BULLETS OVER BROADWAY

Dianne Weist and the ensemble 

BULLETS OVER BROADWAY (1994). Director/co-writer: Woody Allen.

"I just pity any poor folk who have to pay to see this play."

In order to get his play mounted on Broadway, David Shayne (John Cusack of City Hall) allows in an inappropriate cast member, Olive (Jennifer Tilly of Seed of Chucky), because her mobster boyfriend, Nick (Joe Viterelli), decides to back the show. Nick assigns a bodyguard to Olive, a hit man named Cheech (Chazz Palminteri), who starts making impromptu critiques of the play .. only his criticisms are valid. Before long it's a question of who is the true artist behind the show. But what can one do about the screeching and awful Olive? Woody Allen does not appear in Bullets Over Broadway -- which is a plus or minus depending on how you look at it -- and it's another of Allen's pastiche films inspired by superior forties movies with a "modern"-type sensibility. It's another in a long line of movies that present sympathetic hit men, for one thing, while also showing him committing several murders. The movie takes place during the roaring twenties but it doesn't have much period atmosphere. Dianne Wiest won a supporting actress Oscar for her role of the diva Helen Sinclair, but while she is good, it's hard not to notice that she's simply trading off of decades of previous actresses who have played affected, breathless theater and movie stars; nothing new here. John Cusack is fine, although this is an actor who through no fault of his own is just hopelessly bland no matter what he's in. Tracey Ullman [Into the Woods] has a nice turn as an ever-laughing cast member who always carries her little dog with her, and Jack Warden is good as David's agent, but no one else is especially impressive, except perhaps Annie Joe Edwards, who is snappy as Olive's maid, Venus, but whom Allen doesn't allow to become a character in her own right. The movie is fairly entertaining and has some good twists and humor, but it's also kind of stupid, with the whole notion of a sensitive, artistic hit man being a little too precious for this critic to swallow. Allen may have been thinking of himself when he has Rob Reiner say "An artist creates his own moral universe." For those who hate Jennifer Tilly's voice and think she's a freak of nature, you'll especially enjoy one scene that comes late in the movie. To be fair, Tilly's performance is good even if she herself is a little flesh-crawling.

Verdict: The actors seem to be having more fun than the audience. **1/2.

SEED OF CHUCKY

SEED OF CHUCKY (2004). Written and directed by Don Mancini.

Tiffany: "Jennifer Tilly is playing me in a movie! What perfect casting!"

Chucky: "But that voice!"

Tiffany: "I think she sounds like an angel."

The offspring of the killer doll Chucky and his equally psychotic mate Tiffany makes his way to Hollywood where they're making a movie about his folks, but -- in a nod to Ed Wood -- there's some confusion as to whether his name should be Glen or Glenda. Used as mechanized props in the movie, Chucky and Tiffany come back to life and try to bond with their little son or daughter, who is appalled by the way they slaughter people indiscriminately. Meanwhile the real Jennifer Tilly (who plays herself and is -- Lord save us -- the voice of Tiffany), a freak of nature if ever there were one, is hoping that the blubber-lipped rapper-director Redman (played by Redman) will cast her in his next picture, a biblical epic. "You're prostituting yourself so you can play the Virgin Mary!" argues Tilly's assistant when she learns her boss has "plans" for Redman. You get the picture ... Initially entertaining, this very, very black and grossly gruesome comedy eventually becomes way too silly and rather tedious. It serves chiefly as a vehicle for actress Tilly to spoof herself and prove she's a good sport. At the end Tilly says "I'm a star!" Well, if you're starring in movies like Seed of Chucky you're probably not a star. Anyway, Tilly is amusing but she needs a better script. Brad Dourif is fine as the voice of Chucky.

Verdict: A real moron movie. *1/2.