The Cheap Detective
The Cheap Detective

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- 64/100 based on 5,453 votes

Lou Peckinpaugh (Peter Falk), the Cheap detective has entered a world that is half Casablanca (1942) and half The Maltese Falcon (1941). A parody of Humphrey Bogart's movies in which Lou goes through a series of scenes from the two movies trying to keep ahead of the Police who think he killed his partner and find the black bird.... (Full plot summary below)

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Actors in The Cheap Detective:

Peter Falk
Ann-Margret
Eileen Brennan
Sid Caesar
Stockard Channing
James Coco

Full Plot Details

Lou Peckinpaugh (Peter Falk), the Cheap detective has entered a world that is half Casablanca (1942) and half The Maltese Falcon (1941). A parody of Humphrey Bogart's movies in which Lou goes through a series of scenes from the two movies trying to keep ahead of the Police who think he killed his partner and find the black bird.

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Movie Reviews

Chicago Sun-Times - 5/10 by Roger EbertIf you loved The Maltese Falcon and can recite all the best lines from Casablanca by heart, you'll hate The Cheap Detective, which is basically just the year's classiest and most expensive rip-off.
User Review - 10/10 by Justin EThe second and best attempt by Neil Simon to write specifically for the cinema - Highly unique.
User Review - 10/10 by Daniel K"The Cheap Detective" is a hardboiled detective comedy film written by Neil Simon. Specifically, it borrows a lot of its plot from "Casablanca" (1942) and "The Maltese Falcon" (1941). There are a few references to "Chinatown" (1974) as well and most importantly a lot of humor injected in. Peter Falk effectively plays Lou Peckinpaugh as a humorous send-up of Sam Spade and Rick Blaine. I enjoyed the other performances as well, particularly Nicol Williamson as a character parodying Major Strasser from "Casablanca" and John Houseman playing a character very similar to Kasper Gutman from "The Maltese Falcon". The only character that could have been better was Pepe Damascus, in a Peter Lorre type role, played by Dom DeLuise. This film is funny in several respects. The dialogue is amusing and often emulates and parodies the snappy dialogue of "Casablanca" and "The Maltese Falcon". Since the plot is cobbled together largely from those movies, there are a number of scenes like a humorous modification of the "La Marseillaise" scene from "Casablanca". Simon added a number of amusing complexities, sometimes nonsensical, into the script as a parody of the complexities in "The Maltese Falcon". Overall this film was consistently funny from start to finish. I recommend "The Cheap Detective" as a satire for people that enjoyed "Casablanca" and "The Maltese Falcon".
User Review - 10/10 by Trent MI love this movie. Peter Falk at his best. This movie really makes me miss Madeline Kahn. God Eileen Brennan is the best as Miss Betty DeBoop.
User Review - 10/10 by Amelia WAwesome if anyone wants to borrow it from they can
User Review - 10/10 by Kevin CIt's got everything of Casablanca without that annoying bitch Ingrid Bergman. This film really captures a lot of Casablanca and a lot of other films of the ear in a SERIOUS manor, but it has a great, subtle humor as well. Neil Simon is not just a spoofer--he's really interested in WHAT the films he mocks were about. And, really, he's not just mocking them. So give them a chance. This film might make you laugh, but if you don't laugh, then it might carry just about the same SERIOUS meaning as Casablanca, The Big Sleep and The Maltese Falcon as the actual films--but IN COLOR!!!
User Review - 10/10 by Jason FAwesome parody on film noir and classic detective stories
User Review - 10/10 by Christopher SThe second and best attempt by Neil Simon to write specifically for the cinema - Highly unique.
User Review - 10/10 by Private UThe combined forces of Neil Simon and Peter "Columbo" Falk are hilarious in this parody that skewers both "The Maltese Falcon" and "Casablanca."
User Review - 10/10 by Sarah MA lesser known title, but a must-see for anyone who loves to laugh.

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