Set in the mid-1930's, this excellent diversion avoids the pitfalls of many films portrayed in this period by combining excellent atmosphere and impeccable art and set direction! This reminded me of the beloved 'Thin Man' series, in that a character who is NOT a law enforcement professional (indeed, Wilder's character is a stage director) assists the police in a murder investigation. This was consistently surprising, and had a way of making those old cliches work again! I HOPE this is the beginning of a series of films with this character! Gene Wilder has been under-utilized for far too long!! AND, the always excellent Mike Starr even gets a chance to display his operatic chops! Starr, one of the best character actors working today, was said to have designs on a career in opera before making his niche in Hollywood! He gets a surprising chance to demonstrate how talented he is in that area!!