Sometimes I wish The Man Who Knew Too Little (1997) described me.  Please do not misinterpret that as me saying that I know too much.  Rather, what I mean is that there are moments when I feel my education puts people off.  This is something I wish did not happen.  My preference is to be a humble servant of God simply doing His will.  Then again, the purpose of the main character in today’s film is not to be humble.  Wallace Ritchie (Bill Murray) truly does not know much and you will see why.  The better question is whether any of this makes for good cinema?

Wallace is The Man Who Knew Too Little, including of the movie industry in which he claims to work.  Rather, this completely unassuming Des Moines, Iowa, Blockbuster manager has come to London, England, to visit his brother, James Ritchie (Peter Gallagher).  James is a banker working in the United Kingdom and not expecting Wallace’s arrival.  The reason Wallace has taken the trip is that it is his birthday and he wants some kind of local experience.  It is also inconvenient timing for James as he is about to host a dinner for some clients in order to improve his standing at his financial institution.  Because of Wallace’s evident dimwittedness and the importance of the evening to James, the latter arranges for the former to take part in the Theatre of Life.  This is an experience wherein people pay to be put into a life-or-death scenario with paid actors.  In order to keep Wallace out of the way, James arranges for his brother to take part in this experimental theater, promising they will spend time after it is over.  Meanwhile, there are nefarious schemes going on inside the British government.  One of the higher-ups in British Intelligence, Sir Roger Daggenhurst (Richard Wilson), wants to bring back the Cold War era because of the money that once flowed into his department when they were battling the Russians.  In order to get it, they have decided to blackmail Gilbert Embleton (John Standing), the Minister of Defense.  To do so, Sir Daggenhurst employs a call girl, Lori (Joanne Whalley), to commence an affair with Gilbert, using letters to prove their involvement.  On the same night that Wallace is to take part in the Theatre of Life, Sir Daggenhurst has arranged for a hit man going by the name Spencer (Terry O’Neill) to eliminate Lori and retrieve the letters.  The mix-up comes when the phone booth at which Spencer is to receive his instructions is the same one used by Theatre of Life.  It is Wallace that picks up the phone and gets the address at which Lori can be found.  Thinking this is simply his part, Wallace heads to the location.  As an indication of how he believes everything that happens from this point on is part of the act, two muggers take his wallet, which he allows, telling them to bring it back at the end of the night.  He then proceeds to the correct house, finding Lori to whom he introduces himself as Spencer.  The real Spencer shows up and tries to kill Lori, but she shouts for Wallace’s help and he intervenes with a bravery born of the belief that none of this is real.  Wallace and Lori go to James’ home to “lay low,” but they interrupt his vital presentation and are told to leave. Instead, they return to Lori’s place to get the letters.  By this point, Sir Daggenhurst has realized something is amiss and has alerted his Russian counterpart, Sergei (Nicholas Woodeson).  They agree that they need someone to regain control of the situation, so they enlist the help of Boris “The Butcher” Blavasky (Alfred Molina), who is in Lori’s room upon her and Wallace re-entering the premises.  However, The Butcher waits to strike until the letters are retrieved.  He is thwarted again when other armed men hired by Sir Daggenhurst break in, forcing Lori and Wallace to sneak out a window.  A car chase ensues with Wallace thinking that the police car that ends up following them is another aspect of the show.  When Lori and Wallace are finally stopped by the constabulary, a radio disguised as a cigarette case which Wallace took from Spencer convinces the police officer that Wallace is legitimate.  In conversing with Sir Daggenhurst, Wallace is told he will be given £3 million for the letters and the exchange will take place in a hotel.  Wallace tries to get James to meet there, too, but the exasperated banker claims he is still busy.  James is not given a choice, though, when he receives a call from the police indicating that Wallace is in trouble.  Wallace is, indeed, in trouble because Sir Daggenhurst and Sergei’s goons are waiting for him at the hotel.  They are able to get the letters from Wallace, but continue to mistake him for a skilled secret agent, particularly when he inadvertently manages to get himself and Lori free.  Their escape involves hugging the ledges on the outside of the building, something for which she is better suited.  It is while he is paralyzed with fear in this position that James gets to the hotel and finds Wallace.  Unfortunately for James, he is captured and tortured.  As for Wallace, while hiding from The Butcher, he disguises himself as a Russian dancer for the British-Russian peace summit taking place in the ball room.  As a stopgap, a bomb has been placed in front of the table shared by the two leaders, placed inside a Matryoshka doll.  Oblivious to this detail, Wallace uses it as a prop during his dance.  Sir Daggenhurst and Sergei, who are attending the ceremony, believe Wallace knows what is inside and are scared into handing over the promised money.  The explosive is deactivated by The Butcher, whose dart stops the countdown and cements Wallace’s reputation in the former’s eyes.  Sir Daggenhurst and Sergei take the doll with them as they escape, but end up re-arming it in their helicopter, resulting in their deaths.  Finally, Lori and Wallace get away to a tropical island where two American agents approach him about working for them.

The last scene in The Man Who Knew Too Little underscores that Wallace never understands that what was happening to him was real.  Even when James is trying to tell his brother that none of this is fake, Wallace goes on acting like a comically stereotypical spy.  And for some reason this endears him to Lori, which is why they end up at a resort.  I began this review by talking about how sometimes I wish I could be more like Wallace.  Now that you have read the synopsis, you might think this is an even crazier assertion.  Admittedly, there are some mental gymnastics involved in what I am getting at, but stick with me.  What I specifically have in mind is Matthew 19:14 when Jesus says, “Let the children come to me, and do not prevent them; for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.”  Our Savior calls our attention to children because of the trust they place in their parents and other adults in their family.  They must rely on their elders for their needs, and God calls us into a similar relationship with him.  It is something that I am continually trying to work towards in my relationship with God.  It is not easy, but if the result is the Kingdom of Heaven, whatever you have to do to achieve it is worth it.  The problem with this comparison is that Wallace has far less lofty goals in mind.  What I am reacting more to is his commitment to trusting that what he is involved in is the Theatre of Life and not an espionage nightmare.  Though we should not ignore evidence that contradicts our view as he does, when it comes to God, we have to let go of our wants and place those of God first.  It is far from perfect, but you see some of this in how Wallace interacts with Lori.

Even so, the relationship that develops between Lori and Wallace in The Man Who Knew Too Little is a little strange.  I am also confused as to whether she has realized by the end whether he is not Spencer, but a dimwitted movie rental manager?  Either way, there is not much to recommend this one.