One morning, out of the blue, there was a fax from Woody Allen saying, "I'm making this film, this is the story, and there's a part for an Englishman who appears to be smooth and charming but who turns out to be a bastard, and I thought you'd be perfect for it." I faxed him back and said, "Thanks very much!"
Small Time Crooks is a comedy caper about a small-time ex-con called Ray, played by Woody, whose manicurist wife Frenchy, played by Tracey Ullman, makes good through her cookie-baking which becomes a profitable empire. I play a (supposedly) smooth, charming, debonair, cultivated art dealer (right with Ullman) living in New York. I am asked by Ray and Frenchy, who are incredibly nouveau riche, to help them become cultured. I agree to help them but it turns out my motives are not exactly pure. It's nice for me to not play goodie two-shoes. In the early part of my career I did play a lot of villains and so it's a relief to get back to that and to play parts that are a bit darker.
Woody is very hands-off in terms of directing. There's no rehearsal, no deep, soul-searching chit-chat about character and motivation and all that. He just casts you and expects you to be able to come up with the goods. He certainly encourages improvisation - and I've always liked that. He'd say, "Don't worry about the words, make them your own."
Tracey is a genius. She's very much like Robin Williams in that they can both flick a switch and this seamless and perfect character comes out, including the lines.
