Shadows and fog

The circus comes to town and fog covers a small European town as the locals, gripped by fear, band together to form vigilante groups to rid themselves of a strangler at large. Woody Allen plays a timid and fearful man who has been roped into one of the vigilante groups to find that he spends his time haplessly pitted against each faction within the vigilantes. A comedy of errors, ‘Shadows and Fog’ draws on its A-grade hollywood cast to create almost a disintegration of film epitomised by the bumbling incompetencies of Allen’s character who wanders alongide the main action like a narrator. The more the film follows Allen’s character the further we digress into a world of iconic noir references whilst quietly accompanied by some of Allen’s best gags. Cast includes Mia Farrow, John Malkovich, Donald Pleasence, Lily Tomlin, John Cusack, Jodie Foster, Kathy Bates, Fred Gwynne, Madonna and Woody Allen.