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The Dead Pool
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The Dead Pool (1988) More at IMDbPro »

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The Dead Pool -- Dirty Harry Callahan must stop a sick secret contest to murder local celebrities, which includes himself as a target.

Overview

User Rating:
6.2/10   21,038 votes »
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Down 9% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Buddy Van Horn
Writers (WGA):
Harry Julian Fink (characters) and
Rita M. Fink (characters) ...
(more)
Contact:
View company contact information for The Dead Pool on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
13 July 1988 (USA) See more »
Genre:
Action | Crime | Thriller See more »
Tagline:
Dirty Harry Just Learned A New Game
Plot:
Dirty Harry Callahan must stop a sick secret contest to murder local celebrities, which includes himself as a target. Full summary » | Full synopsis »
Plot Keywords:
See more »
NewsDesk:
(54 articles)
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Make Your Weekend with Clint Eastwood
 (From ReelzChannel. 24 August 2012, 2:49 PM, PDT)
User Reviews:
Pool Of Dead Critics See more (98 total) »

Cast

  (in credits order) (verified as complete)

Clint Eastwood ... Harry Callahan

Patricia Clarkson ... Samantha Walker

Liam Neeson ... Peter Swan
Evan C. Kim ... Al Quan

David Hunt ... Harlan Rook
Michael Currie ... Captain Donnelly
Michael Goodwin ... Lt. Ackerman
Darwin Gillett ... Patrick Snow
Anthony Charnota ... Lou Janero
Christopher P. Beale ... D.A. Thomas McSherry (as Christopher Beale)
John Allen Vick ... Lt. Ruskowski
Jeff Richmond ... Freeway Reporter #1
Patrick N. Van Horn ... Freeway Reporter #2 (as Patrick Van Horn)
Sigrid Wurschmidt ... Freeway Reporter #3

Jim Carrey ... Johnny Squares (as James Carrey)
Deborah A. Bryan ... Girl in Rock Video
Nicholas Love ... Jeff Howser
Maureen McVerry ... Vicky Owens
John X. Heart ... Samantha's Cameraman
Victoria Bastel ... Suzanne Dayton
Kathleen Turco-Lyon ... Officer at Trailer
Michael Faqir ... Sergeant at Trailer
Ronnie Claire Edwards ... Molly Fisher
Wallace Choy ... Chinese Store Manager
Melodie Soe ... Chinese Restaurant Hostess
Kristopher Logan ... Gunman #1

Scott Vance ... Gunman #2
Glenn Wright ... Detective Hindmark (as Glenn T. Wright)
Stu Klitsner ... Minister

Karen Kahn ... T.V. Associate Producer

Shawn Elliott ... Chester Docksteder
Ren Reynolds ... Perry
Ed Hodson ... Paramedic at Elevator
Edward Hocking ... Warden Hocking
Diego Chairs ... Butcher Hicks
Patrick Valentino ... Pirate Captain
Calvin Jones ... Pirate Tug Reporter #1
Melissa Martin ... Pirate Tug Reporter #2
Phil Dacey ... Detective Dacey
Louis Giambalvo ... Gus Wheeler
Peter Anthony Jacobs ... Sgt. Holloway
Bill Wattenburg ... Nolan Kennard
Hugh McCann ... Young Man on Talkshow
Suzanne Sterling ... Young Woman on Talkshow
Lloyd Nelson ... Sgt. Waldman

Charles Martinet ... Police Station Reporter #1
Taylor Gilbert ... Police Station Reporter #2
George Orrison ... Embarcadero Bodyguard #1

Marc Alaimo ... Embarcadero Bodyguard #2

Justin Whalin ... Jason
Kris LeFan ... Carl
Katie Bruce ... Girl on Sidewalk
Harry Demopoulos ... Doctor in Hospital Room (as Harry Demopoulos M.D.)
John Frederick Jones ... Dr. Friedman
Martin Ganapoler ... Reporter at Pier
James W. Gavin ... Helicopter Pilot (as Jim Gavin)
Craig Hosking ... Helicopter Pilot
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Steven Adler ... Musician at Funeral (uncredited)

Michael E. Burgess ... Bar Patron (uncredited)

Brian Danker ... Background Officer (uncredited)

Duff McKagan ... Musician at Funeral (uncredited)

D.C. Murphy ... Police Officer (uncredited)

W. Axl Rose ... Musician at Funeral (uncredited)

Slash ... Musician at Funeral (uncredited)
Izzy Stradlin ... Musician at Funeral (uncredited)
John Woehrle ... Cop in Video Footage (uncredited)
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Directed by
Buddy Van Horn 
 
Writing credits
(WGA)
Harry Julian Fink (characters) and
Rita M. Fink (characters) (as R.M. Fink)

Steve Sharon (story) &
Durk Pearson (story) &
Sandy Shaw (story)

Steve Sharon (screenplay)

Produced by
David Valdes .... producer
 
Original Music by
Lalo Schifrin 
 
Cinematography by
Jack N. Green (director of photography)
 
Film Editing by
Ron Spang 
 
Casting by
Phyllis Huffman 
 
Production Design by
Edward C. Carfagno 
 
Set Decoration by
Thomas L. Roysden 
 
Makeup Department
Shirley Dolle .... hair stylist
Monty Westmore .... makeup artist (as Monatgue Westmore)
 
Production Management
David Valdes .... production manager
 
Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
L. Dean Jones Jr. .... first assistant director
Robert J. Mooney .... second second assistant director
Tena Psyche Yatroussis .... second assistant director
 
Art Department
Edward Aiona .... property master
F.X. Crowley .... assistant property master
Ronald C. Jacobs .... lead man (as Ron Jacobs)
Bob Lawless .... stand-by painter (as Robert Lawless)
Barbara Munch .... set dresser
Jerry Swift .... assistant property master
Dwight Williams .... construction coordinator
Doug E. Williams .... carpenter (uncredited)
 
Sound Department
Rick Alexander .... sound re-recording mixer
Gene Ashbrook .... boom operator (as Byron Eugene Ashbrook)
Danny Benson .... cable person
Richard S. Church .... sound mixer
Virginia Cook-McGowan .... sound editor
Teri E. Dorman .... sound editor
Jay Engel .... adr editor (as Jay N. Engel)
Les Fresholtz .... sound re-recording mixer
Dee Dee Goldner .... assistant sound editor
Robert G. Henderson .... supervising sound editor
David M. Horton .... sound editor
Joseph A. Ippolito .... sound editor
Alan Robert Murray .... supervising sound editor
Walter Newman .... sound editor
Vern Poore .... sound re-recording mixer
Brooke Henderson Ward .... assistant sound editor
Marshall Winn .... sound editor
John Roesch .... foley artist (uncredited)
Carolyn Tapp .... foley recordist (uncredited)
 
Special Effects by
Joe Day .... special effects
Bob Finley III .... special effects (as Robert Finley)
Chuck Gaspar .... special effects
Thomas Mertz .... special effects
Bruce Robles .... special effects
 
Stunts
Michael Adams .... stunts (as Mike Adams)
Hank Baumert .... stunts
May Boss .... stunts
Anthony Cecere .... stunts (as Tony Cecere)
Vince Deadrick Sr. .... stunts
Scott Dockstader .... stunts
Diamond Farnsworth .... stunt coordinator (as Richard {Diamond} Farnsworth)
Steve Geray .... stunts
Andy Gill .... stunts
Gene Hartline .... stunts
Orwin C. Harvey .... stunts (as Orwin Harvey)
Freddie Hice .... stunts (as Fred Hice)
Larry Holt .... stunts
Jeff Imada .... stunts
Maria R. Kelly .... stunts (as Maria Kelly)
Walt La Rue .... stunts
Kevin Larson .... stunts
Lane Leavitt .... stunts
Burt Marshall .... stunts
Carol Neilson .... stunts (as Carol L. Neilson)
George Orrison .... stunts
Mark Orrison .... stunts
Debby Porter .... stunts
Rex Rossi .... stunts
Spike Silver .... stunts
Brian Smrz .... stunts
Dick Warlock .... stunts (as Richard Warlock)
Chuck Waters .... stunts
Danny Weselis .... stunts
Webster Whinery .... stunts
Danny Wong .... stunts
 
Camera and Electrical Department
Alan Cohen .... second assistant camera
Jim Dunford .... dolly grip (as James Dunford)
Buzz Feitshans IV .... first assistant camera
Norman G. Langley .... camera operator
Vance Piper .... first assistant camera
Víctor Pérez .... assistant chief lighting technician
Marcia Reed .... still photographer
Douglas Ryan .... camera operator (as Doug Ryan)
Bruce D. Spellman .... best boy grip (as Bruce Spellman)
Tom Stern .... chief lighting technician
Bill Young .... key grip
Peter N. Green .... camera department intern (uncredited)
 
Casting Department
Jan Forman Campi .... casting: San Francisco (as Jan Campi)
Olivia Harris .... casting assistant: Los Angeles
Nancy Hayes .... casting: San Francisco
 
Costume and Wardrobe Department
Darryl M. Athons .... wardrobe: men (as Darryl Athons)
Deborah Hopper .... costume supervisor: women
Glenn Wright .... costume supervisor: men
 
Editorial Department
Donah Bassett .... negative cutter
Michael Cipriano .... assistant film editor
Joel Cox .... supervising editor
Jack Garsha .... color timer
 
Music Department
Robert Fernandez .... scoring mixer
Donald Harris .... music editor
 
Transportation Department
Keith Dillin .... transportation coordinator
Robert aaron Brown .... driver (uncredited)
 
Other crew
Marco Barla .... unit publicist
Bundy Chanock .... set medic
Jack Gallagher .... set production assistant
Judie Hoyt .... assistant: Mr. Eastwood
Linda Sony Kinney .... production secretary
David R. Lawson .... first aid
John Lehane .... location manager
Michael Maurer .... production accountant
Lee McDonald .... assistant: Mr. Eastwood
Lloyd Nelson .... script supervisor
Tom Rooker .... production associate
Jennifer Van Horn .... production associate
James J. Wilhelm .... craft service (as James Wilhelm)
 
Crew believed to be complete


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Additional Details

Also Known As:
"Dirty Harry in The Dead Pool" - USA (poster title)
"Dirty Harry 5" - Japan (English title)
See more »
Parents Guide:
View content advisory for parents
Runtime:
91 min
Country:
USA
Language:
English
Color:
Color
Aspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1 See more »
Sound Mix:
Dolby
Certification:
Australia:M | Norway:18 | Sweden:15 (cut) | UK:18 (cut by 12 sec) | West Germany:18 | Iceland:16 | Spain:18 | Canada:R (Ontario) | USA:R (certificate #29247) | Singapore:PG (cut) | Finland:K-16 (heavily cut) (1989) | Finland:K-18 (1988) (2001) | Singapore:NC-16 | Netherlands:12 | France:Unrated | Germany:16 (re-rating) (2008) | Brazil:14 | Finland:K-15 (2008) | Portugal:M/12 | South Korea:15
Filming Locations:
1954 Mason Street, North Beach, San Francisco, California, USASee more »
Company:
Warner BrosSee more »

Did You Know?

Trivia:
A number of the crew's names were used as names on "The Dead Pool" Master List of intended victims. These included the director of photography Jack N. Green (as Jack Green), assistant film editor, Michael Cipriano (as Michael Cipriano) and the chief lighting technician, Tom Stern (as Thomas Stern). When Inspector Quan (Evan C. Kim) finds the list on the body of a Chinatown robbery victim, he shows the list to Callahan, and mentions that Michael Cipriano was a racing-car driver.See more »
Goofs:
Continuity: The first car bomb with the remote control toy leaves no trace of its victim, yet when the next car bomb detonates under Callahan and his partner's vehicle, they are able to walk away with minor injuries, in lieu of the fact that they pulled forward a few feet before the bomb exploded.See more »
Quotes:
Harry Callahan:Oh you can set yourself into a bonfire and we'll break out the marshmallows and the weenies but you ain't gonna be on News at Eleven.See more »
Movie Connections:
Referenced in Fight Back to School III (1993)See more »
Soundtrack:
WELCOME TO THE JUNGLESee more »

FAQ

What are the differences between the old British Version and the Uncensored Version?
See more »

User Reviews

   (Review this title)
26 out of 35 people found the following review useful.
Pool Of Dead Critics, 1 May 2006
Author: jldmp1 (jldmp1@aol.com) from United States

This was altogether too simple for the critics back in '88 -- the whole idea was to point the barrel of the joke right back at the criticism.

Whereas the previous Dirty Harry features sat on a platform of utter contempt for bureaucrats and political correctness, here it's expanded to contempt for journalists, and especially the subspecies of 'media critics'. As if they couldn't make it clearer, a 'movie critic' is murdered, and treated as an occurrence of 'death of celebrities by threes'.

Yes, this is explicitly about movie making; the previous four movies suffered from poor supporting casts that only got in the way of the narrative. Here Van Horn deliberately employs good actors to play bad genre roles and thus turns the series on its head.

Along the way, we get a nice comment on "Bullitt", this time deflating the over touted car chase with a gag: an explosives laden model '63 Z06 (instead of a fastback Mustang, to drive home the point).

By this time, the .44 Magnum is treated as a character, with a 'voice' that rolls off the cityscape like thunder...the bad guys run at the mere sight of it. To put the icing on the 'man with the biggest gun' motif, Clint dispatches the villain with an earlier one liner ("you're S.O.L.") and a movie prop harpoon. The elaborate conflation of sexual double entendre, humor and cowboy justice went soaring over many heads. Arnold wishes he was half this funny in "Last Action Hero".

Ah, we miss Harry...but his retirement to Carmel was both serendipitous and necessary. By the end of this, he's killed off every cartoon bad guy left in the movie universe, paving the way for both the dimensional villains of "Die Hard" and its ilk, AND the hosannas bestowed on "Unforgiven".

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Message Boards

Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for The Dead Pool (1988)
Recent Posts (updated daily)User
My Ranking of Dirty Harry Films bigjeffman80
How stupid was the RC Car Chase? rhfanluck
Movies playing on the television burchronicus
Who's in Your Dead Pool? mortgagemanmike2003
Dirty Harry 6?? Eerie-Nyx
Car chase scene had me thinking..... chalky60
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