Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)Few if any reviewers here indicate having watched Keith Gordon's director's commentary on this DVD. I think it would alter some of their judgements. As Gordon explains, the film script was in fact written by Dennis Potter, whose original "Singing Detective" ran as a much longer miniseries on British TV 20 years ago, and the changes to an American setting with 1950s American pop music were really Potter's own ideas. If the transition to feature film format loses something in the translation, it is in part due to his reconceptualization of his original creation.
As the commentary reveals, much of the inventiveness in this new version is not apparent in a single viewing. While it may seem to truncate and over-simplify the lengthier TV version, there is still complexity and ambiguity enough to entertain and engage a thoughtful viewer appreciative of good screenwriting and wonderful performances. Robert Downey's dual role as the embittered writer and the Bogart-style detective of the title reveal the mercurial range of this amazing actor, and his scenes with Robin Wright Penn, who plays his wife, are a brilliant portrayal of two people equally matched in their struggle to preserve a relationship and, at the same time, the integrity of themselves as individuals.
Strong cast. Interesting contrast of visual styles. Rated R for a wide range of disturbingly graphic and lurid visual imagery, including the main character's horrific skin condition. Granted, this "Singing Detective" is no substitute for the original, but seen on its own merits, it still stands up well on its own.
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Oscar® nominee Robert Downey Jr. gives the performance of his career in this acclaimed, all-star movie that weaves sly comedy, suspenseful film noir and spirited musical numbers into one of the most original productions in years. When it comes to murder, seduction and betrayal, pulp-fiction author Dan Dark (Downey) wrote the book. But now, he s living it. Languishing in a hospital room with an immobilizing condition, Dark has lost himself in the fictional world of his alter ego, a hardboiled detective and dance-band singer living in the 1950s Los Angeles. As Dark s grasp on reality continues to slip, he s placed under the care of an enigmatic psychiatrist (Oscar® winner Mel Gibson). Together, they plunge into the mystery of Dark s psyche, where everyone is suspect and danger waits at every turn. Co-starring Robin Wright Penn, Jeremy Northam, Katie Holmes, Carla Gugino and Oscar® winner Adrien Brody, The Singing Detective hits all the right notes.
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