Review of Broadway Danny Rose (1984) by Jason R — 09 Dec 2008

While watching this film again the other night, I was wondering what separated it from any other of Allen's "straight" comedies, and more specifically, what made it so much better--in my prior estimation--than most of his post-"Sweet and Lowdown" work.

And it wasn't until very near the film's conclusion that I found the answer. The jokes are funny, and in most cases funnier than the the jokes in "Small Time Crooks" or "Anything Else," but what's crucially missing from those later films is the perfectly realized touch of sadness that momentarily haunts the last act of this film.

Allen might not have been much of an actor, but when the role calls for a lovable loser, he could seldom do better than cast himself, and the penultimate scene in "Broadway" is a perfect testament to Allen's natural ability to be affecting, at least in this limited sense.

But the film's ending is also a tribute to the hopeful spirit at the heart of good comedy, and an elegant revision of "Manhattan"'s conclusion. Here, Allen still races down a New York street in pursuit of a romantic possibility, but the music isn't swelling Gershwin; Allen uses a sequence shot rather than a montage; and more importantly, we don't hear the exchange that convinces Mia Farrow's Tina to return to Danny's apartment and join him for the world's saddest, sweetest Thanksgiving dinner.