Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid

Well worth the watch. Could not stop laughing. My wife and I still find each other quoting this movie and we watched it for the first time about 10 years ago. We are still watching it from time to time.

I lived this movie when it came out in the eighties. It was the first of several collabs with Carl Reiner, and it's the most sophisticated of them all. Nevertheless, while my mid-twenties gay daughter is a huge fan of noir classics, I am hesitant to share this one with her. Women and the expectation of the behavior of men have changed radically in a single generation. Much of this I can't laugh at anymore. Best thought of as an artifact.

Cary Grant, Humphrey Bogart, Bette Davis, Ingrid Bergman, Vincent Price, Barbara Stanwyck, Kirk Douglas, Ava Gardner, James Cagney, Lana Turner, Burt Lancaster and countless other classic stars.Oh yeah, "Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid" has the most impressive all-star cast of all time... and it almost doesn't matter that most of them were dead by the time it was made. They still steal the show in this hilariously twisty noir parody, which cleverly pastes in footage from classic movies to enhance the wacky detection of Steve Martin.Private eye Rigby Reardon (Steve Martin) is approached by Juliet Forrest (Rachel Ward), the sexy daughter of a brilliant scientist/cheesemaker. She believes her father's recent death was not an accident, and she wants him to investigate -- and soon he discovers two lists that Forrest left behind, naming the friends and enemies of the mysterious "Carlotta."So Rigby bumbles through a bizarre tangle of odd clues (jewelry soup, a dollar bill, a key, a cruise ship), sinister characters, and bizarre situations (he impersonates a woman TWICE) in his search for the truth. Can he uncover the truth about the "Friends of Carlotta" and find true love for Juliet, or will this be Rigby's final case?"Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid" is an amazing movie. The main story itself is pretty funny but not exceptional, but they somehow managed to cobble together all these classic movie clips into that story. Oh, there are a few clips that don't really work -- Joan Crawford's appearance -- but most of them are perfectly woven seamlessly into Martin's story.Example: when Rigby finds himself on a train with Cary Grant, he decides to knock out Grant with a harmonica... and the look of disbelieving annoyance on Grant's face is ABSOLUTELY PERFECT.I don't usually enjoy Martin's movies, but this movie has the right balance of sly spoof and strait-faced comedy. There are some fun running gags ("CLEANING WOMAN!") and some fun lowbrow comedy (the puppy scene), but the most entertaining part of this is seeing Martin "interacting" with stars of yesteryear. It's just so funny when he does stuff like throttle Bette Davis or woofs at Ingrid Bergman."Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid" isn't quite Mel Brooks material, but it takes its one overriding joke and milks it for all it's worth. Sly, smooth and very funny.

1982 bonus movie 1 in my journey through films of my lifetime.It's really hard to express just how impressed I am with "Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid." In some ways it's a shining example of limitations fostering creativity. In other ways it uses the predetermined problem of forcing a shoehorned narrative to create comedy. What do I mean? In case you are not in the know Carl Reiner masterfully weaves footage from older films into his story. I only even knew one or two of the movies used and it was still a pleasure to watch.I am really mixed on Steve Martin. It's nothing personal I just don't care for him. I don't find him all that funny, yet, I have to admit: he made me laugh, a lot. I wasn't in a laughing mood either. I also must confess that I find quite a few of his movies, if not funny, then at least good.I wish Carl Reiner had done more cameos because his comedic timing was always on. He's very funny in this and that's his typical flair."Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid" is always winking at the audience. It's very self aware and I'm not sure it could have been done another way. The narrator (Martin) is there to supply the hard boiled detective feel but it also supports the necessary exposition that is demanded by the novel use of footage from other films. The black and white is the top at least offer some consistency but it's deliberately paper thin and gives the feel of a comedy. What I mean is that you always know when you are seeing older clips and it never gets old. Originality pours out of every frame and every conceivable type of joke one could think of is used from slap stick to non sequiturs and everything in between. This is a must see!

If you’re a Steve Martin fan and also like the classic film noir movies then this a must to add to your movie collection! Cleaning Woman 😆

Classic high comedy with cool filming.

Carl Reiner wanted Steve Martin for the lead in this film IF Steve'd dye his hair black; so thatt-h-e-y could interweave old Universal Studios classics, and newly-filmed B&W movies together.SOME reviewers of the, older, D.V.D. criticized that the blend wasn't seamless [you could tellwhat was NEW, and what was OLD]. I almost they OTHERS talk me out of buying this. I wasVERY pleased, indeed. It works! some of it is VERY silly, but——it DOES work!I can, sincerely recommend this to lovers of classic black & white movies, and, Steve Martin.

I remember seeing this movie years ago and thinking it was funny, so when a new version on Blu Ray came out I thought I'd give it a try. It was well done, a and clever idea to mix in his story with cut scenes from other classic movies. Classic Steve Martin funny, and little more risque than his later stuff. I forgot how beautiful Rachel Ward was. It got 4 stars for being a really good movie, but not his best, for me it doesn't get better than Roxanne or L.A. Story.

I've been waiting for years to finally see this on bluray and I haven't been disappointed, lovely to look at although it does make the transition from new and old footage a bit more obvious but overall a well worth upgrade from my worn out Dvd copy. It's a shame that the only extra is the theatrical trailer as I was looking forward to commentaries,gag reel, making of etc....oh well, I suppose you can have too much of a good thing.

Came yesterday, and was on within 2 hours. A great film for those who love the golden age of Hollywood and film noir in general. Here you get the insane jokes from other Steve Martin films thrown in.

A lot of ‘highly rated’ comedies let you down, however, I found this one genuinely funny and it tickled me pink! Great on the eye, due to all the old cameos from the stars & films of the past, (great to see Bert & Humphrey, among others), it is also shot in a very clear B&W.The main draw of the film for me was the brilliant rapport between Steve Martin (Rigby), and Rachel Ward (Juliet) – who is an English rose from Oxfordshire. I found them quite a compelling duo - their comedy acting just mesmerizingly brilliant! Come on … we all wanted them to be an item in the end!Lots of classic gags, a zany story line, and as I say, just wonderful comedy on the eye and inter-play between the two main protagonists. The opening sequences are so funny and it just rolls on from there. Any thing less than 5 stars would be an insult!

I would recommend this video to persons no younger than twelve years of age. The movie contains scenes extracted from famous black-and-white movies of the nineteen-thirties. This movie is intended as a comedy and there are some sexual references but no swearing. There is no nudity in this movie, and it is in black and white. The main menu is easy to use.

If you have any nostalgia and knowledge of the old black and white gangster movies of the '30's and '40's - this is a must see. Original scenes are inter cut with Martin's narrative - the joins are impeccable. Brilliant.