Radioland Murders

1994 "At station WBN, the hits just keep on coming."
6.1| 1h48m| PG| en| More Info
Released: 21 October 1994 Released
Producted By: Lucasfilm Ltd.
Country: United States of America
Budget: 0
Revenue: 0
Official Website:
Synopsis

A series of mysterious crimes threatens the existence of a new radio network.

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Lucasfilm Ltd.

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Reviews

FuzzyTagz If the ambition is to provide two hours of instantly forgettable, popcorn-munching escapism, it succeeds.
Humbersi The first must-see film of the year.
Juana what a terribly boring film. I'm sorry but this is absolutely not deserving of best picture and will be forgotten quickly. Entertaining and engaging cinema? No. Nothing performances with flat faces and mistaking silence for subtlety.
Geraldine The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.
JohnHowardReid It's hard to believe that a movie made on such an enormous budget (fifteen million dollars is usually quoted as the sum involved, although I cannot for the life of me see where the money went. Even three million dollars seems somewhat high for what we actually see on the screen) could promise so much entertainment, but deliver so little. George Burns is prominently billed, but appears for less than a minute. True, some of the tributes (Rogers and Astaire, Spike Jones, Andrews Sisters, Alice Faye) are great, but, aside from Spike, all we receive are snatches of song. The mystery angle is likewise underplayed until the King Kong conclusion, whereas the totally witless farce is played at a relentlessly full volume throughout. Only the great Anita Morris proves equal to the challenge. Although top-billed, Mary Stuart Masterson is unattractively photographed, with all the best angles reserved for camera-hogging Brian Benben and Scott Michael Campbell.
anthony-rigoni This movie takes us back 70 years ago at the City of Chicago, where station WBN hosts the variety of many radio programs. Unfortunately, it's also the place of interest where six murders are committed. Brian Benben stars as hapless writer Roger Henderson, who tries to solve the murders of stool-pigeon trumpet player Ruffles Reedy(Jack Sheldon), Toupee wearing Director Walt Whalen Jr.(Jeffery Tambor), Bossy Stage Manager Herman Katzenback(Larry Miller), Sleazy Radio Announcer Dexter Morris(Corbin Bernsen), humorless sponsor Bernie King(Brion James), and WBN Head Man General Walt Whalen(Ned Beatty). Accused of being the killer by Short-Tempered Lt. Cross(Michael Lerner), he, along with bell boy Billy(Scott M. Campbell) and his wife Penny Henderson(Mary S. Masterson), must find out who committed the murders and why. It features appearances by well-known comedian George Burns as the 100-year-experienced radio comedian Milt Lackey, Anita Morris' last appearance as the Va-Va-Va-Voom Girl with the Va-Va-Va-Voom voice Claudette Katzenback, Christopher Lloyd as the sound effects man Zoltan, and Peter MacNicol(who is known for his starring role in the Mr. Bean Movie) as the son of one of the writers. To find out who the killer really is... You'll have to watch the movie. This movie is a nostalgia of classic radio and mystery with a dash of LOL. I guarantee you'll like this movie! 1000/1000
LCShackley This would make a good triple feature with RADIO DAYS and MY FAVORITE YEAR if you want to be nostalgic about old-time entertainment. The best way for me to review this movie is to list some pluses and minuses:PLUS: An amazing cast: just read the list. MINUS: Most of them are barely used. Were some scenes with the writers cut out? Otherwise, why hire big names like Klein, Korman, Goldthwait, McNicol? The only people we actually see writing in the film are Masterson and Benben. (The others are on strike, of course.)PLUS: Wonderful evocation of the days of live radio. (I did radio drama in the 70s and it was still much like it appears in the film.) MINUS: The mystery plot, while it keeps the action going, is rather a let-down when it finally unravels. RADIO DAYS is more successful because it focuses on funny situations and characters and doesn't burden the film with another layer of plot.PLUS: Wow...about five minutes of vintage Spike Jones material re-created on screen with McKean in a Spike suit and playing the Sabre Dance on bottles, guns, etc.!?! Blessings on the Jones estate for letting them do it. DOUBLE PLUS: ...and with Billy Barty and Mousie Garner, both Jones veterans, taking part! TRIPLE PLUS: A really fine score by Joel McNeely. Am I the only one who thinks there was a "Vertigo" tribute in the tower-climbing scene? McNeely has done a lot of Hitchcock score conducting.MINUS: Lots of show biz clichés (the separated couple romancing, the messenger boy becoming a hero, etc.), but you could argue that it's all part of the tribute.This is definitely worth watching, maybe even twice if you love that era (and I do).
TheMrFrog If you're looking for a serious mystery--or for that matter, a serious anything--don't watch this movie.If you just want a fun movie that you can watch again and again, this one is for you! It takes place in the studios of radio station WBN on the night of its national debut. The station managers, directors, writers, and actors, already stressed with the debut and pleasing the affiliates, are shocked when a trumpet player in the orchestra is poisoned and killed. The station crew then has to keep the programs going while the police investigate and the writers go on strike. After more murders are committed, writer Roger Henderson, the innocent prime suspect, has to simultaneously evade the police, rewrite scripts for shows about to air, and solve the crime to prove his innocence.There are some discrepancies and parts I'm sure critical people split hairs over. Don't expect a masterpiece, just some good fun.