So I Married an Axe Murderer

Plot synopsis:
Charlie MacKenzie (Myers) is a beat poet living in San Francisco, after having broken up with yet another woman based on paranoid perception. His friend Tony, a policeman, points out that Charlie simply is afraid of commitment and tries to think of or invent any reason to break up with someone.
Charlie encounters a butcher named Harriet, and the two quickly find common bonds between them. They start to date, and Charlie learns she used to live in Atlantic City, had been involved with a trainer in Russian martial arts, and screams at someone named Ralph in her sleep. After staying at her place one night, Charlie meets Harriet's sister, Rose, who warns Charlie to be careful. As they continue to see each other, Charlie and Harriet fall in love. He arranges a dinner with her to meet his parents, Stuart and May, who both believe in conspiracy theories and get their news from the Weekly World News tabloid. While there, Charlie spots one paper that describes the story about a "Mrs. X", a bride who kills her husbands on their honeymoons using an axe, and matches all the mannerism that Harriet has shown.
Charlie becomes paranoid and asks Tony to investigate Harriet and the Mrs. X story. Tony reveals that the husbands of Mrs. X were all reported missing alongside their wives, assuring that Harriet is unlikely to be Mrs. X. Charlie remains on edge, and after a few more troubled dates, decides to break up with her. Tony later reports that a killer in the Mrs. X story has confessed. Relieved, Charlie apologizes to Harriet by reciting one of his beat poems to her from his rooftop. They make up, and Harriet explains away some of the confusion Charlie had from her history, such as Ralph being the name of a woman she knew.
Some time later, Charlie proposes to Harriet, which she reluctantly accepts after some hesitation and they arrange for a wedding in a secluded mountain hotel. After they depart, Tony learns that the confessed killer is actually a compulsive liar. He sends a photo of Harriet to the known associates of the missing husbands, and all report back that she was their friends' wife. With phone lines to the hotel down, Tony charters a plane. Once he lands, he is able to call Charlie locally and warn him that Harriet is really Mrs. X, but the hotel phone line is knocked out and power is lost.
Charlie is panicked and tries to stay away from Harriet without letting her know what he knows, but the hotel staff force him into the honeymoon suite for their first night together. Charlie finds himself alone and discovers a "Dear Jane" letter, purportedly written by him, explaining his absence to Harriet. Suddenly, Rose appears wielding an ax. Rose tells Charlie he was not supposed to find the letter, and reveals herself as the Mrs. X killer - she feels that Harriet's husbands are taking her sister from her, and so killed them on their honeymoon night and leading Harriet to believe that each husband simply left her. Charlie begins a game of cat-and-mouse to stay away from Rose while waiting for the police to arrive.
Tony leads the police into the hotel but arrests Harriet, still believing her to be the murderer. Having chased Charlie to the hotel roof, Rose swings the axe at Charlie and is thrown off the building, with only Charlie holding her up from falling to her death. Tony comes to catch her fall, where she is arrested and taken away. Charlie and Harriet resume their lives afterward as a happy couple.

Tags: comedy, murder, cult, insanity, psychedelic, romantic, entertaining

Review:
So, I married an Axe murderer is not the sort of Mike Myers comedy that people have become used to over the years.
Myers will, undoubtedly, be most remembered most for his Austin Powers series, but this is a film that certainly should not be forgotten; Myers was never funnier than he is in this movie.The plot centres around Charlie Mackenzie (Myers), a man who can never have a girlfriend without finding a flaw with her which always leads him to end the relationship.
In the face of Myers' more commercially successful movies, such as Wayne's World, Austin Powers and Shrek; So, I Married an Axe Murderer isn't going to win a lot of fans as it's not as outgoing as the other three and a lot of the humour is very wry.
Funny performances from Mike Myers pulling double duty as sarcastic Charlie and his Scottish dad Stuart MacKenzie, Brenda Fricker as Charlie's horny mother who's got the hots for Tony, Anthony LaPaglia as best friend Tony, and Nancy Travis as girlfriend Harriet.
Look for a few surprise cameos from the likes of late great Phil Hartman, Michael Richards, Alan Arkin, Charles Grodin, Steven Wright, and Debi Mazar.
It's absolutely his best one though, with more likeable wit than the 2 Austin Powers pics and better characters and plot than the Waynes World movies.Myers can only really do about 4 voices (Himself, Wayne, Austin and a Scotsman, which he's doing AGAIN in Shrek now) and he gets to show them all off here, which is actually great.
There was even a nudity scene so this has something for everybody.Mike Myers is at his talented best playing both Charlie and his father.
In fact, it's his father's role that steals the show in both the Harriet meets Parents scene with his comments about his younger brother's "Heed" and also at the wedding with his shouting out "Lets get P*seed" at the end of the ceremony.Nancy Travis does a great job of looking slightly suspicious throughout the movie.
I loved the way she explained the story of Mrs X from her favorite paper "News of the World" totally ignoring Charlie's depiction of it as a sensationalist rag.Although there were some dead parts in the movie, they were easy to ignore and more than made up for with the pace of the script.
"So I Married an Axe Murderer" is a delightfully offbeat, inventive comedy I can see again and again, and laugh every time.Mike Myers, in a dual role as the neurotic but romantic Charlie McKenzie and Charlie's cantankerous father, gives the best performance I've seen from him so far (I've yet to see the "Austin Powers" movies but I didn't especially care for "Wayne's World," maybe because I couldn't stand Dana Carvey or his character).
The supporting cast also does excellent work, especially Anthony LaPaglia as Charlie's policeman buddy Tony.What makes this movie truly special isn't the principal story line -- the romance-mystery-suspense -- but the many wonderful bits of inspired lunacy/hilarity along the way.
Among them: every scene involving the hero's cantankerous dad; Harriet's sister Rose persuading Charlie to stay for breakfast; Phil Hartman's cameo as a very intense tour guide at Alcatraz (this scene gets butchered when the movie is edited for TV, even non-premium cable; make sure you see the uncut version!); Charles Grodin as the surly driver of a vehicle commandeered by a cop; an episode involving a guy who works on the obituary page of a newspaper; the side-splitting scenes between Tony and his precinct captain (a very funny Alan Arkin).
In this greatly under-rated film, Mike Myers plays a man scared of commitment, until that is he meets Harriet and they fall in love, but does she have a rather macabre secret?This film flows wonderfully, carrying you along before you realise it, right until the end.Some of the better comedic moments, though, come from the cameos, especially by Steven Wright and Charles Grodin, who is always wonderful, whatever film he is in, although the poetry scenes are quite funny too.For some reason this film was not as successful as other Mike Myers' efforts such as the Wayne's Worlds, and it does appear that audiences prefer Myers in character than as himself, and indeed you will come out liking Myers better as his father than as his main role, but nevertheless a great movie!.
The more I watched, the funnier it got and the best are the small nuances.After following his work and being a fan of his other films I appreciate the humour he's written into this movie even more.If there's any doubt that this is a masterpiece, bring up the scene where he visits his parents in any crowd and watch the quotables start flying.When asked what my favorite movie of all time is (a supremely tough question for a movie buff) this one always pops out first.
Mike Myers gives Waynes World a rest and delivers what I think is a better movie....
It is a truly great movie with Mike playing a duel role, firstly as Charlie MacKenzie a young guy who is scared of commitment to women, then his dad Stuart MacKenzie a very funny Scotsman who could take the lead role in X Files with his ideas on Conspiracy.
There's an undercover cop best friend (Anthony LaPaglia) that wanted to be Starsky or Hutch but instead learns the job really entails filling out a lot of forms and his boss (Alan Arkin) who, if it wasn't for Mike Myer's performance, would have stolen the movie with his portrayal of a Police Chief that can only be described as the antithesis of that character that we've seen so many times in films and TV.About Mike Myers: Intensely likable.
As the lead Charlie McKenzie and as his father Stuart, Myers keeps the film moving with his paranoid yet irresistible charm from Charlie and his Robin Williamsesque quips that flow from his two characters accomplishing the most difficult task for such a performance; namely, entertain without distracting from the story.I've added this film to my "Favorites" list and recommend it highly.
SO I MARRIED AN AXE MURDERER (1993) *** Mike Myers, Nancy Travis, Anthony La Paglia, Amanda Plummer, Brenda Fricker, Alan Arkin, Michael Richards.
I have wanted to see this film for years.I always seemed to miss it.The story of Charlie and his love life are fun.The story is well laidout.The plot keeps you on your toes.The family is alot of fun to watch.Harriet is very well played by this actress.Further,the story is fresh and differant than most black comedies.The city by the bay is a nice setting for the movie.I give it 7 out of ten today..
This is the same guy who brought us some of the greatest characters on SNL, including, but not limited to, "Coffee Talk with Linda Richman", "Bill Swersky's Superfans", Dieter on "Sprockets" and of course Wayne Campbell on "Wayne's World"."Axe Murderer" is really the funniest movie that Mike Myers has starred in.
When I first heard this casting, I found it kind of weird, but she did a great job.Add to that a great supporting cast that includes Alan Arkin as the Police Chief (classic role for him), Anthony LaPaglia as Tony "Huggy Bear" Giardino(watch the movie and you'll know what I'm talking about), Phil Hartman as "Vicki", Charles Grodin, Steven Wright and Debi Mazar as Tony's electrocuted date.I admit, I have never been a fan of the "Austin Powers" movies, so I'm sure a lot of you Austin fans will not find "Axe Murderer" that funny, due to it's lack of bodily functions, but I'm telling you, this is the funniest that Mike Myers has been in a movie..
After numerous breakups over what his friends and family consider shallow and a way to avoid commitment, the hard-to-please aspiring poet Mike Myers finally finds himself the perfect match in Nancy Travis...
Very Mike Myers humor with lots of buddy comedians in supporting roles or cameos, all taking place in a so-very-'90s San Francisco—this film only works because all the pieces fall into the right place.
Whether it comes from Charlie's Scottish father, Anthony Lapaglia's 'Serpico' wannabe attitude or Phil Hartman's twisted alcatraz tour guide speach, the jokes come from all directions and serve to make the film incredibly rewatchable..
However Charlie notices little things that begin to suggest that Harriet may be Mrs X, a serial killer who marries and then murders her husbands.Between striking gold with Wayne's World and then Austin Powers, Myers struck out with this comedy which is never as funny as his better creations but is still enjoyable.
Wright, Hartman, Mazar, Grodin, and Richards all do good to keep the thing feel lively.Overall this is not Myers at his best and some of it just isn't very funny.
I think the movie's title gives it away, but will she really turn out to be a killer?Mike Myers does a fine job as Charlie and is delightfully over-the-top as his father.
Mike Myers is hilarious in both roles as Charlie and his father Stuart.
Mike Myers has played memorable characters over the years (Wayne from Wayne's World, Austin Powers, Dr. Evil, Shrek, etc).
Myers plays his own father in this film (playing more that 1 character in a movie which he has done throughout the Austin Powers series).
His father has a strikingly familiar Scottish accent similar to the one used for Fat Bastard.I highly recommend this film because of it's humor and it should be considered a Mike Myers classic..
A bit of a bumpy ride, for sure, but the scenes with Charlie's parents (played by Mike Myers and Brenda Fricker) are absolutely hilarious!
Myers should make a movie featuring these eccentric characters.Some of the supporting players are in brilliant, all too brief scenes: Alan Arkin as Anthony LaPaglia's sympathetic police chief, and the late, great Phil Hartman as an Alcatraz prison guide.
This is an uneven film, but Charlie's parents, the beat poetry, some truly funny lines and those great cameo appearances make this well worth watching..
Actually, I think he carries the film pretty well, but what makes this movie so memorable are the minor/supporting characters and cameos.
Sure, Steven Wright and Michael Richards are funny, but the police chief (Alan Arkin), the commandeered car guy (Charles Grodin), and Stuart (Charlie's dad, played by Mike) crack me up every time I see them on screen.them.
If anyone could be considered the "straight man" in this, it'd have to be Harriet, but it works that way.A great movie all around, and one that I'm trying to memorize the words to, at least the good lines (but there are so many!).
This film features some brilliant comedy set-pieces including Phil Hartman (you may remember him from such films as "Sergeant Bilko") as Warden "Vicki" and Michael Richards.Mike Myers is funny in dual roles and Anthoney LaPaglia is great(especially when complaining to Alan Arkin about his job as Police Detective.Incidently the film was allegedly developed for Chevy Chase & Sharon Stone..
This movie is incredibly funny, thanks to the talents of Mike Myers, Anthony Lapalgia, Nancy Tucker, and others.
I don't know why this movie didn't get the popularity Mike Myers' other films did - it was certainly every bit as funny as Austin Powers, in a less obvious way.
In Wayne's World it was suburban music fans, in Austin Powers it was 60s spy movies and political correctness; with 'So I married...' It's a miss-mash of beat poetry and the coffee house scene, cop stereo-types, parents, scottish humour, relationships - each area works - but the link is difficult to see.All in all - a very funny movie, with the flaw of a contrived ending, similar to most comedic pictures..
Mike Myers' Stuart McKenzie is the funniest character, as the Scottish, Colonel Sanders hating, kid mocking, and overall funny dad.
As with all the Mike Myers movies I've reviewed, I recommend this movie for someone who likes funny films.
The script begins to live up to the production values and the performances by Mike Myers (as Charlie), Nancy Travis (his love interest)and Anthony LaPaglia (Tony, his detective friend) compliment many situational devices beautifully (with help from cameos by Phil Hartman, Steven Wright and Charles Grodin).
Extremely slight comedy has Mike Myers playing marriage-shy young man who finally makes it to the altar with a pretty female butcher, only to come to suspect she may be a notorious axe murderer (shouldn't that be 'murderess'?).
The ending ROCKED, but it's not enough to make a whole movie good, unfortunately.Do like Mikes Myers...?
plays in his future films.I love this movie and consider it one of my all-time favorite comedies.
Despite a couple rip-roaringly funny character scenes, with Myers playing his own, cartoonishly Scottish, father, some funny bits about a butcher's shop, and very good work by Anthony LaPaglia in a supporting role, the film more or less flops.
Travis was a B-list supporting female actress in the late 80's and early 90's, and she really has the chance to shine here in a sweet but unpredictable performance.Some of the more comedic parts of the film come from Myers also doubling as his own dad, a straight-talking Scot (naturally), some crazy set pieces, and the inspired interplay between the characters, which allows the film to flow more comfortably.The soundtrack too is another great strength of the film.
Containing such cool tracks like Two Princes by the Spin Doctors, and the predominantly featured There She Goes by The La's, it echoes the groovy hip vibe of the 90's to great effect and works in marvellously with the stunning panning shots of San Francisco (if you didn't want to go there before you may feel like it after watching this), and the growing romance between Myers and Travis.As for the rest of the cast, all the supporting turns shine, especially a lively performance from Brenda Fricker as Myers' mum, and from Anthony LaPaglia in a humorous role as his friend.
There's also some great welcome cameos from the likes of Alan Arkin, Phil Hartman, and Charles Grodin, among others, who mine the comic potential superbly.Overall though, So I Married An Axe Murderer works well as a love story as well as a wild offbeat comedy, and it's that warmth mixed in with some delightful moments of craziness and subtle humour which makes this underrated gem a must-see..
With all due respect to the Wayne's World and Austin Powers series, this is by far Mike Myers best movie.I have never understood why this movie didn't make it big at the box office.
Mike Myers stars in "So I Married an Axe Murderer," a 1993 comedy also starring Nancy Travis, Anthony LaPaglia, Amanda Plummer, Brenda Fricker, Charles Grodin...and Mike Myers as his own father.
When he meets his dream girl, Harriet Michaels, who is behind the counter of a butcher shop, he realizes she may be The One. Then he becomes suspicious that she's an unidentified black widow who's been killing her husbands on their honeymoons all over the country.The best part about this film is the truly excellent work by Mike Myers, who is more than just a comedian - he's a wonderful actor, capable of creating a full character - in fact, more than one - and being completely believable in dramatic moments as well as funny ones.
Comedy Gem. So I Married an Axe Murderer is a fantastic little movie, hilarious in places and solidly funny throughout.
Mike Myers plays his perfect Saturday Night Live role (except for Wayne's World, of course), but the movie doesn't have that many laughs.
This film goes on a bit too long, but watching Mike Myers play two different characters is very funny.
The two of them become a couple alongside the support of Charlie's eccentric but friendly parents played by Brenda Fricker and Myers again as his loudmouthed father and his best friend, an excellent Anthony LaPaglia.
It's not an awful comedy, but they had some decent material that just turned average.Perhaps the best bit in the whole film is the mandatory Mike Myers-dress-up-as-two-people moment, where Myers plays Charlie's Scottish father, Stuart.
Charles Grodin is funny as the angry guy in the car, very funny.Anyways, it's a great movie filled with laughs, suspense and of course Mike Myers.
A very funny movie, and one of Mike Myers' best works.
It's impossible not to laugh along.As with Mike Myers' Austin Powers movies, it's not just what's happening centre stage/scene - watch for things in the periphery, such as the subtle expressions and body language in both the main and supporting cast members (Charlie's mum - "Oh, yes!", customers in the Meat Shop, Tony's boss, etc.), scenery, signs, etc.
I just about know every line off by heart now thanks to DVD.This movie doesn't rely on bodily function jokes (ie Austin Powers ), but on a very clever script.The casting was great and I  loved and laughed at Alan Arkin, Michael Richards, Phil Hartman and Charles Grodin  in their small, but effective roles.
This movie brings it all back with its witty humour and an original plot.Before Mike Myers began completely embarrassing himself with the third instalment of Austin Powers, he played many a great character.
This movie is one of my favorites of all time.From the awesome acting by Mike Myers and Anthony LaPaglia to the incredibly believable dialogue formed by the writers and directors of the film, this great comedy/romance flick is sure to make even the most rigid humanoid chuckle once or twice.In fact.....
An early Mike Myers film, but I think better than the far more successful Austin Powers series, though not as good as Waynes World.Cameos are used to great effect in this scene.
This is the best of Mike Myers's films to date.
A great Mike Myers movie.
Mike Myers, as his own father Stuart, is quite possibly one of the funniest characters I have every seen, and it is worth it to watch if only for those moments.