Dick Tracy (1990). We Really Wanted A Classy Review. Revel In Our Failure.
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- Опубликовано: 12 сен 2024
- #dicktracy #90smovies
Stam Fine Reviews looks at the 1990 film Dick Tracy, directed by and starring Warren Beatty as the title character.
Based on the comic strip by Chester Gould, Tracy sees the cop in the raincoat square off against Crime Boss Big Boy Caprice (Al Pacino) and try to keep his relationship with Tess Trueheart (Glenne Headly) intact while fending off Breathless Mahoney (Madonna). A child would review a film with a title like this and fill it with willy jokes. Is Stam Fine a child? Apparently so.
I like this movie even more these days when everything is dark and deconstructed. Beatty clearly was a fan of the character, and even Madonna wasn't horrible.
That's because she took on an undemanding role.
The problem with Madonna was she was a character actor , not a leading lady. Nobody dogs on her in league or desperately seeking Susan. Or this. They were a little rough on her on this movie. It was when she tried to be a movie star that she caught flack.
I really like "Dick Tracy" more than "Justice League" and "Avengers: Endgame".
I am one of the few people that saw this movie jn theaters as a kid and loved it. Then I saw it as an adult recently and realized there is so many things that don't make sense....towards the end, Tracy gets in jail , the chief of police orders to transfer him, his pals take him outside of Big boys club, and then he immediately starts barking orders to the chief of police who doesn't react after seen him out of jail lol. Then he goes to the roof for no reason, and knows where Tess is kidnapped , in a room that has 2 windows next to each other on a roof lol
And the list goes on!
Still a great looking film. A labor of love.
Isn't it funny how films change over time! But, of course, it is our perception that changes, either through maturity or just an ability to see through cr*p.
When this movie came out, I could not see it enough. I fell in love with it and all its toy and watch marketing. It still is one of my lifetime favorites.
Cheers !
Edit: I recently learned that Bruce Campbell was considered for the role of Dick Tracy. Too bad he never took on the role, he would have been great.
I have always loved this movie, just like the Shadow. They are both among my favourite comic book movies
This movie had amazing production design, cinematography, music and casting, and was trying to get by on that alone--the story was a mess and just not that interesting. Batman '89 worked with a similar approach, but Batman's story was fundamentally very simple; it didn't have to hook you very hard for you to follow it.
Disney had a huge promotion and merchandising blitz around this movie, with fast-food tie-ins, walk-around characters and a show at the theme parks, and they were even planning to base a ride on it--it would have been a shooting dark ride with cars using the system that was eventually used for the Indiana Jones and Dinosaur rides. That got axed when the movie lost a lot of money. (I'd thought it was one of the many things canceled after Euro Disney flopped, but that was a couple years later.)
Everywhere I turn, it's Tracy, Tracy, Tracy!
This movie is like an Adam West Batman episode if it were made by who the same people who did Sin City. Saw this when it came out and it quickly became about getting to see what Tracy villains would show up and what they would look like. Major comic book and comic strip fan, but it just didn't hold my attention and the night scenes with the unsettling garish color lighting ended up just usually making me want the scene to end so it was back to daytime scenes (where the garish colors were mostly enjoyable). But, I will say that they definitely did try and respect the source material, which I find rarer and rarer. I just wish they had tweaked it here and there somehow. Or, even (especially) if they had brought it closer to the Rocketeer's smei-idealized 30's portrayal. Oh and not sure about other countries, but here in some the "surprise" reveal of the Blank was ruined in advanced by the little schmoes running around with Blank/Madonna action figures showing her face.
I remember when I first watched this. I was part impressed but more disappointed. I started my working life as a commuter, catching a train into the city to work at a dress-making factory (bottom end of Albert street Brisbane) as a storeman. Anyway, I would read the paper on the train (because that's what adults do lol) and the Dick Tracy cartoon was a staple. This movie did the strip zero justice. But I really liked the cartoonish effects.
Dick Tracy unquestionably beats Batman in one category, romance. The Wayne/Vale romance was more stock. Tracy and Trueheart were a far more interesting couple because the latter came off as tough as Tracy yet she couldn't stand the violence of his world. Outside of that, Dick Tracy is ultimately more of a show case of good production design and less of a film. The same could be said about Batman but there is arguably a satirical take on urban decay in that film which makes it far more intelligent than Dick Tracy.
I'll point out two more things I liked better than "Batman". Warren Beatty; although older than Michael Keaton, has more of a 'presence' as a hero. And, Madonna's songs are much better than Prince's.
However, Jack Nicholson's Joker is still very good.
Plus Vicki Vale screaming all the time!
I saw this as a kid and remember being very disappointed that they set up all these cool villains and then just gunned them all down at the end with little effort.
Glenne Headly was so pretty in this film. I had such a crush on her when i first saw this back in 1990. I always liked her more then Madonna. It's so sad Glenne died way to soon.
_Dick Tracy_ is everything a Will Eisner _Spirit_ movie *should* be. A weird, almost revolutionary experiment that doesn't quite work. And Pacino pretty much invents an entirely new style of screen acting.
Frank Miller deluding himself that he could direct on his own after his collaboration with Robert Rodriguez in Sin City, and hiring Samuel Jackson to do Octopus were disastrous decisions concerning The Spirit. The Spirit, Green Hornet and The Lone Ranger, three classic characters destroyed in half a dozen years by Hollywood was a first sign of things to come.
I saw _The Spirit_ opening week or weekend and there were like 6 other people in the theater. I was questioning my decision to be there early on but eventually it's an okay movie. I guess. I've forgotten most of it.
The mid to late 90s was such an awesome time to be a kid and go to the movies
My initial thought was "Imagine making a blockbuster movie for 47 million." Then I realized it was 93 million after inflation. And I was still impressed because it wasn't 200-300 million like most movies now.
I do like the colors, it's a shame it peter's out before the end
Good movie, looks gorgeous in HD which is something I can't say about Batman... really, I have to?... Batman (1989).
Wow, the dislike for this movie in the comments is crazy. I loved this movie, saw it twice, and bought the video. Yes, it does have a run of the mill plot at times. That is forgivable considering how well made it is otherwise as an artistic production. It really feels like a live action comic book. Unforgettable.
That’s one hell of a car/gun battle, great direction and editing especially
As a kid, I felt it came out in theaters at the best time: after "Back to the Future" Trilogy & "Who Framed Roger Rabbit," but before
"Batman: the Animated Series" & "X-Men."
(Fun Fact: _Dick Tracy_ was filmed in 1988.)
The more you learn about this film the more great this film is .
I love this movie. It shows a depth of knowledge of and love for the source material, while also playing with a bunch of film noir tropes.
Stam Fine in hard-boiled four-color action. 💥
It feels like a very fun movie but with the fun surgically removed.
I was a big Danny Elfman fan and was disappointed not being able to buy the soundtrack to this, only the Madonna version was available.
I love this movie. I watch it all the time. I collected all of the figures as a kid.
I always wait for the first real belly-laugh before hitting LIKE (you always get there at some point), and this time it came here, at 3:04 thanks for the always entertaining reviews, mate.
I think you're a bit harsh in the last couple of minutes of this review, where all you had to say was that the story development slows down and almost stops without a clear concept of how to build to a climax, except for the machine gun orgy which kills most of the hoodlums. And you *did* speak of that, so hammering home the point was hardly necessary. Of *course* it was a movie which sought only to represent a 1930s comic strip, and if you ask me, it achieved everything it tried to achieve.
Absolutely beautiful movie. I wish I saw it as a kid.
I loved the Di... I mean this movie so much. It was Sin City before it was cool.
After watching this, I'm genuinely curious what you thought of Alec Baldwin's The Shadow.
And yeah, the big problem with this movie is it takes itself too seriously. "Camp played straight" is a very tough balancing act, and Beatty's direction is a bit too turgid. Also, that shootout is just awful.
Visually it was a really interesting movie. The story & dialogue however 🤷♂️
I am curious about what Walter Hill would have done. He wanted to do a realistic, gritty Dick Tracy movie.
If this movie was released today Al Pacino wouldn't have been nominated for an Oscar, he would've been nominated for a Razzie! And won!
This movie is a prequel to the "Men in Black" films because Big Boy is CLEARLY a Ballchinian hiding amongst us.
I saw this in the theater upon release. Let's just say the eighties weren't really the time to revisit the thirties.
Indiana Jones: Am I joke to you?
WHY don't we have wrist radios yet?
This was a great movie based on the original comic strips and the cartoon series
I genuinely liked this film when it came out. I think it’s a hidden gym. And so what’s it’s about the style that’s the point.
The biggest disappointment for me was the toys........they were ghastly looking, and tracy without his signature coat was a hard pass from 9 year old me
Liked this much more than Batman
It was an enjoyable romp
R.I.P. Paul Sorvino.
It's a very good summary of the film. I've seen many reviewers gloss over the problems with the plot, but you describe it almost exactly as I felt when I watched it again a few years ago, including nailing the spot where the viewer loses patience. It's like Beatty had many things he cared about when making the movie, but none of those things were the story.
It's funny that John Wick gets praised for the same criticism: plot, or lackthereof. Action movies are about characters you can root for, stunning visuals, and entertainment. Dick Tracy has all three and more.
While the film probably exists because of Beatty, I don't think he made a good Dick Tracy. As for Madonna/Breathless, I don't know whether Madonna was a poor fit (possibly made worse by how the studio seemed to want her to be the selling point) or Breathless/Blank was just that poorly written.
Ishtar!!
“3 … 2 … 3 … 4, 4 … 2 … 3 … and!” (*castanets*)
It was such a fun movie!
Well done, keep up the great work!!!
Boy, this movie did not hold up well. What really stands out today is how miscast Beatty was in this role...I'm sorry, but he was just too old, too short, and not square-jawed enough! If it had been made 25 years later, Jon Hamm would've been perfect.
interesting casting idea there
What's your opinion on Michael Keaton as Batman?
Too short ? He was 6'2" !
@@ricardocantoral7672, Michael Keaton is 6'2"!?!
My main beef was Warren Beatty didn’t wear the classic Tracy nose as a prosthetic. He claimed they tried but it looked ridiculous. Sure.
Yeah, this movie was a visual treat when I caught it in theaters. But it was a "watch once" type of movie due to substance. Good actors, ham fisted action, it conveyed the Dick Tracy comics, but it wasn't a movie I wanted to own. Watching this makes me remotely consider giving it a second watch, but then I realize I saw the best parta in this video and then the feeling is gone.
Great review. I clearly remember seeing this in a cinema in 1990. I expected so much (after 1989's Batman) but got this rather boring flick. Great photography, great colours, but boring.
While there are many outstanding actors in this film, it’s Madonna who steals the show, followed by Heady. Beatty is wooden and Pacino overacts. Madonna just looks and sounds incredible, has the best lines and basically drives most of the plot. Heady does a good job making Tess a more interesting character than just the ‘good girl’ who is usually just bland.
Cheers Stam. Another highly entertaining review, Full of chuckles. I think this is the closest I will ever get to seeing so much of Dick Tracy, 1990 in one sitting. Believe me, I have tried. I get about three minutes in, when I fall asleep. For some reason the whole Film misses the mark. Not that I would know personally, I still haven't seen the bloody thing.
I watched it in the cinema when it first came out. 16 year old me remembers enjoying it moderately. It falls squarely into the OK category for me. 🤔
@@jamesstewart7736 I get you. My girlfriend dragged me to see it. By all accounts she wasn't impressed, but like you, she said it was "OK".
I actually saw it yesterday for the first time in years and I must say, it is not worth watching unless you see it on a big screen.
@@jamesstewart7736 MERRY CHRISTMAS MOVIE HOUSE !
@@ricardocantoral7672 Cheers mate. I am right with you. I know it is stunning to look at. The Cinematography and Model work are incredible. The screen is filled with the Lust of the Eye. Maybe one day I can experience such stuff.
It's not a bad film but I think the superior movie is the Shadow as it has more of the beauty of the period this movie always felt kinda like a Pilot for a TV show.
I saw this flick once as a kid on a Friday night, but I played that MegaDrive game countless times. Good game but it got bloody hard pretty quick
I don't honestly care if Dick Tracy (1990) failed just because it was different from the lousy comics, people in the comments hating on it can go back to watching their precious Roger Rabbit for all I care lmao.
🎵 "Dick Tracy, he's a good cop" 🎵
Check out the Dick Tracy TV pilot from the 60s, created by the same team that did the Adam West Batman show.
In a word, awful.
Shouldn't it be willie witticisms?
Yes, we have forgiven Dick Van Dyke. 😊
Very good, cheers!
Breathless frames Tracy because he spurned her advances, no?
I went to see "Dick Tracy" at the theater three times. I actually paid more money to watch the movie than I did for Madonna's I'm Breathless CD. I have rarely been impressed with femme fatale's, but Madonna really got the job done as Breathless Mahoney. Breathless made more of an impact; IMO, than Vicki Vale. Also, I prefer Madonna's "Sooner or Later" over "Partyman" by Prince.
If you're going to mention "Batman" in comparison, how about Warren Beatty being 6'2" and Michael Keaton being 5'9". At least Warren Beatty had shoulder pads to make him look solid. Keaton looks like a strong wind would blow him down the street.
As a matter of fact, I liked the villains in "Batman"; Joker and 'Boss' Grissom, more than the hero. I never had that problem with Tracy and Big Boy Caprice. Especially since Beatty is 6'2" and Pacino is 5'6".
Michael Keaton is a far more charismatic and intense presence than Warren Beatty whom I have always found to be rather dull sans his appearances in a few films.
@@ricardocantoral7672, everyone has their own opinion. You like Michael Keaton, and there are many more Adam West fans. I can plainly see many people prefer having a comedian as The Batman.
My choice of what a super-hero should look like is Richard Donner's Superman, played by Christopher Reeve.
When I watch Tim Burton's 1989 "Batman", my full attention is on Jack Nicholson's Joker. From the moment he walked out of the shadows and said, "You can call me, Joker". Followed by Joker's, "Gotham City, always brings a smile to my face". And when he sees the news paper, "Winged freak, terrorizes!", "Wait'll they get a load of me!". And especially when he's talking to Rotelli, "Your friends, are not bad guys.
"Maybe we should give 'em a couple o' days to think it over
No!?! Grease 'em now?
"Well, okay. You're a vicious bastard, Rotelli, and I'm glad your dead."
@@martyemmons3100 Many more Adam West fans ? I find it hard to believe in this day and age given the average age of the TV, Film, and streaming viewer.
@@ricardocantoral7672, I mention Adam West because most people are not geeks/nerds. When it comes to actual Batman (comic book) fans, there aren't that many.
So I'm just assuming that the producers, writers and directors are molding their product (Batman) to target the general public. The producers want a return for their investment. That's the only possible conclusion that I can glean for casting Keaton as Batman. As I read his bio, he was a stand-up comedian, 5'9" tall and weighed 160 lbs.
@@martyemmons3100 Marty, your argument holds no weight for a simple reason, this is 2022. That Adam West show was popular in the mid to late sixties. The average movie, TV, streaming, viewer is between his, or her, mid twenties and early thirties. Many of them grew up on Keaton's Batman or they enjoyed Christian Bale's take. I am sorry but your mind is stuck in the late 80's when you could have said there were plenty of Adam West fans going to movies. Times change, trends change, the general audiences want The Dark Knight instead of the The Bright Knight. You can dump on Keaton all you want but there is a reason why he is appearing in this new Flash movie, today's movie goers grew up with him.
I saw this movie in 1990 and completely forgot it existed until 16 minutes ago.
I saw this film in 1990 and I thought that it looked great but the plot was pretty thin. Not terrible but it could have been so much better. I remember hearing that the main reason there was no sequel was that the set for the city was damaged by fire and it was too expensive to rebuild.
There was merchandise everywhere that never sold after this movie fell flat. Never had any of it but we did end up with a pencil case from a cereal box offer, pretty sure it's still at my parent's house somewhere.
Yeah the merchandising in Australia was huge, they put it on everything they could
"this movie fell flat"
Oh, so you're a hater then, ok that's fine lol.
I don't know if I've ever seen a film so hyped, so ubiquitously marketed and promoted with trailers and tie-in products, that was such a 5/10 bog standard run of the mill average arse film.
What would all you British and Australian fucks know about Dick Tracy? Lol
Never saw the appear of rubber faced goons in what looked like the most boring episode of 60s Batman without any decent set lighting.
oh, and Madge......
Much like Alec Baldwin's Shadow four years later, this was a movie that appealed mainly to those who remembered who Dick Tracey is.
I loved this movie when I was a kid. Thought there should of been one sequel but they kill most of Tracy’s rouge gallery in this movie. I started looking at the comic strip because of the movie. I remember Flat Top had a bi racial grandson who looked like Kid from Kid N Play named Hi Top. Back in the early 90s that was a big deal. Very different.
I saw this in the cinema when it came out. I was 16 and I thought it was OK. Loved the soundtrack by Madonna. I've only just begun with this video but I have no doubt I'll it enjoy it more than the actual film but less than the soundtrack. 😎
I believe Madonna said that her Dick Tracy album is her favorite among her works.
I remember being bored by this.
A really bad movie 🎦 some very good actors and actresses playing terrible 😱 roles, and because of that it actually makes Madonna look OK, because she really was a dreadful actress 🤯 🤯 🤯
Saw this in the cinema as a kid. It’s not a great film by any manner of means, but the comic book aesthetic is done well.
I get the feeling the whole production was probably a ruse by Warren Beatty to try and shag Madonna…
Well, he got to shag Madonna, so that worked. The flick, not so much.
He was already shagging her. The movie had been in development many years before it was actually shot. Even Scorsese was set to direct at one point
I saw this movie when it came out and have not seen it since. I was excited to see it. The movie looked good but fell flat. When was the last year Dick Tracy last appear in a Newspaper.
Such a bizarre movie.
This feels both like a sillier Sin City/The Spirt and like a cheaper A Nero Wolfe Mystery.
This movie was a lot of fun when I saw it in the cinema, but Sin City is far better.
Madonna often deserves - DESERVES - her bad acting rap (Swept Away, anyone?); but she turns on charm, then underplays lovesick, with finesse in this film. Watch it again.
I remember the overwhelming amounts of hype they used to promote this movie. When the film became an embarrassing flop I thought it was hilarious.
I've only seen it once. It bored me. Maybe I should give it a second chance, but when I think about it, the comic strip kind of bored me too. I mostly just stared at its grotesque characters. Unlike the movie, EVERYBODY in that strip was grotesque - even Dick! Chester Gould couldn't draw a character that didn't look deformed.
Madonna. That’s all I remember caring about. And some old guy.
RIP, Glenne Headley - one of the few very good things about this generally bland, nondescript film; gone much too soon (deceased in June 2017 @ 62) 🎥😔
Bland ? The film is poorly constructed but it is certainly not bland.
@@ricardocantoral7672 To each One's own 🎥
"Mimic a long-running comic!" With deftly clever sets, colour palette, non-complex story line! The more of your review I hear, the more shocked I am that you get so little of this film's impact.
Geez, you don't get this movie AT ALL! Its GENIUS is style over substance! Didn't you *ever* read Dick Tracy comics? This film, in just about all ways, is the comic book brought to life.
At the time the movie was funny - now it’s …. A bit cringy but in a funny way 😁 Leave it to Stam to emphasized “Dick” in Dick Tracy🤣😂
As a kid I was so unimpressed by the makeup work in this movie.
I saw this in the theater in 1990, thinking that it was going to be that year's version of the previous year's Batman. Instead I was completely disappointed. That was the only time I ever saw it.
It was kind of hard to get through it. No real spirit to it, nothing to unify or tie together the elements of the story. And too many "name" actors cancelling each other out and chewing up the scenery. It's as if this was "THE" film to be in, a sure-fire hit, so everyone stampeded to appear in it. And then this.
@@ferociousgumby Like I don't even remember any "so-bad-it's-good" moments about it either. At least with "Batman & Robin" you had Arnold and his "cold" puns that I enjoy nowadays as a guilty pleasure. With this movie there was nothing. Like you said, no spirit. Hollow.
It's like their success at making the villains in this movie look physically repulsive worked too well and made people not want to see the movie. for whatever else looks nice about this movie, those ugly-by-design makeup jobs are not what i want to look at throughout a movie.
I only remember it as boring. This makes me want to give it another go.