Fletch Lives

Fletch (Chevy Chase) is a reporter for a Los Angeles newspaper, but he acts more like a detective. When an obscure relative leaves him a Louisiana mansion in his will, Fletch is naturally curious.

The movie gained a mixed to negative reception, and I can understand why. While there is a certain level of fun with any classic Chevy Chase film, this one has almost none of what made the first one great. Much lighter on the antics, and much heavier on trying to play up southern stereotypes for cheap laughs.

Hal Holbrook and R. Lee Ermey make for some good supporting cast members, but they just are not enough to save this one. Entertaining, yes, but not the sequel it should have been.

This movie for me epitomizes the arrogance of Hollywood. The first Fletch movie was a hit, thanks in large part to the fact that it was a fairly faithful adaptation of the first book in the Fletch series by Gregory MacDonald. The book was a tightly woven, well-plotted mystery in which a smart character solved the crime by buffaloing less clued-in types. However, when time came to make a sequel, the studio decided that none of the other dozen or so Fletch novels would be suitable and Instead put together a generic comedy mystery with a plot right out of Scooby-Doo. This is dumbed down generic 80s action junk of the worst sort, partially saved by Chevy Chase's deadpan use of the trademark Fletch trick of disguising himself and impersonating people to get information. To be fair, Chase and the writers manage a few genuine laughs with this, so the gimmick still works, but it's in service of much inferior story, and this simply shouldn't be. A hit book series produces an original hit movie, so why mess with something that works? Simply put, Hollywood studios are staffed by people who think they know better but don't. A comedy-mystery, like any other hybrid, has to work effectively in both genres to be a success and the mystery plot line is just too weak to carry the film.

This movie for me was a special disappointment, as the Fletch series ended here, when Chase could easily have made a career out of starring as Fletch in adaptations of several books before Chase-as- Fletch wore out his welcome. It was a great fit of an actor to a role and should have gone on much longer.

Fletch Lives (1989)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

Chevy Chase returns as Irwin 'Fletch' Fletcher in this sequel to the 1985 flick. This time out Fletch inherits a Louisiana estate and on his first night there the woman who contacted him ends up dying. The reporter in Fletch comes and and he starts an investigation that leads him to a preacher (R. Lee Ermey) who might be hiding a few things. This movie seems to have been beaten to death when originally released and it's somewhat hard to find a positive review of it anywhere but I thought it was a lot better than its reputation. Sure, the movie isn't as smooth or as good as the first one but the most important thing is laughs and that's something I did quite a few times. The movie obviously cuts back on the various characters Chase plays as this is pretty much left to the final twenty-minutes but I didn't mind this too much. You could argue that the screenplay is lazy and just throwing him into a plot involving countless stereotypes but, again, I don't mind this because it made me laugh. The scenes with the KKK, the dumb cop with the termite in his ear and the raccoon hunt were full of stereotypes but they were all funny. Heck, we even get a spoof of SONG OF THE SOUTH. Chase isn't quite as great as in the original film but he's still good enough to keep everything moving and his various characters once again get plenty of laughs. Chase easily plays the role without any problems and even his narration can get some laughs. Ermey is good in his role as usual as is Hal Holbrook and Julianne Phillips. The one and only Randall 'Tex' Cobb does his usual tough character and gets some nice laughs. The film's actual mystery isn't all that interesting and the ending take a while to get to but I still feel this film manages to be a lot more entertaining than its rep would lead you to believe.

When Gregory McDonald created the character I. M. Fletcher "Fletch", he must have had Chevy Chase in mind. Both "Fletch Lives" and "Fletch" are perfect vehicles for Chevy's brand of dry humor. Snappy dialogue and amusing disguises by Chase make these two Fletch movies, his best film work. If you like Chevy Chase you'll love "Fletch Lives and "Fletch".

You had to a fan of Chevy Chase to fully enjoy the first installment but here you have to be a die hard devotee to get the most out of the sequel. The first one had a really good detective story that nearly got buried with wisecracks, but on subsequent viewings it really came alive and it ranks as one of the best movies Chevy Chase has been involved in.

Fletch Lives has Fletch moving to the South where he has inherited a mansion from his aunt. Continuing interest in buying the nearly worthless land for a huge amount of money evokes suspicions and our favorite reporter goes snooping around.

Fletch Lives is not nearly as well crafted or written as the first one, with a rather predictable mystery that doesn't seem to take itself seriously for one second. But it does have some fantastic comic sequences; such as Fletch impersonating a faith healer, Fletch encountering a mean biker gang, a memorable meeting with a fellow inmate and some one great one-liners delivered with style by the great comedian (as you might have guessed; I'm a big fan).

Supporting actors like Hal Holbrook and R. Lee Ermey add to the enjoyment and Chase delivers but when all is said and done Fletch Lives is for fans only who can overlook the shallowness of the film as a whole.