Directed
by: Woody Allen
It is
1940, and CW Briggs (Woody Allen) is the top investigator
for an insurance firm. Whenever something big is stolen from
one of their clients, CW is the one on the case for his instincts
serve him well and has solved many a case. He has everything
under control in the workplace; that is until Betty Ann Fitzgerald
(Helen Hunt), a "by the book" efficiency expert,
walks into the office. The two do not get along and hate each
other with a passion. Put them together within ten feet of
one another and an argument is guaranteed to ensue. However,
despite all their bickering, there is this underlying sultry
spark between the two.
One night,
CW, Betty and a bunch of their co-workers attend a dinner
party, and the two are drafted into volunteering for a hypnosis
act. Voltan the magician dangles a pendant of the Jade Scorpion
in front of CW and Betty, and the two are soon in a deep trance.
With the command words of "Constantinople" and "Madagascar",
Voltan can make them do almost anything. The problem is that
the night may be over, but Voltan's spell isn't, for he calls
them up on the phone days later, hypnotizes them and sets
them off to do his evil work of burglary. Can the great CW
crack the case open when he himself is the prime suspect?
Woody
Allen has been directing movies for a long time now, with
such classics as "Annie Hall" and "Manhattan"
in the 70's and the underrated "Husbands and Wives"
and "Deconstructing Harry" in the 90's. I am truly
a big fan of his, but it is obvious that "The Curse of
the Jade Scorpion" is far from being up to par with the
others. The screenplay is unevenly bungling at times. Some
of the jokes and one liners just didn't have the same zing.
Allen and Hunt delivered the lines the best they can, yet
our chuckle never materialized in several instances.
The good
thing about the film is that it has good momentum to snatch
it from the occasional rut. After a sluggish start, the film
does a turnaround. "The Curse of the Jade Scorpion"
gets polished up a bit and does give us a good share of laughs
and an amusingly silly plot. Like other Allen films, the music
is a great companion to this lighthearted comedy. The jazzy
flavor brings the 1940's back to swinging vigor. Allen, Hunt
and the supporting cast (Dan Aykroyd, Charlize Theron, Elizabeth
Berkley, etc.) are wonderful and really hold the film together.
"The
Curse of the Jade Scorpion" may not be one of Allen's
better films, but it has just enough tricks up its sleeve
to make us watch the act.
Film is
Rated PG-13 for some sexual content.
Mazzyboi
Mazzyboi's
Movie Review's
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