Dick Tracy (1990)

User Rating:

5.9/10   

Director:

Warren Beatty

Writers (WGA):

Chester Gould (characters created by)
Jim Cash (written by) ...

Release Date:

15 June 1990 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Crime | Drama | Family | Thriller

Tagline:

I'm on my way.

Plot:

The comic strip detective finds his life vastly complicated when Breathless Mahoney makes advances towards him while he is trying to battle Big Boy Caprice's united mob.

Plot Keywords:

Detective | Love | Police Detective | Gangster | Police

Awards:

Won 3 Oscars. Another 5 wins & 26 nominations

US TV Schedule:

Sat. July 18

5:00 PM

TCM

Cast

Warren Beatty	...	Dick Tracy
Charlie Korsmo	...	Kid
Michael Donovan O'Donnell	...	McGillicuddy
Jim Wilkey	...	Stooge
Stig Eldred	...	Shoulders
Neil Summers	...	The Rodent
Chuck Hicks	...	The Brow
Lawrence Steven Meyers	...	Little Face
William Forsythe	...	Flattop
Ed O'Ross	...	Itchy
Glenne Headly	...	Tess Trueheart
Marvelee Cariaga	...	Soprano
Michael Gallup	...	Baritone
Seymour Cassel	...	Sam Catchem
James Keane	...	Pat Patton

Runtime:

103 min | Finland:101 min | Germany:101 min | USA:105 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (analog 70 mm prints) | CDS (digital 70 mm prints) | Dolby (35 mm prints)

Certification:

Netherlands:12 | Iceland:10 | Iceland:12 (video rating) | Norway:10 | Portugal:M/12 | West Germany:12 (f) | Brazil:12 | Canada:PG (Canadian Home Video rating) | Argentina:13 | Australia:PG | Chile:14 | Finland:K-12 | France:U | Peru:14 | Spain:T | Sweden:11 | UK:PG | USA:PG (#30562) | Singapore:PG | Canada:A (Nova Scotia)

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Touchstone Pictures

Trivia:

The character of Steve "The Tramp" Brogan was a recurring character who eventually turned good. The story of "The Tramp" and The Kid in the movie comes straight out of the comic strip.

Goofs:

Errors made by characters (possibly deliberate errors by the filmmakers): When Dick Tracy jumps out of a window and slides down the lamp post, the stunt man, playing him, bangs his head on the curve of the pole towards the top.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Radio Announcer: Gangland enforcers broke the arms of an elderly newsdealer this afternoon when he refused to share his week's receipts with them. Stacks of newspapers were tossed in the gutter as the thugs wrecked the business and made their getaway. Lunchtime crowds were paralyzed by the suddenness of the crime. Not a hand was raised in protest.

Movie Connections:

Spoofed in The Simpsons (1991) (VG)

Soundtrack:

Die Schlumpf

Incredible Colors, Incredible Cast

This is amazing-looking movie with the whole thing done in just six or seven colors. When it came out over 15 years ago, it stunned audiences with its color scheme, being so different from anything else that had ever been put on film. Those colors, for me at least, make this an absolutely fascinating film to watch. There are literally thousands of scenes I wish could freeze and somehow convert them to a painting to study for their artwork.

The characters and the story don't match up to the greatness of the photography, but they are all over-the-top, especially the villains. The famous actors who played them here must have a had a lot of fun on the set playing "Flatop," "Pruneface," "Lips," "Mumbles," etc.

Meanwhile, Warren Beatty and Gleanne Hedley are good as Dick Tracey and girlfriend Tess Truehart, and she's as sweet and soft as her name. Another good addition is Charlie Korsmo as the delinquent young boy Dick and Tess take under their wing. The colorful other characters are played by Al Pacino, Dustin Hoffman, William Forysthe, Paul Sorvino, Mandy Patinkin, Madona and other names you know but are too numerous to list here. Check the full credits on the main page and you'll amazed.

The only negatives I found were Pacino's voice which grates on you after awhile, Madonna's off-key singing voice and the fact that the film would have been better trimmed about 10 minutes. Those "faults" are all minor because overall, this is a fun movie....a cartoon strip coming to life in an incredibly-colorful fashion.....like nothing you have ever seen.