Dragnet (1987)
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Movie Reviews of Dragnet (1987)
Movie Review: Always Good
Summary: 5 Stars
This movie is as good the first time you see it or the third or fourth. Tom Hanks and Dan Aykyrod are hilarious in their own unique way. You will never regret purchasing this movie.Movie Review: Dragnet
Summary: 5 Stars
Aykroyd and Hanks are delightful in this spoof of the old tv show. Equally wonderful is Harry Morgan, from the original series, as the Chief.Movie Review: Dragnet
Summary: 5 Stars
Very good. Just enough comedy to keep you laughing, and enough story to keep you interested.Movie Review: Dragnet (The 1987 Movie): Just the Facts, Ma'am
Summary: 4 Stars
Nearly twenty-five years ago, actors Dan Aykroyd and Tom Hanks teamed up with witty director-screenwriter Tom Mankiewicz to wildly update the late Jack Webb's classic TV police melodrama, "Dragnet," into a contemporary action-comedy (a police buddy picture, if you will). By carrying over Sgt. Joe Friday's straight-laced, deadpan persona from the 1950's and 1960's and mixing it up with some inspired 1980's frat boy humor, the end result is a mostly hilarious romp that deserves re-discovery by a new generation.
It is 1987, as the late Joe Friday's namesake nephew (Dan Aykroyd) is a veteran police detective sitting at the same desk at HQ that his uncle once occupied. In a nostalgic nod to the original version's legacy, Harry Morgan returns as Bill Gannon, now promoted to captain and is the new Friday's long-suffering boss. With Joe's long-time partner off to Ukiah, CA, to start a goat farm, he is assigned a new partner, the freewheeling Pep Streebek (Tom Hanks), who, as Friday puts it, is about to have "his wings clipped" under Friday's no-nonsense supervision. Their first case is to tackle a mysterious satanic cult known as P.A.G.A.N., whose string of bizarre robberies inevitably sets up a showdown between Friday and one of his own heroes, the morally uprighteous Rev. Jonathan Whirley (Christopher Plummer).
Backed by a solid supporting cast including Alexandra Paul (as the virgin Connie Swail), Dabney Coleman (as soft-core porno tycoon Jerry Caesar), and Elizabeth Ashley (as the scheming Commissioner Kirkpatrick), Aykroyd and Hanks have literally a blast together chasing down P.A.G.A.N. lead thug Emil Muz (Jack O'Halloran) and friends before moving on to the big shoot-out finale & chase sequence starting at Caesar's Playboy Mansion-like estate in Beverly Hills.
All in all, the movie is hardly any movie classic (yes, there are sporadic misfired jokes), but, with its sincere homage to Jack Webb's beloved series, this police buddy comedy is simply top-notch for its genre right up there with another TV-inspired spoof, "The Naked Gun" starring Leslie Nielsen, which debuted the following year. The terrific dialogue (a trademark of the late Mankiewicz) showcases Aykroyd and Hanks in top form, especially the howler of a joke in the film's last few seconds. The surprisingly coherent plot involving a double-cross between co-conspirators Caesar and Whirley is at least plausible and holds up well today, particularly for this type of movie. Finally, to his credit, Aykroyd faithfully honors Jack Webb's memory with his own interpretation of intrepid Sgt. Joe Friday without betraying the original series.
With that in mind, I cheerfully recommend "Dragnet" as a great choice for action-comedy fans. And that's just the facts, Ma'am.
Rating: 8.5/10 (definitely for ages 13 and up for some profanity and various sexual inferences).
P.S. The minimal DVD special features are routine (including an obligatory trailer). It would have been a hoot to see again the "City of Crime" music video that Aykroyd and Hanks sang and performed in to promote the film's release.
Movie Review: Sequel, not a spoof or parody
Summary: 4 Stars
"Pseudo-halogenic compound cyanogen. Uh-huh."
There seems to be some sort of misunderstanding of the nature of 1987's comedy hit Dragnet. It's NOT a spoof of the TV show like the indescribably awful Starsky and Hutch movie from 2004. Aykroyd and Hanks can sleep sound at night knowing that they've made a movie for the ages, and despite a couple of elements which place it firmly in the 80s there's not much to make you think it wasn't made in the 21st century, especially that brilliant theme tune by The Art of Noise. A soundtrack CD was released at the time, but a dedicated score CD has, to date, never been made available, which is a shame since it's brilliant.
Dan Aykroyd plays the nephew of Jack Webb's Joe Friday (also called Joe). He's just as humorless, unironic and logical. He goes into ludicrous detail about the most trivial of matters and has never, ever, ever considered breaking the rules to break a case. His partner Frank quits and his boss Captain Bill Gannon (Jack Webb's partner in the original TV show, once again played by Harry Morgan) pairs him up with dirty, unshaven young renegade Pep Streebeck (Tom Hanks). They're the classic mismatched pair and the chemistry between them is absolutely perfect.
They're assigned to the P.A.G.A.N. case and discover a ruthless cult taking control of the Los Angeles crime network. WAY out of their depth, and with only a single witness to identify the P.A.G.A.N. leader they move from one amusing set-piece to the next, rubbing off on each other, and losing many vehicles (and Friday's beloved hat).
Dragnet went straight to Number 1 at the box office when it was released in the summer of 1987 and I've loved it ever since I was a kid. Even though I didn't completely understand it, Over the years I've noticed things that I previously missed and it's kept the film fresh and appealing all this time. It's not as fondly remembered as other comedy films from the era (such as The 'burbs, Uncle Buck or Fletch) for some reason but it's well worth owning.
The DVD is in average Dolby 2.0 surround with okay stereo effects and slight ambiance to James Ira Newborn's score and is anamorphically enhanced at 1.78:1. The only extra is a trailer which features scenes not in the movie. But seriously Universal, the time has come for a Blu Ray release. Dragnet was one of the first movies out of the door when DVD came along and I've owned this version for over 11 years. Blu Ray is hardly in its infancy anymore and I'd like you to start releasing more catalog movies. Can we have Dragnet in High-Def NOW please? We need a 1080p re-master and lossless audio for that brilliant score.