What's Up Tiger Lily?

Directed by Woody Allen, What’s Up Tiger Lily? is Allen’s directorial debut in which he takes the Japanese spy film International Secret Police: Key of Keys from director Senkichi Taniguchi and re-dubbed the film with material that has nothing to do with the spy story. With dialogue written by Allen, Louise Lasser, Len Maxwell, Julie Bennett, Mickey Rose, and Bryan Wilson, the film is spoof into the world of spy films as well as an early example of Allen’s approach to comedy which he also stars with Lasser. What’s Up Tiger Lily? is a silly yet entertaining film from Woody Allen.

The film is essentially a spoof on the spy films where Woody Allen has taken over a Japanese spy film and re-dubbed the entire movie with music by the Lovin’ Spoonful and create new dialogue that had nothing to do with the original movie. In this re-dubbed film, the movie becomes a story about a spy who teams up with a couple of female spies to retrieve a secret recipe to make the perfect egg salad from two competing criminal figures. It’s all part of Allen trying to deconstruct the spy story by including a few things that had nothing to do with the film including performances from the Lovin’ Spoonful where the main protagonist is a spy who has an appetite for sex while being a spy that can kick some ass.

While there’s a few scenes in which Woody Allen appears to reveal why he re-dubbed the film including a break where someone asks him to stop the film so they can get a refresher on the plot. Yet, Allen is mostly focused on creating something is a spoof of sorts on the spy film with help from editor Richard Krown along with some upbeat yet offbeat music from the Lovin’ Spoonful to create something that is idiosyncratic. While there are moments where the schtick gets tiresome a bit, it does play into Allen’s unique approach to humor while creating something that is engaging but also enjoyable to watch.

What’s Up Tiger Lily? is a terrific film from Woody Allen though it pales in comparison to some of the films he would make in the years to come. It is still a fine debut that showcases his brand of humor as well as the fact that it would play into a few ideas that Allen would explore in the years to come. In the end, What’s Up Tiger Lily? is a decent and funny film from Woody Allen.

Woody Allen Films: Take the Money and Run - Bananas - Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex* (*But Were Afraid to Ask) - Sleeper - Love and Death - Annie Hall - Interiors - Manhattan - Stardust Memories - A Midsummer’s Sex Night Comedy - Zelig - Broadway Danny Rose - The Purple Rose of Cairo - Hannah & Her Sisters - Radio Days - September - Another Woman - New York Stories-Oedipus Wrecks - Crimes & Misdemeanors - Alice - Shadows & Fog - Husbands & Wives - Manhattan Murder Mystery - Don’t Drink the Water - Bullets Over Broadway - Mighty Aphrodite - Everyone Says I Love You - Deconstructing Harry - Celebrity - Sweet & Lowdown - Small Time Crooks - The Curse of the Jade Scorpion - Hollywood Ending - Anything Else - Melinda & Melinda - Match Point - Scoop - Cassandra’s Dream - Vicky Cristina Barcelona - Whatever Works - You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger - Midnight in Paris - To Rome with Love - Blue Jasmine - Magic in the Moonlight - Irrational Man - (Cafe Society)

The Auteurs #24: Woody Allen Pt. 1 - Pt. 2 - Pt. 3 - Pt. 4

© thevoid99 2013