The Gun in Betty Lou's Handbag (1992)

Simple and well acted, it has tension enough to knot the stomach.

The first must-see film of the year.

The biggest problem with this movie is it’s a little better than you think it might be, which somehow makes it worse. As in, it takes itself a bit too seriously, which makes most of the movie feel kind of dull.

The movie really just wants to entertain people.

In Tettley, Missouri, Amos Lansing (Stanley Tucci) is having an affair with Charleen Barnes (Faye Grant). He's an used car salesman working for her husband Bob Barnes. When he offers to take her to Mexico, she runs off. Someone comes into the motel room and kills him with a shot to the head. The gun is thrown into the river and found by perennial doormat librarian Mrs. Elizabeth Louise 'Betty Lou' Perkins (Penelope Ann Miller). Her husband police detective Alex Perkins (Eric Thal) missed their anniversary dinner and is going to miss her library fundraiser for the murder case. She puts the gun in her handbag and calls Alex but he keeps brushing her off. When Elinor (Julianne Moore) pulls her into the store, Betty Lou has enough of everybody ignoring her and fires the gun in the washroom. With everybody dismissing her, she proclaims her guilt and is arrested. She gains confidence in jail with hooker Reba Bush (Cathy Moriarty) and starts weaving a tall tale about the shooting. She hires rookie lawyer Ann Orkin (Alfre Woodard) who helped her in the grocery line. Things get even more complicated when the FBI shows up claiming Amos is a fake identity and he's actually a mobster witness against ruthless mob boss Billy Beaudeen (William Forsythe). Beaudeen is after Amos' incriminating tape assumed to be now in Betty Lou's possession. She becomes an overnight star.Penelope Ann Miller is fun both as the timid librarian and as the more assertive woman. The movie was almost universally panned. It deserves better. Miller is appealing. It's nothing excessively funny but there are a couple of good laughs. It is an enjoyable farce.

I watched the first 40 minutes of this and then quit. It was supposed to be a comedy, but it's just a story about a stupid woman who wants attention. I didn't laugh once in the 40 minutes, and the movie didn't seem to be going anywhere, and frankly I didn't give a rip about the main character because she is so bloody stupid. **Spoiler Warning** When she finds the gun in the river, she shouldn't have touched it because it might have still had fingerprints or other forensic evidence. But that's right. She decides to confess to a murder she didn't commit, just to get some attention. Do yourself a favor and skip this waste of time. Fortunately, I borrowed this from the public library so I wasn't out any money for admission or rental fees. Oh, and yes, I want the 40 minutes of my life back! 2 out of 10 is generous.

I think of myself as fairly critical when it comes to comedy, because if I am not amused or laughing out loud in the appropriate places, I can't fairly call it funny. And I hate improbable and implausible plots. This movie is engaging throughout and is very funny at the key points. Admittedly, you want to bitch-slap the boyfriend for his stupidity, but let's face it, a lot of young guys are stupid when it comes to their girlfriends. And even that distraction works this for this film: It is, most of all, a great comedy role for its female star, Penelope Ann Miller, and this is the movie that made me a big fan of hers. Miller and William Forsythe are fine actors and have done as well for the viewing public in the 20 years since as they did in this film. And I am grateful to them for giving us a movie I like to watch every couple of years because it's that good.

Betty Lou (Penelope Ann Miller) is a librarian who suffers from the doormat syndrome - people walk all over her. At home, it is not much better, as policeman husband Alex works late. When he fails to come home for their anniversary dinner, Betty Lou snaps out of her complacency. Finding a gun connected to a homicide, she devices a scheme to make herself visible....she'll confess to the murder of a mafioso. It works. She is the most talked about person in town, with one problem. The mafia may be chasing her now.Penelope Ann Miller is one of those actresses you like to look & listen to, no matter what the part. She does a fine job as the long suffering wife and librarian. Eric Thal displays charm as Alex and Julianne Moore as Betty Lou's sister, in a role that obviously came before her leap into stardom, is a welcome addition. The plot is fun at first but things get deadly serious and violent near the ending. Do you like silly romantic plots, even when a little nastiness is thrown in? This movie will satisfy your basic requirements.