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Rating: 4.75 out of 5
Okay. Honestly, I am going to be real with you. Woody Allen has been impressing me with his movies. I’m not a Woody Allen fan and only watch his films because so many of them have won Academy Awards, but homeboy is impressing me. I start watching one of his movies without realizing it. Then boom, I check Wikipedia and find out he has directed it. This is no different, and he has a unique and funny way of telling a story in a movie.
This time around is Bullets Over Broadway. As I thought, who is shooting up Broadway? Yea, it’s New York City, but Broadway is one of the major hotspots and a piece on the Monopoly board. Lately, I have been getting more and more into musicals. I recently saw Hamilton and am about to go see Lion King. Sorry, starting to get off track just a tad bit. Where was I? Oh yea, Woody Allen made a film about a playwriter who comes to NYC and somewhat enlists the help of a mob person to write a play in this hilarious comedy.
In 1928, David Shayne (Cusack) is a playwright who arrives on Broadway after two massive bombs that he made. He believes that the reason they failed was that he let too many other people have control of his ideas. David writes a third play, “God of Our Fathers,” and decides to direct the whole thing himself. The only thing is that David is deadass broke and most of the people he wants also have financial struggles. With no experience with directing, David’s regular producer, Julian Marx (Warden), can’t find anyone to invest in the film until one lone person states they will finance the entire production. David learns that the investor is Nick Valenti (Viterelli), a big-time mobster who wants his dimwitted girlfriend and talentless actress Olive Neal (Tilly) to get the lead role. David and Julian are hesitant but are able to convince Nick into giving Olive one of the two supporting roles. To make matters worse for David and Julian is that Nick has placed a bodyguard named Cheech (Palminteri), a cool-ass gangster who kills if needed, on Olive. While trying to make his play into a hit, David is also unaware and utterly oblivious to the issues that his cast has. Helen Sinclair (Wiest), who has the lead part, is the ultimate diva and hasn’t been relevant in years. She is out to turn her character into what she believes is suited for her lifestyle now. Warner Purcell (Broadbent), the only male cast, has a weight problem and hits food like a buffet when stressed. Finally, there is Eden Brent (Ullman), a happy-as-you-can-be actress who always rolls with her pet chihuahua, Mr. Woofulls. As David tries to make everything work, he soon finds that he is in over his head and that his play sucks ass. When Cheech starts giving notes on the script to David, who is initially angered by the intrusion soon learns that all the ideas are excellent and that his hit is within his grasp.
Like I said earlier, I have to give it to Allen because this black comedy film was hilarious and entertaining. We all have dreams and some of us dream of writing an all-time legendary play. Look at freakin Hamilton; that shit blew my mind but what I love about this film is all the egos and craziness that went on behind the scenes. David can’t write a play to save his ass and thinks that everyone else doesn’t have the talent like he does. Yet, his life is shit. His girl is hooking up with someone else, and his cast thinks his play needs more work which is hilarious because he tries to not believe them.
Then we get to the best part of the movie, Cheech. The gangster has a presence about him that will scare you because he is intimidating, but his ideas a so good that it gives people a cause to pause. In the scene where he is sitting and watching the play, he shares his opinion on how the person should sound and the dialogue that should be used. Everyone thinks for a second and then agrees to the annoyance of David. What makes Cheech funny is that he somewhat becomes the director and go-to man even though he barely learned to read before burning down his school. Damn, school is rough, but that is next level. We find out that he has a natural playwriting talent but is not interested in taking any credit. When Cheech becomes invested in the play, he can’t stand Olive and tries to get her fired because she sucks at acting. Homeboy is like F-it. If I can’t get her fired, then I whack her.
What makes this film go is not the play but the freakin drama. There has to be loads of drama in making a play, but this one was over the top. Warner and Olive have an affair, and that goes haywire. Olive gets upset because she starts off as the lead and then slowly has like three words because she can’t act to save her life. Helen rolls up everywhere like a diva but isn’t really famous, and the list goes on and on. Oh, how I love the drama.
I will once again give credit to Allen’s direction. His style seems to work well for black comedy films. They all seem the same, but while watching it, you know you will get the same type of film and have a few laughs. I think this is the first time that Allen wasn’t in one of his films, but I also wasn’t looking for him.
As far as the performances go, a few really stood out. All the actors did a fantastic job in this film, and I shouldn’t say some stood out because each one made this a very entertaining film. John Cusack as David Shayne was funny and the one where the camera was most on. Cusack showed that David was an uptight person who didn’t like advice until he realized that he wasn’t good at his job.
The three actors that really stole this movie for me were Dianne Wiest as Helen Sinclair, Jennifer Tilly as Olive Neal, and Chazz Palminteri as Cheech. Tilly played the airhead role so well that she was believable. I love how she thought she had all this great acting talent but couldn’t act to save her life. I love hearing Tilly’s voice. She has such a distinctive voice. Palminteri was FANTASTIC. When you play yourself, you are the most authentic version of yourself. Palminteri is such a cool person that he seemed to go with the flow. Finally, Dianne Wiest was excellent and won the Academy Award for her role. She was funny, but homegirl rolled up to places in that fur coat like the queen she thought she was.
Overall, Bullets Over Broadway is a hilarious film that should be watched if you want a good laugh and maybe see how crazy things can get. Allen’s direction is spot on and makes you feel like you are watching mayhem from behind the scenes. The performances are spot on, with Wiest, Tilly, and Palminteri stealing the show. Give this movie a chance and then go and watch a show on Broadway.
