After an explosion, private detective Maurice Pogue wakes up every morning with amnesia. The night before, he has always made sure to record on tape everything he would need to remember the next day, such as what is wrong with him and why. One very important detail: he must not tell anyone what is wrong with him, because he must testify in the case against Cornell, the bad guy responsible for the explosion, and without his testimony there is no case. Obviously, if he can't remember the explosion, he has no credibility as a witness.
Sarah Novak, who was supposedly killed in the explosion, comes to Pogue for help, saying she can't go to the police. She may be in the Witness Protection Program as fashion model Beth Holly. Or perhaps Beth is pretending to be Sarah.
Pogue and Sarah/Beth must search for a coin worth millions. One gag involves this coin being put into a parking meter.
And Pogue is also the father of a baby. It would be a disaster if a baby was put in the care of someone in his situation.
Cornell would like Pogue to conveniently forget what he saw. Of course, he doesn't know that he has gotten his wish.
Rosenheim is the prosecutor in Cornell's case, but he is so dense that when given clues the blind street musician could see the significance of, he can't figure out what they mean. Dolby is Rosenheim's wheelchair-bound boss.
Speaking of the street musician, he is quite good. He plays the clarinet and people give him money. Next to him is an artist painting new versions of The Mona Lisa on the side of a building. I say "versions" because he is not good at accepting criticism.
I liked a lot of the music in this movie. Some of it was traditional jazz, and the movie used various styles of music from old-style detective movies.
The concept of a private detective with amnesia was the funniest thing. Pogue had to be a detective every morning just to figure out who he was. "Groundhog Day" in reverse.
Dana Carvey was okay as Pogue. He had several standout moments, such as the time Cornell came to his door just after Pogue reminded himself the landlord was demanding the rent or else! And there was the scene where, while watching an old detective movie (Bogart may have been in it, but I'm not entirely sure), Pogue figured out how to solve his problem. And of course Dolby's birthday party at the movie's start.
I thought Michael Gambon gave the best performance as the evil gangster Cornell. Not completely evil, but balanced and convincing.
Pogue's dog Baby (played by Barkley) added a lot, because he kept bumping into things because of his lack of depth perception. And of course the name means Pogue keeps searching for clues related to a baby.
It isn't great, but it is entertaining.
