Movies / The Singing Detective (2003)

5/10

Runtime: 109 min

Genres: Comedy Crime Musical Mystery

Languages: English

Countries: USA


Dan Dark gives new meaning to the term "scars of childhood." A hack writer of detective stories, he has suffered from psoriatic arthropathy, a crippling disease of the skin and bones, from the time he was eight-years-old. His latest and worst outbreak has landed him in the hospital where he deliriously tries to figure out who he is and how he got to this terrible place in his life. His fevered mind mingles real people with his fictional characters, and his past with his present. As his condition grows more desperate, he is dispatched to the charge of the eccentric psychiatrist Dr. Gibbons. Initially reluctant to confront his tortured past, Dark is gradually lured out from the "cave in the rocks" under which his spirit has crawled. Dark is visited in the hospital by his ex-wife, whom he fears his sleeping with a character from his past and conspiring to steal the screenplay he wrote years ago of his first novel, The Singing Detective. But nothing is exactly what it appears here. In his hallucinatory state, Dark re-imagines the plot of his novel, casting himself in the starring role of a gumshoe who doubles as a singer in a dance band.


Directors (1) Credit
Keith Gordon ...
Writers (1) Credit
Dennis Potter (television series)
Editors (1) Credit
Jeff Wishengrad ...
Cinematographers (1) Credit
Tom Richmond (director of photography)
Actors (50) Credit
Adrien Brody First Hood
Alec Puro Dark's Drummer
Alfre Woodard Chief of Staff
Amy Aquino Nurse Nozhki
Andy Umberger Mr. Dark
Billy Bonsangue Dancer
Brenda Mae Hamilton Dancer (as Brenda Hamilton)
Bryan Law Dark's Guitar Player
Carla Anderson Dancer
Carla Gugino Betty Dark / Hooker
Clyde Kusatsu Visiting Japanese Doctor
Dani Wylie Dancer
Darrel W. Wright Dancer (as Darrel Wright)
David Denman Soldier with Betty Dark
David Dorfman Young Dan Dark
DeAnna Kane Dancer (as DeAnna Steele)
Dee Dee Weathers Dancer
Delila Vallot Dancer (as Jessica Vallot)
Don Fischer Intern
Earl Poitier Orderly (as Earl C. Poitier)
Eddie Jones Moonglow Bartender
Elle Taylor Dancer
Erin Crouch Dancer
Eva Mikita Dancer
Famisha La Pree Dancer
Gordon Hart Dancer
Jeremy Northam Mark Binney
Jon Polito Second Hood
Katie Holmes Nurse Mills
Kiva Dawson Dancer
Leonard Crofoot Dancer
Lily Knight Woman Physiotherapist
Mel Gibson Dr. Gibbon
Randi Pareira Dancer
Regan Patno Dancer
Renn Hawkey Dark's Bass Player
Richard Dorton Dancer
Rita Bland Dancer
Robert Downey Jr. Dan Dark
Robin Wright Nicola / Nina / Blonde (as Robin Wright Penn)
Rusty Nelson Bus Rider (uncredited)
Sandahl Bergman Dancer
Sandra Plazinic Dancer
Saul Rubinek Skin Specialist
Sergio Carbajal Dancer
Sheldon Robins Dancer
Spice Williams-Crosby Dancer (as Spice Williams)
Suzi Lonergan Dancer (as Suzie Lonergan)
Tara Nicole Hughes Dancer (as Tara Nicole)
Tasha Tae Dancer