Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
Chevy Chase | ... | Fletch | |
Hal Holbrook | ... | Ham Johnson | |
Julianne Phillips | ... | Becky Culpepper | |
R. Lee Ermey | ... | Jimmy Lee Farnsworth | |
Richard Libertini | ... | Frank | |
Randall 'Tex' Cobb | ... | Ben Dover | |
Cleavon Little | ... | Calculus | |
George Wyner | ... | Gillet | |
Patricia Kalember | ... | Amanda Ray Ross | |
Geoffrey Lewis | ... | KKK Leader | |
Richard Belzer | ... | Phil | |
Phil Hartman | ... | Bly Manager | |
Titos Vandis | ... | Uncle Kakakis | |
Don Hood | ... | Tom Barbour | |
Dennis Burkley | ... | Joe Jack |
Ailing Los Angeles newspaper reporter Irvin "Fletch" Fletcher, in debt, inherits from a aunt "Bell Isle", a sprawling 80-acre Louisiana plantation estate, quits his job and moves east expecting to live like a Dixie king. But he failed to inspect the run-down inheritance, leaving him only a shabby mansion with a shifty caretaker instead of reliable staff. Having celebrated anyway with an attractive lawyer in bed, he wakes up finding her mysteriously murdered and himself jailed, soon to be bailed, as prime suspect. Undaunted by a neighborly lawyer's warning to leave town, he waves foxy real estate agent Becky Culpepper's persistent offer well above the apparent value from a third party and starts snooping why with Becky. That proves a dangerous activity for him and almost anybody around, everything pointing to local magnate Hamilton "Ham" Johnson and his 'Confederate' circle of friends; including TV preacher Jimmy Lee Farnsworth and a dodgy chemical plant. Written by KGF Vissers
You had to a fan of Chevy Chase to fully enjoy the first installment but here you have to be a die hard devotee to get the most out of the sequel. The first one had a really good detective story that nearly got buried with wisecracks, but on subsequent viewings it really came alive and it ranks as one of the best movies Chevy Chase has been involved in.
Fletch Lives has Fletch moving to the South where he has inherited a mansion from his aunt. Continuing interest in buying the nearly worthless land for a huge amount of money evokes suspicions and our favorite reporter goes snooping around.
Fletch Lives is not nearly as well crafted or written as the first one, with a rather predictable mystery that doesn't seem to take itself seriously for one second. But it does have some fantastic comic sequences; such as Fletch impersonating a faith healer, Fletch encountering a mean biker gang, a memorable meeting with a fellow inmate and some one great one-liners delivered with style by the great comedian (as you might have guessed; I'm a big fan).
Supporting actors like Hal Holbrook and R. Lee Ermey add to the enjoyment and Chase delivers but when all is said and done Fletch Lives is for fans only who can overlook the shallowness of the film as a whole.