American International/Benedict. Director Woody Allen; Producer Henry G. Saperstein (exec.); Screenplay Woody Allen; Camera Kazuo Yamada; Editor Richard Krown; Music The Lovin' Spoonful
Woody Allen
Tatsuya Mihashi
Mie Hama
Akiko Wakabayashi
Tadao Nakamura
Susumu Korobe
Take a Toho Films (Japan) crime meller [directed by Senkichi Taniguchi], fashioned in the James Bond tradition for the domestic market there, then turn loose Woody Allen and associates to dub and re-edit in camp-comedy vein, and the result is What's Up, Tiger Lily? The production has one premise - deliberately mismatched dialog - which is sustained reasonably well through its brief running time.
Film opens cold with over three minutes of straightforward Japanese meller and chase footage until Allen pops up, explaining the format to follow. The Samurai posturing, to the non-sequitur dialog, is relieved regularly by stop-motion and other effects.
Allen's cohorts, both in writing and dubbing, are Frank Buxton, Len Maxwell, Louise Lasser, Mickey Rose, Julie Bennett and Bryna Wilson.
(Color) Widescreen. Available on VHS, DVD. Extract of a review from 1966. Running time: 79 MIN.
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