Woody Allen and Charlize Theron in "The Curse of the Jade Scorpion."

MOVIE INFORMATION

With 10 as a must-see, Jack gives this film an: Stars: Woody Allen and Helen Hunt Director: Woddy Allen Rated: PG-13, with profanity Length: 103 minutes

ROCHESTERCRITIQUE

Having seen this film, how would you rate it? 10 5 9 4 8 3 7 2 6 1

By Jack Garner
Democrat and Chronicle

(August 24, 2001) -- In The Curse of the Jade Scorpion, Woody Allen pays tribute to screwball films of the 1940s, with a mystery plot worthy of a Charlie Chan matinee.

Allen stars as C.W. Briggs, a skillful Manhattan insurance investigator who can't crack the biggest jewel-theft case of 1940.

That's because thanks to a nefarious hypnotist, he is, himself, the thief.

The hypnotist also makes C.W. fall for an uptight office supervisor (Helen Hunt), a woman he normally can't stand.

As with last year's Small-Time Crooks, Allen foregoes the personal, psychoanalytical style of his films of the 1980s and '90s and returns to his amiable nonsense of the '70s.

Perhaps Allen has grown tired of viewers who read so much into his screen personas; C. W. Briggs is an utterly fictional comic character. And Allen plays him with rumpled wit, a confident flair and just enough of the klutziness that's key to an Allen character.

Trouble starts for C.W. when he joins his co-workers at a party. Entertaining is Voltan, a turban-clad hypnotist (David Ogden Stiers). To the amusement of their co-workers, Voltan hypnotizes C.W. and office efficiency expert Betty Ann Fitzgerald (Hunt) into thinking they co-exist in marital bliss. And the hypnotist makes the exotic words "Madagascar" and "Constantinople" the keys to unlocking their minds.

Later that night, C.W. gets a call from Voltan, who mutters "Madagascar" and orders the investigator to rob the lavish Kensington estate.

C.W.'s life becomes entangled with Betty Ann, because of residual affection from Voltan's experiment. Betty Ann, though, is already in a romance with the boss (Dan Aykroyd).

There's also a mystery woman played by Charlize Theron, in a one-note performance as a seductive Veronica Lake character.

Hunt, though, has a plum role. Thanks to the hypnotist, she shifts from ice queen efficiency expert to passionate lover to confused conspirator.

Jade Scorpion clearly demonstrates Allen's artful affection for the music, design and culture of the 1940s. The office and residential sets are all superbly outfitted. They're shot in gorgeous golden tones by noted Chinese cinematographer Zhao Fei. And, once again, Allen demonstrates his expert taste with period music that ranges from Duke Ellington to Earl Hines to Wilbur de Paris.

The film returns Allen to the era of one of his best movies, Radio Days. But while that 1987 film focused on the effect of radio on his youth, Jade Scorpion plays like a campy radio play he might have listened to as a boy.

It's all fodder for Allen and company to throw fast-paced lines at each other, in the tradition of His Girl Friday or It Happened One Night.

Though Allen's finished product falls short of the masterpieces of the screwball era, Jade Scorpion still offers more than enough magic to hold you under its spell.