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Rating:  - poor quality
the stops and skips throughout, especially during the most important parts of the movie. very disappointed.
Rating:  - Witty, Irrereverant, Cinematic Fun!
Now I know I'm going to be blasted on here, but honestly I had only seen one or two Woody Allen films before this one. I literally stumbled across this film on IFC (movie channel) this morning.
The whole movie skewers, borrows and ultimately pays tribute to dramatic theater to delightful effect. The scenes with John Cusack and secret love interest Diane Wiest could've been ripped right out of a 20's melodrama. The shots are long and the cutting sparse lending even more to that theatrical feel. However you don't need a lot of quick cuts to sell your movie when the dialog itself is quick and cutting.
Beautiful written, shot and directed, the story speeds along cleverly with twists and turns and plenty of humor. The performances by everyone in the cast are superb.
I honestly haven't seen a movie this good in quite some time and am thrilled to have found this unique and timeless gem. Thanks Woody Allen!
Rating:  - Woody's Best Light Comedy?
For the most part, you can fit each of Woody Allen's movies into one of three categories: serious drama, dark comedy, or light comedy. "Bullets Over Broadway" definitely falls into the third category. Though some critics have suggested there are allusions to Allen's own life and beliefs (a recurring them is that an artist makes his own moral code), the movie mostly ignores the darker, philosophical things that Allen typically covers in his more introspective comedies.
"Bullets Over Broadway" is the story of a struggling playwright from Pittsburgh (John Cusack). In order to get his play financed in New York, he accepts funding from a gangster and in turn casts his talent-less girlfriend (Jennifer Tilly) in a major roll. As an added bonus, he has to deal with her bodyguard (who takes an interest in the play) and troublesome actors. The leading man has a constantly expanding waistline, the leading lady is a manipulative, alcoholic has-been (played excellently by Diane Wiest), and Tracy Ullman plays temperamental supporting actress with a yapping dog.
As a writer, Allen is at his best when he's dealing with darker subject matter, but that doesn't mean he's not capable of creating a flawless, sophisticated comedy when he wants. "Bullets Over Broadway" is probably too fluffy to be considered among Allen's best, but it's definitely in that second tier, along with "Zelig" and "Radio Days." In terms of tone, it's probably most significant to "Manhattan Murder Mystery," although Allen doesn't make an appearance in this film.
Rating: - "You better get in the mood, honey, 'cause he's payin' the rent."
Set in 1920's New York City, "Bullets over Broadway" (1994) tells the story of a young playwright David Shayne who tries to produce his first play. He "stands on the brink of greatness. The world will open to him like an oyster. No... not like an oyster. The world will open to him like a magnificent vagina" but he needs to find money for production first.
The money comes from the gangster Nick Valenti on one condition - Nick's stunningly untalented bimbo girlfriend Olive ("She ruins everything she's in. She ruins things she's not even in") has to play a psychiatrist. Olive is accompanied to each rehearsal by hit-man/bodyguard Cheech who knows how the real people talk and turned to be a greater writer than David. David's leading man, Warner Purcell eats compulsively every time he gets nervous (and there are plenty of reasons for him to get nervous). David's relationship with the girlfriend Ellen suffers when he begins an affair with the talented leading lady Helen Sinclair ("I'm still a star. I never play frumps or virgins.") who is "in the last couple of years... better known as an adulteress and a drunk."
"Bullets over Broadway" is one of my favorite comedies by one of the favorite directors/writers, Woody Allen (I love you Woody, always have, always will - please make your gems, and I will be there to watch them). It has everything I look for in a comedy - brilliance, wit, clever writing, hilarious and sinister twist in the plot, amazing performances, authentic feel of the era and great musical score. "Bullets over Broadway" is pure delight from the beginning to the end. The best I could describe the film - to paraphrase the famous line from John F. Kennedy's Inaugural Address: "Ask not what Art can do for you -- ask what you can do for Art".
9.5/10
Rating: - Toot, Toot, Tootsie it's good!
This is a very entertaining Woody Allen farce (with no acting appearance by Woody) that will especially appeal to anyone who loves the Roaring 20's, gangster movies or backstage stories. John Cusack is perfect as David Shayne the young writer desperate to get his play produced and though the whole cast of offbeat characters is great Chazz Palmanteri deserves special mention as a mob hit man with literary flair. The soundtrack of period 1920's music is excellent and this is all around a very entertaining film. Warning though it is a dark comedy so not everyone gets a happily ever after ending.
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