The premise to this is pretty simple: parody film noir movies by inserting old movie clips and have Steve Martin say things that turn serious lines from those movies into jokes. While we're at it, throw in sexy Rachel Ward. It sounds like it could have been a really great comedy. For a fan of film noir and older movies in general like myself, it has an added bonus of getting to revisit all of these great old films through clips. It's fun to see this clip or that and see if you can remember where it comes from. Unfortunately, however, the movie ultimately doesn't work. The reasons for this are twofold. First, the gimmick tires quickly. I think I was over it after about a half hour or so. Second, it's just not that funny. There are a few funny bits, like the cup of java gag that goes on forever. But mostly it's kind of juvenile. Often the movie seems to lose itself in its clips and forgets to turn those clips into something humorous. Martin and Ward are fine in their roles. Maybe Carl Reiner would have been better off trying to do a straight parody film with these two instead of using the clips, which ultimately proved to be a distraction.
Review of Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid
