Dirty Rotten Scoundrels (1988)

Director:

Frank Oz

Writers (WGA):

Dale Launer (written by) and
Stanley Shapiro (written by) ...
(more)

Release Date:

14 December 1988 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Crime

Tagline:

Nice guys finish last. Meet the winners.

Plot:

Lawrence and Freddie are con-men; big-time and small time respectively. They unsuccessfully attempt...

Plot Keywords:

Pooping In Pants | Caper | Con Artist | Farce | Sailor

Awards:

Nominated for Golden Globe. Another 1 win

Cast

Steve Martin	...	Freddy Benson
Michael Caine	...	Lawrence Jamieson
Glenne Headly	...	Janet Colgate
Anton Rodgers	...	Inspector Andre
Barbara Harris	...	Fanny Eubanks
Ian McDiarmid	...	Arthur
Dana Ivey	...	Mrs. Reed
Meagen Fay	...	Lady from Oklahoma
Frances Conroy	...	Lady from Palm Beach
Nicole Calfan	...	Lady in Dining Car
Aïna Walle	...	Miss Krista Knudsen
Cheryl Pay	...	Lady with Pearls
Nathalie Auffret	...	Marion
Lolly Susi	...	Lady in Rolls Royce
Rupert Holliday-Evans	...	English Sailor #1 (as Rupert Holliday Evans)
Hepburn Graham	...	English Sailor #2
Xavier Maly	...	Hotel Bellboy
André Penvern	...	Waiter on the Train
Louis Zorich	...	Greek Millionaire
Georges Gerrard Baffos	...	Assistant Hotel Manager
Valerie Beaufils	...	Pretty Beach Girl
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Patricia Davidson	...	Woman with dogs (uncredited)

Directed by
Frank Oz

Writing credits (WGA)
Dale Launer		(written by) and
Stanley Shapiro		(written by) &
Paul Henning		(written by)

Produced by
Charles Hirschhorn	....	executive producer
Dale Launer	....	executive producer
Bernard Williams	....	producer

Original Music by
Miles Goodman

Cinematography by
Michael Ballhaus		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
Stephen A. Rotter
William S. Scharf		(as William Scharf)

Casting by
Donna Isaacson
John S. Lyons		(as John Lyons)

Production Design by
Roy Walker

Art Direction by
Damien Lanfranchi
Steve Spence

Set Decoration by
Rosalind Shingleton

Costume Design by
Marit Allen

Makeup Department
Lois Burwell	....	makeup artist: Mr. Caine
Pascal Charbonnier	....	makeup artist
Janet Flora	....	makeup artist
Geraldine Jones	....	hair stylist (as Gerry Jones)
Matthew W. Mungle	....	prosthetic makeup artist (as Matthew Mungle)
Dorothy J. Pearl	....	makeup artist: Mr. Martin (as Dorothy Pearl)
Toni-Ann Walker	....	hair stylist: Mr. Martin
Thierry Zemmour	....	hair stylist

Production Management
Bernard Mazauric	....	unit production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Antoine Sabarros	....	second second assistant director
Gerry Toomey	....	second assistant director
David Tringham	....	first assistant director
Bernard Williams	....	first assistant director

Art Department
Maurice Borghese	....	head draper (as Maurice Borghesi)
Noelle Fortuna	....	assistant draper
Derek Knowler	....	property storeman
Bernard Harvey Langton	....	assistant property master (as Bernard Harvey-Langton)
Louis Lenoir	....	head painter
Phillipe Mazauric	....	property buyer
Jean Menna	....	head carpenter
Tony Rimmington	....	assistant art director
Terry Wells	....	property master

Sound Department
C.J. Appel	....	adr editor
Don Banks	....	boom operator
Chris Beaver	....	assistant adr editor
Richard Beggs	....	sound re-recording mixer
Mark Berger	....	sound re-recording mixer
Karen Brocco	....	assistant foley editor
Luis Colina	....	foley editor
Ron Davies	....	adr editor
Frank E. Eulner	....	assistant sound effects editor (as Frank Eulner)
Tina Fallani	....	apprentice dialogue editor
Rob Fruchtman	....	foley editor
Marjorie L. Hagar	....	apprentice sound effects/foley (as Marjorie Hagar)
Pat Jackson	....	sound effects editor
Tom Johnson	....	sound re-recording mixer
Ann Kroeber	....	sound effects editor
John Nutt	....	dialogue editor
Bob Robinson	....	assistant adr editor
Ivan Sharrock	....	production sound mixer
Michael Silvers	....	dialogue editor
Alan Splet	....	supervising sound editor
Jean-Pierre Steen	....	sound assistant
Lionel Strutt	....	adr recordist: Mayflower Film Recording Ltd. London
John Verbeck	....	assistant sound effects editor
Gwendolyn Yates Whittle	....	assistant dialogue editor (as Gwendolyn Yates)
Vanessa Theme Ament	....	foley artist (uncredited)
Philip Rogers	....	sound recordist (uncredited)

Special Effects by
Richard Miranda	....	special effects makeup (uncredited)

Stunts
Terry Walsh	....	stunt double: Mr. Caine

Camera and Electrical Department
Florian Ballhaus	....	first assistant camera
Jan Sebastian Ballhaus	....	video playback operator (as Sebastian Ballhaus)
Rene Basso	....	grip
Arthur Blum	....	dolly grip
Tony Bratulic	....	grip (as Antoine Bratulic)
Bruce Byall	....	best boy grip
Ernest Cabezas	....	generator operator
Jean-Marie Lopez	....	electrician
Bobby Mancuso	....	second assistant camera (as Robert Mancuso)
Stéphane Nègre	....	electrician
Bob Penn	....	still photographer (as Robert Penn)
John 'Fest' Sandau	....	best boy electric (as John Sandau)
Steve Smith	....	key grip
James R. Tynes	....	gaffer (as Jim Tynes)

Casting Department
Françoise Combadière	....	casting: Paris (as Francoise Combadiere)
Caroline Mazauric	....	casting: Nice
Debbie McWilliams	....	casting: London
Roberto Robin	....	assistant casting: Nice

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Claudia Fellous	....	wardrobe assistant (as Claudy Fellous-Marliere)
Sue Gandy	....	assistant costume designer
Suzy Sand	....	wardrobe assistant
Dennis Schoonderwoerd	....	costumer: Mr. Steve Martin
James Smith	....	costumer: Mr. Michael Caine (as James A. Smith)

Editorial Department
Berj Amir	....	apprentice film editor
Reid Burns	....	color timer
Elisa Cohen	....	apprentice film editor
Denis Coq	....	assistant film editor
Richard Friedlander	....	first assistant film editor
Robert Grahamjones	....	assistant film editor
Jenny Oznowicz	....	apprentice film editor
Bob Sarles	....	assistant film editor

Music Department
Ethan Chase	....	scoring assistant
Nancy Fogarty	....	music editor
Devon Miller	....	assistant music editor
Jim Mitchell	....	scoring assistant
Joel Moss	....	music recordist
Thomas Pasatieri	....	orchestrator
Jerry Goodman	....	musician: violin (uncredited)

Transportation Department
Gaston Veilleux	....	transportation coordinator

Other crew
Régis Brun	....	assistant location manager (as Regis Brun)
René Brun	....	location manager (as Rene Brun)
Laurence Coutaud-Garnier	....	production secretary (as Laurence Coutaud)
Isabelle de Geofroy	....	assistant auditor
Inger Eisenhour	....	assistant: Mr. Oz and Mr. Williams
Bran Ferren	....	title designer
Tom Gray	....	publicist
Ruth Hasty	....	assistant: Mr. Oz and Mr. Williams
Joseph Brad Kluge	....	production assistant (as Joseph Kluge)
Barbara Lucey	....	financial representative
Dianne Mapp-Cheek	....	production controller (as Dianne Lisa Cheek)
Nelly Niay	....	auditor: France
Valerie E. Norman	....	script supervisor (as Valerie Norman-Williams)
Andrea Tringham	....	production assistant
Michelle Wright	....	production coordinator (as Michelle Wright-Warnick)

Production Companies

• Orion Pictures Corporation

Distributors

• 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment (Brazil) (DVD)
• American Broadcasting Company (ABC) (1992) (USA) (TV) (broadcast premiere)
• Flashstar (Brazil) (VHS)
• Home Video Hellas (HVH) (1989) (Greece) (VHS)
• MGM Home Entertainment (2003) (USA) (DVD)
• Orion Pictures Corporation
• Roadshow Entertainment (1988) (Australia) (theatrical)
• Roadshow Home Video
• Spentzos Films (1988) (Greece) (theatrical)

Runtime:

110 min | Turkey:104 min (TV version)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Certification:

Australia:PG | New Zealand:PG | Iceland:L | Canada:PG | Finland:S | Norway:5 (1989) | Sweden:Btl | UK:PG | USA:PG | West Germany:12 | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

Alpes-Maritimes, France

Company:

Orion Pictures Corporation

Trivia:

This film is actually a remake of the comedy Bedtime Story (1964).

Goofs:

Continuity: During the telephone conversation between Andre and Jamieson, the level of liquor in Andre's glass and bottle rises and falls inconsistently.

Quotes:

Freddy Benson: I didn't steal any money! She just saw me with another woman! You're French, you understand that!
Inspector Andre: To be with another woman, that is French. To be caught, that is American.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "20 to 1: Funny Films (#4.6)" (2007)

Soundtrack:

We're in the Money

Winning Comedy from the Land of Oz

Director Frank Oz landed the dream team from comedic heaven when Steve Martin and Michael Caine signed on to star in this hilarious comedy of manners and mannerisms, `Dirty Rotten Scoundrels,' a film that manages to be entertaining without being offensive in any way, and features some terrific performances and-- filmed on location in the French Riviera-- some beautiful cinematography by Michael Ballhaus. Made in 1988, this film not only holds up well, but seems so refreshing after a decade of `American Pies' and other such fare featuring one witless, forgettable `talent' after another. It's a reminder that true comedy can have sophistication without necessarily being sophisticated, and that real humor is timeless. This is stuff that was good when it was made, is even better today, and will have you laughing even harder at it twenty, thirty or fifty years from now.

Freddy Benson (Martin) is a small time American con man/aspiring gigolo traveling abroad with his sights set on the Riviera, specifically Beaumont Sur Mer, which he understands is easy pickings for a talent such as his. Why, on the train into town alone, he bilks a compassionate young woman out of dinner and twenty dollars, using the old I'm-saving-up-for-my-dear-old-grandmother's-operation ploy. On that same train, however, observing Freddy's operation from across the aisle, is Lawrence Jamieson (Caine), a big time con artist/gigolo, who as it happens, lives in Beaumont Sur Mer. And instantly, Jamieson looks upon Freddy with disdain; after all, this is a man who has perfected the art of bilking rich young women for sums that fall into five and six digits by successfully masquerading as a Prince or some such Nobility, who needs vast sums of money in order to `save' his country from the Communists, an unspecified opposition, or whatever else will work. Furthermore, it's taken a lot of time and effort to get to where he's at, and he's not about to let the unseemly Freddy Benson cut into his act.

So with the help of his associate ( a local policeman), Inspector Andre (Anton Rodgers), Jamieson sets out to `discourage' Freddy from attempting to get a foothold in Beaumont Sur Mer. But Freddy, it turns out, may not be the unwitting amateur Jamieson presumed him to be-- Andre has just received word that an elusive con artist has arrived in the area; a professional known only as `The Jackal.' And so, the game is afoot; a game that will ultimately bring Jamieson and Freddy closer together, and involve them with a wealthy American named Janet Colgate (Glenne Headly), who will become the focus of more than just a little attention before it's all over. it becomes a contest between the suave Lawrence Jamieson and the unruly Freddy Benson. And the winner? Well, by the end it's clear who the real winner is here-- and without a doubt, it's the audience.

Oz must have had a good time making this movie, because he had all the tools available to him from the best of both worlds. There's the broad, physical humor employed and perfectly delivered by Martin, and the subtle, studied approach that Caine uses. Their styles contrast wonderfully, and Oz certainly makes the most of it. He's put together some scenes that are beyond hilarious, like the one in which Lawrence attempts tutoring Freddy in the art of being suave and sophisticated; or when-- as part of a scam-- Freddy takes on the role of `Ruprecht,' Lawrence's incorrigible, moronic brother. It's in these scenes that Oz seems to give Martin, especially, some free reign, and the rewards are substantial. And it's definitely a joint effort on the part of the two stars; Martin is funny, but it's Caine's response to him that really makes it work. It also demonstrates that Oz knows his territory, and proceeds accordingly.

Caine gives a performance that presents Jamieson as the epitome of charm and experience, in the grand tradition of the likes of David Niven and Cary Grant. This is one smooth operator, and the fact that he lives by a personal `code' that only allows him to bilk the very rich (and only if they `deserve' it), enables you to like him for who and what he is. He's not a guy who's going to let a mark sell the family furniture and car to invest in one of his schemes; call him a con man with scruples. And Caine plays him to perfection.

Martin, however, is the one who really gets to cut loose in the role of Freddy, and without question, he does physical comedy better than anyone since Buster Keaton or Chaplin. Martin can get a laugh just by walking into a room. He invests Freddy with a less than retiring manner, and takes it over the top in his guise as Ruprecht, using his entire body as a vehicle through which he expresses this particular bit of lunacy. And seeing him in action is an absolute riot. As he did so successfully in his stand-up days, Martin parlays a facial expression combined with the most erratic movements of his arms and legs into a visual image that can be indescribably funny. He's one of the select few actor/comedians with a true and innate sense of real comedy, and moreover, he knows how to sell it to his audience.

As the seemingly hapless Janet, Headly does a good job, but it's a role that may have been more conducive to the likes of Melanie Griffith or even Diane Keaton, either of whom would've given the character a decidedly different spin.

The supporting cast includes Barbara Harris (Fanny), Ian McDiarmid (Arthur) and Dana Ivey (Mrs. Reed). Funny and thoroughly entertaining, `Dirty Rotten Scoundrels,' with it's contrasting comedic styles and polished presentation, is a minor classic in it's own right. A winner from the Land of Oz, wherein Caine and Martin are the reigning Royalty, this is one comedy that will definitely continue to withstand the test of time. 8/10.