Comedy to Die For

So I Married An Axe Murderer (Thomas Schlamme, 1993)
4 Stars

Every comedian seems to have a decade that they are remembered for; a time when their face was everywhere, when they were loved and adored for their antics, most often before they became an unfunny shell of their former self. For Chaplin it was the twenties, the Marx Brothers the forties. For the likes of Steve Martin, Eddie Murphy and the late John Candy, the eighties displayed their individual talents. And then came the nineties, when a young Scottish-Canadian clown by the name of Mike Myers took a place in our hearts. Long before the abysmal excuses for comedy that were The Love Guru and Goldmember, Myers won the world over with such classics as Wayne’s World and Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery. But today, we shall be looking at a rather forgotten little gem, the serial killer comedy So I Married An Axe Murderer.

I first discovered this movie at secondary school, and thereafter both amused and annoyed my compadres with a perpetual stream of quotations and imitations. As such, ten years on, I decided to revisit the film this weekend and see if it still holds up to a more mature viewing.

So I Married An Axe Murderer tells the tale of intimacy fearing beat poet Charlie (Myers) as he finally finds love, only to discover that his betrothed, the delightful Harriet (Nancy Travis – Three Men and a Baby, Becker) is renowned black widow “Mrs. X”. The story in itself isn’t exactly Shakespeare, but what makes it so very lovable is the sheer volume of bizarre yet believable characters. In a bold move for his career, Myers sheds the usual caricature hero (although he does give a sterling performance as his own Scottish father), and gives us a real Average Joe who we very much sympathise with. The world in which he immerses us in however is filled with some of the strangest people one could ever meet; Magnum wannabe best friend Tony (Anthony LaPaglia – Empire Records, Frasier ), a coddling yet still sexually driven mother, terrifying Alcatraz warden Vickie, a dozy pilot, and Charlie’s afro-haired brother William (or “Heed” as his father calls him). Yet as bizarre and hilarious as these characters may be, they are still utterly believable, so when coupled with a quick-witted and fast-paced script, we have a recipe for brilliance.

Incorporating two of my favourite scenes in cinema history (a two minute single shot of the life of a coffee cup set to The Boo Radleys’ rendition of the Las’ classic “There She Goes”, and a rooftop serenade complete with full jazz band – I challenge any man to find a more romantic redemption!), So I Married An Axe Murderer is a comedy classic that has been very much lost in the shadow of Myers’ more quotable works, but still packs a murderous punch nearly twenty years on. So be sure to give it a look, and maybe think twice before falling for a girl with a collection of exotic weapons and the ability to sing “Only You” in four different languages…