Who's Harry Crumb?

1989
PG-13
1h 34m

IMDb RATING

5.9/10

18K

YOUR RATING

Home Video Trailer from Columbia Tristar

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1 Video

99+ Photos

Bumbling Detective Slapstick Comedy Mystery

Harry Crumb is a bumbling and inept private investigator who is hired to solve the kidnapping of a young heiress which he's not expected to solve because his employer is the mastermind behin... Read allHarry Crumb is a bumbling and inept private investigator who is hired to solve the kidnapping of a young heiress which he's not expected to solve because his employer is the mastermind behind the kidnapping.Harry Crumb is a bumbling and inept private investigator who is hired to solve the kidnapping of a young heiress which he's not expected to solve because his employer is the mastermind behind the kidnapping.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

5.9/10

18K

YOUR RATING

See production info at IMDbPro

Trivia
John Laroquette was John Candy's first choice for the role of Elliott Draisen, because the two had been friends since working together in "Stripes" (1981) eight years earlier. However, Laroquette was busy with "Night Court" (1984) and couldn't accept the role. Candy's good friend and frequent collaborator, John Hughes, then suggested Jeffrey Jones for the role, as Hughes had directed Jones in "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" (1986). Candy initially was hesitant because he felt the film would seem too much like a John Hughes film without the involvement of Hughes himself, but Hughes assured Candy that Jones was right for the role and he was cast.

Goofs
The ransom money is paid in $1,000 bills, which went out of circulation in 1969. While $1,000 bills were still available in 1989, they were very rare and cost more than $1,000. No one would've paid a $10 million ransom in $1,000 bills at that time.

Quotes
Harry Crumb: [impersonating a Hungarian hairdresser] I am Djour Djilios.
Suki's Salon Receptionist: Could you spell that, please?
Harry Crumb: I don't think so. Try it with a "D".

Alternate versions
The British TV version included a scene near the end when John Candy is on top of a vehicle chasing after an aeroplane about to take off. The co-pilot looks out of the window, sees him and says, "What the fuck?!". This scene was not present in UK cinema and video releases which were cut to receive a PG rating, though the word was restored for the 12-rated 2008 Sony DVD.

Connections
Featured in Biography: To John with Love: A Tribute to John Candy (1995)

Soundtracks
On Your Side Tonight
Music by Michel Colombier
Lyrics by Kathy Wakefield
Produced by Michel Colombier
Performed by Richard Martin-Ross (as Richard Martin Ross)

User reviews83

Review

Featured review

7/10

The Time-Filling FLETCH-esque Neo Noir of John Candy

This underrated if semi-forgotten comedy with the title-character going from place to place to figure out who kidnapped the beautiful daughter of a rich man, learning he's inept at filling the shoes at his family-owned detective agency while always screwing things up, is an enjoyable time-filler...

It's John Candy's FLETCH and, while paling to the Chevy Chase classic (yet far superior to FLETCH LIVES), both have various disguises for each undercover scenario, taking the Film Noir gumshoe/snoop template into the bright and glossy late-1980s (there's even an orange tree on Harry's desk, a subtle nod to CHINATOWN)...

But the funniest moments don't seem like they're necessary meant to be, especially as Crumb flounders for the right words around comparably classy, educated people (like Annie Potts and hidden villain Jeffrey Jones) despite the comedy being hit and miss throughout...

But the characters interact well, especially the unique and flowing chemistry between Candy and "ugly duckling" Shawnee Smith as the younger sister of the kidnapped supermodel. And beware of the totally awesome mock-VHS cover: it's merely a cheap cardboard slip over the actual DVD/Blu Ray with same old artwork of yesteryear.