Woody Allen was 65 when Small Time Crooks, his 31st film as writer and director, was released.

In some ways, this movie feels like a throwback to the zaniness of Take the Money and Run.

It’s about a hapless crook (in this case, a bank robber named Ray) who plots the perfect crime – he rents an empty pizza shop a few doors down from a bank and plots to dig a tunnel to the vault and make off with the money.

As you might expect, the plot doesn’t pan out the way Ray predicts.

It’s a lean cast that makes the most of its talent:

Woody Allen … Ray
Tracey Ullman … Frenchy
Michael Rapaport …Denny
Tony Darrow … Tommy
Sam Josepher … Real Estate Agent
Jon Lovitz … Benny
Elaine May … May
Hugh Grant … David
Elaine Stritch … Chi Chi Potter

Of course, Wood plays Ray playing Woody.

This is my 10th favorite Woody Allen movie.

Woody was 65 when Small Time Crooks was released.