Scoop

Starring: Scarlett Johansson, Hugh Jackman, Woody Allen, Ian McShane
Directed by: Woody Allen
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Comedy
2006

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: A journalist (Scarlett Johansson) is visted by the ghost of a famous reporter (Ian McShane) with the scoop of a lifetime- a handsome politican (Hugh Jackman) is actually a serial killer! She teams with a a magician (Woody Allen) to find out the truth.

Review:

Tim: This is a movie that sways all over the place— one moment close to touching greatness, the other, inches away from infamy. It ends up somewhere in the middle, not close to being great, but not terrible, either. I don’t count myself as a Woody Allen fan, and despite this film being somewhat enjoyable, it won’t win me over, either.

I should start by saying that I immediately am wary of any film directed by Woody Allen where he casts himself in a prominent role. He plays the same version of himself in every single film, and I am so deathly tired of seeing him on screen. I don’t enjoy him, and he only detracts from the film whenever he is on screen. That being said, he wasn’t as horribly annoying here as normal (at least not at first, he gets progressively worse as the movie goes on). I will give Allen credit for casting Scarlett Johansson and Hugh Jackman in the lead roles (although Allen still gets top billing…unbelievable). Johansson is a superb actress, and she gives the performance this film needed. There are certainly moments when the more ridiculous aspects of the film weigh down her performance, but generally, she is quite enjoyable to watch. Hugh Jackman likewise has a few moments where his performance suffers, but that is due to the poor writing (I wonder who is responsible for that?). He does manage to give a good performance, however.

Scoop tries too hard to be too many things. On one hand, it is a lighthearted comedy, but also a romance, a thriller, and there are also the supernatural elements, which add to the film’s quirkiness, but also make you wonder what exactly Allen wanted to achieve here. Despite all logic to the contrary, this hodgepodge of concepts actually does mix well together to create an interesting soup. The movie is at least enjoyable, and in situations like this, that can be quite a blessing. I did like this movie in spite of myself, but I am also not so swayed as to admit it has serious flaws which nearly collapse the movie upon itself. Luckily for all those involved, that did not happen, and we’re left with a decent movie that at least is not a bomb.



Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating- 7



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