The Man Who Knew Too Little (1997)

42% of critics liked it
(31 reviews)
64% of users liked it
(33,421 ratings)

Jon Amiel directed this satire on mistaken-identity thrillers and the spy genre, scripted by Robert Farrar, Tim John, and Oliver Butcher from Farrar's unpublished novel, Watch That Man. In the female lead, Joanne Whalley returned to films after a three-year absence, choosing to do so with director… More Jon Amiel directed this satire on mistaken-identity thrillers and the spy genre, scripted by Robert Farrar, Tim John, and Oliver Butcher from Farrar's unpublished novel, Watch That Man. In the female lead, Joanne Whalley returned to films after a three-year absence, choosing to do so with director Amiel. Farrar's Hitchcockian-style story focuses on naive Blockbuster Video clerk Wallace Ritchie (Bill Murray) who travels from Des Moines, Iowa, to London to celebrate his birthday with his wealthy younger brother, James (Peter Gallagher). When he turns up on the same night that James has plans to attend a high-profile client dinner party (that he hopes will bring him millions from a German investment firm), James needs to keep Wallace away during the evening, so he gives Wallace a ticket to the participatory Theater of Life. The theater game requires Wallace to assume a character and interact with actors portraying people in dramatic situations. At the corner phone booth, the initial call should begin the evening of innocent fun. However, the phone instructions Wallace receives are actually intended for an assassin, part of a scheme to end the current UK regime and revive the Cold War. The real assassin gets the call from the Theater of Life. Blissfully unaware, Wallace walks without fear into a complex web of intrigue involving defense ministers, call girls, and Russian hitmen. For Wallace, all the world's a stage, and he's amazed at the skill of the actors, including beautiful enigmatic Lori (Joanne Whalley) -- while Wallace's pursuers are mystified by their adversary's fearlessness in the face of threats, torture and bullets. Farrar got the idea for this comedy from a chance remark at a party: "The inspiration came from a dinner party, when somebody told me about these strange live theater performances which were all the rage in England in the '80s. The idea was to telephone for instructions if you wanted to take part. My immediate reaction was, 'Wouldn't it be fabulous if somebody got the wrong number, and it all went hopelessly wrong?'" Filming took place in London's East End (Three Mills Studios), at a variety of London locations, and just outside London at the Elstree Film Studios. ~ Bhob Stewart, Rovi

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Rating, Runtime: PG, 1 hr. 34 min.
Directed By: Jon Amiel
Written By: Robert Farrar, Howard Franklin
Genres: Comedy

In Theaters: Nov 14, 1997 Wide
On DVD: Oct 2, 2001
Studio: Warner Home Video

Critic Reviews

Rob Gonsalves, eFilmCritic.com
You have to be a Bill Murray fan, or in an especially generous mood, to find The Man Who Knew Too Little more than mildly amusing.
Dan Fienberg, Zap2it.com
This is the kind of thing Murray and Amiel could do in their sleep. So they do.
Eric D. Snider, EricDSnider.com
After a decade or so of lackluster, what-were-they-thinking? movies, Murray has finally come back to himself
Rob Thomas, Capital Times (Madison, WI)
Murray elevates the material in this amusing spy farce.
Martin Scribbs, Low IQ Canadian
A poor man's Being There, which still makes for a great time.
Michael Dequina, TheMovieReport.com
Much of the film's success can be attributed to Murray, whose timing and goofball charm are as effective as ever.
Shawn Bowers, Kansas City Star
Kind of funny...but not enough to recommend.
Nell Minow, Movie Mom at Yahoo! Movies
Oddball little comedy with some weird twists.

Read all 8 critic reviews

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Featured Audience Ratings

Lucas M

The Man Who Knew Too Little is a one-gag movie that doesn't work for much time. Bill Murray always was a very funny actor and he try very hard to the film get work well, but the script just worse the picture. This Hitchcockian-Style satire, of course it's not the best of… More
The Man Who Knew Too Little is a one-gag movie that doesn't work for much time. Bill Murray always was a very funny actor and he try very hard to the film get work well, but the script just worse the picture. This Hitchcockian-Style satire, of course it's not the best of Murray, but Bill as Wally make The Man Who Knew Little better them nothing. Rotten.
Carlos M

A one-joke comedy that wants to carry the absurdity of its premise throughout the entire plot. At first it is a funny idea but it wears out faster than expected, with not many smart twists to keep the story fresh. At least Bill Murray makes it an amusing experience.
AJ V

Not Murray's best work. I'm not sure if this comedy is supposed to be a parody or satire or a remake or what. It just isn't funny enough. Murray tries hard, but the script fails him.
Melvin W

Wallace: Please don't call me by my real name, it destroys the reality I'm trying to create. "He's on a mission so secret, even he doesn't know about." The Man Who Knew Too Little is likable, but only because of a great premise and of course the one… More
Wallace: Please don't call me by my real name, it destroys the reality I'm trying to create. "He's on a mission so secret, even he doesn't know about." The Man Who Knew Too Little is likable, but only because of a great premise and of course the one and only Bill Murray. The funny premise never really meets its full potential. The one joke plot line does get old after awhile. Everything that is happening is real and Murrays character, "Spencer" thinks it's all acting. Yeah, funny for awhile, but it can't withstand the hour and a half runtime. Bill Murray is good of course. He really saves the movie from being complete crap. It's just sad that Murray isn't used to his complete potential. This spoof on the spy thriller genre doesn't come close to other Murray films like Stripes or Groundhog Day. Even with how mediocre this movie is, it never did reach the point where I hated it. It's full of references to other movies like Dirty Harry and The Shining. You can tell Bill Murray is having fun in his role. So, I'm kind of in between of The Man Who Knew Too Little. I don't like it, I don't hate it. But what I do know, is I like Bill Murray. So, I'm going to lean more towards the liking side.
Anthony L

There are some great lines in this film but I?m glad Bill Murray moved on from these kind of films! It?s not to be mistaken for some kind of homage to the 1930?s films it sounds like. It?s actually a poor British comedy that isn?t very good.
danny d

incredibly clever. more zaney and slapstick than one might expect from such a clever idea, but here it works well and murray and whalley were the perfect combination for this story. one of my favorite comedies ever.
Tim S

While the plot is endlessly thin, this little comedy caught me by surprise.
Lenny M

Haha Bill Murray is funny in it but the movie is really nothing special.
A B

Funniest thing ever! You really will laugh out loud. Bill Murray is awesome in this one.
Curtis L

Been a while, but it was smilable
xGary X

Bill Murray vehicle that is basically one joke drawn out for the entire 90 minutes. It's all pretty much slapstick by numbers, but Murray is the kind of actor who can make good with the thinnest of material. Basically, if anyone else were in it, it'd be shit.
Leigh R

Kinda dumb.
Dann M

Bill Murray is The Man Who Knew Too Little. This is a charming farcical comedy that perfectly fits the talents of Bill Murray: when Wallace Richie takes part in an improv theater performance on the streets of London, he accidentally ends up being mistaken for a spy and soon ends up… More
Bill Murray is The Man Who Knew Too Little. This is a charming farcical comedy that perfectly fits the talents of Bill Murray: when Wallace Richie takes part in an improv theater performance on the streets of London, he accidentally ends up being mistaken for a spy and soon ends up deep inside a covert spy operation. Joanne Whalley, Peter Gallagher, and Alfred Molina provide a great supporting cast that works well with this style of comedy. The writing is fairly good and a lot of the comedy works, but some of the mishaps and misunderstandings are taken too far. But despite a few mishaps (and a piss-poor ending), The Man Who Knew Too Little is a hilarious comedy that's very entertaining.
Dannielle A

I love dramatic irony! A lot like the movie "The Game" only full of belly laughs instead of suspense!
Henrik S

An amusing screwball movie, which could have been a disaster without a proper lead, but Murray pulls it off, as he plays a geekish bloke who is mistaken for a secret agent. Murray stumbles from disaster into the next and the movie relies on slapstick, one liners and Murray's… More
An amusing screwball movie, which could have been a disaster without a proper lead, but Murray pulls it off, as he plays a geekish bloke who is mistaken for a secret agent. Murray stumbles from disaster into the next and the movie relies on slapstick, one liners and Murray's iritiatingly stoic humour. Like many American goof fests, the movie goes over the top towards the end and whatever sublimity made the first two third great, is absent in the last. It is still a very nice movie, a classic screwball formula which falls right into Murray's lap.
Chad R

HAHA this was actually pretty good. I recommend it! Bill Murray thinks he is on a live action TV show as a hardass detective. Well little does he know the real bad guys are after him! Hilarity ensues...
Kyle S

This moie is great, one of the funniest movies I have ever seen, I own it. In my opinion it is Murray's funniest performance to date. (Out of all the films that I have seen of him.) He has no idea what is going on, he thinks he is taking part in an entertainment service, but it… More
This moie is great, one of the funniest movies I have ever seen, I own it. In my opinion it is Murray's funniest performance to date. (Out of all the films that I have seen of him.) He has no idea what is going on, he thinks he is taking part in an entertainment service, but it is really a conspiracy. Very Under-rated gem of a movie.