The defence The Arthouse Gremlin
“Form is the argument.”
Every composed frame and deliberate cut is evidence that control can be thrilling in its own right.
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Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid
Comedy · Mystery · Crime · 1982
Juliet Forrest is convinced that the reported death of her father in a mountain car crash was no accident. Her father was a prominent cheese scientist working on a secret recipe. To prove it was murder, she enlists the services of private eye Rigby Reardon. He finds a slip of paper containing a list of people who are 'The Friends and Enemies of Carlotta'.
Movie details
Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid
“Laugh, or I’ll blow your lips off...”
1982 Comedy · Mystery · Crime 1h 29m
Critical arithmetic
One number, for now.
Scores change. Arguments endure.
TMDB
6.6 / 10
Community rating
Juliet Forrest is convinced that the reported death of her father in a mountain car crash was no accident. Her father was a prominent cheese scientist working on a secret recipe. To prove it was murder, she enlists the services of private eye Rigby Reardon. He finds a slip of paper containing a list of people who are 'The Friends and Enemies of Carlotta'.
CriticWise case file
What this film says about your taste.
Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.
The archetype split
Who fights over Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid?
For the defence
The Arthouse Gremlin
“The stranger, the better.”
Read their case For the prosecution
The Popcorn Loyalist
“Big screen, big feelings, no apologies.”
Read their objectionThe split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.
Where it lives
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Streaming availability data supplied by JustWatch.
Names above the title
The people responsible.
Cast & crew
Directed by
Carl Reiner
Written by
George Gipe · Carl Reiner · Steve Martin
Steve Martin
Rigby Reardon
Rachel Ward
Juliet Forrest
Alan Ladd
(in "This Gun For Hire") (archive footage)
Carl Reiner
Juliet's Butler / Field Marshal Wilfried von Kluck
Barbara Stanwyck
(in "Sorry - Wrong Number") (archive footage)
Ray Milland
(in "The Lost Weekend") (archive footage)
Ava Gardner
(in "The Killers" / "The Bribe") (archive footage)
Court is in session
Put Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid on trial.
Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.
The prosecution The Popcorn Loyalist
“Technique in search of a pulse.”
Immaculate construction is still construction. The film may be too busy proving its craft to feel alive.