The Singing Detective (2003)

Director:

Keith Gordon

Writers:

Dennis Potter (screenplay)
Dennis Potter (television series)

Release Date:

14 November 2003 (UK)

Genre:

Comedy | Musical | Mystery

Tagline:

When it comes to murder, seduction and betrayal he wrote the book. Now he's living it!

Plot:

From his hospital bed, a writer suffering from a skin disease hallucinates musical numbers and paranoid plots.

Plot Keywords:

1950s | Book | Murder | Detective | Musical Number

Awards:

1 win & 3 nominations

Cast

Robert Downey Jr.	...	Dan Dark
Robin Wright Penn	...	Nicola / Nina / Blonde
Mel Gibson	...	Dr. Gibbon
Jeremy Northam	...	Mark Binney
Katie Holmes	...	Nurse Mills
Adrien Brody	...	First Hood
Jon Polito	...	Second Hood
Carla Gugino	...	Betty Dark / Hooker
Saul Rubinek	...	Skin Specialist
Alfre Woodard	...	Chief of Staff
Amy Aquino	...	Nurse Nozhki
David Dorfman	...	Young Dan Dark
Eddie Jones	...	Moonglow Bartender
Lily Knight	...	Woman Physiotherapist
Clyde Kusatsu	...	Visiting Japanese Doctor

MPAA:

Rated R for strong sexual content, language and some violence.

Runtime:

109 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Germany:12 | Portugal:M/16 | Finland:K-15 | Spain:18 | Brazil:18 | USA:R (No. 39265) | New Zealand:R16 | Argentina:16 | Australia:MA | Canada:14A | Singapore:M18 (re-rating) | Sweden:15 | UK:15

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Icon Productions

Trivia:

Keith Gordon and Robert Downey Jr. previously worked together in the 1986 movie Back to School (1986). At the time, Keith Gordon was acting not directing.

Goofs:

Continuity: The position of Dark's gun hand when he chases the goons into the street after they try to kill him in the nightclub.

Quotes:

Dan Dark: Are you pretending to be an oddball or are you actually nuts?

Movie Connections:

References The Maltese Falcon (1941)

Soundtrack:

Just Walking In The Rain

Could have been great, but.......

I picked this movie up because I read the story on the back cover and found it interesting and because I like Downey. I was prepared to watch something different (from most movies I watched this year) and in that regard I was not disappointed. The movie was indeed different, the story was interesting, acting was very good (in most cases) the soundtrack was excellent....so why didn't I enjoy it?

When the movie finished I was left disappointed. I couldn't find any real flaws in any aspect of the film (direction was above average, acting was great, music was very good and appropriate) but still I did not feel like I have just watched a great movie. I did not hate it but I didn't like it either. More than a couple of times I was tempted to hit fast forward.

And after a while I realized what was the problem with this film. Every character (except Downey's character - and then only to some extend) is left undeveloped and every relationship in the film is also left undeveloped. Most parts of the story are left unfinished or are presented in so little detail that they become uninteresting or irrelevant. It almost feels as if the original duration of the film was 4 hours and they had to cut bits and pieces to make it shorter.

All in all, I feel this could have been a great movie, but something happened along the way and the result was an average film. Worth watching it once, if only for Downey and an out-of-character Gibson, but that's it.

P.S. Please excuse any spelling or grammar mistakes. I'm not used to writing in English.