The Man Who Knew Too Little Review
by Edward Johnson-ott (PBBP24A AT prodigy DOT com)November 10th, 1997
The Man Who Knew Too Little (1997)
Bill Murray, Peter Gallagher, Joanne Whalley, Alfred Molina, Richard Wilson
Rated PG, Two and one half out of five stars.
Review by Ed Johnson-Ott, NUVO Newsweekly.
For more reviews, go to www.nuvo-online.com and click on "film."
In one of the commercials for "The Man Who Knew Too Little," Bill Murray gives his assurance that the new comedy works, wrapping up his pitch by saying "If you don't think it’s funny, I'll personally give you your money back. That is, if you can find me. I mean, I'm not easy to find, but if you do, if you stop me on the street or something, I'll give you some money."
While Bill and his wallet won't have to go into hiding, the unfortunate truth is that the ad is funnier than most of the actual movie. "The Man Who Knew Too Little" is a cute film with a clever premise. It's sometimes funny and frequently amusing, but rarely breaks into flat-out hilarity. That would be enough from most performers, but with Bill Murray you just expect more.
Remember, we're talking about the man who single-handedly took the hack comedy "Meatballs" and made it a success. Murray is a one-of-a-kind talent, a putty-faced comic anarchist capable of taking the lamest premise and making it side-splitting. His early work, in films like "Stripes", "Ghostbusters" and "Caddyshack," was marked by an ironic deadpan delivery, punctuated by explosive outbursts at unexpected moments. Murray was dangerous, one of most outrageous of the SNL bad boys, and all of his manic energy came out onscreen. He became a legend by playing the ultimate wise-guy, and when he tried to depart from that persona, his work suffered. Murray took fewer and fewer starring roles, focusing instead on inspired cameos in films such as "Little Shop Of Horrors," "Ed Wood," and "Kingpin."
In recent years, Murray has returned to lead roles, recapturing some of his former glory in "Quick Change," "What About Bob," and "Groundhog Day." "The Man Who Knew Too Little" finds Murray playing a less neurotic version of the wide-eyed innocent from "What About Bob." Murray's Wallace Ritchie is an amiable loser, a clerk in a Des Moines Blockbuster Video who tells strangers he "works in film." When his younger brother, a successful businessman living in England, sends him money for his birthday, Ritchie impulsively hops a plane to London to visit him.
Wallace's arrival startles brother James (Peter Gallagher) and wife Barbara (Anna Chancellor.) Hours away from an important business meeting, they can ill-afford an unpredictable guest, so James buys his brother a ticket to "The Theater Of Life," a participatory experience where he will assume a character and join a group of actors to play out a mystery story in real-world settings. Wallace reluctantly accepts the gift and begins the evening as directed, by going to an assigned street corner and waiting for a nearby pay phone to ring and begin the experience. Unfortunately, Wallace gets a call intended for a hired-assassin. Thinking it part of the play, he trots off to begin his adventure, not realizing that the international intrigue surrounding him is not only real, but potentially lethal.
The screwball comedy has the feel of a 60s spy film. Layered with subplots, the story overflows with secret agents, blackmail, bombs and murderous henchmen. The humor comes as Wallace navigates from one incredibly dangerous situation to the next, believing it all to be part of an elaborate game. Meanwhile, his adversaries are stunned by the cool fearlessness of this mysterious American.
"The Man Who Knew Too Little" is filled with clever scenes that are *almost* a riot, but rarely slip over the edge into hilarity. The problem certainly isn't Murray, who clearly has a ball playing the hapless Wallace. The supporting cast is also fine, particularly Joanne Whalley as Lori, Wallace's confused partner in intrigue. The set-up is amusing enough, especially a subplot involving British and Russian spies desperately trying to insure job security by re-igniting the Cold War.
So why doesn't "The Man Who Knew Too Little" soar? The problem lies with director Jon Amiel ("Copycat", "Sommersby",) who just doesn't have a knack for comedy. Amiel takes the spy motif too far, using camera angles that accentuate the suspense elements of the story, but mute the humor. He seems more interested in unreeling the convoluted story than in making the audience laugh. The result is a muffled comedy. The performances are there, the situations are there, everyone is really trying, but the damned thing just isn't funny enough. At least not funny enough for a movie with Bill Murray's name on it.
copyright 1997, Ed Johnson-Ott
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