Watching the Detectives (2007)

User Rating:

6.3/10   

Director:

Paul Soter

Writer:

Paul Soter (written by)

Release Date:

11 September 2008 (Russia)

Genre:

Comedy | Romance

Tagline:

Sometimes love is stranger than fiction

Plot:

A film noir buff has his life turned on end by a femme fatale with a big adventure in mind.

Plot Keywords:

Film Geek | Tied To Chair | Quirky | Prank | Male Rear Nudity

US TV Schedule:

Sat. Nov. 21

9:15 AM

SHOW

Cast

Cillian Murphy	...	Neil
Lucy Liu	...	Violet
Jason Sudeikis	...	Jonathan
Michael Panes	...	Lucien
Callie Thorne	...	Marcia
Michael Yurchak	...	Buddy
Heather Burns	...	Denise
Mark Harelik	...	Detective Barloe
Ali Reza	...	Detective Lowenstein
Josh Pais	...	Andy
Brett Gelman	...	Glenn
Lonny Ross	...	Eager Customer
Paul Scheer	...	Annoying Customer
Richard Waddingham	...	Dennis - Bald Giant
J. T. O'Connor	...	Bald Creep

Runtime:

Poland:90 min (DVD version) | USA:91 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White (one scene) | Color

Certification:

Germany:6 | USA:Not Rated | Australia:M

Filming Locations:

Bayonne, New Jersey, USA

Company:

Plum Pictures

Trivia:

The title of the film is taken from a 1977 Elvis Costello song, from the album "My Aim Is True".

Goofs:

Incorrectly regarded as goofs: Violet says she doesn't have a driver's license, but she still manages to drive a car to Neil's house. However, she may have told Neil that she didn't have a driver's license just to see how he'd react, just like almost everything else she did to him.

Movie Connections:

References Det sjunde inseglet (1957)

Soundtrack:

VILLIANS MARCH

Strange, quirky, cute fluff

Like the summary says - Watching The Detectives is strange, quirky, cute fluff. Like all of us folks on IMDb (as well as the characters in this movie), we watch too many movies. Too many bad movies. Too many similar movies. Watching The Detectives knows that so it veers off in a different direction and has some fun with the Romantic Comedy formula. It's a cute little movie. Could it have been better? Yes. Could the characters have been developed more? Yes. Could Lucy Liu been any cuter? I think not!! And to think she was almost 40 when she made this movie. Think of Watching The Detectives as a well made Indie film and you'll be pleased. It's already dated as the idea of a small, local video store catering to folks who like all kinds of movies is an idea whose time has unfortunately passed, but that's also part of its charm.

Lucy Liu is great. Cillian Murphy is OK (his look is more suited to post apocalyptic movies!!). The supporting cast is good. The music is very good. In fact, the scenes where music is featured were my favorite parts of the movie.

Give it a shot if you're looking for something lite and different.