Featured Audience Ratings

• Dan S

  
  A decent but forgettable little comedy from Woody Allen concerning a couple of bumbling criminals who strike gold when their small business goes big. Not as funny as it should be given Allen's often ferocious bite, but never boring or not entertaining. Allen and Tracy Ullman make… More
  A decent but forgettable little comedy from Woody Allen concerning a couple of bumbling criminals who strike gold when their small business goes big. Not as funny as it should be given Allen's often ferocious bite, but never boring or not entertaining. Allen and Tracy Ullman make for a good pair, but often it feels like Woody is doing way to much improv work. But as said, it's not bad, it is mostly well-acted, but overall it just never amounts to anything above decent.

• Tony G

  
  Amusing but uneven bank heist caper with Elaine May as its brightest spot

• Anthony L

  
  Really good film, an overlooked Woody Allen!

• Jennifer X

  
  At the risk of sounding too repetitive (because I mention it in like every Woody review I do), I honestly don't know why people accuse Allen's work of deteriorating over the years. This is just as funny, if not funnier than, his early 70s works. I like it just as much as… More
  At the risk of sounding too repetitive (because I mention it in like every Woody review I do), I honestly don't know why people accuse Allen's work of deteriorating over the years. This is just as funny, if not funnier than, his early 70s works. I like it just as much as Sex, and a little more than Love and Death, and a whole lot more than Bananas. It's definitely a welcome return to form and I'm glad he's been dabbling in cross-genres but sometimes a straight-up comedy is what one needs. Tracy Ullman is a brilliant comedienne and gives depth to her one-dimensional character. S

• Alice S

  
  People are dumb.

• Jeffrey M

  
  As preposterous as it is, Small Time Crooks is an effective, often hilarious, Woody Allen comedy. The script is full of witty dialogue, in classic Allen style, and keeps the film fresh with a number of plot twists. Good acting all around, with an especially good chemistry between… More
  As preposterous as it is, Small Time Crooks is an effective, often hilarious, Woody Allen comedy. The script is full of witty dialogue, in classic Allen style, and keeps the film fresh with a number of plot twists. Good acting all around, with an especially good chemistry between Allen and Tracey Ulman. While it certainly doesn't have the most weighty themes like his dramatic works, it deals with its social commentary and ârags to richesâ? theme pretty effectively. Fast paced and consistently funny, itâ(TM)s definitely a worth seeing for Allen fans. 3.5/5 Stars

• Andrew F

  
  This movie is really dumb. It started out okay, but just went downhill from there. I don't recommend it.

• a b

  
  I saw this in the theater. I don't remember it.

• Doctor S

  
  Starts off with a great premise, takes a befuddling left turn and wanders adrift for half the run time, and then finds its way back into a caper comedy for the conclusion. Woody Allen is Ray, a thief by nature who cannot help but concoct a scheme even when life brings good fortune.… More
  Starts off with a great premise, takes a befuddling left turn and wanders adrift for half the run time, and then finds its way back into a caper comedy for the conclusion. Woody Allen is Ray, a thief by nature who cannot help but concoct a scheme even when life brings good fortune. He eventually wears down his very reluctant wife Frenchy (Tracey Ullman) into his latest plan for a heist: rent a shop two buildings from a bank and tunnel underground to the vault. They need a front for the shop to avoid attracting suspicion, so after much debate they decide that Frenchy can sell her homemade cookies. To everyone's surprise, Frenchy's cookies are a huge success, drawing huge crowds which become a major inconvenience to the people trying to remain undetected while making a lot of noise in the basement! This development is brilliant and would make a memorably uproarious conclusion to a movie - but in <i>Small Time Cooks</i> this is only the setup! Ray & Frenchy strike it rich with her cookie business, and the bulk of the movie deals with their relationship and how money causes them to drift apart as Frenchy wants to experience high society while Ray quickly grows tired of gourmet dining and craves a cheeseburger. Hence, the laughs largely disappear until Ray teams with his wife's cousin, the dimwitted May (Elaine May), in order to steal a famous necklace during a cocktail party. Another hindrance is that Woody is playing dumb here. Ray is not nearly the mastermind he thinks he is, and while his shortcomings get some chuckles, Woody's more effective when making wisecracks about the world around him. In short, a great idea gets suffocated by a less-than-great screenplay decision, resulting in a modest success rather than a return to greatness.

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