Themes: Fish Out of Water, Prostitutes, College Life
Main Cast: Dan Aykroyd, Howard Hesseman, T.K. Carter, Donna Dixon, Lynn Whitfield
Release Year: 1983
Country: US
Run Time: 91 minutes
MPAA Rating: R
Plot
A college professor (Dan Aykroyd is forced to go undercover as a Chicago pimp disguised by a bushy wig -- the height of hairlarity in this anemic comedy. When Smooth Walker (Howard Hesseman) is hunted by his gangster rival, Mom (Kate Murtagh), he foists his bevy of hookers on the professor -- and then ends up dead. Among the four hookers who are suddenly in his undercover life are Fran Drescher in an early role as an archetypal Jewish princess, and Donna Dixon as another of the high-class call-girls (Dixon and Aykroyd were later married). ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
Review
Doctor Detroit is not one of the classic entries in the Dan Aykroyd filmography. The story isn't terribly complex, the premise relies on a lot of sitcom-style schtick, and Michael Pressman's direction is slick but rather impersonal. However, comedy fans might be surprised by just how engaging Doctor Detroit is. Just when it seems like a viewer can write it off, it delivers a surprising, throwaway bit of dialogue or an engaging, well-played gag. The key to the film is its engaging cast of ensemble players, who create a nice sense of interplay that draws the viewer into the genially goofy premise. Aykroyd delivers plenty of energy and laughs in his dual roles, T.K. Carter makes an excellent foil, and Kate Murtagh makes for an amusingly unconventional villain. Also worthy of note are scene-stealing supporting performances from Fran Drescher as the craftiest of the "working girls" and Howard Hesseman as their wayward but clever "business manager." Besides, it is virtually impossible to dislike a movie that features a special musical number performed by James Brown and a theme song by Devo. In short, Doctor Detroit is a trifle, but it's a very entertaining trifle. ~ Donald Guarisco, All Movie Guide
Peter V. Herald - Associate Producer, Carlton Johnson - Choreography, Betsy Cox - Costume Designer, Gary Daigler - First Assistant Director, Michael Pressman - Director, Christopher Greenbury - Editor, Bernie Brillstein - Executive Producer, Lalo Schifrin - Composer (Music Score), Devo - Songwriter, Lawrence G. Paull - Production Designer, King Baggot - Cinematographer, Robert Weiss - Producer, Hal G. Gausman - Set Designer, William B. Kaplan - Sound/Sound Designer, Bruce Jay Friedman - Screen Story, Bruce Jay Friedman - Screenwriter, Dan Aykroyd - Screenwriter, Robert Boris - Screenwriter, Carl Gottlieb - Screenwriter, Bruce Jay Friedman - Book Author
A shy, gentle man named Clifford Skridlow is a professor of comparative literature at the financially strapped (fictional) Monroe College in Chicago. A chance encounter with four beautiful women at a restaurant changes his life forever.
The women are high-class prostitutes. Smooth Walker, their pimp, is in danger due to his enormous debt to the gruff "Mom," a Chicago mob boss. Smooth invents a fictitious business partner, the flamboyant "Doctor Detroit," in an attempt to save himself from Mom's wrath.
Through a series of comical misunderstandings, Cliff is conned into becoming Smooth Walker's patsy. He transforms himself into Doctor Detroit, embarking on a dangerous mission to protect the girls from Mom. He also must keep this secret from his straight-laced parents while simultaneously attempting to secure a large endowment for the struggling university.
Cliff becomes a hero to the four women, but puts his life at grave risk.
James Brown performed the theme song: "Get Up Offa That Thing/Dr. Detroit". Devo performed the "Theme From Doctor Detroit" and had another track in the film, "Luv-Luv". There was an EP with the "Theme from Doctor Detroit," "Luv-Luv" and a remix of the theme released, as well as a music video incorporating footage from the film.
In her autobiography, "Enter Whining", Fran Drescher comments that this film was expected to be a major hit but that it fell short of that expectation; by the time the film ended its run in theatres, it had only managed to make US$10.8 Million, on a budget of US$8 Million.
