Dick Tracy is a 1990 pulp action film based on the 1930s comic strip character of the same name created by Chester Gould. Warren Beatty produced, directed, and starred in the film, which features supporting roles from Al Pacino, Madonna, Glenne Headly and Charlie Korsmo. Dick Tracy depicts the detective's love relationships with Breathless Mahoney (Madonna) and Tess Truehart (Headley), as well as his conflicts with crime boss Alphonse "Big Boy" Caprice (Pacino). Tracy also begins his upbringing of "The Kid" (Korsmo).
Development of the film started in the early 1980s with Tom Mankiewicz assigned to write the script. The project also went through directors Steven Spielberg, John Landis, Walter Hill and Richard Benjamin before the arrival of Beatty. Filming was entirely at Universal Studios, whereas Max Allan Collins was involved in heavy controversies with Disney concerning the novelization of the film, and the screenplay. Danny Elfman was hired to compose the film score, and the music was featured on three separate soundtrack albums.
Dick Tracy was finally released in 1990. It received mixed reviews, but was generally a success at the box office and at awards time. It picked up seven Academy Award nominations and won in three of the categories. A sequel was planned, but a controversy over the film rights ensued between Beatty and Tribune Media Services, so a second film has not been produced.
Plot
At an illegal card game, a young street urchin witnesses the massacre of mobsters Shoulders (Stig Eldrid), Stooge (Jim Wilkey), the Rodent (Neil Summers), the Brow (Chuck Hicks), and Little Face (Lawrence Steven Meyers) by Flattop (William Forsythe) and Itchy (Ed O'Ross). Flattop and Itchy are on the payroll of "Big Boy" Caprice (Al Pacino) whose crime syndicate is aggressively taking over small businesses in the city. Detective Dick Tracy (Warren Beatty) catches the urchin (who calls himself "Kid") (Charlie Korsmo) in an act of petty theft. After rescuing him from a ruthless guardian, Tracy temporarily adopts him with the help of his girlfriend, Tess Truehart (Glenne Headly).
Meanwhile, Big Boy coerces club owner Lips Manlis (Paul Sorvino) into signing over the deed to Club Ritz . He then kills Lips by placing him in a cement-filled box and dropping it into the river while one of his men shoots an eavesdropping policeman. Big Boy also steals his girlfriend, the seductive and sultry singer Breathless Mahoney (Madonna) and takes her to spread the word that anyone who worked for Lips now works for him. After police find Lips' body, Tracy goes to arrests Big Boy for Lips' murder, but there is no useful physical evidence and Breathless is the only witness. Instead of providing testimony, she unsuccessfully attempts to seduce Tracy. Big Boy cannot be convicted and he is released from jail. Big Boy's next move is to try to bring other criminals Spud Spaldoni (James Caan), Pruneface (R. G. Armstrong), Influence (Henry Silva), Ribs Mocca (Robert Beecher), Mumbles (Dustin Hoffman), Texie Garcia (Catherine O'Hara), and Numbers (James Tolkan) together under his leadership while Dick Tracy overhears the meeting while staying out of view. Spaldoni refuses stating that he has his own business to run and meets an untimely demise that night when he falls victim to a car bomb upon leaving the meeting area. Having witnessed this meeting, Tracy tries again to get the testimony from Breathless he needs to put Big Boy away.
She agrees to testify only if Tracy agrees to give in to her advances. He resists, despite his growing attraction. Meanwhile, Big Boy has the detective kidnapped in order to try to bribe him, but the Kid, who has followed the detective and is watching, is deeply impressed when Tracy refuses to be corrupted and saves him when the gangsters attempt to then kill him. To retaliate, Tracy leads a seemingly unsuccessful raid on Club Ritz , but one of his men plants a listening device with a operative, "Bug" Bradley, in the attic so the police can hear in on Big Boy's criminal activities. The resultant raids all but wipe out Big Boy's criminal empire. Caprice discovers the microphone, sets up a trap to kill Tracy and the captured Bradley in a warehouse, but a figure with no face (known as "The Blank") steps out of the shadows to save them. Meanwhile, Breathless shows up at Tracy's apartment, once again in an attempt to seduce him. Tracy shows he is only human by allowing her to kiss him. Tess witnesses this and leaves town. She eventually has a change of heart. But before she can tell Tracy, she is kidnapped by The Blank. Tracy falls victim to another trap. He is drugged by The Blank and framed for the murder of corrupt District Attorney John Fletcher (Dick Van Dyke).
Big Boy is back in business, but he too is framed in this case for Tess' kidnapping. Sprung from jail by his colleagues on New Year's Eve, Tracy sets out to save his true love. He arrives at a shootout outside Big Boy's club where all of Big Boy's men are gunned down by the police and Tracy himself. Abandoning his crew, Big Boy ties Tess to the mechanism of a drawbridge, but he is confronted by both the Blank and Tracy. Desperate to escape, he shoots the Blank. Enraged, Tracy punches Caprice and sends him falling to his death in the bridge gears. Beneath the faceless figure's mask, Tracy is shocked to find Breathless Mahoney, who kisses him and breathes her last breath. He then frees his girlfriend and his name is cleared from the murder of Fletcher. Later, in the middle of a marriage proposal to Tess, Tracy is interrupted by a robbery in progress, and takes off with the Kid, who now calls himself Dick Tracy, Jr.
Cast
- Warren Beatty as Dick Tracy : Square-jawed detective sporting a yellow overcoat and fedora. He is deeply committed to breaking up the organized crime that infests the city. Tracy is next in line to become the chief of police, which he dismisses as a "desk job".
- Al Pacino as Alphonse "Big Boy" Caprice : The main antagonist and the leading crime boss of the city. Although he is involved with numerous criminal activities, they remain unproven, as Tracy has never been able to catch him in the act or find a witness to testify.
- Madonna as Breathless Mahoney : An entertainer at Club Ritz who's interested in stealing Tracy from his girlfriend.
- Glenne Headly as Tess Trueheart : Dick Tracy's girlfriend, who tries to persuade him to enjoy life and marry her.
- Charlie Korsmo as The Kid : A scrawny street orphan who survives by eating out of garbage cans. He falls into Tracy and Truehearts' lives and becomes an ally.
- Dick Van Dyke as District Attorney John Fletcher : A well-liked but corrupt city official who does the bidding of Caprice.
- Seymour Cassel and James Keane as Sam Catchem and Pat Patton : Tracy's two closest associates.
- Michael J. Pollard as Bug Bailey : A surveillance expert.
- Charles Durning as Chief Brandon : The kindly chief of police, who supports Tracy's crusade.
- Kathy Bates as Mrs. Green : The police department's stenographer.
- Dustin Hoffman as Mumbles : Caprice's fast-talking (if incomprehensible) henchman.
- William Forsythe as Flattop : Caprice's top hitman. His most distinguishing feature is his square, flat cranium and matching haircut.
- Ed O'Ross as Itchy : Another Caprice henchman who suffers from an irritating skin condition.
- James Tolkan as Numbers : Caprice's accountant.
- Mandy Patinkin as 88 Keys : A piano player at Club Ritz who becomes The Blank's minion.
- R. G. Armstrong as Pruneface : A deformed crime boss who becomes one of Caprice's minions.
- Henry Silva as Influence : Pruneface's sinister top gunman.
- Paul Sorvino : as Lips Manlis : The original owner of Club Ritz and Caprice's mentor.
- James Caan as Spuds Spaldoni : A crime boss who refuses to submit to Caprice, and dies in a car bomb.
- Catherine O'Hara as Texie Garcia : A female crime boss who accepts Caprice's dominance.
Hamilton Camp appears as a store owner. Allen Garfield, John Schuck, and Charles Fleischer make cameos as reporter. Walker Edmiston, John Moschitta, Jr., and Neil Ross provide the voices of each radio announcer.
Development
Warren Beatty had a concept for a Dick Tracy film in 1975. At the time, the film rights were owned by Michael Laughlin, who gave up his option from Tribune Media Services after he was unsuccessful in pitching Dick Tracy to Hollywood studios. Floyd Mutrux and Art Linson purchased the film rights from the Tribune in 1977, and, in 1980, United Artists became interested in financing/distributing Dick Tracy . Tom Mankiewicz was under negotiations to write the script, based on his previous success with Superman (1978) and Superman II (1980). The deal fell through when Chester Gould insisted on strict fin
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