Kritiken

There are so many scene-stealing actors in this picture, and so many scenes worth stealing, that "Bullets Over Broadway" becomes the comedy equivalent of a run on a bank... All the characters are riffs on familiar types — filmic and theatrical — except for Cheech (Chazz Palmintieri), the henchman assigned to keep an eye on Olive. He's that rarity of rarities, a character you haven't seen before — a playwright in the body of a gangster.

...Much more than Husbands and Wives, this film feels like a direct response to the Soon-Yi scandal -- but the fact that it's couched within such a broad, goofy comedy makes it go down fairly easy, especially since the premise itself doesn't exactly qualify as subtle (yet still works like gangbusters). Cusack makes for one of the more successful pseudo-Woodys, and has a fabulous rapport with Palminteri...

[Bullets Over Broadway is] one of [Allen's] funniest and most accomplished films of the past two decades—cleverly written, beautifully designed, and well-shot, to be sure, but a movie that truly soars on the quality of its extraordinary performances... [It] may have asked the same ethical questions that were dogging Allen himself during those tumultuous years... but like his best work, it leaves the tough questions unanswered—it's a cry of moral confusion masquerading as a titter of delight.

Like Husbands and Wives and Manhattan Murder Mystery, though to somewhat less effect, this shows a certain improvement in Allen's work; the material is certainly lively, though the plot becomes a bit mechanical toward the end. The performances, however, are very enjoyable, with first honors going to Chazz Palminteri and Dianne Wiest.