Clevercell Very disappointing...

Nonureva Really Surprised!

Claysaba Excellent, Without a doubt!!

Isbel A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.

gridoon2018 "What's Up, Tiger Lily" is not the film that put Woody Allen on the map - "What's New, Pussycat?" did that, the previous year - but it is the film that showed his wit is not only irreverent, but also unique: nobody had attempted before to do what he does here. And would you believe that he actually manages to tell a reasonably coherent spy story (about an egg salad recipe!) through his dubbed dialogue?! The original film does have fairly slick production values (apart from some shots where the sea looks like a painted backdrop) and two gorgeous, gorgeous Japanese women in its cast (they both starred in the Bond film "You Only Live Twice"!). Woody's version has some laugh-out-loud moments, but it does wear thin in the course of its 80 minutes; I agree with Pauline Kael's comment that it would have been better as a short. However, the film's best jokes ("Beware of the man with....with....with....with....") are so good that they can make you laugh even when you're remembering them later, though in my opinion the single funniest line belongs to Woody himself: "it's a great film, beautiful color, lots of raping and looting and killing!". **1/2 out of 4.

headly66 My friends and I have traded lines from this movie since I first saw it in high school in the 80's. Spartan Dog! Spanish Fly! I still laugh my ass off at this movie today. People may say it's dated but if you love Woody and get all the jokes (which I think most kids today won't) it is hilarious and will always be a classic. Woody is probably kicking himself he let this out of his ownership hands as many people are commenting on edited or re dubbed versions shown on TV. When I heard the great line again in the beginning when Phil Moscowitz looks at the girl when he opens her towel & gives his third Presidential answer as Lincoln (referring to his beard) I couldn't help but laugh had this been written today & he could have answered Bush! Just plain silly stuff that I still cry at including the shower peeking scene, "MOM!?" and "Where am I going to get a long thin coffin?!!" This movie is diffidently meant as background to a group hangout with friends accompanied by some intoxicants.

Bogmeister MASTER PLAN: must get recipe for egg salad. The premise is simple enough: take a standard movie thriller from Japan and remove the original sound track. Then, dub in your own wacky dialog. This ends up as the most unusual parody of the James Bond-type spy action of the sixties, with Japanese actors of the time voicing silly, inane sentences, usually in an overly silly style. One sinister henchman, for example, speaks in the style of a bad Peter Lorre imitation, way over-the-top. The whole thing is hit-or-miss: if you're really into awful Lorre imitations, you'll probably be giggling; if not, you'll just find that aspect, well, kind of stupid & tiring. A lot of the intended humor stems from just listening to some weird, juvenile guttural sounds or snickering seeming to emanate from the actors on screen; of course, that's the illusion: the actors you see had nothing to do with all the strange noises you hear. So, the main question is how clever was Woody Allen and his 'staff' of voice actors in adding on their interpretations of what passes for funny? It was hit-or-miss, about 50/50. There's also the problem of all those insertions of The Lovin' Spoonful singing for no reason except to fill up time. That doesn't do much for the pace of the film.The film begins with a standard action scene from the original Japanese film and it's not that bad, involving a flame thrower and then a 'lady-in-peril' scene, with some exciting fights. It actually looks like the conclusion of the film. We suddenly switch to Woody Allen, seated in a nice office with an interviewer, as he explains his vision of re-authoring a film. Allen's one big scene is pretty amusing and he pops up briefly later, as well as at the conclusion. The movie itself doesn't make much sense and is hard to follow. The hero, some kind of agent, encounters femme fatales and various villains, all in the pursuit of a code describing the ultimate egg salad recipe. The hero gets into some fights, always yelling stuff like "Saracen Pig!' and 'Spartan Dog!' It may sound funnier than it actually is. He's also good at pulling carpets out from under the feet of bad guys, which may have been funny in the original film, as well. Many of the more clever bits involve the dialog of the villains, who put a very strange spin on some of the threats they make, such as a special camera that takes pictures which removes the clothes from the subjects. The ending has some genuine thrills. The main connection to the Bond films, however, is that two of the actresses here also appeared in "You Only Live Twice" a couple of years later. Hero:6 Villains:7 Femme Fatales:6 Henchmen:5 Fights:7 Stunts/Chases:5 Gadgets:3 Auto:4 Locations:7 Pace:6 overall:6

Bucs1960 We have gotten used to Woody Allen films of the present day, most of which are a little more cerebral than WUTL but when this first hit the screens I thought it was hilarious. Nobody had seen anything like it and it struck a chord with those with an appreciation of the absurd. And what could be more absurd that running around looking for the perfect egg salad recipe with surprise musical interludes from the Lovin' Spoonful? It's all pretty ridiculous but somehow it worked at the time and still does......at least for some of us.There are some great quotes from this film that rival those from Monty Python films/TV programs. And I'm a Monty Python fan.I probably could have done without the China Lee strip-tease and frankly the Lovin' Spoonful as well.....but who could not love the zany Phil Moscowitz, Wing Fool,you Fat, who loves Phil in his own way, and Sheppard Wong who does not have the body of a killer. And if the movie appears dated, it's only because we have Airplane, and the Austin Powers films in more recent times which have refined the approach to this type of craziness.Granted, WUTL is an acquired taste but it may be worth a watch to see the precursor to the MST3K type of humor......and don't forget the mayonnaise!!