Review of Little Murders (1971) by Chris G — 24 Feb 2014

Little Murders, the movie, was based on the Jules Feiffer play, Little Murders. Both of them flopped and it's easy to see why. It is a story about a nihilist who lives in a New York that is going through a collective nervous breakdown.

It drove its producer and star, Elliot Gould, to a breakdown and cost him two years of making pictures. Jules Feiffer only wrote one more screenplay after this. Alan Arkin only directed one other movie after this.

So, why bother reviewing it? Because it is a perfect movie. Perfect for its time, perfectly succeeding in what it set out to do. There is not one word, shot or nuance that should be changed. It is as dark a comedy as has ever been produced and history will be kind to it.

And Donald Sutherland's 8 minute scene should be used in teaching how to steal a movie. I didn't think it was possible for me to like Elliott Gould any more than I already did, but I was wrong.

It is also eerily prescient about some things. If you like your comedies bleak, go track down this movie. If not, stay away from it at all costs.