'Jade Scorpion? true to Allen?s signature style

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Directed by: Woody Allen|ret||ret||tab|

Starring: Woody Allen, Helen Hunt, Charlize Theron|ret||ret||tab|

Rated: PG-13|ret||ret||tab|

Auteur Woody Allen has directed 32 full-length films in as many years. When looking at the historical list of Oscar nominees, one might be surprised to find that Allen has been nominated for the original screenplay award more times than any other writer: no less than 13 nominations, starting with "Annie Hall" in 1977. Hollywood legend Billy Wilder only had a dozen nominations, so Mr. Allen is in some pretty heavy company. |ret||ret||tab|

Allen keeps plugging away, despite the turmoil in his public life and despite the fact that his films never make a great deal of money. Until he hooked up with Dreamworks, it wasn't unusual for a new Woody Allen film to never even play in medium and smaller movie markets. |ret||ret||tab|

Allen is a true "working" director and says he continues to make movies because, quite simply, that's what he does. While his films don't make a lot of money, neither do they cost a lot, and movie companies of the stature of Dreamworks seem all too happy to have someone working in their stable who has the critical acclaim Allen inspires. |ret||ret||tab|

Allen's latest effort, "The Curse of the Jade Scorpion," is another foray into the world of crime. This theme is a tried-and-true one for him, starting with "Take the Money and Run," continuing with "Bullets Over Broadway" and "Manhat-tan Murder Mystery," and last year's "Small Time Crooks," which I thought was a pretty strong film. |ret||ret||tab|

"The Curse of the Jade Scorpion" won't rank with "Annie Hall," "Manhat-tan" or "Hannah and Her Sisters" as one of Allen's best films, but it's pure Woody, and fans will be pleased, as they always are, that he's staying true to form. |ret||ret||tab|

There's lots of jokes and neuroses that seem completely familiar and a luxury afforded when one writes, directs and stars in a film Allen manages to have flings with not one, but two younger women. Helen Hunt and Charlize Theron both fall under the Woodman's spell this time around. |ret||ret||tab|

It's 1940 and Allen plays C.W. Briggs, an investigator for a Manhattan insurance firm. While he's known for "always getting his man," Briggs finds his job in peril when the boss brings in efficiency expert Betty Ann Fitzgerald (Helen Hunt), to streamline and modernize the firm. Briggs and Fitzgerald take an immediate dislike to each other, and Briggs is fighting a losing battle as Ms. Fitzgerald is sleeping with the boss.|ret||ret||tab|

At a coworker's birthday party, the two are called upon as volunteers to aid the hypnotist Voltan in his nightclub act. He gives them the suggestion that they are happily married, and they gaze longingly into each other's eyes professing undying love. Voltan also embeds key words into Briggs' and Fitzgerald's minds, and shortly after the show a series of jewelry heists begins.|ret||ret||tab|

The heists appear to be inside jobs, and Briggs is baffled but sure he can crack the case. Fitzgerald, who has been toying with an idea for months, decides to call in help in the form of two bumbling brothers who run a private detective agency. Briggs, already threatened by Fitzgerald, is even more upset now.|ret||ret||tab|

Thrown into the mix is sexy vixen Laura Kensington (Charlize Theron), the daughter of one of the robbery victims. Theron burns in the role, modeled after any one of Veronica Lake's characters. |ret||ret||tab|

Sample dialogue: "I usually go for more handsome, muscular men." |ret||ret||tab|

Briggs replies, "Well ... uh ... maybe I could get in some push-ups before tonight."|ret||ret||tab|

Allen always keeps his scripts economical, and "Jade Scorpion" moves along at a nice pace, leading to its inevitable conclusion. There are few belly laughs along the way, but plenty of the kind of self-deprecating, wry humor and snappy, sarcastic dialogue that Allen always falls back on. |ret||ret||tab|

It's not one of his masterpieces, but even a run-of-the-mill Woody Allen film is better than nearly any other movies out at the same time. Providing of course you're a Woody fan to begin with.|ret||ret||tab|

Note also should be made of Zhao Fei's incredibly rich cinematography and Santo Loquasto's perfectly executed production design. Fei has been working with Allen since "Sweet and Lowdown" and was also the cinematographer on di-rector Zhang Yimou's sumptuous "Raise the Red Lantern," one of the most beautifully photographed films ever made. |ret||ret||tab|

Loquasto is a mainstay in the Allen camp, having done production design for every film the director has made since "Radio Days" in 1987. He also did fine work on Penny Marshall's "Big." |ret||ret||tab|

When doing a period piece such as "Curse of the Jade Scorpion," the importance of cinematography and production design cannot be overstated. Both have helped raise this film to another level. Not once did anything seem out of place for a 1940s era film noir.|ret||ret||tab|

(Jim Wunderle works at Associated Video Producers and is a Springfield free-lance writer and musician.)[[In-content Ad]]