Movie Review: Scoop

Woody Allen's latest, Scoop, is his second British-set film starring Scarlett Johansson in a row, and while there are definitely some problems with Scoop, we for one hope he keeps the trend going. Though not nearly as interesting or engaging as last year's Match Point, which garnered an oscar nomination for original screenplay, Scoop certainly has its charm.

That charm begins with the plot: a light-as-air bit of nonsense about a journalist who comes back from the dead to pass on the news story of the title: suspicions that the aristocratic Peter Lyman (Hugh Jackman) is actually the notorious Tarot Card Serial Killer, a modern-day Jack the Ripper. Unfortunately for the dead newspaperman, he manages to pass his scoop not to a seasoned reported but to Johannson's Sondra Pransky, who only barely decided on journalism over dental hygiene as a profession and, when faced with the mystery, engages the help of Woody Allen.

Actually, the guy she gets to help her is a magician who goes by the name of Splendini, but Allen, as always, is playing himself. A collection of twitches, neuroses, and uneven one-liners, his schtick gets old quickly: by the end, his stammering will be driving you nuts, but along the way he provides nearly all of the film's humor as Sondra, predictably, falls for Peter: but is he the killer, or isn't he?

The problem with Scoop that has garnered it such uneven reviews isn't that it's bad: it's an entertaining, amusing little movie. The issue is just that: Allen's finest work (Bullets over Broadway, Annie Hall) had far more resonance, better characterization, and more to say about the human condition. In Scoop, he's made an enjoyable movie, but not one with any pretentions to grandeur--he's a victim of high expectations. So don't go expecting vintage Allen: that sort of movie, we suspect, is long gone. But if fluff is all you want, you'll certainly laugh here.

Grade: B -