements of her plotting), and I like Gene Wilder so when I heard of Lady in Question I decided to give it a go. I wasn't expecting absolute perfection, considering it was a TV movie, I didn't get that, but what I got was a pretty satisfying and overall pleasant way to spend a couple of hours.

It does I do agree start off slowly complete with some draggy moments in the middle half, the plot does fall into predictability a little too much and the script has its weak spots.

However, I liked how it was filmed. The scenery, costumes, settings, hairstyles and make-up are authentic, charming and beautiful-looking. The soundtrack is nice and swinging and the direction is decent. The final solution did at least make some sense, and the film does have a somewhat appreciative nostalgic feel to it. The acting is nothing extraordinary but it was actually pretty good; Gene Wilder has been better, but he does a good job in the role of the theatre impresario turned detective. Claire Bloom is a nice touch as the anti-Nazi activist, while Mike Starr is surprisingly delightful as a detective and Barbara Sukowa is solid as a German sophisticate.

Overall, nothing brilliant, but I have to admit I quite liked it no matter how many faults it had. 7/10 Bethany Cox