Adrien Brody, Alfre Woodard, Carla Gugino

Dan Dark gives new meaning to the term "scars of childhood." A hack writer of detective stories, he has suffered from psoriatic arthropathy, a crippling disease of the skin and bones, from the time he...( read more  read more... ) was eight-years-old. His latest and worst outbreak has landed him in the hospital where he deliriously tries to figure out who he is and how he got to this terrible place in his life. His fevered mind mingles real people with his fictional characters, and his past with his present. As his condition grows more desperate, he is dispatched to the charge of the eccentric psychiatrist Dr. Gibbons. Initially reluctant to confront his tortured past, Dark is gradually lured out from the "cave in the rocks" under which his spirit has crawled. Dark is visited in the hospital by his ex-wife, whom he fears his sleeping with a character from his past and conspiring to steal the screenplay he wrote years ago of his first novel, The Singing Detective. But nothing is exactly what it appears here. In his hallucinatory state, Dark re-imagines the plot of his novel, casting himself in the starring role of a gumshoe who doubles as a singer in a dance band.

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43% liked it

6,402 ratings

Critics

38% liked it

105 critics

R, 1 hr. 49 min.

Directed by: Keith Gordon

Release Date: October 24, 2003

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DVD Release Date: March 23, 2004

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Flixster Reviews (304)


  • August 22, 2009
    Complete madness...
  • June 16, 2008
    weird movie but fuckin funny
  • October 23, 2007
    Um...Robert Jr is creepy, and has katie holmes do creepy things to his creepy body.
  • April 13, 2006
    Great.. I mean GREAT cast; and I love Downey jr, but this film lacked...well, a lot.
  • June 1, 2009
    I had two reasons, one mainly for watching it... they were good reasons.

    If I take away the enjoyment of those, the movie was pretty lame. I haven't seen the original TV thing of it so I can't compare. It seemed to be pretty pointless and nothing much happened. Yeah... also, I...( read more) didn't recognize Mel Gibson at all, which was strange because I can usually recognize anyone...
  • November 22, 2009
    The movie itself is a bit confusing, as Dark has flashbacks of his childhood mixed with characters from his novel. He has hallucinations, which cause the characters to break out into musical numbers, with songs like "Mr. Sandman."

    I am the type of person that enjoys film...( read more) noirs and murder mysteries, but this just was all over the place. It was an alright film with a well-known cast, but I personally enjoy Robert Downey's other film noir, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, more.
  • October 8, 2009
    I love a good detective movie, and though this isn't your normal gumshoe flick, it was entertaining. It has a decent cast and the dialogue was really well written at parts. I liked the way this one was shot and lit. There was hardly a plot, and the little musical interludes seeme...( read more)d unnecessary, but still, I didn't really mind. Must've been a hundred movies made around the same time, that mix perceived reality and the imagined, but this one was just a nice blend.
  • July 25, 2009
    So good. So funny. So creatively weird. But it's good. They did a great job. But what did you expect from a guy who could land into any role that would surely shock you? The very best, of course. This movie just makes me laugh. And the fact that he worked with Mel Gibson again ma...( read more)de it better.
  • July 5, 2009
    this fantastic movie
  • April 10, 2009
    Another tour de force from our beloved Robert. His first big role since getting clean, and quite a revelation it is. Thanks to Mel Gibson for his faith and insight, and kudos to Robert for another riveting performance.

Critic Reviews


November 14, 2003
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

When I saw it at Sundance, my attention was divided because I was trying to process the meaning of the jagged structure. Seeing it again a week ago, knowing what to expect, I found it a more moving ex... full review

November 7, 2003
Moira MacDonald, Seattle Times

It just doesn't work; not as an adaptation of the acclaimed 1980s British television series, nor as a stand-alone movie. full review

November 7, 2003
Mick LaSalle, San Francisco Chronicle

The movie makes its point and still has another hour to go. full review

November 7, 2003
Ty Burr, Boston Globe

True, Gordon is working from Potter's own adapted script, but it's hard to shake the sense that the writer may simply have been trolling for a Hollywood paycheck. full review

October 23, 2003
A.O. Scott, The New York Times

The movie lurches when it should glide, shouts when it should whisper and mumbles when it should sing. full review

View more The Singing Detective reviews at RottenTomatoes.com

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The Singing Detective Trivia


  • Robert Downey Junior, Katie Holmes, Robin Wright Penn, Adrien Brody and Mel Gibson. Name the film.  Answer »
  • What two movies did Mel Gibson and Robert Downey Jr. appear in?  Answer »
  • What actor appeared in Back to School (1986) and later went on to become a respected director whose titles include A Midnight Clear, Waking the Dead and The Singing Detective?  Answer »
  • Phillip Marlow, Albus Dumbledore, the singing detective,,, who am i?   Answer »

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