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So I Married an Axe Murderer poster

So I Married an Axe Murderer

year 1993decade 90sdirector Thomas Schlamme

93 minutes

Cast

Selected cast credits · Film reference

Mike Myers Charlie and Stuart MacKenzie
Nancy Travis Harriet Michaels
Anthony LaPaglia Tony Giardino
Amanda Plummer Rose Michaels
Brenda Fricker May MacKenzie
Michael Richards Insensitive Man
Matt Doherty William MacKenzie
Charles Grodin Commandeered Driver
Phil Hartman John Vickie Johnson
Debi Mazar Susan
Alan Arkin Captain
Greg Germann Concierge
Kelvin Han Yee Master Cho
Patrick Bristow Cafe Roads Performer
Luenell Police Records Officer
Steve Dunleavy Himself
Mike Hagerty Obituary Writer
Paul Sanchez Serenade Musician
Glen Vernon Uncle Angus
Robert Nichols Scottish Minister
Sheila Kelley Sherry
Marla Sokoloff Alcatraz Visitor
Bob Sarlatte Poet’s Corner M.C.

So I Married an Axe Murderer | The Rewatchables

host Bill Simmonshost Chris Ryanhost Sean Fennesseyproducer Craig Horlbeck
Explore episodeClose episode

What’s Aged the Best?

Direction; friendship; San Francisco; coffeehouses; tabloids; Scottish wall; supporting cast; romantic comedy

In the discussion (15)
Approx. transcript time · 00:19:00Read transcript
  • The polished direction, San Francisco atmosphere, pacing and music distinguish the film from loosely assembled sketch comedies.
  • The first half-hour and short comic appearances make repeated viewing rewarding, although the final twenty minutes are considered weaker.
  • Charlie and Tony’s friendship feels genuine, including their excitement at getting Vicky as their guide.
  • Early-1990s San Francisco, coffeehouse culture, sensational tabloids and sensitive beat poets are praised.
  • Funny actors playing multiple roles remain appealing; Myers, Murphy, Sellers and Carrey are cited, with Sandler and Gillis considered.
  • The Scottish Wall of Fame contains Harry Lauder, Sheena Easton, Alexander Graham Bell, Sean Connery and Jackie Stewart; Ewan McGregor and Groundskeeper Willie are suggested additions. Later, two other photographs are said to be unidentifiable.
  • The tea name and briefly visible Queen Elizabeth dartboard are appreciated.
  • Beer-drinking fathers in recliners and the opening cappuccino tracking shot are praised.
  • Neurotic 1990s men navigating relationships, twisted phrases and the double-date check argument remain amusing.
  • The father’s embarrassing Niagara Falls story and bathroom taunt are praised.
  • The evil delivery is considered a possible seed of Dr. Evil, and the geographic back-scratching exchange is liked.
  • The trail-of-dead-husbands premise and Harriet’s cluttered apartment are appreciated.
  • The supporting cast is considered unusually overqualified, including Sheila Kelley appearing in photographs.
  • Tony’s Serpico-versus-Fish comparison is enjoyed.
  • The brief period of early-1990s Myers romantic comedies is cherished.

What’s Aged the Worst?

Hello bit; butchery; dated references; effects; limited Stuart; soundtrack; Plummer association

In the discussion (10)
Approx. transcript time · 00:19:32Read transcript
  • The repeated exaggerated hello bit is considered unnatural and unsuccessful.
  • Poor butchery and health-code violations undermine the otherwise funny montage.
  • The Fish from Barney Miller reference may be lost on younger viewers.
  • The Pentaverate’s later adaptation, green-screen effects and beginning of Myers’s difficult reputation are criticized.
  • The coffee mug is barely rinsed in dirty water and wiped with a dirty rag; restaurant workers defend the depiction as accurate.
  • Later Stuart scenes do not match the first appearance, prompting a wish for a Stuart television series.
  • Split-screen limitations separate Myers’s reactions from the other actors trying not to laugh.
  • Older references such as Huggy Bear may be less accessible.
  • The soundtrack is considered less exceptional than the era allowed, with There She Goes repeated four times; Soul Asylum’s song is liked.
  • Plummer’s later Pulp Fiction performance now overshadows her yelling here.

Most Rewatchable Scene

First MacKenzie-family scene

In the discussion (15)
Approx. transcript time · 00:25:56Read transcript
  • The opening follows a coffee mug through the coffeehouse and captures a 1990s setting.
  • The large-cappuccino joke, soup-smelling girlfriend and opening Woman poem are enthusiastically praised.
  • The first visit to the parents includes the Scottish wall, Bay City Rollers and William’s head jokes, with LaPaglia visibly struggling not to laugh.
  • The Pentaverate conspiracy and Colonel Sanders attack are praised; the later Netflix adaptation is considered unnecessary.
  • The scene keeps adding jokes, including Tony kissing the mother and William crying on his huge pillow.
  • The planetoid and weather-system head jokes are praised even as written dialogue.
  • The butcher-shop flirting montage is nominated.
  • Hartman’s Alcatraz guide Vicky, his disturbing prison story and his glare at Charlie are praised as exceptionally funny.
  • Michael Richards’s smoking, explosive cameo is nominated.
  • Arkin’s supportive captain learning to act like a tough television boss is praised, especially the later confession scene.
  • The reconciliation poem and discovery of the supposed murderer are liked, though the first hour supplies the best scenes.
  • The first Stuart/MacKenzie-family scene receives agreement from all three; its greater length breaks the comparison with Hartman’s scene.
  • Grodin objecting to dashboard drumming receives a special mention.
  • Wright’s premature-birth dream line is recalled.
  • The late first-time viewer chooses beat poetry as a personal favorite.

Is There a Better Title for This Movie?

Original title; Harriet, Sweet Harriet; My Killer Wife

In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 01:04:54Read transcript
  • The title’s missing comma and ellipsis are criticized, and AX versus AXE spelling is debated.
  • Harriet, Sweet Harriet, My Killer Wife and variations about a murdering wife are floated without a settled replacement.

The Stephen A. Smith Hottest Take Award

Weak chemistry; underwritten Charlie; Travis’s terrible screen partners

In the discussion (3)
Approx. transcript time · 01:10:10Read transcript
  • Charlie and Harriet’s chemistry is challenged because their happy scenes are montages rather than revealing conversations.
  • Charlie is condemned as an underdeveloped character with no evident employment despite a streaming description calling him a bookstore owner.
  • Travis’s characters are said to choose unusually poor partners across Internal Affairs, this film, The Vanishing, Becker, the Tim Allen show and Greedy.

Apex Mountain

Nancy Travis; Scotland; early-1990s San Francisco; haggis (probable); Weekly World News; beat poetry

In the discussion (11)
Approx. transcript time · 01:21:49Read transcript
  • Myers is rejected as being at his peak here.
  • Travis is accepted for this film alongside The Vanishing, before her television career.
  • Scotland is accepted for a 1990s run including Teenage Fanclub, the Euros, this film, Braveheart and Trainspotting.
  • Pre-Silicon Valley San Francisco is accepted.
  • Charlie’s maroon Volkswagen Karmann Ghia is admired, with its year and possible Kill Bill connection unresolved.
  • Haggis receives a probable yes; a participant says this is where they learned about it.
  • Weekly World News is accepted for its use in the plot.
  • LaPaglia’s television show is preferred as his peak.
  • McEwan’s Export beer is raised, with uncertainty about whether it is real.
  • Scottish weddings are left uncertain; McEwan’s is corrected to a real beer.
  • Beat poetry in movies is accepted.

Is This Movie Better With…?

Buscemi; Scottish Wayne Jenkins; Hall; Trejo; Jackson; Walsh

In the discussion (3)
Approx. transcript time · 01:33:02Read transcript
  • Buscemi is proposed as Tony or the hotel clerk.
  • A Scottish Wayne Jenkins impression becomes an extended joke.
  • Hall as the captain, Trejo, Jackson and Walsh are considered plausible additions.

Just One Oscar

Mike Myers as Stuart

In the discussion (1)
Approx. transcript time · 01:34:44Read transcript
  • Myers is chosen, especially as supporting actor for Stuart; Hartman’s brief appearance and dual-role eligibility are questioned.

Who Won the Movie?

In the discussion (1)
Approx. transcript time · 01:39:44Read transcript
  • Myers is ultimately selected despite concern that the flop ended this type of role; the producer who married Travis and San Francisco are playful alternatives.
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