The Man Who Knew Too Little (1997) Warner Bros./Action-Comedy RT: 94 minutes Rated PG (language, innuendo, comic violence, sensuality) Director: Jon Amiel Screenplay: Robert Farrar and Howard Franklin Music: Christopher Young Cinematography: Robert M. Stevens Release date: November 14, 1997 (US) Cast: Bill Murray, Peter Gallagher, Joanne Whalley, Alfred Molina, Richard Wilson, John Standing, Simon Chandler, Geraldine James, Anna Chancellor, Nicholas Woodeson, Cliff Parisi. John Thomson. Box Office: $13.7M (US)
Rating: ***
I know it got bad reviews, did poorly at the box office and isn’t Bill Murray at its best. I know it’s a one-joke movie with an unnecessarily convoluted plot. I don’t care, I think The Man Who Knew Too Little is a funny movie. The title of the 1997 spy comedy is obviously a take on the twice-made Alfred Hitchcock thriller The Man Who Knew Too Much about an innocent family pulled into an assassination plot. While hardly Hitchcock-level material, The Man Who Knew Too Little provides enough laughs and chuckles to make up for any deficiencies.
Murray stars as Wallace, an American who flies to London to surprise his brother James (Gallagher, While You Were Sleeping), an investment banker getting ready to host an important business dinner for investors from Germany. Wallace, a nice but clueless sort who works at a Blockbuster Video in Des Moines, isn’t exactly the right fit for this crowd so James sets him up for a night out at the “Theater of Life”, an interactive improv play that makes the participant part of a crime drama. The idea is to wait by a pay phone for a call with instructions. Predictably, Wallace answers the wrong call. He’s dragged into a plot involving an assassination attempt, incriminating letters and politicians bent on restarting the Cold War, all the while thinking it’s just a play. Along the way, he finds romance with his “co-star” Lori (Whalley, Willow), really the call girl mistress of one of the involved politicians.
It’s really hard to touch the comic brilliance of his roles in Stripes and Ghostbusters, but I get the impression Murray realizes this and simply coasts along on his relaxed, up for anything attitude in The Man Who Knew Too Little. Much of the humor relies on words and statements that mean different things to Wallace and whoever he’s talking to. So when he’s asked if he remembered to “flush”, he assumes they mean the toilet NOT eliminating a target. You see, the bad guys think he’s a hitman named Spencer. They’re impressed by his ability to get out of dangerous situations unscathed, but it’s really just dumb luck. Murray plays it just right by never going for OTT. And while it’s never hilarious, The Man Who Knew Too Little has some genuinely funny scenes like Wallace performing with a group of Russian folk dancers. Like the song says, he does it his way. Those aren’t the exact words but you know what one I mean.
Directed by Jon Amiel (Entrapment), The Man Who Knew Too Little is the very definition of light comedy. It mainly works because Murray’s character is so likable. You don’t even mind that he shows up at his brother’s house unexpected and uninvited. He just wants to spend his birthday with his little brother. Lovable but dim, you can’t turn him away. In a way, Wallace reminds me of his title character from What About Bob albeit a less neurotic version. Granted, Murray is at the top of his form when he has somebody to push against like a mean drill sergeant, arrogant government official or egotistical psychiatrist. He doesn’t do much pushing in The Man Who Knew Too Little; the more accurate term is persevere. No matter what the situation throws at Wallace, be it a hitman-turned-butcher (Molina, Boogie Nights) or being shot at on a building ledge, he always comes out okay.
What’s interesting is how the cast usually follows Murray’s lead in his movies. The same holds true for The Man Who Knew Too Little. Even in laid-back mode, he has a commanding presence. That doesn’t mean his co-stars fade into the background. Gallagher has a few good moments as the younger brother too preoccupied with his guests to notice that Wallace is in real trouble. Whalley is okay as the love interest. Molina is funny as Boris, the hitman called out of retirement specifically to deal with Wallace. The cast works pretty well together.
It’ll never be regarded as a comedy classic but The Man Who Knew Too Little is better than its score on Rotten Tomatoes suggests. It’s a slick production too. It makes great use of its London locations. The score by Christopher Young is a perfect fit. It’s funny and entertaining in the right state of mind. Don’t expect too much and you might be pleasantly surprised.
