DVD/BLU RAY: FLETCH and FLETCH LIVES

Shane | 13 April 2017 | Reply

DVD/BLU RAY: FLETCH and FLETCH LIVES
Directed by Michael Ritchie
Starring Chevy Chase,
Shock Entertainment
March 2017
Reviewed by Shane Pinnegar
9/10 and 7/10

Chevy Chase is at his best playing newspaper reporter Irwin ‘Fletch’ Fletcher, donning aliases and disguises almost as fast as he deadpans quips and one-liners while trying to get to the bottom of an expose of the Los Angeles beach drug trade.

Throw in a dying millionaire who, mistaking Fletch for a junkie bum, hires our hero to kill him, and we have a clever, well-written thriller which Chase manages to elevate to a comedy classic.

There’s a few dated elements to this 1985 film – not least of which is Harold Faltermeyer’s ‘80s synth soundtrack – but overall it stands up well and remains very funny.

1989’s Fletch Lives fares less well, with a flimsier story – Fletch inherits a dilapidated Louisiana estate that someone is prepared to kill for – and some of the same costumes. Chase does his best with the material, but even the jokes are a little thinner here.

It’s a shame Chase never revisited the Fletch series – as the first film proved, with a great script and the star on fire, it’s a winning combination.

www.shock.com.au