Customer Reviews

Lady in Question [VHS]

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Gene Wilder shines and shines us on in this second Cash Carter franchise flick for the A&E cable network. The beauty of the film's fabric is in the mesh of intricate details interwoven with a fairly simple and straight forward murder plot which pales by design to the real slaughter the Nazi regime is wreaking in 1938 Germany... One of the secondary storylines, which revolves around an anti-Nazi German Jew who "gets her man," is played out with such effective power and style that the impact leaves us stunned... Other stylistic touches add to the realistic portrayal of the period depicted--especially the jargon of the times, where everything was "swell" and a 1930's song and dance number or two was obligatory... In other respects, some of the many rich detailed details, which some reviewers felt hurt the so-called tepid murder mystery aspect, may perhaps be viewed as clever take-offs on the murder mysteries of the 1930s--much like Gene Wilder's "Haunted Honeymoon" film was a great send up of horror flicks. Filmed in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, "The Lady In Question" (1999) has a terrifically talented cast (special kudos to Kate Trotter for her powerful portrayal of the anti-Nazi German Jew), outstanding production values, and a real flavor of and feel for the late 1930s. Gene Wilder seems to allow his "boys" and girls to play out the story on many levels while simply orchastrating the grand scenario of the "bigger picture" as seen from many little perspectives--all wrapped around a simple little murder, which is actually just a small killing when compared to the slaughter of Jews going on at the time in Hitler's Germany... Highly recommend this seemingly charming little murder mystery which has many layers and levels--so watch it twice! And don't be fooled by the apparent over-use of so many Cash Carter (Gene Wilder) reaction shots--his face speaks volumes on the horrors of the times.Lenore Hutton

Do you like Plays in the theatre? Old fashioned mysteries? Did you like radio drama? If so, this one is for you.

Gene Wilder is in a different role. Gene Wilder is not up to his usual slapstick in this one, but shows a stronger, more in-depth and more sensitive character. There are two story-lines going on at the same time, and like in the movie Clue, the viewer is in a race with the actors to solve the crime first.

Very interesting use of pre-WW II music. In the film noire tradition, the subject is deep and dark. It unfolds like a Play, and while there are only 3 or 4 sets to go with the 3 or 4 acts, the cast is masterful in presenting non-stop drama that comes to a very satisfying conclusion.