Broadway Danny Rose (1984)
Film:
DVD:

Written & Directed by Woody Allen
Starring Woody Allen, Mia Farrow, Nick Apollo Forte, Sandy Baron, Corbett Monica

Features:

• Theatrical trailer
  

Anamorphic: Yup.

My Advice: Rent It.

Danny Rose (Allen) is apparently a legend in the small-time entertainment industry. And by small-time, I mean that he handles everybody from a couple who makes balloon animals to a woman who plays music on glasses of water ("Never had a lesson!" he exclaims). He believes in all of them, every single last one. And as a bunch of comedians are seated around a table just shooting the proverbial shite, one of them has the ultimate Danny Rose story to tell. It's a tale of Rose and the client he believed in more than any other: Lou Canova (Forte), a not-even-on-the-radar-anymore singer who's desperate for a comeback. And it's also a tale of Forte's mistress, Tina (Farrow), and the trouble that the three of them get into without a great deal of effort.

As comedies go, this is fairly average. It's enjoyable, but not earth-shattering...or even trembling, really. The few truly funny bits are hilarious, especially a chase scene through the holding hangar for the balloons of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. And of course you've got Allen's knack for staging and timing of scenes that, in a lot of cases, is amusing just to study on its own merits. But in a lot of places the film just isn't funny, or much of anything else. It feels like exactly what it is: a small film that Allen did with Farrow because he had a story to tell. Taken in that context, it's worth at least viewing.

That's about all you'll be able to do on this disc, though. The only feature is the theatrical trailer. As always, we here at the site always want more. A commentary would have been nice from Allen. Or even some bios. But it's bare bones. With some extras, the disc might have been worth a purchase for the layman (for the Allen completist, of course, it's a no-brainer), but our advice is just to pick it up, take it home, watch it, and take it back. Just avoid late fees.