Picking Up the Pieces (2000)

Overrated and overhyped

A lot more amusing than I thought it would be.

This story has more twists and turns than a second-rate soap opera.

One of the most extraordinary films you will see this year. Take that as you want.

Review: What a total waste of time. The storyline is really bad and the acting is even worse. It would have been watchable if it was slightly funny, but the humour was silly and childish. I was surprised that the cast agreed to do the film after reading the script because it must have looked even worse on paper. With actors like Elliot Gould, Kiefer Sunderland and Sharon Stone, who are veterans in the acting world, I'm sure that they will just put this movie down as a bad day at the office. Terrible!Round-Up: It's not very often that Woody Allen stars in a movie that he hasn't written or directed so I thought that this movie must have been good for him to star in it. How wrong was I! I usually find something good to say about the films that I watch, but I'm really struggling with this film. David Schwimmer, who plays a priest whose in love with a prostitute, acts the same as he does in all of his projects and Kiefer Sutherland plays a cop whose trying to find Woody Allen's wife who has been murdered by Allen. When the body parts fall of the back of his truck, a blind woman finds the hand and she miraculously gets her eye sight back. She then carries the hand back to her village and the hand brings more people miracles. After the word spreads around the world, loads of people come to the village to get cured by this amazing hand, but after a while the whole things spirals out of control. Who ever came up with the idea for this film, really does need to think of another career choice. I recommend this movie to people who are into there silly comedies about a hand that can perform miracles. 1/10

This movie could have been made into something good, but it never rose to the occasion. I love seeing Woody Allen playing someone other than the neurotic New Yorker. Here he is in the exact opposite role - an southeastern New Mexican. I get tired of seeing Woody Allen always being Woody Allen. So, this role should have been refreshing. Surrounding himself by a competent cast of actors and comedians, you would have expected something good.The problem with this movie is that it took a good idea and never really went anywhere with it. Tex is a mild mannered butcher, who finally murders his wife after all his affairs. While disposing of her, he accidentally leaves her finger lying on the highway. In the mostly Hispanic town that he lives in, the people start having miracles happen. So, they decide that the finger is the result of these miracles. Fran Drescher is very funny as a nun who is always crying "sin" over everything. However, that's it. You would expect something out of this movie, but you never find it. A big disappointment.

When I saw that movie in the cinema years ago, I thought all the rubbish shots I saw were a mistake of projection. Now that I saw the DVD, I know: Vittorio Storaro had no time to shoot a second angle.Neverever in a movie there have been that much cut-off heads than here. Or has the movie been shot in 4:3 (1:1,33 or 1,66) and then blown up to 1: 1,185?) Poor Vittorio. He should have given the camera credit to Mr. Smithee....The characters are silly but quite funny, and the cast is hilariously over the top. Ask yourself: Why did all these stars agree to join this movie? I don't know...

"Picking Up the Pieces" is one of those nonsense stories that gets morphed into something really neat. In this case, Sheriff Tex Cowley (Woody Allen) tries to bury the body of his wife, but accidentally leaves her hand above the ground. I should identify that her hand has the middle finger sticking out. When a blind woman stumbles upon the hand, she regains her vision, and then the hand starts performing all sorts of miracles.Yes, it's a totally outlandish idea, but they do some really funny stuff with it. I especially liked the scene with "Ortiz". One might say that this movie looks at the interconnectedness of everything. Maybe. But overall, I'd say that it's an excuse to have fun. And it sure is something to see Woody Allen in a small Texas town. Also starring Sharon Stone, Cheech Marin, David Schwimmer, Maria Grazia Cucinotta, and Kiefer Sutherland.