Curse of the Jade Scorpion

Pros: Nice look and feel to it. Wallace Shawn.
Cons: Too many to list -- a very pathetic film.

Tonight, it was the SO's turn to pick a movie. This was the only one playing at the local Bijou to catch his eye. I shrugged, what the heck, it's Allen, it ought to be good.

There's the key phrase: ought to be good.

Friends,...

Pros: The sets, costumes and music instantly transport us back to the 1940s
Cons: The ho-hum dialogue instantly transports us to sleep

For classic movie fans, Woody Allen’s new movie—a tip of the fedora to Sam Spade—is a blessing not a curse (though somehow The Blessing of the Jade Scorpion doesn’t have the same ring to it).

As this summer withers to a close with...

Pros: That catchy little number that plays during the scene transitions. It's adequate entertainment.
Cons: Woody is too Woody. Just doesn't flow right.

Woody Allen is, obviously, something of an enigma in the movie world. He stars in virtually all of his movies, and he doesn't actually 'act' in them. He just 'plays' himself. It's a strange little twist, and over the years we have come to love,...

Pros: Has the feel of a forties B movie
Cons: Could have been a forties B movie

Many of the films of Woody Allen are a homage to the sorts of movies he has admired throughout his life. His latest film, "The Curse Of The Jade Scorpion," is the latest to fit into that pattern. In it, Allen stars as C.W. Briggs, a veteran insurance...

Pros: Classic and witty comedy from Woody Allen.
Cons: Not as funny as some of his other works, or as important as most ofThem.

I am a strong believer that there are two Woody Allens. The first one makes philosophical examinations of life, and is clearly influenced by the great Swedish director, Ingmar Bergman. The other one loves to make us laugh through intelligent comedy....

Pros: Woody Allen's skewed point-of-view and nostalgia-drenched evocation of Depression-era Manhattan
Cons: Formulaic, predictable and -worst of all- repetitious

Woody Allen's mock '40s film noir crime caper revolves around CW Briggs (Allen - think Humphrey Bogart), a grubby, chauvanistic Northcoast Fidelity and Casualty Company of New York insurance investigator. "I'd hate to have me after me," he...

Pros: Woody Allen and Helen Hunt a good combo, nostalgic 40's sets and costumes
Cons: Woody overdoes the waving hands gestures and jabbering,

Woody has assembled a bevy of beauties for his production, of course. Elizabeth Berkely surfaces again as Jil, office secretary, after having been buried by the religious right at the beginning of her career in 1995 Showgirls. Charlize Theron, sexy and...

Pros: Witty script, great cast.
Cons: Surface entertainment, but that's not all bad.

One of the great things about movies is how they can transport you to another place. That's exactly what Woody Allen's films do. The lights go down, the black screen with plain white font credits comes up, some lighthearted jazz tune underscores, and you...

Pros: too lazy to think of something to put in this section
Cons: see above, or just read the damn review

I'm not sure if I've watched the same movie as the other reviewers. While I respect opinions that differ from my own, I could never agree with some of the claims made about The Curse of the Jade Scorpion. Maybe it's because this is the first Allen...

Pros: A Woody Allen film.
Cons: Just good, nowhere near great.

It's hard enough to get people to go to Woody Allen movies these days - let alone one with a title like The Curse of the Jade Scorpion. Just try and convince your Pearl Harbor loving friends to take a shot on a film starring...

Pros: Good overall story, great cast and hilarious dialogue
Cons: Sometimes the pace of the movie didn't quite fit what was happening

Admittedly I am not a huge fan of Woody Allen. Yeah, he’s had his moments of pure genius I guess. All the same his movies seem to be pure hit or miss. The ones that hit are very funny, the ones that miss usually entail too much talking by Woody. ...

Pros: I never have to see it again.
Cons: Woody at his absolute worst.

Yuck. Here's a film that simply reeks of contractual obligations and a screenplay yanked out of someone's attic. I was stunned when I heard so many people bashing this one. That was before I sat through it.
Right off the bat: I AM a big fan of Woody...

Pros: Woody Allen's answer to the mid-century mysteries that proliferated theatres back then
Cons: Not a great Woody Allen film, but certainly not his worst...he's gone mainstream

Woody Allen has never been my favorite director nor have his films ever made it onto my list of "favorites". But I have to admit, lately, I have found his older films to be more amusing than his newer fare...

Perhaps that's just because he's...

Pros: Nice Art Direction. Charlize Theron. Maybe 2 or 3 chuckles
Cons: Boring & Unfunny! Poorly Written! Poorly Plotted!

Woody Allen’s films bring out the most fervent divide of love and hate amongst moviegoers. The love usually comes from the critics while the hate comes from those who find the Woodster so irritating (either for his personality or private life) that there...

Pros: Nice 40s look to the movie. Quaint ain't hilarious, however.
Cons: No big laughs. Woody is too long-in-the-tooth for this kind of role. Sorry, Woody.

I am old enough to remember Woody Allen when he was a wonderfully funny and self-effacing stand-up comic, making the rounds of all the variety shows on TV. (I even have copies of his comedy albums - they're incredibly great.) I followed his career into...