As a preamble to my Non-Professional Review, there may be spoilers within any review I publish.

It’s funny how you can watch a movie as a kid, not like it, but you eventually reach an age where the movie works on you. That is my experience of Warren Beatty’s DICK TRACY (1990), a whole 32 years after it was released in theatres.

I remember watching it, maybe once or twice, and not liking it. There were a couple things about it that were really bothersome. Number one: I was disturbed by all the actors under prosthetic makeup that cartoonishly exaggerate their fucked-up faces. It was like the actors were made to be too ugly. So ugly that it turned me off the whole movie. I didn’t want to see their ugly, faces even for a minute. If the DICK TRACY actors weren’t under prosthetic makeup, I think I would have like it more.

Number two: Warren Beatty as an actor is a whole lotta “meh” to me. I don’t hate him. I don’t love him. Nor have I ever enjoyed his directing. No strong feeling other than…meh. As I kid, I was aware that he’s a famous actor who was a major star more in the sixties and seventies, but that’s neither here nor there.

Who would’ve thunk, re-watching DICK TRACY in 2022 would dramatically change my opinion. Not me, that’s who. Now, I still don’t like the actors fucked up faces and I STILL am “meh” on actor/director Warren Beatty, buuuuut there is so much I enjoyed now that I’m older. Literally, within a few minutes, the movie grabbed me because of Danny Elfman’s score. It strongly reminded be of his score for Tim Burton’s BATMAN (1989) and these two films would make an good double feature. It’s like DICK TRACY is a more colorful, less gothy, less German Expressionistic version of BATMAN.

DICK TRACY is a gorgeous movie. I adore the comic book aesthetic, cinematography of Vittorio Storaro, the production design of Richard Sylbart, costume design of Milena Canonero, the set design of Eric Orbom, the use of primary colors, the acting, Madonna singing Stephen Sondheim songs, the Crayola crayon colored cars, the fact that it’s 1 hour and 45 minutes, and Al Pacino at his yelliest.

Man, does Pacino yell up at STORM. He’s a veritable Supercell Tornado of yelling. This has got to be Pacino at maximum volume. So. Much. Mega acting. He is so yelly that I frequently wondered how much he hurt at the end of each day of shooting. Like, did he pull at least ONE abdominal muscle during filming? So yelly, be prepared to quickly lower the volume when watching it in the comfort of your home. Pacino’s performance of Big Boy Caprice is truly over-the-top, as in he devouring the scenery, and terrifying because Caprice abuses EVERYONE. His performance works.

Madonna delivers sexy, mysterious club singer of Stephen Sondheim songs wonderfully. I miss her short, Marilyn Monroe style platinum curls period. While I’m not a fan of musicals and know very little of Sondheim’s catalog of songs, the stand-outs were “Sooner or Later (I Always Get My Man)", “Back in Business", and “More.”

As for actor/director Warren Beatty…still “meh.” At least I enjoy him in his own great movie. So, in conclusion I absolutely recommend DICK TRACY (1990) to fans of TIm Burtons’s BATMAN (1990), and to those who love movies that embrace vibrant colors, the 1930’s era, and comic book movies. DICK TRACY (1990) is rated PG and the runtime is 1 hour 45 minutes.

P.S. If you ever wanted to know whatever happened to actor Charlie Korsmo. He left acting and teaches corporate law. He is the Assistant Professor of Law and is the U.S.director of the Canada-U.S. Law Institute. President Barak Obama appointed Korsmo to the Board of Trustees of the Barry Goldwater Scholarship and Excellence in Education Foundation. He…uh…also was a member of the Federalist Society and supported nominating Samuel Alito to the Supreme Court.