User reviews

Reading a wide variety of "Scoop" reviews over the past few days, I walked into the theater prepared for a subpar outing from Woody. Happily, I couldn't have been more wrong. Granted, Woody the performer is slowing down a touch or two, but Woody the writer/director is in fine form - and found a credible way to integrate his 70-year old self into the story. Judging from the laughter and guffaws, the audience ate up Allen's one-liners and dialogue in a way that I haven't seen in several years.

In a movie landscape dominated by software-approved story arcs, twentysomething tastes and assembly-line formula fare for kiddies, it's a source of both satisfaction and inspiration to see Allen pursuing his highly personal and still-rewarding path.

I went to the movie theater this afternoon expecting to be underwhelmed by Scoop. Happily, the film exceeded expectations, at least a little bit. It's nothing heavy, nothing deep -- and not anywhere as good as any number of real Allen masterpieces -- but it's also completely enjoyable as a light, bantering comedy. There's something kind of simple and sweet about it. "Cute" was the word I heard from people in the audience as they were walking out after the show. It doesn't feel like Allen set out to create a masterpiece here, it feels like he wanted to make a little comedy and have fun doing it. Compared to just about everything Hollywood is producing, Allen's stuff has a tendency to charm. Even the fluffy stuff. These days it's just refreshing to go to a movie made by an actual human being.

I was lucky enough to get a free pass to an advance screening of 'Scoop' last night. Full house at the theatre and when the movie ended there was spontaneous applause. I didn't speak to anyone who disliked 'Scoop' although two teenagers sitting next to me sighed and fidgeted uncomfortably for most of the film. They were the exception though because everyone else including myself really enjoyed themselves.

'Scoop' is a quickly paced murder mystery. A young female journalism student is unwittingly maneuvered by forces beyond her control into trying to catch a serial killer on the loose. Plenty of hijinks ensue as she partners up with a traveling illusionist and falls in love with a frisky and charming young nobleman.

'Scoop' isn't a bad addition to the Woody Allen filmography. It isn't his best work but it is a very enjoyable and light hearted romp. I'd say it fits quite comfortably into being an average Woody Allen film, right in the middle of the pack. If you're a Woody Allen fan you'll probably enjoy yourself. If you're indifferent to his work then 'Scoop' might be enough to get you interested in seeing more. I don't think that anyone who dislikes his style of film-making and acting are going to change their mind. Woody plays the same kind of neurotic character we've grown so accustomed to although it borders dangerously close to forced and over the top in this film. While potentially aggravating for some who might find themselves wishing he'd hurry up and just spit out the words, Woody Allen fans know what to expect.

Very good performances all around in my opinion although I found myself missing Ian McShane who is excellent and not on camera nearly enough. Hugh Jackman is great as the charming nobleman and I think Woody Allen has found a new regular star to work with in Scarlett Johansson. I think that with 'Match Point' this is their second pairing and she's just magic with the material that Woody gives her. Could be the beginning of a beautiful relationship! I'm glad I saw the movie and definitely recommend it. More sophisticated comedy than movies like 'Scary Movie 4' so if your brand of comedy is the latter rather than the former, 'Scoop' probably isn't for you. If, on the other hand, you like a touch of class, sophistication and fun, 'Scoop' is for you. Probably not the Woody Allen film I'd introduce to a newcomer but all others should give it a try.

Greetings again from the darkness. Remember all the "What happened to Woody Allen?" jokes? Even Mr. Allen poked fun at the fans who wanted him to continue making his same "funny" films. As with any great artist, Mr. Allen's craft evolved over the years and he lost some fans, while picking up others. Last year's masterpiece "Matchpoint" showed he is still every bit as relevant and poignant as he was in the days of "Annie Hall" and "Manhattan". What is most striking to us 40 plus year fans is that Mr. New York himself seems to have a bit of a crush on the mother country. Apparently he actually likes England!! While filming "Matchpoint", Mr. Allen became enamored with Scarlett Johansson and her real life spirit and sense of humor. This attraction motivated him to write his best comedy in years. Scarlett, while risking overexposure, must be given credit for not just picking films that cast her in some glamorous light. She is unafraid to look and act like a real person. In "Scoop", she flashes some real on screen comedy chops and, in many scenes, delivers the real punchline to Mr. Allen's straight man. Of course, any time Mr. Allen decides to put himself in front of the camera, he will get more than his share of one liners and social commentaries in - which is fine, because few do it better.

Very nice support work from Ian McShane and Hugh Jackman. In fact, Mr. Jackman provides a few glimpses into why many of us thought him the best choice to replace Brosnan as the new Bond. As with most of Allen's films, the star is the script, not the actors. Although Scarlett delivers superbly here and is a nice contrast to the polished Allen and Jackman, what makes this one crackle is the dialogue ... especially the banter between Allen and Scarlett. If you are not a huge Woody the actor fan, fear not. He does limit his screen time and he is quite effective, except in two or three brief scenes that almost seem out of place. Another Woodman tradition is a sparkling musical background and "Scoop" is no exception ... especially the Strauss composition.

"Scoop" is a nice cross between "Annie Hall" and the best of the Marx Brothers films or the Cary Grant comedies. Yes it is an adult comedy, but it is actually very cute ... especially for a serial killer and talking ghost comedy!!

In this somewhat familiar story, the now-70-year-old Woody Allen plays a rambling stage magician in London who gets unwillingly roped into helping a young woman (Scarlett Johansson) find out the true identity of a potential serial killer (Hugh Jackman). The girl is an aspiring reporter who receives a tip from the spirit of a recently deceased writer that Jackman may be her man.

Woody had just made the superior and steamy drama MATCH POINT (2005) with Scarlett Johansson and was probably taken with her, so he tried casting her here alongside himself in something comical. At least he's beginning to realize he has become too long in the tooth to continue playing younger girls' love interests, and so he assumes the role of go-between mentor to the two young leads. Unsurprisingly, Jackman and Johansson are destined to become romantically involved as Scarlett pursues her investigation. Hugh Jackman is fine in his part, and though upon my first viewing of this I didn't quite buy Johansson's performance, a second look found her characterization working for me.

This film is only occasionally humorous and rather middle of the road as far as the director's overall dossier is concerned. I'm always game to continue seeing Woody cast himself in his own future comedies, so long as he keeps writing them more in line with his advancing age. Who knows, maybe he can make a senior citizen type of farce one day. **1/2 out of ****

Allow yourself to be transported to a different, old school kind of storytelling. Scoop is classic Woody Allen.

Allen's latest muse, Scarlett Johansson (who also appeared in last year's Match Point, also by Allen), is surprisingly able to tone down her sultry sex kitten appeal and transform into a normal looking student-type with the aid of nerdish glasses and outfits but still fails to make the audience believe how Hugh Jackman's lordly character can be so smitten by her, given the royal's background (don't worry, no spoilers here). There are no grand transformations for Johansson's character here, as she consistently plays the same character throughout despite the script saying otherwise. You even forgive her character's apparent lack of logic, continuing an affair with a suspected serial killer, simply because he is His Royal Hotness Jackman, who is refreshing to see sans the Wolverine duds.

If anything, consistency is what the 70-year old Allen is all about. He continues to tell his stories on celluloid in the same way he always has; as if he's never been exposed to modern film-making, which is probably what makes his quiet, simple films appealing. They never seem to aim for a specific market; as if Allen makes movies to his taste alone, whether the public likes it or not.

Admittedly on first viewing I didn't care for Scoop, finding it weirdly plotted and not very funny. Seeing it again as part of a Woody Allen film marathon and being much more used to his style(that I wasn't at the time on first viewing must have a lot to do with not caring for it in the first place), Scoop was far better than initially remembered. It is a long way from Allen's best films, see Annie Hall, Manhattan, Crimes and Misdemeanours, Hannah and her Sisters and Husbands and Wives to see him at his best, but it is better than Cassandra's Dream and To Rome with Love. Scoop is not without imperfections, the story is very far-fetched at times with some convolutions and scenes that don't add to very much, Hugh Jackman is very underused and Scarlett Johansson looks uncomfortable, she's much better in Match Point. Scoop is photographed with style and atmosphere and there is great use of locations. The classical music score is a good fit and will be a delight for any classical music fan, while Allen's directing is as adroit as ever. Allen's writing has been much more insightful and thought-provoking, but the script is still very clever and funny(and in distinctive Woody Allen style), Allen and Ian McShane have the best lines, and while the story is not completely successful the blend of comedy and mystery has enough moments where it works(it has been done far better before though, notably Crimes and Misdemeanours). Allen is hilarious and witty- knowing exactly how to say and time his lines- though with a character that had a danger of falling into the trap of mugging. Ian McShane is wonderfully mysterious and says his lines, and as said before he has the best of them alongside Allen, in a sardonically sly fashion, you just wish he had more screen time. And while Hugh Jackman is underused when you do see him he is dashing and charismatic. All in all, it is easy to see why people won't like Scoop, initially I didn't but on re-watch while problematic it was much better than expected considering the rep it has among a fair few people that consider it as one of Allen's worst. 7/10 Bethany Cox

"Scoop" is also the name of a late-Thirties Evelyn Waugh novel, and Woody Allen's new movie, though set today, has a nostalgic charm and simplicity. It hasn't the depth of characterization, intense performances, suspense or shocking final frisson of Allen's penultimate effort "Match Point," (argued by many, including this reviewer, to be a strong return to form) but "Scoop" does closely resemble Allen's last outing in its focus on English aristocrats, posh London flats, murder, and detection. This time Woody leaves behind the arriviste murder mystery genre and returns to comedy, and is himself back on the screen as an amiable vaudevillian, a magician called Sid Waterman, stage moniker The Great Splendini, who counters some snobs' probing with, "I used to be of the Hebrew persuasion, but as I got older, I converted to narcissism." Following a revelation in the midst of Splendini's standard dematerializing act, with Scarlett Johansson (as Sondra Pransky) the audience volunteer, the mismatched pair get drawn into a dead ace English journalist's post-mortem attempt to score one last top news story. On the edge of the Styx Joe Strombel (Ian McShane) has just met the shade of one Lord Lyman's son's secretary, who says she was poisoned, and she's told him the charming aristocratic bounder son Peter Lyman (Hugh Jackman) was the Tarot Card murderer, a London serial killer. Sondra and Sid immediately become a pair of amateur sleuths. With Sid's deadpan wit and Sondra's bumptious beauty they cut a quick swath through to the cream of the London aristocracy.

Woody isn't pawing his young heroine muse -- as in "Match Point," Johansson again -- as in the past. This time moreover Scarlett's not an ambitious sexpot and would-be movie star. She's morphed surprisingly into a klutzy, bespectacled but still pretty coed. Sid and Sondra have no flirtation, which is a great relief. They simply team up, more or less politely, to carry out Strombel's wishes by befriending Lyman and watching him for clues to his guilt. With only minimal protests Sid consents to appear as Sondra's dad. Sondra, who's captivated Peter by pretending to drown in his club pool, re-christens herself Jade Spence. Mr. Spence, i.e., Woody, keeps breaking cover by doing card tricks, but he amuses dowagers with these and beats their husbands at poker, spewing non-stop one-liners and all the while maintaining, apparently with success, that he's in oil and precious metals, just as "Jade" has told him to say.

That's about all there is to it, or all that can be told without spoiling the story by revealing its outcome. At first Allen's decision to make Johansson a gauche, naively plainspoken, and badly dressed college girl seems not just unkind but an all-around bad decision. But Johansson, who has pluck and panache as an actress, miraculously manages to carry it off, helped by Jackman, an actor who knows how to make any actress appear desirable, if he desires her. The film actually creates a sense of relationships, to make up for it limited range of characters: Sid and Sondra spar in a friendly way, and Peter and Sondra have a believable attraction even though it's artificial and tainted (she is, after all, going to bed with a suspected homicidal maniac).

What palls a bit is Allen's again drooling over English wealth and class, things his Brooklyn background seems to have left him, despite all his celebrity, with a irresistible hankering for. Jackman is an impressive fellow, glamorous and dashing. His parents were English. But could this athletic musical comedy star raised in Australia ("X-Man's" Wolverine) really pass as an aristocrat? Only in the movies, perhaps (here and in "Kate and Leopold").

This isn't as strong a film as "Match Point," but to say it's a loser as some viewers have is quite wrong. It has no more depth than a half-hour radio drama or a TV show, but Woody's jokes are far funnier and more original than you'll get in any such media affair, and sometimes they show a return to the old wit and cleverness. It doesn't matter if a movie is silly or slapdash when it's diverting summer entertainment. On a hot day you don't want a heavy meal. The whole thing deliciously evokes a time when movie comedies were really light escapist entertainment, without crude jokes or bombastic effects; without Vince Vaughan or Owen Wilson. Critics are eager to tell you this is a return to the Allen decline that preceded "Match Point." Don't believe them. He doesn't try too hard. Why should he? He may be 70, but verbally, he's still light on his feet. And his body moves pretty fast too.

Sondra Pransky (Scarlett Johansson) is an American journalism student. She gets pulled on stage to assist magician Sidney Waterman (Woody Allen). Only she gets the scoop of a lifetime from the newly dead Joe Strombel (Ian McShane) who escaped to tell her that wealthy Peter Lyman (Hugh Jackman) is the infamous Tarot Killer.

Here's the thing. Johansson is way too hot. All the hem hawing and Woody Allen impersonation can't make her funny. The best that can be achieved with those glasses is super cuteness. She's no Sarah Silverman. And that's what's needed here. Johansson can keep up with Woody but she doesn't excel. This is a cute little Woody Allen movie. Having said this, who can say no to the super hot Johansson. Seeing Johansson mimic Woody in exchanges with Woody has it's own surreal appeal.

Allen combines his two favourite things - murder and magic here. Best of all, he also acts, and has good repartee with the young actress. Jackman also perfect as Playboy billionaire. There's a good ghost too.

I thought this was a wonderful way to spend time on a too hot summer weekend, sitting in the air conditioned theater and watching a light-hearted comedy. The plot is simplistic, but the dialogue is witty and the characters are likable (even the well bread suspected serial killer). While some may be disappointed when they realize this is not Match Point 2: Risk Addiction, I thought it was proof that Woody Allen is still fully in control of the style many of us have grown to love.

This was the most I'd laughed at one of Woody's comedies in years (dare I say a decade?). While I've never been impressed with Scarlet Johanson, in this she managed to tone down her "sexy" image and jumped right into a average, but spirited young woman.

This may not be the crown jewel of his career, but it was wittier than "Devil Wears Prada" and more interesting than "Superman" a great comedy to go see with friends.

Bob Hope (Woody Allen's favorite comedian) was still telling jokes and getting laughs in his 80's and one suspects Woody will be doing the same. He always seems to come up with some really funny one-liners, sometimes without much effort.

This is a typical role for him. The now familiar neurotic who is always one stuttering step ahead of his surroundings. There are some fine laughs here and it is all an enjoyable light weight murder-mystery with very little mystery and no on screen murders. Hat's off to he who can pull it off.

The Director/Writer/Star gets some help from two easy on the eyes co-stars and a backdrop of a Ghost-Writer-Reporter and Upper Class English society that are ripe for Woody's barbs. This is a feathery foray for the, might have lost a step but still keeping up, sociological commentary that he does best. But this Superstar is likely to keep pitching until he is on that boat, on that river. But even then, he will offer a bribe.

Yikes!

Woody Allen seems to have taken inspiration from a 1976 episode of Scooby-Doo and, with a few alterations (few being the operative word), made a 90 minute movie supposedly for intelligent adults. Woody is Shaggy - only irritating in the extreme; Scarlet is a Velma/Daphne morph ("I can't find my glaaaassses"); Hugh J plays the aristocratic "is it him" villain ("if it weren't for those pesky kids"), and Ian McShane the requisite clue-leading "ghost" element. The only thing missing was an affable cowardly dog (I wish there had been) and the Mystery Bus (although it would have been redundant if it were).

And Scooby-Doo I'm afraid is the quality (or rather, weakness) of this script; the truly hammy characters and acting / direction; the banal / irritating / tedious attempt at humour; and (non) cleverness / twist of plot. Don't get me wrong - I used to enjoy Scooby-Doo. When I was 7.

Woody Allen is getting old, and now Death is making its appearance in his last movie. A deceased sensation journalist fools death a few time to return from a rather rudimentary ship on the Styx river and pass a scoop to an attractive amateur journalist about the identity of a modern age Jack Ripper. The problem is that world still keeps an appearance of normality and nobody is ready to listen to the journalist acted by Scarlett Johansson excepting of course ... Woody Allen himself in the role of a magician.

So, what do we have here? A badly dressed Death character looking like an imitation of Bergman's. A magician on stage because it's magician movies season and who can do perfectly a failed magician whose tricks work better at the wrong time and place than Woody Allen? Scarlett Johansson acting in Renee Zellweger's role. And Allen himself, back and as narcissist as ever and even worse ... or better.

All this semi-nonsense is the best told story I have seen this year. Well, it's Woody Alllen, and he knows how to tell a story even when he has nothing to tell. The problem is that he really has nothing to tell in his last few movies, but he keeps doing them. It's minimalistic fun, to the enjoyment of the fans audiences, but I suspect the rest of the world hates them. How lucky I am to be his fan.

Is it possible than movie critics did not appreciate Scarlet Johansson in a comedic role? She actually pulled it off nicely as Sondra, a dimwit blonde student in London who gets involved in a serial killer case.

Helping Sondra in her investigation is the equally not-smart Allen himself, in the role of Sid Waterman, a second rate magician touring the UK.

Sid and Sondra are terrible at investigating and will end up in trouble. Even if Sid is a bit too garrulous, the story flows nicely and it is an enjoyable comedy not to be taken too seriously.

An young American journalist student named Sandra (Scarlett Johansson: Black Dahlia,Island)residing in UK goes to interview a known actor(Kevin McNally). Later she and her friend(Romola Garay) go to a magic-show. She's is selected in one of the acts by magician named Sidney(Woody Allen).But she's spontaneously contacted by the ghost of a deceased reporter(Ian McShane: Nine lives,Sexy beast). He explains hers which the son of Lord Lyman(Julian Glover), a cocky young man named Peter(Hugh Jackman: Xmen,Van Helsing,Sworthfish)is the tarot card serial killer. She along with Sidney try to investigate if Peter Lyman is really a murderer and get a great scoop for chief-reporter(Charles Dance). Sandra goes to an elitist swimming pool where simulates drowning and she knows Peter Lyman, starting an affair with the aristocrat and falls in love with him.

This enjoyable comedy-mystery is well realized by Woody Allen.The film displays murder, suspense, humor, love and is pretty entertaining. Casting is frankly extraordinary: A gorgeous Scarlett Johansson as lovely, intrepid journalism student, Hugh Jackman as elegant, polish noble young and Woody Allen as sympathetic but staggering magician. The picture is the second of the trio filmed in London, along with ¨Match Point and Cassandra's dream¨ and also the second shooting with his last muse, Scarlett Johansson, along with ¨Match Point and Vicky Cristina Barcelona¨ ,in production and recently filmed in Spain when filming by Allen always in US and New York specially. The motion picture contains a colorful cinematography by Remi Adefarasin and nice production by the Allen's usual, Jack Rollins and Charles H. Joffe. The flick will like to Allen's faithful followers and Scarlett Johanssen fans.

"Scoop" is easily Woody Allen's funniest film of the 2000's so far. Allen, although finally looking his age, is at the top of his game as low-brow magician Sidney Waterman. His one-liners and demeanor are hilarious. Don't let the critics sway your opinion. "Scoop" is a top notch "Woody-Lite" picture.

The classical music score is an excellent compliment to the action on screen. Scarlett Johanson looks gorgeous in that bathing suit. Jackman is dashing. The cinematography glows. "Scoop" is wonderful escapist fare from start to finish. The last shot of the film alone is worth the admission price.

This movie is classic Woody Allen. It's light as a feather, very talky and does not take itself seriously, rather it enjoys itself as it goes along its merry way.

The premise is that a young journalism student (Scarlett Johansson) finds herself being visited by a ghost (Ian McShane) while participating in a magic show. She's given the 'scoop' of a lifetime when he gives her the potential identity of a serial killer. She ask the help of the magician (Woody Allen) whose act she was in as she follows the trail.

A material like this can not be taken seriously and this movie does not. It does not have any mean bone in its body unlike say an Adam Sandler movie. It goes for laughs without trying to embarrass anybody. The movie is talky and has a lot of one liners, which means it's usually hit and miss. There are a lot jokes that are obvious and maybe not even funny but I think there are enough to make me recommend it.

The acting is very good, the actor shows respect for the material and the audience. They don't act as if they're superior to the material and to the audience. Frequently today, comedies that stars stand-up comedians take on the attitude of those comedians, unfortunately many of those comedians have attitudes I can not stand. This film has good performances from Hugh Jackman, McShane and yes Johansson. They all treat the material with proper respect instead of disdain. They know that the material they are doing isn't to be taken seriously yet they just don't dump on it.

Unlike most comedies today, the movie does not treat its audience as a bunch of morons instead it trust its audience will be willing to go along on a romp and enjoy themselves which I did. Credit has to go to Woody Allen for getting his actors to put their faith in his hand and for writing good material no matter how ridiculous the premise might be.

Overall the movie has very entertaining with a lot of jokes, some fall flat some funny. Personally I have never found Woody Allen movies to have a lot of big belly laughs but in some cases such as Scoop they can be very entertaining and put a smile on your face for the rest of the day.

I've enjoyed Woody Allen movies in the past and I have quite a penchant for Johansson.

This was poor comedy, I couldn't find a worthwhile joke to laugh at in the entire thing. Allen's routine bored the socks off me and the acting was routinely terrible.

The script was complete tosh, so the poor actors had nothing to chew on. The rest of the time, Allen was hogging the screen with his stupid routine.

London has seldom been used so poorly, with a couple of dreadful backdrops that were so obvious it looked like it was made in the 1950's.

What on _earth_ was Allen thinking of, this was _awful_.

brendan

Great Woody Allen? No. Good Woody Allen? Definitely. I found myself, along with the audience in attendance, laughing hard and often at some of the best Woody Allen lines we've heard in a while. The aging Allen created an appropriate role for himself as Scarlett Johansson's "father" ... well, sort of. Some have said Johansson plays "a young Dianne Keaton." I beg to differ. She plays Woody's dialogue, which, in his comedies, always has a very similar feel...like, well, a Woody Allen comedy. That's fine for us Woody appreciators. She certainly did Woody's dialogue far better than the young cast of his last comedy, Melinda/Melinda. Some may find Woody's humor tiresome, but for those of us who love it when it's done right, we look forward to the next.

"Scoop" is a Woody Allen film where Woody Allen plays a wonderful supporting role creating the kind of laughs people love him for.

Scarlett Johansson is a journalism student who is undecided about a life in orthodontia, the family business. This indecision is the predominant personality aspect of her character Sondra Pransky. Like a modern Hamlet, Sondra is visited by the ghost of a journalist with the "Scoop" of a lifetime. She is directed to get the story and get it right. Her indecision keeps her from knowing the truth: Is or can this man, Peter Lyman (Hugh Jackman) be a murderer as he romantically sweeps her away?

The heart of the movie and the fun part is when Sondra enlists a vaudevillian magician Syd Waterman (Woody Allen) to discover the truth of the "Scoop." Seeing Johansson and Allen's characters pretending to be father and daughter in what becomes a buddy film is what makes the film worth watching. The romance between Johansson and Jackman seemed so thin compared to the dynamic relationship between Johansson and Allen. The father-daughter thing worked wonderfully well. I just could not seem to get enough of these two. It seemed so refreshing to have a relationship between an older man and a younger woman that did not include romance. It truly was just right.

Magic, death, the after life, and comedy seem to be the dynamite combination for Woody Allen. It's a combination he used before in the "Oedipus Wrecks" portion in the movie "New York Stories" to great hilarious heights.

"Scoop" may not be the greatest Woody Allen movie. But it does play to Woody Allen's strengths.

Woody Allen (and not Ian McShane) dies at the start of this movie, and for the rest of the picture he appears as his own ghost. In giving an impersonation of his former self he seems to have forgotten how to be funny along with the combination of the lock that opens his incredibly inept plot. To see him dithering and groping through his own childish script is to witness someone in the early stages of senile dementia. "Kids, you raise them, pay their way, bring them up only to have them accuse you of having Alzheimers," his character complains. Well, you said it, Woody, not I. Is nobody at the BBC capable of telling this erstwhile movie talent that he has quite literally lost the plot? His team consulted the set directory, found a few stereotyped upper-class locations, around which he spun a puny one-strand playlet that would look weak on a kindergarten stage, let alone in a BBC-financed feature film by an acclaimed director. If you're looking for laughs, this picture had about as many punch-lines as murders. If you're after suspense, the only thing dangling will be your jaw as you yawn. The music is ripped off from Swan Lake (scene of the crime, nudge, nudge). Ms Theron's romance with the stiff and underwritten juvenile lead is so unconvincing it makes porno movies look well-acted. And as for the star himself, well, the only death in this picture was Woody Allen's acting career.

An American journalism student (Scarlett Johansson) in London scoops a big story, and begins an affair with an aristocrat (Hugh Jackman) as the incident unfurls.

I like to see Woody Allen as actor and director. You know, he started out like that and his best films have his as the neurotic lead. While he is only the sidekick here, it is a joy to see the man in action.

Somehow this film got overlooked. Maybe because it was another magic film in a year loaded with good magic films ("The Prestige" and "The Illusionist"), but this is a special sort of story. Not too complicated, not too simple. Just enough ingenuity to really carve out its place as a good tale.