Take the Money and Run

Acclaimed stand-up comedian Woody Allen delivered his first nominal directorial work with the redubbing of a Japanese spy film into pure farce, but with his real debut Take the Money and Run, he got right to the heart of typical Woody humour: the absurd adventures of a neurotic who consistently fails at the American way of life. In pseudo-documentary form, the film depicts the life of the unlucky Virgil Starkwell (played by Allen himself), who, after a series of defeats, embarks on a criminal career, only to have his bold plans thwarted by his own clumsiness. An amusing compendium of Allen's themes and preferences (Virgil's parents talk about their wayward son behind Groucho Marx masks). (C.H.)