With the hand-held camera, no narration, no breaking of the fourth wall and an all around more realistic feel, Manhattan Murder Mystery is a clear follow-up for Husbands and Wives, but transferring that great film's style into a semi-comedic thriller parody doesn't work that well, mainly because Allen's character and his neurotic sarcasm are completely out of place - part of the point, of course, but it gets tiring much too often. Alan Alda, too, plays a generic Alda character that we've seen in Allen films several times before. Diane Keaton is the film's saving grace - it's great to see her work with Allen again for the first time since the masterpiece Manhattan - and she's at her very best, as is Anjelica Huston in a smaller but unforgettable part. All in all, it's worthy enough of a slot in the Woody Allen catalog, and fans will probably enjoy it, but it's not one of his finest moments.
Review of Manhattan Murder Mystery
