Fletch Lives (1989)

Director:

Michael Ritchie

Writers (WGA):

Gregory McDonald (character)
Leon Capetanos (written by)

Release Date:

17 March 1989 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Mystery | Crime

Tagline:

When there's more trouble than one man can handle...there's more than one man for the job.

Plot:

Fletch is a reporter for a Los Angeles newspaper, but he acts more like a detective. When an obscure...

Plot Keywords:

Shower | Evangelist | Electronic Music Score | Toxic Waste | Biker

US TV Schedule:

Wed. Sept. 10

6:00 AM

MAX

Cast

Chevy Chase	...	Irwin 'Fletch' Fletcher
Hal Holbrook	...	Hamilton "Ham" Johnson
Julianne Phillips	...	Becky Culpepper
R. Lee Ermey	...	Jimmy Lee Farnsworth
Richard Libertini	...	Frank Walker
Randall 'Tex' Cobb	...	Ben Dover
Cleavon Little	...	Calculus Entropy
George Wyner	...	Marvin Gillet
Patricia Kalember	...	Amanda Ray Ross
Geoffrey Lewis	...	KKK Leader
Richard Belzer	...	Phil
Phil Hartman	...	Bly Manager
Titos Vandis	...	Uncle Kakakis
Don Hood	...	Tom Barbour
Dennis Burkley	...	Joe Jack

Also Known As:

Fletch Saved (USA) (working title)

Runtime:

95 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Certification:

Iceland:L | Spain:T | Australia:PG (DVD rating) | Canada:14A (Ontario) | Australia:M | Finland:K-12 | Norway:11 | Singapore:PG | Sweden:11 | UK:PG | USA:PG | Germany:12

Filming Locations:

"Flash Flood" Ride, Universal Studios Theme Park, Universal Studios - 100 Universal City Plaza, Universal City, California, USA

Company:

Universal Pictures

Trivia:

Though there were eight sequels and prequels written by Gregory McDonald that could have been used as the basis for the second "Fletch" movie at the time, Universal decided to write a completely new story.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Fletch first sits on the water bed, the guitar falls from the wall. In the next shot the guitar hangs on the wall, although nobody put it back there.

Quotes:

Jimmy Lee Farnsworth: Erwin, admit that you are a sinner.
Fletch: Uh. Well, I've sinned. I didn't take any Polaroids or anything. But, yeah, I've sinned.
Jimmy Lee Farnsworth: The Lord forgives ya!
Fletch: Thank you. Thank you very much. Thank you. Thank you. Amen. What? Other sins? Uh, I parked in a handicap spot on my way up here. Actually, on a handicap person. I told him I'd be back in five minutes, so that's not such a big deal.

Movie Connections:

References "The Twilight Zone" (1959)

'Fletch Lives'… and he's better for it!

Irwin Fletcher, or better known as 'Fletch' is a Los Angeles investigative reporter, who quits his job and heads to Belle Isle a vast 80-arce Louisiana plantation that he has inherited from his late aunt. But soon after meeting the lovely attorney and spending the night together, she is mysteriously dead the next morning. This is where the trouble comes along, with a local lawyer telling him to leave town, and a stunning real estate agent has come to make Fletch a healthy offer for his estate. Though Fletch thinks there's something fishy about all of this and he goes to hilarious lengths to figure the real truth about why someone wants his land.

It never seems to amaze me, about how much I get out of this flick. Sure, there's nothing truly great about this feature and you can call it pointless and crude, but I never get tired of the shenanigans and Chevy's wittiness. You could say it's a guilty pleasure of mine that will always be a favourite, no matter what anyone else thinks. 'Fletch Lives' is basically more or less a vehicle for Chevy Chase's dry, smart-ass humour, and his prominently cunning persona. Really, that's about it. During this stage he was one of the funniest comedians in his prime. The others stars who appeared, in the likes of Hal Holbrook, R. Lee Ermey, Julianne Phillips and Richard Libertini basically play off Chase's character and fall under the mockery of his heavy-handed humour. But still, amongst their stupidity are fun performances from the support roles. The beautiful woman in the film seem to be there only for showpieces and to always fall under Fletch's charismatic appeal. Meaning they look nice, but really that's about it.

I'll even go to say that this sequel truly outdoes the original. By containing far more laughs and gags that actually work than that of the original. I don't mind the original, I like it. If you think this sequel is going to be just like the 'Fletch', forget it. It's far from it actually. While the original film was more a mystery story that led into ingenious gags. The mystery in this one takes a back step, and that's a BIG one too. The thin story and Chase's narration isn't much to go by, so most of the elements (or better put, little episodes) provided in the flick are their to give Chase some ammo to pock fun at, while dressing up in his offbeat disguises. In doing so, it basically comes off as parodying that of some movies (look at the title) and the southern states, especially by ridiculing the KKK and Religious gatherings. Some of these scenarios are embarrassing and have no meaning but to pad out the film. But that being said the action and laughs barely let up, as you just roll on with the sharp humour and punch lines. Honestly, its inane drivel that's for sure, but everyone pulls it off well enough. The comical aspect is basically tongue-in-cheek, with a touch of dry remarks and underlying sexual perversion. For some it might be offensive and lowbrow, but I couldn't help myself from raising a smirk from time to time. Chevy Chase's cool-as-ice performance was great fun, and I just enjoyed his manic absurdity overall and Cleavon Little was delightful as Calculus Entropy the caretaker of Fletch's estate.

Nothing will totally gobs-smack you about it, but it's just a sentimental favourite of mine, which I always find something joyous upon each viewing.