Watch Mikey and Nicky For Free

The Worst Film Ever

It’s an especially fun movie from a director and cast who are clearly having a good time allowing themselves to let loose.

Great movie. Not sure what people expected but I found it highly entertaining.

Easily the biggest piece of Right wing non sense propaganda I ever saw.

"Mikey and Nicky" directed by Elaine May is all talk, but the talk is wonderful. It's a man's picture in every sense, following the two titular friends around New York for a night; low level hoods for the mob, with Nicky (John Cassavetes) trying to get away from his old profession when he thinks a hit man is coming after him, his childhood friend Mikey (Peter Falk) tries to help him.Both performers are fantastic here, with Nicky's paranoid manic performance playing against Mikey's straight man routine. The film is episodic in nature following one event after the other not to propel the plot, but to give you a feel for both characters and their friendship. Nicky starts out in a state of paranoia in a hotel room, but later gets into trouble for causing a stir at a bar, visits an old fling for a quick lovemaking session (hilarously with Mikey in the room next door eating grapes) and alienating his friend all at the same time. Mikey feels like he's along for the ride, hanging around to get his friend out of trouble, but at the same time enjoying his manic intensity. We see their home lives as well, shedding light into the lives of the women who married mob men.Elain May tried hard to make a Cassavetes style picture, the actor/director was famous for his "improvised" movies that had honest, raw performances. The only difference here is the deft sense of comedy that is unique to May's writing (like the scene where Nicky acts inappropriately at a cemetery). The intentionally low key subject and technical rawness of the camera-work and sparse soundtrack add authenticity to the New York locations, making the film have a "lived in feeling". May's directing style of having numerous takes to find authentic performances from the actors is very much in the Cassavetes tradition, though. Although this movie seems to be more traditionally "enjoyable" than the work of Cassavetes, placing more value on entertainment than his pictures."Mikey and Nicky" is a wonderful 70's picture, a lost gem of sorts, which should be appreciated by more people, and not just fans of the gangster genre or movies from this time period.

Dear Elaine May, your film is one which can be enjoyed for the actors alone. Peter Falk and John Cassavetes literally live their roles as a couple of lowlife gangsters. I could smell the always pleasant odor of whiskey and cigarettes coming off their bodies. Ned Beatty is terrific in a very restrained portrayal of an assassin. I noticed Emmet Walsh in a bit role as a bus driver.You did a great job filming the empty streets, bars and run down hotels of Philadelphia. Frankly, so many filmmakers have exploited the gaudy and pensive beauty of America's cities - especially its underbelly. You've got to respect a country which gives so much space and opportunity to its depressed and crazy to destroy themselves. It is the sort of film which makes you want to drink a lot. Falk and Cassavetes are so stylish holding their drinks.The fight scene in the black bar was so real and intense with all its suppressed violence. It could well have been directed by Scorsese. I read this was shot in the same year that Mean Streets (1973) released. There are so many similarities between the two lead characters of both films and the relationship between them.I was not stunned by your film, Elaine. I found myself losing interest in the second half. Some of the scenes in the houses of the women went on for too long. The dialogs were indecipherable at times. The low key style does not always work. But I bet the likes of Jim Jarmusch were heavily inspired by this film.I was thinking about Pulp Fiction when I saw the scenes with the references to the watch and Mikey's relationship with his father. Certainly, Tarantino ripped that off.Anyway, I am surprised this was made by a woman.Best Regards, Pimpin.(7/10)

People are going crazy for this film here: "one of the best films ever made", "lost classic" "10 star movie", etc, etc. When I finally got hold of a disc, I was wetting myself in anticipation.Friends, it ain't all that. It's watchable. Reasonably entertaining. Often feels like it's gonna go somewhere profound, though never does. Has lovely little moments. But it meanders, is unnecessarily technically inept (it was a major studio picture with people like the great Lucien Ballard involved) and somehow never has the courage of it's convictions. Cassavetes' similar film from the same period, 'The Killing Of a Chinese Bookie', is far better.I don't dislike the film. It has a great 70's texture and plenty of lovable eccentricities, such as the brief musical 'score'( anyway you look at it, it doesn't work, but I sort of enjoyed it for that reason). There's one scene I really liked: Cassavetes walks into an all-night candy store (as a Brit, the concept of that alone excites me) and tries to buy ice-cream. Nothing worth really talking about happens, but it's quirky and entertaining. It's that kind of movie.

This is a great starting point for those interested in the acting career of the great John Cassavetes. Although the film isn't directed by him it still contains a lot of the realistic characters, emotions, and soul-searching dialogue that made him gain such a following. The music's a little off beat, but that doesn't distract from a truly touching and original crime/drama story.