What's Up, Tiger Lily? (1966)

Directors:

Woody Allen
Senkichi Taniguchi

Writers:

Woody Allen (writer)
Julie Bennett (writer)

Release Date:

2 November 1966 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Comedy | Crime | Thriller

Tagline:

WOODY ALLEN STRIKES BACK!

Plot:

In comic Woody Allen's film debut, he took the Japanese action film "International Secret Police: Key of Keys" and re-dubbed it, changing the plot to make it revolve around a secret egg salad recipe.

Plot Keywords:

Recipe | Government Agent | Peeping Tom | Flamethrower | Eye Chart

Cast

Tatsuya Mihashi	...	Phil Moscowitz (archive footage)
Akiko Wakabayashi	...	Suki Yaki (archive footage)
Mie Hama	...	Teri Yaki (archive footage)
John Sebastian	...	Himself (as The Lovin' Spoonful)
Tadao Nakamaru	...	Shepherd Wong (archive footage)
Susumu Kurobe	...	Wing Fat (archive footage)
Sachio Sakai	...	Hoodlum (archive footage) (as A No Star Cast)
Eisei Amamoto	...	Cobra Man (archive footage)
Tetsu Nakamura	...	Foreign Minister (archive footage) (as A No Star Cast)
Osman Yusuf	...	Gambler (archive footage) (as A No Star Cast)
Woody Allen	...	Himself / Dub Voice / Projectionist
Zal Yanovsky	...	Himself (as The Lovin' Spoonful)
Joe Butler	...	Himself (as The Lovin' Spoonful)
Steve Boone	...	Himself (as The Lovin' Spoonful)
Frank Buxton	...	Dub Voice (voice)

Also Known As:

Che fai, rubi? (Italy) [it]
El número uno (Spain) (TV title) [es]
Jak sie masz, koteczku? (Poland) [pl]
Lily la tigresa (Spain) (video title) [es]
Lily la tigresse (France) [fr]
Operation Tiger Lily (Sweden) [sv]
Què passa, Lliri Tigrat? (Spain: Catalan title) [ca]
Qué pasa, Tiger Lily? (Argentina) [es]
What's Up, Tiger Lily? (West Germany) [de]

Runtime:

80 min | Spain:76 min (DVD edition)

Country:

USA | Japan

Language:

Japanese | English

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Iceland:12 | Spain:13 | Argentina:Atp | France:U | USA:PG | UK:PG

Filming Locations:

Yokohama, Kanagawa, Japan

Company:

Benedict Pictures Corp.

Trivia:

This movie is Kokusai himitsu keisatsu: Kagi no kagi (1965) (aka "Key of Keys") with new dialogue by Woody Allen dubbed in.

Quotes:

Suki Yaki: I'm such a great piece!
Teri Yaki: I wish Phil would get here. It's getting awfully late.
Suki Yaki: [Running to answer a knock at the door] It's Phil, bringing the promise of joy and fulfillment in its most primitive form!
Teri Yaki: I hope he brought the vibrator.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Fantastic Fantasy Fright-o-Rama Show Vol. 1 (1996) (V)

Different version

I have noticed several posts here about how people had seen this movie years ago and thought it was hysterical, but then have recently seen it on TV and wondered why they thought so back then. The answer is that you are probably watching a different version.

Although I am sure someone more in tune with the background of this movie can explain it in more precise and detailed terms, the version being shown on networks like TCM has been re-written, re-dubbed and is a lot less funny than the original. I have a copy from a 1982 video tape and that original version is great. I saw the TCM broadcast version and couldn't believe how badly the jokes were changed and how unfunny this film now is, most likely in the name of political correctness. I can certainly understand anyone being dissatisfied with the film as it is now. However, if you can, find an old video of this classic and watch it the way it was meant to be seen.