Scoop (2006) * * *

Directed by:  Woody Allen

Starring:  Woody Allen, Scarlett Johansson, Hugh Jackman, Charles Dance, Ian McShane

Within the soul of Woody Allen must lie a love for murder mysteries.    He has made several films involving "the perfect murder" and others in which an unlikely suspect is accused of being a murderer.    Scoop is a little of both.     In Scoop, Allen and Johansson are on the trail of a dashing, wealthy son of a British lord who surely doesn't fit the profile of a serial killer.     But recently deceased reporter Joe Strombel (McShane) materializes from the dead during the magic act of Splendini aka Sid Waterman (Allen) and informs him that this man Peter Lyman (Jackman) is indeed the notorious "Tarot Card Killer".    Determined to gain one last byline from beyond the grave, Strombel also materializes to a college student journalist named Sondra Pransky (Johansson) to deliver his scoop.    Sondra meets up with Sid and the two ingratiate themselves with Lyman to find out what's what. 

At first, Sid believes Peter to be innocent while Sondra doubts his innocence.   In a major lapse of journalistic ethics, Sondra sleeps with Peter and falls for him.    He is rich, handsome, cultured, and charming, so this is natural.     Once Sondra falls for Peter, the roles are reversed, with Sid believing in Peter's guilt while Sondra thinks he is innocent.     There are strange goings-on that either link Peter to the crimes or could be easily explained away as coincidence.     In a deft piece of acting by Jackman, who plays Wolverine so often it takes a moment to get used to him out of the costume, he doesn't tip his hand either way and either upholds or confounds expectations, depending on whether you think he's the murderer.

Allen and Johansson make an odd comic couple, but they have an easy chemistry despite their ages.    Johansson previously starred in Allen's Match Point (2005) and would again in 2008's Vicky Cristina Barcelona and fits quite nicely into Allen's world of insecurity, paranoia, and quirky insights into human nature.    She almost adapts Allen's witty verbal style.   Allen has the knack for finding actors who can inhabit his own screen persona almost as well as he does.    Allen has a few gems of his own while working the room at one of Lyman's parties.   ("Did you hear about the Polish carpool?   They meet at work,")

Sid and Sondra are not the greatest sleuths in the world, but stumble upon the truth anyway, which includes a nice payoff stemming from Peter saving Sondra from drowning in a swimming pool.    Scoop isn't deep, but light as a feather.    It isn't among the greatest Allen comedies, but even Allen's mid-range stuff is more intricate and funnier than some other director's best efforts.     We go along with a story that may seem pedestrian on the surface, but is weaved in a way only Allen can tell it.