Writer: Gregory McDonald (novel), Andrew Bergman (screenplay)
Based on the novel (from a series of novels) by Gregory McDonald, Irwin "Fletch" Fletcher (Chevy Chase) is an investigative reporter working on a story about the proliferation of drugs on San Francisco's beaches when a wealthy business man, Alan Stanwyk (Tim Matheson), offers Fletch $50,000 to kill him.
Fletch is really the all-time great comedies and one I hadn't seen in too many years. An intriguing detective story laced with the kind of humor that I miss. The film's strength comes from its razor-sharp script. It's a linear, dramatically-motived narrative in style of Classical Hollywood cinema. And like those early films, the dialogue is crisp and the soul of the humor. The jokes aren't obvious or told in a set up-delivery-punchline fashion, they evolve out of dramatic situations. While Chase's many disguises stand out in the viewer's mind, they aren't there for the sake of being funny. Fletch posing as John Cocktoastin, Mr. Poon, Gordon Liddy, or the roller-skating monk all stem from his need to uncover information but come off as incredibly funny. His many conversation with other characters is reminiscent of the Howard Hawks screwball comedies of the 1940s (think Bringing Up Baby [1938], and His Girl Friday [1940]).
While this is obviously a vehicle for Chevy Chase (already known for his physical stunts from his stint on SNL), the film wouldn't work as well with out the outstanding supporting cast. It seems to me that comedies today rely on either bodily/violent humor or an absurd narrative to allow for outrageous gags. Perhaps it's just my sense of humor or the comedies I find funny but movies like Beerfest (2006), Superbad (2007), and especially Will Farrell's body of "work" just don't do it for me. I walk away from those movies feeling like I've been cheated out of my time and presented with the worst kind of sophomoric humor. The comedy of Fletch is the result of filmmakers (and I mean the cast too) that trust their audience to engage the film intellectually, not just take a couple bong hits and coast along until the end credits. I think it's the subtle, deadpan quality that has helped the movie last over two decades; I seriously doubt many modern comedies will last nearly that long.
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