Il mistero del cadavere scomparso

The b&w flick's a "can't miss" for fans of 40's noir and crime. It's like a big re-union for the gritty stars of that memorable time, from Bogart to Stanwyck to Ladd, the list goes on. (Be sure to check either the epilogue or IMDB for a full list, as they make their appearances in unpredictable fashion). Martin's quite humorous as the story-connecting detective trying to solve the narrative's bloated mystery, along with the delectable Ward as his suspicious foil. But who really cares about the main story since it's just a long thread to let the classic celebrities tie into. Inserting those many old film excerpts into the new scenes with Martin must have been an editor's and set designers' field day or nightmare. Still and all, they do blend well. Anyhow, it's a heckuva chance to see those greats of old together in one flick, even if only briefly. So here's my big salute to the great, underrated Fred MacMurray. Now if his Walter Neff can just resist Stanwyck's rolling up her hosiery, he might re-earn bossman Keyes' respect. Good luck, Mr. Double Indemnity.

DMDWP is a black and white film noir comedy that uses footage from real film noirs from the 40s and 50s and inter cuts them with the plot to make it appears that Steve Martin is really talking to/acting with the likes of Humphrey Bogart, Bette Davis, James Cagney etc. The effect is almost seamless but for a movie made in 1982 it's quite impressive.

Martin plays the wonderfully named Rigby Reardon, a typical, gritty private eye who narrates the story with sarcastic observation and gets involved in the usual femme fatal plot and a conspiracy surround the death of a cheese maker. Yes, it's nonsense, and towards the end it becomes a bit hard to follow and the silliness gets out of control. But it's all played straight and for most of the film you could believe you were actually watching a classic film noir.

Steve Martin should have done more of these movies. Rigby Reardon was a great character and could have lasted for a few more movies. The humor is frequently hilarious and he certainly retains a lot of the integrity he has lost in recent years since he went the way of Eddie Murphy and sold himself out to family audiences. Either way, I say you should give this movie a go if you're a fan of his older work.

The DVD is sadly in non-anamorphic 1.85:1 widescreen with Dolby 2.0 surround. It still looks quite good for a black and white film and the sound has that limited sound space effect to it to make it fit in with the older footage. A Dolby 5.1 remix would have been totally unnecessary. Some boring extras (trailer, cast bios) are included.

Dead Men.. maintains a delicate equilibrum between a re-enactment and an original script. On one hand, Carl Reiner offers a comedy which compilates several film noir classics (the strongest influence seems to come from the Maltese Falcon)and makes fun of their profound grim atmosphere, but without ever loosing its self-esteem. On the other hand, it combines at least a dozen scenes from those movies with stand-ins in order to establish a believable (physical) interaction between actors who differ 40 years in age.

Steve Martin would play the same kind of unwilling comedian in Plains, Trains & Automoblies. His voice-over definitely was an inspiration to Leslie Nielsen in the Naked Gun series. Along with Dragnet (1987), both owe, of course, a lot to the police serials from the 50's.

This movie is mostly suited for classic film buffs such as me

I was really interested in seeing this movie, because I like film noir and I like Steve Martin. And you know what, this is a very clever and affectionate homage. My complaints are that the story is disappointingly convoluted so it is sometimes very hard to keep up with what is going on and one or two of the jokes don't quite work. But overall it is very funny, and seems to have held up well over the years. The script is clever and sophisticated enough, and Carl Reiner directs with precision and acts his part of Field Marshall VonKluck very well. The cinematography is smooth and crisp, and I thought the performances were excellent. Steve Martin is great here, not only do I think Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid is underrated but this is one of his roles where Martin deserves a lot more credit. Rachel Ward looks lovely as Juliet Forrest and is terrific acting wise. The real joy is watching the archive footage of all those wonderful actors and actresses in those timeless masterpieces. Spotting stars such as Humphrey Bogart, Cary Grant, Bette Davis, Ray Milland, Vincent Price and Ingrid Bergman all but to name a few was a delight in itself. Also the finale while silly is great fun. All in all, Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid is well worth the look. 8/10 Bethany Cox

Film noir parody with a detective (Steve Martin) uncovering a sinister plot. Characters from real noirs appear as scenes from various films are intercut.

This film seems to be best enjoyed by those who love film noir. I do not necessarily think that is a prerequisite, but if you are familiar with the older actors and the films that are mixed in here, you will probably get a little more out of it. (And, heck, if you have not seen these, I strongly recommend you rectify that.)

I have a love-hate relationship with Steve Martin. Some of his stuff I think is genius and others I am left unfulfilled. Many people think "The Jerk" is among the greatest comedies of all time. I liked it, but have no desire to push it on others. This one I liked much more.