The Singing Detective

Fancy a brightly lit hospital or a beautifully atmospheric noir? An unpredictable cinematic trip with coarse language in every other square, legendary songs, and Robert Downey, who conquers every scene. The whole film is a crazy deception for the viewer because there seems to be no definitive way to interpret each scene, but thanks to the likable courage to jump from sexual openness to a musical and from unbreathable satire to captivating psychology, I can't really be mad about it. I actually enjoy this type of hopeless search for the basic storyline. (31.07.2007)

Reviewing The Singing Detective is a very tricky puzzle. Some films can be reviewed in one sentence, and there are those where even a whole page of text is not enough to express conflicting feelings. I watched this with the expectation of a genre film, but that is not the case here. The film is part of several genres, and although I've seen some movies where it worked, this is a different case. At one moment, it feels like a musical, in the next like a psychological drama, and later like pure comedy. The individual ingredients from which it was cooked are very tasty, but the film does not hold together, and the result is "English pudding." The film features good actors in unconventional roles, inventive direction, a screenplay that works with original elements, and dance numbers that are very interesting, but they don't move the plot forward and don't fit into the film. If I had been better prepared for the film, my rating would have been better. To me, it's somewhere between 2 and 3 stars, and I lean toward the third star to appreciate the originality and courage, because a big commercial success couldn't have been expected. The story of a seriously ill man who takes out his helplessness on those around him and escapes into dreamlike fantasies can hardly win over mainstream audiences. In the first few minutes of the film, the viewer has a hard time orienting themselves between hallucinations, flashbacks, and reality. Overall impression: 50%. (12.01.2008)

Some scenes are absolutely perfect, and if it wasn't for those, this movie would have gotten one star less. An interesting bit here and there, and you might wonder where the dreams and hallucinations begin and end, but that's about it. If you like Robert Downey Jr. he's in pretty good form here; otherwise it's a pretty bland and flavorless film. A weaker 3 stars. Btw. it took me a while to recognize Mel ^^ (10.03.2011)

I like weird movies, but this one just isn't quite finished to the point where it's great. The noir scenes are great, but then their atmosphere is suddenly killed. Bizarre numbers are also great, but then suddenly a void follows. For me, this film is more of a disappointment; given the cast, I expected more. It doesn't really work as a parody either. (24.07.2017)