GurlyIamBeach Instant Favorite.

Voxitype Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.

Murphy Howard I enjoyed watching this film and would recommend other to give it a try , (as I am) but this movie, although enjoyable to watch due to the better than average acting fails to add anything new to its storyline that is all too familiar to these types of movies.

Myron Clemons A film of deceptively outspoken contemporary relevance, this is cinema at its most alert, alarming and alive.

dromasca I confess not to be a big fan of Steve Martin, an actor whose comedies I find to be too often on the exaggeration side of the joke, playing all the time almost in the same register. Yet, Carl Reiner's Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid is in many instances a charm, and it also succeeds to be funny and respectful in its reverence to the film noir movies of the 40s and 50s.Even the much younger Steve Martin, with black hair and sparkling eyes looks here completely fresh as private eye Rigby Reardon, hired to solve a Californian mystery which combines all the 1940s detective novels that you may have read and the films inspired by them all together. The trick used by director Reiner is to take full scenes from original film noir movies, mix, edit and insert them into his own story line. Martin gets the privilege to talk and interact with the greater idols of the genre, from Humphrey Bogart to Cary Grant, while the feminine interest is being triggered by such divine silhouettes as Ingrid Bergman or Ava Gardner. Borrowed scenes come from famous movies like Notorious, Suspicion, or The Big Sleep, but you need not worry, there is no real scary stuff, it is all fun.I do not know if Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid received any award, but the cinematography, editing and make-up are all amazing. The look with the original scenes filmed in black-and-white strongly reminds The Artist, but only a fraction of the scenes are original, the majority are cut from various sources, and combined, so that the heroes of the film talk and interact with the original film characters. It's a smart idea and it is almost flawlessly executed, so that the film runs smoothly. I said the film, not the story, which is a parody, and there is no mandatory minimal dose of logic in a parody. Best for future viewers is to take this film for what it is – a big joke, but an elaborated one, combined with an homage for a literary and cinematographic genre that thrilled many generations.

winstonfg I've never been a huge fan of Steve Martin's, so I often find myself watching his movies for his leading ladies; and while Peters, Danes and Turner are undoubtedly eye-candy, none of them quite match up to Rachel Ward at her finest – and here she is possibly even lovelier than she was in 'The Thornbirds'. She's also a surprisingly good foil for Martin; able to deliver some wonderfully outrageous lines absolutely deadpan, and without breaking character.Inter-cutting new film with old wasn't new even when this piece came out, and I suspect the idea may have come from Martin's 'Pennies from Heaven' of the previous year (itself a copy of a BBC series from 1978); but the premise of using film noir was a stroke of genius and it's very slickly done. Unfortunately, a plot which starts out very well degenerates somewhat towards the end, perhaps hamstrung by the one-note comic style; but for the first hour it's an absolute joy to watch, and very funny indeed.However, it has to be admitted that I watch it for Rachel - my dream woman of the early eighties and, in my opinion, one of the most beautiful ever to grace the silver screen. Bryan Brown, you're a lucky fella.

TheLittleSongbird I was really interested in seeing this movie, because I like film noir and I like Steve Martin. And you know what, this is a very clever and affectionate homage. My complaints are that the story is disappointingly convoluted so it is sometimes very hard to keep up with what is going on and one or two of the jokes don't quite work. But overall it is very funny, and seems to have held up well over the years. The script is clever and sophisticated enough, and Carl Reiner directs with precision and acts his part of Field Marshall VonKluck very well. The cinematography is smooth and crisp, and I thought the performances were excellent. Steve Martin is great here, not only do I think Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid is underrated but this is one of his roles where Martin deserves a lot more credit. Rachel Ward looks lovely as Juliet Forrest and is terrific acting wise. The real joy is watching the archive footage of all those wonderful actors and actresses in those timeless masterpieces. Spotting stars such as Humphrey Bogart, Cary Grant, Bette Davis, Ray Milland, Vincent Price and Ingrid Bergman all but to name a few was a delight in itself. Also the finale while silly is great fun. All in all, Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid is well worth the look. 8/10 Bethany Cox

T Y This demented one-of-a-kind comedy works best if you've seen 4 or 5 noir/hard boiled detective movies. Because at that point you begin to notice the plots become conflated and entangled. The gag is that with a bit of thought you can splice 20 of them together and get something pretty similar. The resulting mystery and detection results in a story that doesn't make a whole lot of sense, but then lots of noirs don't make much sense (The Big Sleep, Somewhere in the Night, Dark Passage). For noir, the tone, the striking compositions and the moral code are much more important.Whoever pieced this together had a lot of fun with it. There's quite a range of different comedy to enjoy. Some of the funniest bits just involve the new footage (Martin's bleeding knees). Some of them are absurd/revisionist (Rachel Ward can hear Martin's voice-over narration) A whole lot of them involve the absurd plot lines introduced by the old footage, that then have to be integrated. Some running jokes are duds ("adjusting your breasts" Bogart and his ties). Others are awfully funny ("That's never gonna heal!") It also has some hysterical visuals (Martin's balletic dodge of Alan Ladd's bullet). Some of the patches are funny; Martin is constantly correcting people when they get his name wrong (because they're talking to other characters in other films) The two best comic moments involve a unique way to make coffee, and Martin's hopeless, post-rejection assessment of women. All of this is ten floors above the usual Adam Sandler dross.If an academic ever gave this its due as the first instance of meta, or at least an example of intertextuality, it would have more respect. If you've seen it more than once, it's interesting to see why - not just plot points - but visuals have to be introduced, sometimes quite smoothly. i.e. Martin gets drugged and offers to put on his pajama top (over his suit) because it's needed to match the schmo he's doubling in the next vintage clip. Too funny. You don't need to think hard at all to enjoy this, but if you like thoughtful movies, this offers a bonus level to consider.On the minus side, Reni Santoni is irritating and certifiably untalented. He doesn't deliver a single laugh.