Dragnet (1987)

User Rating:

5.6/10   

Director:

Tom Mankiewicz

Writers:

Dan Aykroyd (written by) and
Alan Zweibel (written by) ...

Release Date:

26 June 1987 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Crime

Tagline:

They're so bad at being bad... but so much worse at being good!

Plot:

The equally-straight-laced and "by the book" nephew of Joe Friday must work with his more laid-back partner to solve a mystery.

Plot Keywords:

Zoo | Police | Police Commissioner | Detective | Strip Club

Cast

Dan Aykroyd	...	Sgt. Joe Friday
Tom Hanks	...	Pep Streebeck
Christopher Plummer	...	Reverend Jonathan Whirley
Harry Morgan	...	Captain Gannon
Alexandra Paul	...	Connie Swail
Jack O'Halloran	...	Emil Muzz
Elizabeth Ashley	...	Jane Kirkpatrick
Dabney Coleman	...	Jerry Caesar
Kathleen Freeman	...	Enid Borden
Bruce Gray	...	Mayor Parvin
Lenka Peterson	...	Granny Mundy
Julia Jennings	...	Sylvia Wiss
Lisa Aliff	...	April
Joe Altmark	...	Milkman
Nina Arvesen	...	Lady Motor Cop

Runtime:

106 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Iceland:12 | USA:PG-13 (certificate #28649) | Australia:M | Finland:K-12 | Norway:11 | Sweden:15 | UK:PG | West Germany:12

Filming Locations:

Backlot, Universal Studios - 100 Universal City Plaza, Universal City, California, USA

Company:

Applied Action

Trivia:

In real life, Dan Aykroyd is a huge fan of Jack Webb, the original Joe Friday, and as a tribute to him Aykroyd gives many of his characters the ability to spit out complex technical jargon the way Joe Friday recites laws and police procedures. Examples are in Ghost Busters (1984) (when Ray Stanz "orders" the demi-god Zuul to leave New York), The Blues Brothers (1980) (when Elwood describes the specifications of the "Bluesmobile"), and 1941 (1979) (when he explains the function of the anti-aircraft gun to Ned Beatty).

Goofs:

Factual errors: After diving into the snake pit to save the Virgin Connie Swails, Pep takes a handful of pills from his pocket and pours them into the snake's mouth. Capsules of this nature are water-soluble for obvious reasons and after they'd spent several minutes underwater in Pep's pocket they would have dissolved into a goop. The pills that Pep gives the snake are clearly bone dry.

Quotes:

Joe Friday: [about Reverend Jonathan Whirley] And he'd better tell me where Connie is or I'll shove that collar so far down his throat I'll have to take off his shoes to ring his neck!
Pep Streebeck: Friday, listen to yourself! You're not thinking like a cop any more, you're thinking like a man in love!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Inspector Gadget (1999)

Soundtrack:

Dragnet

Wonderful homage to a great old TV show

Most people remember Dragnet with Jack Webb as the buttoned-up police sergeant Joe Friday. Dan Akyroyd plays the nephew of that character here. He is so much like Webb that he even appears to be channeling him spiritually. Tom Hanks has a great time with the new character of Pep Streebeck, the antithesis of Friday. The rest of the cast is fun, never quite taking the whole business seriously. Dabney Coleman, Christopher Plummer and even Harry Morgan reprising his Bill Gannon role (now the captain of detectives). The marginally fleshed out plot involves P.A.G.A.N.s attacking Coleman's smut magazines and advocating for "good sex and bad drugs" as the key to a great society.

The jokes in this movie fly fast and furious and are aimed at all kinds, not just the lowest common denominator. Lots of fun, randomness abounds. The best way to enjoy this movie is to relax and not take it too seriously, because it is half spoof-half cop action comedy. This is a fun ride. 9/10