
An idealistic girl, Patsy Newquist, saves a young apathetic photographer, Alfred Chamberlain, from a gang of hooligans. She falls for him, but he turns out to be a nihilist. They go out anyway. All this happens against the background of random shootings in NYC (at the time the play the movie is based on was written, the city was going broke). Her family accept him, but when she tries to change him and get him to find meaning in life, things go horribly wrong in a cruel twist ... (Full plot summary below)
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An idealistic girl, Patsy Newquist, saves a young apathetic photographer, Alfred Chamberlain, from a gang of hooligans. She falls for him, but he turns out to be a nihilist. They go out anyway. All this happens against the background of random shootings in NYC (at the time the play the movie is based on was written, the city was going broke). Her family accept him, but when she tries to change him and get him to find meaning in life, things go horribly wrong in a cruel twist of fate.
Leave your thoughts about Little Murders.
| Chicago ReaderBen SachsGiven our current culture of random violence, Little Murders feels eerily topical. |
| Ozus' World Movie ReviewsDennis SchwartzThe black comedy was torridly on target and eerily funny... |
| Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)Ken HankeGreat quirky script makes up for rather indifferent filming style. |
| User ReviewJoe FThroughout its first hour, "Little Murders" has the makings of a typical, wrong-side-of-the-tracks, boy-meets-girl rom-com. Then things get a bit headier, as we find the characters asking each other questions no one asks in a typical rom-com. Without giving too much away, as the less you know about this film the better, the film uses New York City as a metaphor for human cruelty. A pandemic of homicides has flooded the city's streets, and the only thing they have in common, is that they're all unsolved. The film handles these "little murders" gently, keeping them in the background, and at times, even seems to present them with a smile. It's not until the end of act two that the film takes one of the darkest, most sudden turns a film can take, and boy does it nail it. |
| User ReviewChris GLittle 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. |
| User ReviewEduardo GUm retrato notorio sobre a vida na cidade grande. Contendo detalhes comicos sobre a rotina,a visao é cheia de ironia e compexidade. Gould esta formidavel como um homem tao conformado que nao apresenta sentimentos e emocoes. Arkin faz otimo trabalho como diretor com cortes e sequencias comicas como os monologos cheios de movimento. Embora pareca demasiadamente caricatural e chocante em alguns pontos,uma vez que conhecemos as instigantes personalidades,nao temos como recuar. A consequencia é eletrizante. |
| User ReviewAj VThis is a brilliant black comedy based on a great off Broadway play. The story is fantastic and comments on city life and the postmodern world in an outrageous way. I love this movie, and I recommend it. |
| User ReviewMichael Nit's still ahead of it's time. it's also one of the best movies i've ever seen. and i'm positive i will never be able to get it out of my head. |
| User Reviewdeep dPitch black comedy. Marcia Rodd, Elliott Gould and Elizabeth Wilson are oh so very good. |
| User ReviewMeaghan PGOOOOOUUUUUULD=GOLD, also sutherland as minister. lookout. |