Raymond Watched this on MUBI, what a treat. I loved the gritty look of the 70's. Sometimes the camera was out of focus, shaking or just too dark to see anything, but still one of the most beautifully shot movies I've seen in a while - and that's not in a bright colorful and flowery way - but the grittiness, sweatiness, neon lights, smoke, backstreets. Amazing.Actors are amazing also, you just can't stop watching Falk and Cassavetes. The dialog is really spot on. I don't think the mob plot is that important nor even interesting, it's the dynamic and drama between these two guys. I was never really sure of what to think of the characters, but they were portrayed very well.At times the movie is hilarious, some of the scenes are actually very funny in a weird way. Like the "argument" with the bus driver, the scene is just mad. But it's also quite intense at times. The way they treat women is very disturbing and a few scenes I found quite difficult to watch actually. The fact that this movie was written and directed by a woman makes the portrayal of women quite interesting.I'm glad I got a chance to see it. I wonder how this isn't considered more of a classic, as it's quite unique and well crafted - despite the uneven camera work. MUBI keeps delivering interesting movies.

allix-1 Very outdated film with awful, cliché-ridden and mawkish dialog and a very poor construction. In addition, Cassavetes and Falk overact constantly. A pseudo "good movie". It takes no time to discover how catastrophic this intellectual turkey is. The first scene is a total bore, filled with histrionics and hysteric exchanges. The sound is horrible. Camera movements are without imagination as is the building of characters. No poetry, no subtle psychology, no interesting shots. The actors smoke constantly and we see ads for beer beverages. Very cheap, indeed. (one exception : Ned Beattie"s nice and simple way of playing the hit man).

dbdumonteil Although the director is Elaine May,the style is Cassavetes's.One may think it's a lost work of him.Peter Falk's presence accentuates this impression.The female parts were too small for Gena Rowlands,I guess..An offbeat work,it starts as a thriller with gangsters and maffia,but we soon discover we got it all wrong.It's a psychological drama,a meditation on friendship (how could have we thought sweet Falk ,full of bonhomie ,was a Judas?),on death (the long sequence in the graveyard ) and mainly on this lost paradise,childhood:Falk tells Cassavetes that he often speaks of his child memories with his wife;actually,he'll do that afterwards,at the end of the movie.Childhood again,when the broken watch reminds them of a long gone past that comes back to take its toll. Childhood again,when Cassavetes buys candies.Childhood's memories might explain Falk's ambiguous behavior.Remember James Cagney and his mother in "white heat" .There's a Walsh dash thrown in here.

stephen niz A list of best films-you-didn't see from the seventies and eighties could not be complete without a host of John Cassavetes films: THE KILLING OF A CHINESE BOOKIE (1976 - given thumbs down on release, lauded as a classic now), and LOVE STREAMS (1984) are just two overlooked gems. Likewise, the only reason you can make for anybody not seeing MIKEY AND NICKY (Cassavetes starred, but didn't write/direct) is that nobody heard of it.I assume you have one of two reasons for reading this review. Either (a) you love the film and are looking for like-minded opinion; or (b) you stumbled upon it accidentally, in which case I shall put it as simple as possible: you gotta see it.Mikey (John Cassavetes) sits in a shoebox hotel room, a price now on his head, scared stiff. In desperation he calls his gangster childhood pal Nicky (Peter Falk) to help him get out of town.A synopsis doesn't cover the density of the film. Two fragile male egos rebound off each other as the leads recall just why they love and hate each other so much. I cannot think of a better casting move than coupling Cassavetes and Falk. Good friends in real life, and frequent collaborators, they bring an intimacy to the film rarely seen elsewhere.Within the first half-hour it dawns on the audience that engrossing as the story is, the outcome is not the most important aspect. Director Elaine May draws strength from the honesty of the characters. Her handling is at once compassionate and even-handed. The result: the characters are likeable for all their flaws.It resonates more and more every time you watch it, enough for me personally to consider it will be a major influence on anything I might have the chance to film in the future.The passing of Cassavetes was heartbreaking, the casual neglect of his output just as much so. If you don't know much about the man who took Scorsese under his wing, take the time today to investigate. Elaine May went on to make ISHTAR. Sadly, she hasn't directed since.MIKEY AND NICKY is one of the greatest American films ever made.