Arthur Penn’s Mickey One is one of those films that is, perhaps, better to read about than to actually see.
Intended as among the first American Nouvelle Vague, a heavy scene, man, about an imprisoned (in his mind?) standup comic who can’t escape the clutches of the mob. Originally intended to star Lenny Bruce, they wound up with a way undercooked Warren Beatty who is definitely out of sorts here. Visually, this film is a feast. Storywise – flat, but, I don’t know if that is a workable complaint here. A ninety minute high-modern treat with a Stan Getz score and a Jean Tinguely interlude.
