Review of Busman's Honeymoon (1940) by Diana S — 23 Apr 2006

[b] 8 1/2[/b] is made up of beautiful cinematography and gorgeously constructed shots. The opening sequence is especially famous, and rightly so, but my favorite involved the Cardinal in the bath house. Awesome. This is my second Federico Fellini ("La Dolce Vita") film, the other being Amaracord. I enjoyed this one much more, but I am still not in love. The story follows a director who has no idea what the movie he's making is actually about. But that's not really the focus. While trying to escape the demands of his career, the director, Guido, resorts to idyllic flashbacks and fantasies usually centered around the women in his life. And I guess that's my main problem, not enough story structure. (And Fellini has this weird thing about women) I found myself tiring of the story but still amazed by all the beautiful pictures filling up the screen.

[b]Haunted Honeymoon[/b] was one of my most favorite movies when I was younger, and, upon revisiting it, I found I still loved it. But when I looked it up on imdb, it only has a 4.5 rating. Which makes me sad . Written, directed by and staring Gene Wilder, this film made me laugh out loud several times, and just grin at it's melodrama the rest of it. Wilder costars with wife Gilda Radner (Honeymoon is listed as her last film on imdb) and a cross-dressing Dom DeLuise. Wilder and Radner play mystery theater radio stars who are to be wed at his family's castle. But as the wedding day approaches, Wilder is overcome with bouts of irrational fear. His family secretly plans to cure him by scaring him to death. But a real murderer is also on the prowl. Eccentric family members and melodramatic settings abound. This is just good times.