Radioland Murders (1994)

User Rating:

5.7/10   

Director:

Mel Smith

Writers (WGA):

George Lucas (story)
Willard Huyck (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

21 October 1994 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Mystery | Romance

Tagline:

At station WBN, the hits just keep on coming.

Plot:

In 1939, WBN, a fourth radio network, is about to take to America's airwaves. As if the confusion of the premiere night wasn't enough...

Plot Keywords:

Radio | Fire Hose Used As Rope | Radio Station | Radioland | Indiana Jones Spoof Scene

US TV Schedule:

Fri. July 17

1:00 PM

HBO

Cast

Brian Benben	...	Roger Henderson
Mary Stuart Masterson	...	Penny Henderson
Ned Beatty	...	General Walt Whalen
George Burns	...	Milt Lackey
Scott Michael Campbell	...	Billy
Brion James	...	Bernie King
Michael Lerner	...	Lieutenant Cross
Michael McKean	...	Rick Rochester
Jeffrey Tambor	...	Walt Whalen, Jr.
Stephen Tobolowsky	...	Max Applewhite
Christopher Lloyd	...	Zoltan
Larry Miller	...	Herman Katzenback
Anita Morris	...	Claudette Katsenback
Corbin Bernsen	...	Dexter Morris
Rosemary Clooney	...	Anna

Runtime:

112 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS

Certification:

Iceland:12 | USA:PG | Argentina:13 | UK:PG

Filming Locations:

Castle Hayne, North Carolina, USA

Company:

Lucasfilm

Trivia:

Anita Morris died shortly after the filming of this movie, and the film is dedicated to her memory.

Goofs:

Continuity: At the end of the film the camera pans up to the top of the building, showing the damaged WBN logo. However, the holes where the letters came out of the wall are missing.

Quotes:

Female Writer: Hold it.
[to the typist]
Female Writer: Husband says, 'Darling, you can't leave. What would it take to make you stay?'
Father Writer: She says, 'Try chloroform.' *Ha! Ha!*
Son Writer: This isn't a comedy.
Female Writer: That wasn't a joke.

Movie Connections:

References King Kong (1933)

Soundtrack:

I Miss You So

Extremely Undervalued

If you're looking for a serious mystery--or for that matter, a serious anything--don't watch this movie.

If you just want a fun movie that you can watch again and again, this one is for you! It takes place in the studios of radio station WBN on the night of its national debut. The station managers, directors, writers, and actors, already stressed with the debut and pleasing the affiliates, are shocked when a trumpet player in the orchestra is poisoned and killed. The station crew then has to keep the programs going while the police investigate and the writers go on strike. After more murders are committed, writer Roger Henderson, the innocent prime suspect, has to simultaneously evade the police, rewrite scripts for shows about to air, and solve the crime to prove his innocence.

There are some discrepancies and parts I'm sure critical people split hairs over. Don't expect a masterpiece, just some good fun.